The target portion of acetaminophen induced hepatotoxicity in rats: modification by thiol compounds

In order to determine the target portion of acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity, 750 mg per kg of body weight of acetaminophen was administered to male Wistar strain rats with or without the pretreatment of thiol compounds. In the liver, glutathione content decreased throughout the observation periods, and glutathione S-transferase initially, and later adenosine triphosphatase decreased, followed as elevations of aminotransferases and ornithione carbamoyltransferase in serum. The pretreatment of thiol compounds could not restore hepatic enzyme activities, but partially hepatic glutathione content and serum enzyme elevations. Although distinct time lag existed in biochemical alterations in the liver, hepatic glutathione content was significantly correlated solely with hepatic glutathione S-transferase. The mechanism of acetaminophen hepatotoxicity was discussed from the aspect of biochemical events in cytosol and membrane structure in hepatocytes. The mechanism of acetaminophen induced hepatotoxicity has been extensively investigated, and the hepatotoxicity seems to be related to the toxic metabolites generated by biotransformation process (Gillette et al., 1974, Mitchell et al., 1976). Since the toxic metabolites are conjugated with glutathione (GSH), it is generally accepted that when the hepatocellular GSH content has critically depleted, the metabolites seem to react with hepatocyte macromolecules and/or to produce lipid peroxidation, resulting in biochemical and structural changes leading to cell death (Black, 1980). A hepatotoxic dose of labelled acetaminophen was found throughout the liver and the highest concentration was found in centrilobular area, where considerable disruption and vacuolation of the plasma membrane and of the endoplasmic reticulum also occurred (Jollow et al., 1973, Chiu and Bhakthan, 1978). However remarkably little impairment of several enzyme systems in microsome, such as cytochrome P450 content, arylhydrocarbon hydroxylase and glucuronyl transferase has been reported (Thorgeirsson et al., 1976, Chiu and Bhakthan, 1978: Willson and Hart, 1977, Yamada et al., 1981). To elucidate the exact mechanism of acetaminophen hepatotoxicity, we observed time related biochemical alterations of hepatic GSH content, some marker enzymes in hepatocyte subfractions and serum enzymes. The present results indicated that acetaminophen reduced hepatic GSH content, followed as depletions of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) and finally adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase), associated with elevations of serum enzymes.