Liver distribution of 99mTc-DL-homocysteine in experimental hepatitis rats

Liver accumulation of 99mTc-DL-homocysteine (99mTc-Hcy), which had been found to accumulate in several experimental tumors, was studied using experimental hepatitis models of rats. The distribution of this compound in liver of rats treated with CCl4 (25-100 microL/100 g body weight) was more than five times higher than that of non-treated rats, corresponding to the accumulation of Evans Blue, a marker dye for capillary permeability. Furthermore, in vitro experiments indicated that the liver accumulation of 99mTc-Hcy was due to some changes in the plasma membranes caused by CCl4 administration. These results indicate that lesional accumulation of 99mTc-Hcy is due to, at least in part, an enlarged capillary permeability similar to the case of malignant tissues reported previously.