Carbon Tetrachloride and Cation Transport by Rat Liver Slices

Abstract

The ability of liver slices prepared from normal rats and from isolated perfused livers following a 1 h control perfusion to reverse a cold-imposed shift in cations when rewarmed was confirmed as a control parameter of rat liver tissue. Three hours after normal rats had received a standard dose of CCl4 via a gastric tube, a decreased ability for the membrane transport of sodium was found. The infusion of CCl4 directly into the perfusate line was shown to cause acute toxic damage in isolated livers. Further, at the end of the 1 h perfusion, the infusion of CCl4 was shown to result in an increased tissue sodium level and a decreased capacity for the membrane transport of sodium and potassium by slices. It is suggested that a generalized change in plasmalemma function, as evidenced in alterations in the membrane transport of cations and tissue cation level, may be an early manifestation of CCl4 hepatotoxicity.