Cell culture as a test system for toxicity

Abstract

Abstract Appropriate cell culture systems provide a useful additional method of screening for toxicity, in spite of the obvious problems of relating in vitro effects of test compounds at the cellular level to their effects in the whole animal. It is shown that a wide range of chemically disimilar molecules have a reversible inhibitory activity on the growth of primary cultures of monkey kidney cells. The potency of these compounds correlates with their lipid solubility, suggesting that the cell membranes may be their main site of action. Support for this is obtained by the correlation of inhibitory activity and the ability of the same compounds to stabilize the erythrocyte membrane against hypotonic haemolysis which is known to be a direct effect of interaction with the erythrocyte membrane. It is suggested that the ability of the food additive butylated hydroxytoluene to act as a potent inhibitor of cellular growth may account for its reported ability to prolong the life span of mice.