title: Induction of cataract in methylnitrosourea treated Fischer (F344) rats.
abstract: Cataracts were observed in female F344 rats who intravenously received methylnitrosourea (MNU), a potent carcinogen for multiple organs, in one dose of 50 mg/kg body weight. Induction of cataract 40 weeks after MNU treatment was 41% whereas no cataract was observed in control rats. The aggregation of beta H-crystallin fraction by MNU was studied in vitro. HPLC pattern of beta H-crystallin changed when lens protein was incubated for 24 hrs with MNU. HPLC patterns indicated that MNU induced high molecular weight aggregates of beta H-crystallin. This study conveys some indication about the direct interaction of MNU with lens protein in cataract formation.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Fujimoto
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ito
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002386:Cataract / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D003459:Crystallins / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008770:Methylnitrosourea / Q000633:toxicity*; D011487:Protein Conformation / Q000187:drug effects; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344
chemical_list: D003459:Crystallins; D008770:Methylnitrosourea