Distribution of tritiated tetrodotoxin administered intraperitoneally to pufferfish.
Tetrodotoxin was recoil-tritiated by the 3He(n,p)3H reaction and purified by gel filtration. The [3H]tetrodotoxin gave only one spot in both cellulose acetate strip electrophoresis and thin layer chromatography. The specific toxicity of tetrodotoxin did not decrease during the recoil tritiation and the [3H]tetrodotoxin showed a specific radioactivity of 25 x 10(-6) Ci/mmole. In spite of the low specific radioactivity, the [3H]tetrodotoxin was able to be used to investigate the anatomical distribution of tetrodotoxin in pufferfish. When intraperitoneally injected into 'torafugu' puffer, [3H]tetrodotoxin accumulated in most tissues, the level being highest in the skin, followed by the liver, intestines and muscle. With time, the [3H]tetrodotoxin radioactivity level in the injected pufferfish decreased in most tissues, except for skin and gallbladder. Based on these results, the metabolism of tetrodotoxin in pufferfish is discussed.
Laboratory of Marine Biochemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tokyo, Japan.
S
S
Watabe
Y
Y
Sato
M
M
Nakaya
N
N
Nogawa
K
K
Oohashi
T
T
Noguchi
N
N
Morikawa
K
K
Hashimoto
D000818:Animals; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D002855:Chromatography, Thin Layer; D004588:Electrophoresis, Cellulose Acetate; D005399:Fishes / Q000378:metabolism*; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D013779:Tetrodotoxin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000633:toxicity; D014018:Tissue Distribution
D013779:Tetrodotoxin