Carcinogenicity of policosanol in Sprague Dawley rats: a 24 month study.
The effects of policosanol (50-500 mg/kg) administered orally for 24 months to Sprague Dawley rats of both sexes were investigated. No differences related to daily clinical observations, weight gain, food consumption, or mortality (survival analysis) between groups were found. Histopathological study showed that the frequency of the occurrence of non-neoplastic and neoplastic (benign and malignant) lesions was similar in the control and policosanol-treated groups. The lesions observed in this study were similar to the spontaneous lesions reported in this species in previous studies. Since no drug-related increase in the occurrence of malignant or benign neoplasms was found, nor acceleration in tumors growth in any specific group was observed, this study shows no evidence of policosanol induced carcinogenicity in this strain of rats.
Center of Natural Products, National Center for Scientific Research, Havana City, Cuba.
C L
CL
Alemán
R
R
Más Ferreiro
M
M
Noa Puig
I
I
Rodeiro Guerra
C
C
Hernández Ortega
A
A
Capote
D000818:Animals; D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D015197:Carcinogenicity Tests; D005233:Fatty Alcohols / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced*; D009374:Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000139:chemically induced; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D016019:Survival Analysis
D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents; D005233:Fatty Alcohols; C080710:policosanol