title: Comparison of the embryotoxic effects of saporin, agrostin (type 1 ribosome-inactivating proteins) and ricin (a type 2 ribosome-inactivating protein).
abstract: The effects of two type I ribosome-inactivating proteins, saporin and agrostin, and the type 2 ribosome-inactivating protein ricin and its constituent A and B chains, on the development of cultured mouse embryos, were investigated. Saporin and agrostin had similar embryotoxicity which was approximately 10(5) times weaker than that of ricin and its A and B chains, and the embryotoxicity of saporin and agrostin increased gradually with the dosage. In contrast, there was an abrupt rise in embryotoxictiy of ricin-A chain and B chain as the dose was raised from 10 to 20 ng x ml(-1). Saporin and agrostin did not affect the heart-beat and otic placode, but at 10 ng x ml(-1) ricin and 40 ng x ml(-1) ricin-A chain and B chain, all of the treated embryos exhibited abnormalities in heart-beat, yolk sac circulation, body axis, optic placode, otic placode, forelimb buds, branchial apparatus and cranial neural tube.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin.
authors.forename: W Y
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: T B
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Ng
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D046508:Culture Techniques; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000187:drug effects*; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D000922:Immunotoxins; D051379:Mice; D009699:N-Glycosyl Hydrolases / Q000633:toxicity; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000633:toxicity*; D011500:Protein Synthesis Inhibitors / Q000633:toxicity; D054789:Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 1; D054790:Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 2; D012276:Ricin / Q000633:toxicity*; D000076985:Saporins
chemical_list: D000922:Immunotoxins; D010940:Plant Proteins; D011500:Protein Synthesis Inhibitors; D054789:Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 1; D054790:Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 2; C459705:agrostin protein, Agrostemma; D012276:Ricin; D009699:N-Glycosyl Hydrolases; D000076985:Saporins