title: An improved technique for repeated gavage administration to rat neonates.
abstract: The technique for gavage administration to rat nurslings was improved to allow determination of the direct effects of chemical substances in the nurslings. Rat neonates were treated with distilled water from postnatal day 1 through 20 using this technique. The viability of neonates during the administration period was comparable to that of untreated neonates. No adverse effects of this technique on the development of neonates were found, and no histological alterations of the esophagus or pharynx. Therefore, we conclude that use of our improved gavage administration method will contribute to ensuring successful neonatal development and thus allowing accurate assessment of the toxicological effects of test compounds on rat nurslings.
authors.affiliation: Hatano Research Institute, Food and Drug Safety Center, Hadano, Kanagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Chiaki
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Makiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kuwagata
authors.forename: Shinsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.forename: Jiro
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Azegami
authors.forename: Kouichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kojima
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ono
authors.forename: Tetsuji
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nagao
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001835:Body Weight; D005260:Female; D008136:Longevity; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats / Q000254:growth & development*; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014867:Water / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D014867:Water