Cleft palate induction: quantitative studies of 3H corticoids in A/Jax mouse tissues after maternal injections of 3H cortisol.

A/Jax mice were injected with 50 muCi of 3H cortisol and 10 mg of cortisone acetate on day 12 of gestation. At various intervals after injection, the maternal liver, placenta, yolk sac, and the fetal jaws were removed and analyzed by thin-layer chromatography in conjunction with oxidative combustion and liquid scintillation counting to identify and measure the amount of labeled corticoid metabolites. The results support the thesis that these corticoids may induce clefts by an individual or combined direct action on the fetal jaws and palatal shelf tissue.