[Aspergillus ochraceus Wilhelm toxins. IV. -- Toxicity in rat by prolonged oral administration of ochratoxin A (author's transl)].

Adult male and female rats are given oral doses of 0.25 to 8 mg/kg of ochratoxin A daily for 10 days. This study confirms the intoxication symptomatology and weight loss observed in rat and mouse after sole administration of toxins. Estimation of the DL C50 and the calculation of the detoxication coefficient show accumulation of ochratoxin A in the organism. Microscopic lesions emphasize ochratoxin A aggression on hepatocytes, nephrocytes and megacaryocytes. Serious renal failure may cause the appearance of digestive ulcerating lesions; their association to eventual coagulation factor deficiency, related to toxic action on liver or blood platelets, may be at the origin of the hemorrhagic syndrome observed.