Experimental study of the hepatotoxic effect of toluol. II. Electron microscopic and electron histochemical studies.

The hepatotoxic effect of the analitically pure toluol and a toluol neing used in the Chemical Factory "Tiszai" was investigated. Single toxic and various subtoxic doses of toluol were administered intraperitoneally and subeutaneously to male rats of CFY. The liver of the animals was investigated by the aid of electron microscope. It was established that large doses of toluol lead to the decrease of glycogen content and increase of the number of mitochondria in the hepatic cells. Numerous dividing mitochondria were also observed, with a great deal of matrix graules. Electronhistochemical demonstration of the activity of succinic-dehydrogenase does not reveal any difference between the liver of experimental and control animals. As an effect of small doses of toluol degenerative changes-enlargement of the cysternae of the endoplasmatic reticulum, separation of ribosomes, increase of the number of autophag-vacuola-could be seen. The degenerative changes occurred only in a part of the hepatic cells which appeared to be distributed randomly in the liver lobules. Authors assume that lesions revealed are of reversible type.