Comparative histochemical study of adriamycin and adriamycinol in rat liver and heart.

Investigations were carried out into morphological differences between the uptake of adriamycin and its 13-OH metabolite adriamycinol into rat liver and heart. In the liver parenchyma, adriamycinol is mainly stored in the central area of the hepatic lobule, while adriamycin shows a more uniform distribution. In cardiac tissue, adriamycin accumulates within chromatin masses, whereas adriamycinol scarcely enters myocardial cells. The cardiotoxicity of both anthracyclines might be related to interactions with cytomembrane binding sites.