Protein synthesis inhibition and cardiac lesions associated with deoxynivalenol ingestion in mice.

Deoxynivalenol (DON), an occasional contaminant of foodstuffs, has been implicated in outbreaks of mycotoxicosis. Balb-c mice that had ingested 0.35 mg/kg of DON showed a drastic decrease in food intake and concomitant loss of weight. Severe depletion of the lymphoid organs and liver were also observed. Cardiac lesions, appeared as calcified pericarditis foci in young animals fed a diet contaminated by 10 to 20 ppm of DON for a period of a few weeks. DON inhibited protein synthesis. This inhibition occurred at lower doses for the heart than for the other organs. This preferential effect on cardiac tissue correlated with the cardiotoxicity observed.