Teratogenic potential of purified pentachlorophenol and pentachloroanisole in subchronically exposed Sprague-Dawley rats.

Male and female Sprague-Dawley (Spartan) rats were exposed to dietary levels of 0, 60, 200 or 600 ppm purified pentachlorophenol (PCP) or pentachloroanisole (PCA) for 181 days, through mating and pregnancy. The daily intakes of PCP were 0, 4, 13 or 43 mg/kg body weight and of PCA were 0, 4, 12 or 41 mg/kg body weight. Animals exposed to PCP generally consumed more food than control animals during pregnancy. Dams at the high-dose level of both compounds showed evidence of toxicity, weighing less on day 0 of gestation and gaining less throughout pregnancy than did the controls. Dams exposed to the high dose of PCP gained less weight during pregnancy (exclusive of the gravid uterus) than control dams. At the 43 mg/kg/day dose level PCP was embryolethal. Foetuses at the lower dose levels of PCP exhibited dose-related decreases in body weights. A reduction in crown-rump length and an increase in foetal skeletal variations were seen at 13 mg/kg/day in PCP animals only. An intake of 41 mg PCA/kg/day was associated with a decrease in the number of corpora lutea and in embryolethality. PCA exposure also resulted in reductions in foetal body weight and crown-rump lengths of males at 4 and 41 mg/kg/day. Female foetuses were unaffected.