Relationship between in vivo mitomycin C exposure, sister chromatid exchange induction and in vitro mitogenic proliferation. I. Development of murine splenic cell system.

In vivo administration of mitomycin C (MMC) to C57BL/6J mice induced a rapid, initial suppression (24 hours post injection) of in vitro mitogenesis. This was followed by of the mitogen concentration-response curves were found of the three mitogens, phytohemagglutinin and concanavalin A, but not for lipopolysaccharide. By 144 hours post injection, the dose-response curves and magnitude of the responses had returned to approximately control (untreated) levels. This approach provides a model system for the functional assessment of in vivo cellular damage by MMC.