Rat liver regeneration in the presence of nonbenzenoid aromatic agents: ferrocenes and cycloheptatrienes.

The extent of liver regeneration in partially hepatectomized rats was increased over a period of 10 days on feeding a basal diet supplemented with 1,1'-diacetylferrocene at 0.15% by weight but the respective differences over the controls were not significant with diets containing ferrocene (0.10 and 0.30%) and acetylferrocene (0.10%) or on sc injection of these agents in peanut oil solution. Tropolone and colchicine supplemented at 750 and 100 PPM, respectively, depressed the regenerative process. The wet and dry liver weight percentages were increased in intact rats fed acetylferrocene (0.15%) or diacetylferrocene (0.060%) but not with ferrocene (0.20%) or with the three injected by the sc route. Hepatic iron deposition was extensive in operated rats fed ferrocene and diacetylferrocene but was far lower in the intact animals on these diets or in the groups injected with the agents.