ETHANOL INTAKE MAY MODIFY GOSSYPOL TOXICOSIS IN THE RAT

Some aspects of the toxicity of gossypol were investigated in ethanol- fed, gossypol-treated Sprague-Dawley rats, with and without protein ma lnutrition. Serum creatine phosphokinase activity was depressed in all gossypol-treated rats and gossypol caused greater decreases than etha nol in those animals that were fed the normal diet. Even though the ad renal glands were enlarged in all gossypol-treated rats, this was acco mpanied by depressed serum cortisol levels. Histopathological findings , including vacuolar degeneration of hepatocytes and dilation of the s inusoids in the liver, atrophy and leucocytic infiltration of cardiac myofibres, vacuolation of the renal glomerulus and cellular depletion of the spleen and thymus, were most severe in the protein-malnourished , gossypol-treated rats; these were generally absent in the other grou ps. These findings indicated that either adequate levels of protein in the diet and/or ethanol consumption have the effect of reducing gossy pol toxicity, probably by reducing the amount of gossypol available fo r tissue exposure through enhanced metabolism and/or clearance from th e body. However, an evaluation of the metabolic pathways involved in g ossypol metabolism in ethanol-fed individuals might provide a better u nderstanding of these observations.