URINARY MARKERS OF NEPHROTOXICITY FOLLOWING ADMINISTRATION OF 2-BROMOETHANAMINE HYDROBROMIDE - A COMPARISON WITH HEXACHLOROBUTADIENE

2-bromoethanamine hydrobromide (BEA) has been widely considered to be a target selective nephrotoxin that causes necrosis of the medulla in 24-48 h, but recent reports suggest that early cortical injury is also associated with this lesion. In order to assess the cortical effects of BEA (100 mg kg(-1) bw single ip injection), several urinary markers of renal injury were evaluated over a 7-day period in male Wistar Alb ino rats. Hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD-150 mg kg(-1) bw in peanut oil ip) , a renal toxin which targets selectively for the proximal tubule, was used as a comparison. After BEA treatment, urinary levels of alanine aminopeptidase, gammaglutamyl-transpeptidase, alkaline phosphatase and glucose increased transiently. Each of the proximal tubule marker enz ymes peaked earlier following HCBD treatment and elevation of alanine aminopeptidase and gamma-glutamyl-transpeptidase was sustained for lon ger periods than for BEA. Following BEA treatment, lactate dehydrogena se rose prominently on day 1 followed by a return to control values on day 2 and a further rise on day 3 and remained high until the end of the study. BEA also increased the urinary excretion of total protein a nd albumin. After HCBD treatment, lactate dehydrogenase showed a trans ient elevation and glucose levels were slightly increased. Based on th e present observations the changes induced by BEA administration on ur inary markers of renal injury are different from those observed follow ing HCBD treatment. These findings suggest that BEA toxicity also invo lves other parts of the kidney besides the papilla.