EFFECT OF ADMINISTRATION OF THE EFFECTIVE DOSAGE OF AN ORAL HYPOGLYCEMIC COMPOUND "TOLBUTAMIDE" ON THE OFFSPRING OF ICR-JCL MICE

Abstract

Primiparous ICR-JCL mice of 13 to 17 weeks of age were given tolbutamide (100mg/kg) by using a gastric tube daily from day 0 to 17 of gestation. The blood sugar level was determined by the modified method of Somogy-Nelson two hours after the administration of the drug on day 10. Blood sample was taken also from some mice in the control group for the test of blood sugar level, while the others were not treated at all. All the mice were autopsied on day 18 and their fetuses were examined for the external malformations as well as the skeletal abnormalities after cleared and stained with alizarin red S. The results may be summarized as follows. 1. No significant differences on the maternal states and the fetal developments were observed between the untreated and the subgroup, whose blood was taken, in the control. 2. The body weight gain and the food intake of the mothers in the tolbutamide group did not differ from the control, while the water intake was significantly reduced in the later half of pregnancy compared with the control. The blood sugar level in the tolbutamide group on day 10 was 88mg/kg, which correponds to the reduced value of 29% in comparison with that in the control. 3. Administration of tolbutamide did not show any developmental disturbance such as lethal, growth suppressing or terarogenic effect on the offspring except a slight decrease in the ossified number of the coccygeal vertrebrae.