| Abstract: | One-time oral administration of arsenic trioxide to hamsters with toxic liver cirrhosis induced by longterm exposure to carbon tetrachloride resulted in significant elevations of the concentrations of dimethylarsenic species in the liver and in blood, and in high urinary excretions of dimethylarsenic species. These concentration changes in the liver, blood and urine indicated that the methylation of inorganic arsenic was not inhibited but promoted in hamsters suffering from experimentally induced toxic liver cirrhosis. Cirrhotic hamsters also had increased urinary excretion of inorganic arsenic. Results of the determinations of S-adenosylmethionine in the livers suggested that this compound may accelerate the methylation of inorganic arsenic in the cirrhotic liver. |
