THE CYTOTOXIC EFFEC T OF CHELIDONIUM ALKALOIDS ON CELLS ISOLATED FROM ADULT RAT LIVER

Alkaloids of the aerial parts of chelidonium were extracted in the salt form, and their aqueous solutions were prepared in different concentrations. Rat hepatocytes were obtained by liver perfusion. The alkaloidal solutions were added to suspensions of hepatocytes in petri dishes and the mixtures were incubated. Two types of controls have been used in one type. no alkaloidal extract was added to the media, and in the other, alkaloidal extract of datura which has no cytotoxic activity was added to the hepatocytes. Intracellular LOH activity as well as the activity of leaked LOH into the media, the glucose uptake by the cells, and the glycogen contents of the cells were determined after incubation. The results indicate that 0.05 ml of the alkaloidal solution of chelidonium has no detectable effect on LOH activity during a 240 minute incubation period. With n.1 ml doses, detectable changes were observed only after 240 minutes of incubation. When 0.2 ml doses were used, the intracellular LOH activity was lowered by 3.23,n.71) and 30.XI) percent after nO,120 and 240 minutes of incubation respectively, as compared with the controls. The activity of leaked LOH into the media duration of incubation was increased. Determination of glucose in different media showed that the uptake of this sugar by the hepatocytes incubated with chelidonium decreased as the dose and incubation periods increased. On the other hand, as the glycogen content of the hepatocytes incubated with chelidonium was the same as that of the controls, we believe that the hepatocytes lost their viability in the presence of chelidonium-derived cytotoxic alkaloids.