THE EFFECTS OF STARVATION OR OF TREATMENT WITH CYTOTOXIC AGENTS ON PREGNANCY IN MICE

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  • DGD. O. E. Gebhardt
    D. O. E. Gebhardt
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Abstract
Summary.: In mice at different stages of pregnancy, a comparison was made between the embryotoxic effect of starvation and of treatment with one of the following antimitotic substances: aminopterin, 6-aminonicotinamide or actinomycin D. The presence of embryonic resorptions was established by immersing the uterus in a 10% solution of ammonium sulphide. When pregnant mice were starved for 24 hr, the 6th day was the most effective time for inducing resorptions. The most sensitive period for inducing resorptions with aminopterin was the 8th and 9th days of pregnancy. The great decline in sensitivity of the embryo on the 10th day was also observed after injecting 6-aminonicotinamide or actinomycin D. Growth retardation of embryos or young mice occurred only if the maltreatment was initiated after implantation. The antimitotic substance 6-aminonicotinamide caused a more permanent stunting than 48 hr of starvation.