Abstract
Young female guinea pigs were fed various doses of penitrem A every 3 days for 3 weeks. Guinea pigs fed penitrem A had muscle tremors, seizures, and ataxia, and total weight gains were less than those of control guinea pigs. Histologic examination of multiple tissues and electron microscopic examination of liver and kidney revealed no differences between guinea pigs fed penitrem A and controls. Sera harvested at necropsy from guinea pigs fed penitrem A and control guinea pigs did not differ significantly in mean values of two liver enzymes (ornithine carbamoyltransferase and sorbital dehydrogenase), complement, total protein, and differential proteins (albumin;α 1,α 2,β, andγ gobulins). Results of this study indicate that penitrem A causes only central nervous system dysfunction; evidence of cytotoxicity for extraneural tissues was not found.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Arp, L. H. & Richard, J. L., 1979. Intoxication of dogs with the mycotoxin penitrem. A.J.A.V.M.A. 175: 565–566.
Baetz, A. L. & Pier, A. C. An automated fluorometric method for the determination of sorbitol dehydrogenase and its application to the assessment of liver damage in bovine mycotoxicosis. Clin. Chem. 28th Nat. 1 Meet. 337, July 1976.
Buck, W. B., Osweiler, G. D. & Van Gelder, G. A., 1973. Clinical and Diagnostic Veterinary Toxicology, pp. 145–6. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, Dubuque, Iowa.
Campbell, D. H., Garvey, J. S., Cremer, N. E., et al. 1964. Methods in Immunology, pp. 175–181, W. A. Benjamin Inc., New York.
Ćatović, S., Filipović, N. & Stern, P., 1975. The effect penitrem-A upon the level of glycine in the CNS. Bull Scientifique 20: 284–285.
Ciegler, A. 1969. Tremorgenic toxin from Penicillium palitants. Appl. Microbiol. 18: 128–129.
Clayson, K. J., Fine, J. S. & Strandjord, P. E., 1975. A more sensitive automated method for determination of ornithine carbamoyltransferase activity in human serum. Clin. Chem. 21: 754–757.
Curtis, D. R., Duggan, A. W. & Johnston, G. A. R., 1971. The specificity of strychnine as a glycine antagonist in the mammalian spinal cord. Exp. Brain Res. 12: 547–565.
Cysewski, S. J., Baetz, A. L. & Pier, A. C., 1975. Penitrem A intoxication of calves: blood chemical and pathologic changes. Am. J. Vet. Res. 36: 53–58.
Cysewski, S. J., 1973. A tremorgenic mycotoxin from Penicillium puberrulum, its isolation and neuropathic effects. Ph.D. Thesis Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.
Gornall, A. G., Bardawill, C. J. & David, M. M., 1949. Determination of serum proteins by means of the biuret reaction. J. Biol. Chem. 177: 751–766.
Hayes, A. W., Presley, D. B. & Neville, J. A., 1976. Acute toxicity of penitrem A in dogs. Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 35: 311–320.
Hayes, A. W. Phillips, R. D. & Wallace, L. C., 1977. Effect of penitrem A on mouse liver composition. Toxicon 15: 293–300.
Penny, R. H. C., O'Sullivan, B. M., Mantle, P. G. & Shaw, B. I., 1979. Clinical studies on tremorgenic mycotoxicoses in sheep. Vet. Rec. 105: 392–393.
Richard, J. L., Thurston, J. R. & Graham, C. K., 1974. Changes in complement activity, serum proteins, and prothrombin time in guinea pigs fed rubratoxin alone or in combination with aflatoxin. Am. J. Vet. Res. 35: 957–959.
Richard, J. L. & Arp, L. H., 1979. Natural occurrence of the mycotoxin penitrem A in moldy cream cheese. Mycopathologia 67: 107–109.
Sobotka, T. J., Brodie, R. E. & Spaid, S. L., 1978. Neurobehavioral studies of tremorgenic mycotoxins verruculogen and penitrem. A. Pharmacology 16: 287–294.
Stern, P., 1971. Pharmacological analysis of the tremor induced by cyclopium toxin. Jugoslav Physiol. Pharmacol. Acta 7: 187–196. (cited in reference #12)
Stern, P. & Ćatović, S., 1974. Mechanism of mephenesine action. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch. Pharmacol. 285: 76R. (cited in reference 5).
Thurston, J. R. & Richard, J. L., 1979. Confirmation by radial immunodiffusion of depression of the fourth component of complement in guinea pigs fed aflatoxin or rubratoxin. Am. J. Vet. Res. 40: 1206–1208.
Wilson, B. J., Wilson, C. H. & Hayes, A. W., 1968. Tremorgenic toxin from Penicillium cyclopium grown on food materials. Nature 220: 77–78.
Wilson, B. J., 1971. Miscellaneous Penicillium toxins. V. Tremorgenicdiuretic toxin from Penicillium cyclopium and related species. In Microbial Toxins, Vol. VI Fungal Toxins ed. by Ciegler, A. K., Solomon, K. & J. A. Samuel, pp. 479–485. Academic Press, New York.
Wilson, B. J. & Hayes, A. W., 1973. Microbial toxins. In: Toxicants Occurring Naturally in Foods. Washington, D.C. National Academy of Sciences, pp. 372–423.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Arp, L.H., Richard, J.L. Experimental intoxication of guinea pigs with multiple doses of the mycotoxin, penitrem A. Mycopathologia 73, 109–113 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00562600
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00562600