Effect of Acute Propanil Exposure on the Immune Response of C57BI/6 Mice

Effect of Acute Propanil Exposure on the Immune Response ofC57BI/6 Mice. BARNETT, J. B., AND GANDY, J. (1989). Fundam.Appl. Toxicol. 12, 757–764. Propanil is a herbicide thatis used extensively in rice farming to kill weeds without damagingthe rice plant The immunotoxic effects of acute exposure topropanil were determined in adult C57B1/6 female mice exposedintraperitoneally to propanil at doses of 0, 10, 25, 50, 100,200,or 400 mg/kg body wt. One week following exposure, the immunecompetency of the animals was assessed. Contact hypersensitivityresponse (CHR), blastogenic response to T- and B-cell-specificmitogens, and mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) were significantlydepressed only in propanil-treated animals at 400 mg/kg. However,the number of splenic antibody-producing cells was also significantlydepressed in a dose-dependent manner at the lower doses of 50,100, and 200 mg/kg. In addition, a significant reduction inthe thymus weight and an increase in absolute and relative spleenweight were also measured in animals treated with 200 and 400mg/kg. The increase in spleen weight also showed a concomitantrise in spleen cellularity. These data indicate that propanilhas a dose-dependent immunotoxic effect on the adult mouse thataffects primarily the humoral response