The Neutral Red Uptake Assay: Comments on the Results of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità in the EC/HO Validation Study

1998 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-68
Author(s):  
Annalaura Stammati ◽  
Franco Zampaglioni ◽  
Cristiana Zanetti

The neutral red uptake (NRU) assay was included, among others, in a validation study sponsored by the European Commission/British Home Office (EC/HO) study, for its reliability as an in vitro alternative to the Draize eye irritancy test. The test was performed in parallel by four laboratories (Istituto Superiore di Sanità [ISS], Microbiological Associates, Hatano Research Institute and Kurabo Industries) on 60 selected chemicals. The results obtained by the ISS are reported in this paper. A poor rank correlation was obtained between the in vivo endpoint and the ISS in vitro results for the full set of chemicals and for the subsets, with the exception of surfactants, by an independent statistics group. The same unsatisfactory results were obtained by the ISS group when the rank correlation was calculated for compounds divided into chemical groups. The performance of the NRU assay, as an alternative to the Draize eye irritancy test, is discussed.

Author(s):  
E Roemer ◽  
H Schramke ◽  
H Weiler ◽  
A Buettner ◽  
S Kausche ◽  
...  

AbstractA new reference cigarette, the 3R4F, has been developed to replace the depleting supply of the 2R4F cigarette. The present study was designed to compare mainstream smoke chemistry and toxicity of the two reference cigarettes under the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) machine smoking conditions, and to further compare mainstream smoke chemistry and toxicological activity of the 3R4F cigarette by two different smoking regimens, i.e., the machine smoking conditions specified by ISO and the Health Canada intensive (HCI) smoking conditions.The in vitro cytotoxicity and mutagenicity was determined in the neutral red uptake assay, the Salmonella reverse mutation assay, and the mouse lymphoma thymidine kinase assay. Additionally, a 90-day nose-only inhalation study in rats was conducted to assess the in vivo toxicity. The comparison of smoke chemistry between the two reference cigarettes found practically the same yields of total particulate matter (TPM), ‘tar’, nicotine, carbon monoxide, and most other smoke constituents. For both cigarettes, the in vitro cytotoxicity, mutagenicity, and in vivo toxicity showed the expected smoke-related effects compared to controls without smoke exposure. There were no meaningful differences between the 2R4F and 3R4F regarding these toxicological endpoints. The assessments for the 3R4F cigarette by smoking regimen found as a trivial effect, due to the higher amount of smoke generated per cigarette under HCI conditions, an increased yield of toxicant and higher toxicological activity per cigarette. However, per mg TPM, ‘tar’, or nicotine, the amounts of toxicants and the in vitro toxicity were generally lower under HCI conditions, but the in vivo activity was not different between the two machine smoking conditions. Overall, as the main result, the present study suggests equivalent smoke chemistry and in vitro and in vivo toxicity for the 2R4F and 3R4F reference cigarettes.


Parasitology ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 136 (11) ◽  
pp. 1281-1289 ◽  
Author(s):  
MICKAEL PERRIGAULT ◽  
BASSEM ALLAM

SUMMARYThe ability of pathogens to neutralize host defence mechanisms represents a fundamental requisite in the successful establishment of an infection. Host-pathogen interactions between quahog parasite unknown (QPX) and its hard clam host are poorly understood. Our prior in vivo investigations have shown that different QPX isolates display varying levels of pathogenicity toward clams. Similarly, field investigations and laboratory transmission studies revealed some variations in the susceptibility of different hard clam stocks to QPX infection. An in vitro approach was developed in this study to evaluate the toxicity of QPX cells and extracellular products toward haemocytes using a neutral red uptake assay. Results demonstrated that QPX produces virulence factors that are cytotoxic to M. mercenaria haemocytes. This cytotoxicity appears to be induced by clam factors, suggesting that it may play an important role in supporting QPX infection and proliferation within the host. Moreover, application of this technique to different QPX isolates and clam broodstocks indicates variations of QPX cytotoxicity in agreement with previous in vivo experiments, strengthening the existence of different QPX strains.


1993 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 281-284
Author(s):  
Alain Fautrel ◽  
Christophe Chesné ◽  
André Guillouzo ◽  
Georges De Sousa ◽  
Michel Placidi ◽  
...  

A multicentre validation study of the acute in vitro cytotoxicities of 31 liquid or solid chemicals was carried out by six laboratories, using primary rat hepatocyte cultures as a model system. We report here a comparison of neutral red uptake IC50 and LD50 values. Oral, i.p. and i.v. LD50 values were available for 27, 24 and 18 chemicals, respectively, and an IC50 value was obtained for 15, 14 and 11 of these compounds, respectively. A significant correlation was found only between IC50 and i.v. LD50 values.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boniface Pone ◽  
Ferreira Igne Elizabeth

: Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are responsible for over 500,000 deaths annually and are characterized by multiple disabilities. Leishmaniasis and Chagas disease are among the most severe NTDs, and are caused by the Leishmania sp, and Trypanosoma cruzi, respectively. Glucantime, pentamidine and miltefosine are commonly used to treat leishmaniasis, whereas nifurtimox, benznidazole are current treatments for Chagas disease. However, these treatments are associated with drug resistance, and severe side effects. Hence, the development of synthetic products, especially those containing N02, F, or Cl, which chemical groups are known to improve the biological activity. The present work summarizes the information on the antileishmanial and antitrypanosomal activity of nitro-, chloro-, and fluoro-synthetic derivatives. Scientific publications referring to halogenated derivatives in relation to antileishmanial and antitrypanosomal activities were hand searched in databases such as SciFinder, Wiley, Science Direct, PubMed, ACS, Springer, Scielo, and so on. According to the literature information, more than 90 compounds were predicted as lead molecules with reference to their IC50/EC50 values in in vitro studies. It is worth to mention that only active compounds with known cytotoxic effects against mammalian cells were considered in the present study. The observed activity was attributed to the presence of nitro-, fluoro- and chloro-groups in the compound backbone. All in all, nitro and h0alogenated derivatives are active antileishmanial and antitrypanosomal compounds and can serve as baseline for the development of new drugs against leishmaniasis and Chagas disease. However, efforts on in vitro and in vivo toxicity studies of the active synthetic compounds is still needed. Pharmacokinetic studies, and the mechanism of action of the promising compounds need to be explored. The use of new catalysts and chemical transformation can afford unexplored halogenated compounds with improved antileishmanial and antitrypanosomal activity.


1998 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 679-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Horst Spielmann ◽  
Michael Balls ◽  
Jack Dupuis ◽  
Wolfgang J. W. Pape ◽  
Odile de Silva ◽  
...  

In 1996, the Scientific Committee on Cosmetology of DGXXIV of the European Commission asked the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods to test eight UV filter chemicals from the 1995 edition of Annex VII of Directive 76/768/EEC in a blind trial in the in vitro 3T3 cell neutral red uptake phototoxicity (3T3 NRU PT) test, which had been scientifically validated between 1992 and 1996. Since all the UV filter chemicals on the positive list of EU Directive 76/768/EEC have been shown not to be phototoxic in vivo in humans under use conditions, only negative effects would be expected in the 3T3 NRU PT test. To balance the number of positive and negative chemicals, ten phototoxic and ten non-phototoxic chemicals were tested under blind conditions in four laboratories. Moreover, to assess the optimum concentration range for testing, information was provided on appropriate solvents and on the solubility of the coded chemicals. In this study, the phototoxic potential of test chemicals was evaluated in a prediction model in which either the Photoirritation Factor (PIF) or the Mean Photo Effect (MPE) were determined. The results obtained with both PIF and MPE were highly reproducible in the four laboratories, and the correlation between in vitro and in vivo data was almost perfect. All the phototoxic test chemicals provided a positive result at concentrations of 1μg/ml, while nine of the ten non-phototoxic chemicals gave clear negative results, even at the highest test concentrations. One of the UV filter chemicals gave positive results in three of the four laboratories only at concentrations greater than 100μg/ml; the other laboratory correctly identified all 20 of the test chemicals. An analysis of the impact that exposure concentrations had on the performance of the test revealed that the optimum concentration range in the 3T3 NRU PT test for determining the phototoxic potential of chemicals is between 0.1μg/ml and 10μg/ml, and that false positive results can be obtained at concentrations greater than 100μg/ml. Therefore, the positive results obtained with some of the UV filter chemicals only at concentrations greater than 100μg/ml do not indicate a phototoxic potential in vivo. When this information was taken into account during calculation of the overall predictivity of the 3T3 NRU PT test in the present study, an almost perfect correlation of in vitro versus in vivo results was obtained (between 95% and 100%), when either PIF or MPE were used to predict the phototoxic potential. The management team and participants therefore conclude that the 3T3 NRU PT test is a valid test for correctly assessing the phototoxic potential of UV filter chemicals, if the defined concentration limits are taken into account.


1990 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 325-333
Author(s):  
Paul J. Dierickx ◽  
Virginia C. Gordon

The neutral red uptake inhibition assay and the EYTEX™ system were investigated as alternative methods for the assessment of eye irritation, determined according to the EEC protocol. The 17 test chemicals used were mainly organic solvents. The xenobiotics were applied to Hep G2 cells for 24 hours at different concentrations. Neutral red uptake inhibition was then measured. The results are expressed as the NI50 value, which is the concentration of test compound required to induce a 50% reduction in neutral red uptake. The same chemicals were also tested as coded samples by the EYTEX™ test according to the manufacturer's directions. A nearly identical quantitative correlation was found for both in vitro methods with corneal opacity scores: r = 0.84 for EYTEX™ scores and r = 0.83 for log NI50, expressed in μg/ml. Whilst these correlations are certainly not perfect, it is clear that both in vitro methods can be used as valuable prescreening methods.


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