α2u-Globulin nephropathy, renal cell proliferation, and dosimetry of inhaled tert-butyl alcohol in male and female F-344 rats

tert-Butyl alcohol (TBA) has been shown to cause kidney tumors in male rats following chronic administration in drinking water. The objective of the present study was to determine whether TBA induces α2u-globulin (α2u) nephropathy (α2u-N) and enhanced renal cell proliferation in male, but not female, F-344 rats, and whether the dosimetry of TBA to the kidney is gender specific. Male and female F-344 rats were exposed to 0, 250, 450, or 1750 ppm TBA vapors 6 h/day for 10 consecutive days to assess α2u-nephropathy and renal cell proliferation and for 1 and 8 days to evaluate the dosimetry of TBA following a single and repeated exposure scenario. Protein droplet accumulation was observed in kidneys of male rats exposed to 1750 ppm TBA, with α2u-globulin immunoreactivity present in these protein droplets. A statistically significant increase in α2u concentration in the kidney, as measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, was observed in male rats exposed to 1750 ppm TBA with a exposure-related increase in renal cell proliferation. Renal α2u concentration was positively correlated with cell proliferation in male rat kidney. No histological lesions or increased renal cell proliferation was observed in female rats exposed to TBA compared to controls. The TBA kidney:blood ratio was higher at all concentrations and time points in male rats compared with female rats, which suggests that TBA is retained longer in male rat kidney compared with female rat kidney. Together these data suggest that TBA causes α2u-N in male rats, which is responsible for the male rat-specific increase in renal cell proliferation.

Duke Scholars

Author Jeffrey Ira Everitt Pathology