Studies in detoxication. 32. The influence of bromobenzene and cystine on the bromine content of the hair of rats

Abstract

A study was made of the influence of varying amts. of bromobenzene and L-cystine added to the diet, on the growth, the Br content of the hair muscle and liver, and the cystine content of the hair of young rats. When the cystine content of the diet was adequate, the animals, when given bromobenzene, excreted a fairly constant amt. of mercapturic acid each day, the cystine content of the hair was normal and there was no final loss in wt. When the cystine of the diet was inadequate, bromobenzene feeding caused the animals to lose wt. and to excrete less mercapturic acid than animals with adequate cystine. The cystine content of the hair was lower than normal. On feeding bromobenzene with adequate cystine intakes, the Br contents of the hair, muscle and liver rise above normal to approx. the same extent. On inadequate cystine intakes, the Br content of the hair is much higher than that of the liver and muscles. The suggestion is made that when bromobenzene is fed to rats on diets containing insufficient cystine for both growth and detoxication, some bromophenyl- cysteine is incorporated in the hair in an attempt to make good the lack of cystine.