Early Effects of Hydrocarbons on Mammalian Skin*

Abstract

Four early effects of hydrocarbons on mammalian skin have been considered in this paper. Each occurs within days after carcinogen treatment mitochondrial inhibition and variations in sulfhy-dryl levels occur within hours; stimulation of microsomal enzyme synthesis, within one day, and sebaceous-gland suppression, within four days. Study of the early responses of tissue to carcinogens offers important advantages to the investigator in the field of cancer. The influence of uncontrolled environmental factors upon experimental variability is fortunately limited. The reaction pathways are less complex than those of carcinogenesis; thus, they are more amenable to study. Thorough understanding of early tissue response may also provide useful methods for short-term assays of environmental carcinogens. Many other early effects of carcinogens upon the skin remain to be studied by using hydrocarbons of different structures. This field is being actively explored in several laboratories, and it is to be hoped that eventual clarification of this problem may bridge the gap between early skin response and tumor development. As additional information is obtained, a more consistent pattern in hydrocarbon carcinogenesis should become apparent.