Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
effects in laboratory animals. The metabolism of methanol is described
elsewhere in this volume and must be considered in evaluating putative
mechanisms through which this alcohol might produce dysmorpho-
genesis in offspring following maternal exposure. In vitro approaches,
principally whole embryo culture, that have been important in elucidat-
ing the mechanisms of developmental toxicity of methanol and metab-
olites will also be considered here.
5.2 REPRODUCTIVE TOXICITY
There are no published studies on the effects of methanol exposure on
male or female reproductive function in humans. There have been a few
studies on the effects of methanol on male reproductive parameters in
rats, which are discussed in this section. There have been many more
studies on the effects of methanol on prenatal and early postnatal
development in experimental animals, and these studies are discussed in
later sections.
In a study of the testicular effects of methanol, Cameron et al. (1984)
exposed male Sprague-Dawley rats to methanol vapor, 8 hours/day,
5 days/week for 1, 2, 4, and 6 weeks at 0, 200, 2000, or 10,000 ppm. The
authors examined the possible effects of methanol on testicular function
by measuring blood levels of testosterone, luteinizing hormone (LH),
and follicular stimulating hormone (FSH) using radioimmunoassay.
The most significant changes were in blood testosterone levels of
animals exposed to 200 ppm methanol, the lowest concentration eval-
uated. At this exposure level, animals exposed for 6 weeks had testos-
terone levels that were 32% of those seen in controls. The lack of a
dose-response was not necessarily an indication that the observed effect
was not related to methanol, because higher concentrations of methanol
could be causing other effects (e.g., liver toxicity), which can have an
impact on testosterone levels. Male rats exposed to 10,000 ppm metha-
nol for 6weeks displayed blood levels of LH that were about three times
higher than those exposed to air.
A follow-up study report by the same research group (Cameron et al.,
1985) described the exposure of male Sprague-Dawley rats, 6 hours/day
Search WWH ::




Custom Search