Abstract
WE report here the results of experiments in rats which support the idea of an immunological defence against preneoplastic stages in tumour development. The stages were observed by histochemical and histoserological examination of the livers of rats treated with carcinogens. The activity of the enzyme glucose-6-phosphatase, which can be induced in all normal hepatocytes by starvation, is absent from the cells in a high percentage of liver tumours in rats1. The loss of glucose-6-phosphatase activity can be traced back to a very early period following the start of carcinogen treatment2. Carcinomas lacking glucose-6-phosphatase activity arise from these islands3. Using the technique of Wachstein and Meisel4, islands of several hundred hepatocytes which lack glucose-6-phosphatase activity may be observed. This technique produces a black precipitate of PbS in normal hepatocytes, whereas carcinogen-transformed cells have a lighter appearance (Fig. 1).
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Weber, G., and Cantaro, A., Cancer Res., 15, 105 (1955).
Gössner, W., and Friedrich-Freksa, H., Z. Naturforsch., 19b, 862 (1964).
Friedrich-Freksa, H., Gössner, W., and Börner, P., Z. Krebsforsch, 72, 226 (1969); Friedrich-Freksa, H., Papadopulu, G., and Gössner, W., ibid., 72, 240 (1969).
Wachstein, M., and Meisel, E., J. Histochem. Cytochem., 4, 592 (1956).
Levey, R. H., and Medawar, P. B., Proc. US Nat. Acad. Sci., 56, 1130 (1966).
Alexander, P., in The Biology of Cancer (edit. by Ambrose, E. J., and Roe, F. J. C.) (D. van Nostrand Co. Ltd, London, 1966). Gaugas, J. M., Chesterman, F. C., Hirsch, M. S., Rees, R. J. W., Harvey, J. J., and Gilchrist, C., Nature, 221, 1033 (1969).
Burnet, F. M., Lancet, i, 1171 (1967).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
FRIEDRICH-FREKSA, H., HOFFMANN, M. Immunological Defence against Preneoplastic Stages of Diethylnitrosamine Induced Carcinomas in Rat Liver. Nature 223, 1162–1163 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1038/2231162a0
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/2231162a0
This article is cited by
-
Quantitative Untersuchungen �ber den irreversiblen Verlust zweier Enzymaktivit�ten in der Rattenleber nach Verf�tterung von Di�thylnitrosamin
Zeitschrift f�r Krebsforschung und Klinische Onkologie (1974)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
