Dose-effect of Thioacetamide on Animal Model of Hepatic Encephalopathy in Rats

Objective:To investigate the correlation between dose and effect of thioacetamide (TAA) on animal model of hepatic encephalopathy in rats. Methods: Animal models of hepatic encephalopathy were induced by three different doses of TAA by two intraperitoneal injections of TAA 200mg/kg, 250mg/kg, 350mg/kg of body weight respectively at 48 h intervals (n=12). Brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEP) and plasma endotoxin from portal vein of rats, serum ammonia, serum liver function and pathology of liver were examined. Results: There were significant differences among three different TAA dose groups in rats on incidences of HE/MHE, grades of HE, plasma endotoxin, serum ammonia,serum liver function and changes of liver pathology(P0.05).Conclusion: There were significantly differences on animal model of hepatic encephalopathy induced by different dose of TAA in rats, which showed significant correlation between dose and effect. Two intraperitoneal injections of TAA (200mg/kg body weight) at 48hour intervals is ideal method of MHE model.