In a study involving subacute diethylene glycol toxicity in mice, a subset of the subjects developed acute renal failure. In mice that developed renal failure, what other organ system showed signs of toxicity?
Neurotoxicity developed in mice that developed renal failure secondary to diethylene glycol, and did not develop in mice that did not develop renal failure. The postulated reason for this is that the renal failure allowed for more accumulation in the tissues of the metabolite (diglycolic acid), which appears to be the cause of both the renal and neurologic toxicity.
Courtney N. Jamison, Robert D. Dayton, Brian Latimer, Mary P. McKinney, Hannah G. Mitchell & Kenneth E. McMartin (2021) Neurotoxic effects of nephrotoxic compound diethylene glycol, Clinical Toxicology, 59:9, 810-821, DOI:10.1080/15563650.2021.1874403
Contributed by Kristine Nanagas, MD