The Acute Oral Toxicity of Corn Oil

¹ Department of Pharmacology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

When corn oil was given by intragastric cannula to young male albino rats in doses of 60 ml/kg and over, part of the oil was immediately evacuated. When given in single daily doses for 5 successive days, the cumulative median lethal dose or LD_{50 (5 days)} was found to be 256±28 Gm/kg, the maximal LD_{0 (5 days)} 89 Gm/kg and the minimal LD_{100 (5 days)}393 Gm/kg. Clinical signs of toxicity were inhibition of growth, anorexia, oligodipsia, a slight hyperthermia, oliguria, aciduria, hematuria, diarrhea, fur soiling, epistaxis, listlessness, pallor, ataxia, cyanosis and prostration. Death occurred in deep hypothermic coma following a period of complete anorexia, adipsia, anuria, proteinuria, hemorhinorrhea and hemodacryorrhea. At autopsy there was found a marked local inflammatory reaction in the gastrointestinal tract which apparently permitted absorption of droplets of oil which were found in many organs where they appeared to be responsible for capillary-venous congestion, circulatory stasis, thrombosis, hemorrhage, dehydration and loss of weight. There was a stress reaction in the adrenal and thymus glands and in the spleen, hepatitis, nephritis, and degenerative changes in the testes. Recovery was rapid in survivors and at one month organ weights and water contents were within normal limits. The toxic reaction did not appear to be peculiar to corn oil but to be probably characteristic of food oils in general.

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