Pharmacologic application of Fourier transform IR spectroscopy: In vivo toxicity of carbon tetrachloride on rat liver

Microsomal fractions from rat liver were examined by means of Fourier transform IR (FTIR) spectroscopy to study the in vivo toxic effect of carbon tetrachloride administered by intraperitoneal injection. Lipid content was significantly enhanced in the liver of treated rats compared with untreated ones. The level of saturated fatty acids largely increased while that of unsaturated acids slightly decreased as a consequence of lipid peroxidation induced by the xenobiotic compound. The conformational structure of membrane proteins was changed, which was shown by the large decrease in the α‐helical configuration. In the polysaccharide region we observed an important loss in glucidic structures that could be related to the metabolic changes caused by carbon tetrachloride intoxication. Thus, FTIR spectroscopy appears to be a useful tool to rapidly investigate the chemical alterations induced by this drug in liver microsomes and to correlate them with biochemical and physiological data. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biopolymers (Biospectroscopy) 57: 160–168, 2000