Adriamycin, an anthracyclin antibiotics isolated from Streptomes peucetius var caesius, inhibits the synthesis of DNA and reaction of DNA dependent DNA polymerase and it has been widely used as an anticancer drug in the treatment of sarcoma, leukemia and solid tumors. Adriamycin has little specificity to the normal and tumor cells and cytotoxicity of the normal cells happens to the patients as cardiotoxicity and bone marrow depression. The authors have demonstrated the effect of adriamycin on the chief cells of hamster, histologically observing the morphological changes of the cell by the use of light and electron microscope. The animais treated with 50 mg per kg of adriamycin were sacrificed at 24 and 48 hours after the drug administration. The animals of control group were administered only water for injection. All animals were starved for 12 hours before sacrificing them. A part of stomach specimens were fixed 10% neutral formalin and prepared for hematoxylin and eosin stain and the other part of specimens which were prefixed in 2% glutaraldehyde-2.5% paraformaldehyde prepared with phosphate buffer and then post-fixed in the 1% osmic acid, were dehydrated and embedded in the Epon 812. Ultrathin sections, 600-800A thickness, were made and double stained with uranyl acetate and lead citrate. And these preparations were observed with light microscope and JEM 100cx-II electron microscope. The results were as follows; 1) Most of lining cells of gastric glands were atrophied and lumens were dilated. Numbers of chief cells were decreased and indistinct cellular boundary, vacuolar degenertion, pyknosis and karyolysis were observed in the less basophilic chief cells. In the fundus of glands, parietal cells and mucous neck cells were also found. 2) Cisternae of rough endoplasmic reticulum were decreased, and fragmented and membrane bound ribosome were detached. Fusion of irregularly shaped zymogen granules and numerous autophagic vacuoles including whorled membranous bodies were observed#. Irregular shaped mitochondria and atrophied Golgi complex were also found in the chief cells of the gastric mu- cosa of the adriamycin treated rats. 3) Consequently, it is suggested that adriamycin would induce the degenerative changes of the organelles of chief cells in gastric mucosa of hamsters.
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