Uracil-induced calculi and carcinogenesis in the urinary bladder of rats treated simultaneously with N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine.

Urinary bladder carcinogenicity of uracil and N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (BBN) in combination was investigated in male F344 rats. Two experiments were performed: in the first animals were treated with 3.0, 1.0 and 0.3% uracil in the diet and/or 0.005% BBN in the drinking water for 36 weeks followed by a 4 week period without chemicals, the total observation time being 40 weeks; in the second rats received 3.0% uracil in the diet or 0.05% BBN in the drinking water for 4 weeks. In the first experiment, a markedly high incidence of carcinomas was observed in the urinary bladder with both 3.0% uracil alone (11/15, 73%) and 3.0% uracil plus 0.005% BBN (18/20, 90%) treatments. The multiplicity, i.e. numbers of carcinomas induced per 10 cm of basement membrane, was significantly higher with the latter treatment (P less than 0.05), as were proliferative lesions in the renal pelvis. Stone formation was observed in all 3.0% uracil treatment animals. In the second experiment, prostaglandin E2 levels in bladder tissue of uracil-treated animals proved to be significantly higher than in BBN-treated or untreated animals. Thus, the results clearly indicated that calculi associated with 3.0% uracil ingestion can themselves cause carcinoma development in the urinary bladder, while also acting as a potent co-carcinogen agent for BBN carcinogenesis.