Effect of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) on glycogen metabolism in rat liver.

Effect of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) on glycogen contents and certain enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism of rat liver was investigated. A significant decrease in glycogen content of unfasted and an increase in fasted animals was observed. Blood glucose tolerance was reduced and the rate of both glycogenesis and glycogenolysis, as judged by measuring glycogen contents after feeding labelled and unlabelled glucose, was also decreased. Activities of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, phosphorylase and glucose-6-phosphatase were significantly decreased while activities of fructose-1-6-diphosphatase and aldolase remained unaltered. The present results suggest that DEHP affects both glycogenesis and glycogenolysis in rat liver.