[A comparative study of the antenatal action of inducers of the mono-oxygenase system and of dexamethasone on the body indices of full-term newborn rat pups].

Experiments on newborn rats demonstrated that hepatic monooxygenase system inductors, such as phenobarbital, benzonal, zixorin, increased their body weight, absolute and relative mass of newborn lungs when applied antenatally in contrast to dexamethasone which decreased the above parameters. The inductors increased pulmonary and hepatic phospholipid levels, which suggests that they are superior to dexamethasone in this respect.

[The effect of alpha-tocopherol and nicotinamide on lipid peroxidation and the activity of the antioxidant system in the lung tissue of premature rat pups].

The antenatal use of nicotinamide and especially alpha-tocopherol in the experiments with premature newborn rats caused a significant decrease in the rate of lipid peroxidation and an increase in catalase activity both in the maternal body and in fetal lung tissue. It is suggested that the drugs can be used to prevent the development of membrane-destructive processes in the fetal and neonatal lung.

[The advantages of benzonal as an inducer of the liver mono-oxygenase enzyme system compared to phenobarbital].

It is stated that phenobarbital used as the most potent inductor of the monoxygenase enzymic system of the liver in different pathologies has substantial side effects. In this connection the search of active inductive agents devoid of phenobarbital deficiencies is an important issue. Zixorene, a Hungarian drug developed to solve the problem, is weak as an inductor and has deficiencies of its own.

[Effect of benzonal on the drug-metabolizing function of the liver in pathological states].

In male rabbits with experimental acute hepatitis, acute renal insufficiency, diffuse peritonitis, Staphylococcus sepsis and thermic burns and also in patients with diseases of the nervous system one could observe prolongation of the half-elimination period (T1/2) and decrease of metabolic clearance of antipyrine. Benzonal (50 mg/kg orally for 3 days) normalized indices of antipyrine test. Similar results were obtained in patients with diseases of the nervous system (epilepsy, rheumatic vasculitis of the cerebral vessels with convulsive syndrome).