Chloramphenicol Induced Inhibition of Platelet Protein Synthesis: in Vitro and in Vivo Studies

Chloramphenicol (CAP), an antibiotic which causes various blood dyscrasias, was shown to inhibit in vitro protein synthesis of human blood platelets. The effect is dose‐ and time‐dependent, it is reversible after incubation for 2 h, and is comparable with the suppression achieved by cycloheximide (CXM). Electron microscopic examination revealed swelling and destruction of mitochondria. Administration of CAP to dogs produced a progressive inhibition of platelet protein synthesis as shown by a reduction in the rate of [³H]leucine incorporation into protein. The maximal inhibitory effect of the antibiotic was reached 0.5–4.0 h after its administration, when minimal leucine incorporation values of 9–40% of the control were measured. The suppressive effect of CAP was followed by an overshoot in the incorporation of [³H]leucine, up to a maximum of 602% of the value at zero time of the experiment.