Effect of a single, large dose injection of pyrithiamin on the thiamin deficiency of the mouse.

The effect of pyrithiamin on thiamin deficient mice was studied clinically and pathologically. Thiamin deficiency was produced in the mice fed with a thiamin deficient diet by a single injection of pyrithiamin (10 mg/kg, s.c.) on day 0 to produce a mild illness and on day 14 to produce a severe disorder. Clinically, the mild illness showed only Wooley-White sign and histologically, it was characterized by edema in the thalamus, mammillary bodies, and pontine tegmentum. The severe illness showed convulsion and multiple hemorrhages in the same area. This pyrithiamin-induced thiamin deficient animal model can also be useful for research on thiamin deficient encephalopathy.