ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews in vitro organ explant technique, 1 -9 which offers promise as a practical method to determine the metabolism of a chemical in humans without direct human dosing and its attendant risks. Metabolites of chemicals are often responsible for toxic effects of chemicals. In-depth studies of comparative metabolism of humans and animals would then fulfill the concepts proposed by Frazer10 in regard to selection of animals for toxicological studies: “If two or more different metabolic patterns are found in animals investigated, it becomes necessary to discover which of these patterns occurs in man. When this is known, animals with a similar pattern should be chosen for further toxicological studies.”
