Authors: TE Miller, HWu.
Dept of Medicine, University of Auckland, New Zealand. May 1981


The study monitored the teratogenic effects of Seatone using 20 breeding pairs of Dark Agouti rats for each of the test and control groups over a period of 6 months. The rats were fed either a standard diet or the diet containing Seatone for 90 days prior to mating.

The control animals were fed powdered pellets of a standard diet, and active group animals were fed Seatone blended in to a formulation that was estimated to equate to 50 time the recommended dosage for humans. Subsenquent analysis indicated that the formulation represented 54 times the recommended human dosage.

Autopsies were carried out on progeny from both groups at 21 days of age, test group, control group with rats from both groups also being processed for histological examination. Additionally, examination of near term (20 days) foetuses from the second litters of both groups, were examined for skeletal abnormalities and malformations.

No teratogenic effects were observed at the doses consumed (54 times normal)

The litter sizes in the Seatone fed group were significantly smaller although the average weight of the Seatone progeny was greater at both 4 and 21 days.

The study concluded that Seatone delayed conception. There were no skeletal abnormalities or malformations in either group but delayed skeletal development was observed in a greater number of animals in the Seatone group to those in the control group.