2.5 Developmental Toxicity

The highest dose of SF5 (40 mg/kg) used in the subacute toxicity study was selected for the teratogenic studies. An OECD 414 guideline for developmental toxicity was used to design the protocol. Twenty female rats (200–280 g) were divided into two groups (n = 10): a control group and a treatment group (SF5, 40 mg/kg orally). Three female rats were housed with one male and observed for a vaginal plug, i.e., the start of gestation (day zero). Treatments were continued from gestational day 5–15 via the oral route. The C-section was performed on the 19th day of gestation, and fetuses were removed carefully (Saeed et al., 2020). Fetuses and placenta were weighed, and any deformity in fetuses was recorded (Buschmann, 2013; Saeed et al., 2020).