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ZIMET 3164 inhibited the growth of sarcoma 180 P, sarcoma 180 G, and Walker 256 carcinosarcoma, but was unable to prolong the survival time of mice bearing Ehrlich ascites carcinoma or the leukaemias L 1210 and LAJ I to a worthwhile extent. The primary and secondarantly suppressed in mice. The drug exerted maximum effect when given on days--2 to +2 relative to antigenic stimulus. Administration exclusively prior to immunization induced only moderate immunosuppression while injection afterwards failed to affect the primary response at all, suggesting that the drug interfers with the afferent limb of immune response. In general, ZIMET 3164 proved to be half as effective as cyclophosphamide, but more effective than chlorambucil.

Beta-[1-Phenyl-5-bis(beta-chloroethyl)-amino-benzimidazolyl-(2)]-DL-alanin (ZIMET 3164), a highly immunosuppressive but moderately cytostatic agent, was found to be able to prevent the progression of spontaneous murine immune complex nephritis in a dose-dependent fashion. For experiments, BCG-stimulated conventional female (NMRI X NZB)F1 mice suffering from rapidly progressive nephritis, BCG-stimulated and unilaterally nephrectomized (NMRI X NZB)F1 females, and (AB/Jena X NZB)F1 females characterized by a prolonged course of the disease were used. The beneficial effect was quantified by fluorescence photometry and histometry, and semiquantitatively detected by estimation of the extent of damage of individual glomerular structures when histometric methods were unsuited. Treatment of young adult animals characterized by slight to moderate glomerular lesions was more effective than of older ones with advanced nephritis. At equi-immunosuppressive dose levels ZIMET 3164 was about twice as effective as the reference substance cyclophosphamide.