Lethal Dose 50 (LD50)

LD50

Toxicology

The dose of a substance that kills 50% of test animals in a standardized experiment. A historical measure of acute toxicity. Being replaced by alternative methods (in vitro, computational) due to ethical concerns.

Examples

Oral LD50 in rats
Lower LD50 = more toxic
LD50 of caffeine ~200 mg/kg (rat)

Did You Know?

The dose of a substance that kills 50% of test animals in a standardized experiment. A historical measure of acute toxicity. Being replaced by alternative methods (in vitro, computational) due …