Silicon crystal 2-5 nm nanoparticles in the form of 1-5-μ granules in water suspension were injected intraperitoneally in a single dose to male F(1)(CBA×C57Bl/6) mice or to outbred albino rats on days 1, 7, and 14 of gestation. Silicon crystal nanoparticles in doses of 5, 25, and 50 mg/kg exhibited no cytogenetic activity in mouse bone marrow cells after 24-h exposure and in doses of 5 and 25 mg/kg after 7 and 14-day exposure. A 24-h exposure to silicon nanoparticles in a dose of 5 mg/kg significantly increased DNA damage (detected by DNA comet assay) in bone marrow cells. In a dose of 50 mg/kg they considerably increased DNA damage in bone marrow and brain cells after exposure of the same duration. Silicon nanoparticles in doses of 5 and 50 mg/kg caused no genotoxic effects in the same cells after 3-h and in a dose of 5 mg/kg after 7-day exposure. Silicon crystal nanoparticles in a dose of 50 mg/kg caused death of 60-80% mice after exposure <24 h. Injected in a dose of 50 mg/kg on days 1, 7, and 14 of gestation, silicon crystal nanoparticles reduced body weight gain in pregnant rats and newborn rats at different stages of the experiment, but had no effect on other parameters of physical development of rat progeny and caused no teratogenic effects.
Female outbred albino rats were daily subjected to forced inhalations of peat smoke (4 cores packed with a mixture of peat (70%) and wood pulp (30%); 0.46 g, pH ≥ 5.5) per se and in combination with oral afobazole (anxiolytic) on days 1-20 of pregnancy. Exposure to peat smoke inhibited body weight gain in pregnant rats, caused an increase of postimplantation deaths, reduction of fetal weights, and an increase in the number of hematomas and hemorrhages in fetuses. Afobazole in doses of 1 and 10 mg/kg reduced significantly the untoward effects of peat smoke on fetal development.
The DNA comet assay was used to evaluate the severity of genotoxic changes in embryonic tissues and placenta of rats daily exposed to tobacco smoke per se or in combination with an anxiolytic agent afobazole. The exposure to tobacco smoke (4 cigarettes containing 13 mg tar and 1 mg nicotine per 72 dm(3)) for 20 min on days 1-13 of pregnancy increased the degree of DNA damage and elevation of apoptotic DNA comets in cells of the placenta and embryo from pregnant rats. Afobazole (1 and 10 mg/kg orally) reduced the genotoxic effect of tobacco smoke and decreased the amount of apoptotic DNA comets in placental tissue and embryonic tissue from rats.
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