The objective of this study is to investigate the toxic effects of aluminum and the potential alleviation of selenite and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on this toxicity. Acute aluminum toxicity was induced by intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of AlCl (30 mg Al/kg) for four consecutive days. Al damaged the synthetic capability and regeneration power of liver cells and induced inflammation. It also damaged the kidney and disturbed the lipid profile enhancing the total cholesterol level and LDL-cholesterol level increasing the risks of atherosclerosis. Al reduced the cellular antioxidant milieu typified by the decrease in reduced glutathione, vitamin E, and four antioxidant enzymes and induced lipid peroxidation (LPO). Selenite at 1 mg Se/kg and NAC at 150 mg/kg injected either simultaneously with or after Al mitigated most of these damaging effects probably by the virtue of scavenging the free radicals, binding aluminum and stimulating its excretion and reducing its bioavailability, bolstering the endogenous antioxidant defense systems, stabilizing the cell membrane, and preventing LPO. The beneficial effects of selenite and NAC against aluminum toxicity were also confirmed by the light and electron histopathology study. There were no significant differences between the two regimens used (protection and therapeutic) in the current study probably due to the short time of exposure, and the abrogation of Al toxicity offered by selenite was better than that provided by NAC on the histopathology level.
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDC) an exogenous chemical or mixture of chemicals, which can interfere with hormonal action. The phthalates and their metabolism like Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) are considered EDCs disturb the action of reproductive hormones. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 84 selected adult volunteers from both genders to assess the association between serum DBP concentration and sex hormone levels in adult Egyptians. Serum DBP was measured by Gas chromatography-mass spectrometer. Serum sex hormones, sex hormonebinding globulin (SHBG), and Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. In males, there was a significant decrease in total testosterone (T), Free testosterone (FT), Bioavailable testosterone (BT), Free Androgen Index (FAI) between low and high exposure to DBP, while Estradiol (E2) was significantly increased. In the female, there were significant increases in total E2, Luteinizing Hormone (LH), Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH), and significant reduction in progesterone in high exposure group compared to low exposure to DBP. This study showed that there was a significant strong correlation between DBP with T, T/ E2 in males while female subjects showed a significant strong positive correlation with LH and FSH. There is increasing evidence that DBP has an impact on human sex hormones which can cause many physiological disturbances and many diseases in Egyptian adults. It is recommended that reduce human exposure to DBP in the food supply.
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