The susceptibility of the kidneys to fluoride toxicity can largely be attributed to its anatomy and function. As the filtrate moves along the complex tubular structure of each nephron, it is concentrated in the proximal and distal tubules and collecting duct. It has been frequently observed that the children suffering from renal impairments also have some symptoms of dental and skeletal fluorosis. The findings suggest that fluoride somehow interferes with renal anatomy and physiology, which may lead to renal pathogenesis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fluoride-associated nephrotoxicity. A total of 156 patients with childhood nephrotic syndrome were screened and it was observed that 32 of them had significantly high levels ( p ≤ 0.05) of fluoride in urine (4.01 ± 1.83 ppm) and serum (0.1 ± 0.013 ppm). On the basis of urinary fluoride concentration, patients were divided into two groups, namely group 1 (G-1) ( n = 32) containing normal urine fluoride (0.61 ± 0.17 ppm) and group 2 (G-2) ( n = 32) having high urine fluoride concentration (4.01 ± 1.83 ppm). Age-matched healthy subjects ( n = 33) having normal levels of urinary fluoride (0.56 ± 0.15 ppm) were included in the study as control (group 0 (G-0)). Kidney biopsies were taken from G-1 and G-2 only, who were subjected to ultrastructural (transmission electron microscopy) and apoptotic (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end labeling) analysis. Various subcellular ultrastructural changes including nuclear disintegration, chromosome condensation, cytoplasmic ground substance lysis, and endoplasmic reticulum blebbing were observed. Increased levels of apoptosis were observed in high fluoride group (G-2) compared to normal fluoride group (G-1). Various degrees of fluoride-associated damages to the architecture of tubular epithelia, such as cell swelling and lysis, cytoplasmic vacuolation, nuclear condensation, apoptosis, and necrosis, were observed.
Over the years surface water quality of Pakistani rivers has been degraded. The current study aims to investigate the water quality and fish diversity at Rasul Barrage in the Jhelum River. A total of six sampling sites were assessed for pollution levels and fish fauna of the Barrage. Physicochemical parameters such as turbidity, biological oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were deviating from the permissible limits of fresh water set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), but meeting the criteria of NEQS, whereas pH, temperature, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), sodium, and chloride were below the permissible limits of NEQS, but the TSS level was above EPA standards. However, the concentrations of metals such as iron (2.62-3.98 mg L-1), chromium (0.03-0.59 mg L-1), and nickel (0.49-1.71 mg L-1) were higher than the permissible limits for drinking and irrigation waters. In addition, a total of 35 fish species belonging to eight families were identified. Survey and result of study showed that concentrations of pollutants and non-stop fishing activities of commercial fish are the main reasons for the reduction of fish fauna. Two exotic fish species, Oreochromismossambicus and Ctenopharyngodon idella, were found to be abundant where population of native fish fauna numbers were being reduced. We concluded that the surface water quality is poor, as is evident from the higher concentrations of BOD, COD, and metals. Urgent measures are required to prevent such contamination and regular monitoring of water quality in the study area.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.