Comparative evaluation of hepatotoxic and nephrotoxic effects of aroclors 1221 and 1254 in female rats

Abstract

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent environmental pollutants. This study compared effects of two PCB mixtures, Aroclors 1221 (A1221) and 1254 (A1254) on serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), urea, creatinine and uric acid in female rats. Histopathological changes in the liver and kidney were also examined. A group of adult Wistar rats served as controls. Groups II and III were subcutaneously injected with A1221 and A1254 at 10 mg/kg every other day for 6 weeks. At the end of this period, all animals were decapitated and blood samples were collected. Serum urea, creatinine, uric acid, ALT, AST and ALP levels were determined. Liver and kidney were collected for histopathological examination. They were fixed in formaldehyde and processed for light microscopy. Both A1221 and 1254 significantly elevated serum ALT (p < 0.05) and AST (p < 0.01) levels compared to the control group. Serum ALP values were significantly increased by A1221 (p < 0.05), but they were unaffected in the A1254 group. Treatment with both A1221 and A1254 significantly increased serum levels of urea (p < 0.05), creatinine (p < 0.01) and uric acid (except in the A1221 group; p < 0.005). Distinct histopathological changes including renal corpuscular atrophy, peritubular vascular congestion and dilated cortical tubules, sinusoidal dilatation, congestion and mononuclear cell infiltration were observed. These findings suggest that PCBs may cause nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity in female rats.

Alterations of blood indices associated with low-dose administration of methomyl insecticide for short times to albino rats

“…The increases in ALT and AST activity in response to the administration of methomyl agree with those observed by Guilhermino et al (1998) and Ashour (1999) for parathion administration. The elevation in serum transaminase activitywas also noticed by Regon et al (1994) for carbaryl, which suggests liver injury (Guilhermino et al, 1998;Kutlu et al, 2005), and may be attributable to some cell damage leading to leakage of enzymes into the blood (Dewan et al, 2004). Funakoshi et al (1995) reported that parathion and cadmium increased serum enzymes (ALT, AST and ALP).…”

Effects of exposure to BDE-99 on oxidative status of liver and kidney in adult rats

“…In relation to the histopathological study, tubules and glomeruli degeneration have been observed in female rats after exposure to persistent environmental pollutants such as PCBs (Kutlu et al, 2007). Moreover, after administration of streptozotocin and gentamicin (renal toxicants) necrosis and vacuolization in the proximal tubular epithelial were observed (Muruganandan et al, 2002;Pedraza-Chaverrí et al, 2004).…”

Effect of the Capsicoside G‐rich Fraction from Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) Seeds on High‐fat Diet‐induced Obesity in Mice

“…In this study, we focused on the effect of CRF on obesity development because of consumption of an HFD in C57BL/6 mice. The LC‐MS/MS results showed that the CRF used in this study contains 13.35% capsicoside G. The doses of CRF (10 or 100 mg/kg) used in our study did not induce hepatotoxicity or nephrotoxicity in mice, as plasma levels of AST, ALT, BUN, and creatinine were unaffected by CRF supplementation (Kutlu et al ., ). The weekly food intake of mice fed an HFD was lower than that of mice fed a ND, and there were significant differences among the HFD fed groups.…”