Evaluation of Cerebellar Function and Integrity of Adult Rats After Long-Term Exposure to Aluminum at Equivalent Urban Region Consumption Concentrations

Salivary Glands after Prolonged Aluminum Exposure: Proteomic Approach Underlying Biochemical and Morphological Impairments in Rats

“…To ensure Al consumption, AlCl 3 was administered by orogastric gavage. In previous studies, this method triggered harmful effects in the central nervous system [10] and in other oral structures such as alveolar bone [26], and the success of this method was validated by the quantification of the blood concentration of Al. In those cited studies, the animals exposed to AlCl 3 exhibited higher levels of Al in the blood in comparison with the non-exposed animals, without significant alterations in weight and mortality between the groups.…”

“…Our study used a low dose that was described in a previous study as being able to promote changes in the central nervous system [10] and inperipheral organs [23] of rats. This dose was established considering the provisional acceptable weekly intake of Al by humans, which ranges from 1 to 2 mg/kg body weight in accordance to the joint FAO/World Health Organization Expert Committee on Food Additives [24], and an allometric calculation that considers the biological differences between rodents and humans, such as the body surface area of the species, which influences blood volume, caloric expenditure, and renal functions [23,25].…”

“…In addition, mitochondria are responsible for the redox state and mitochondrial failure is directly involved in changes in energy metabolism and oxidative stress [39]. Studies have shown that Al has the potential to disrupt the antioxidant defense system in different regions in rat brain [10,27,33]. AlCl 3 -induced oxidative stress was shown to modulate cytochrome c in the rat hippocampus, and the release of subunits of this protein is associated with apoptosis caused by activation of the caspase cascade [27,40].…”

“…The dose of AlCl 3 used in this study was described in previous studies as a low dose that is capable of promoting changes in biological systems, and corresponds to an animal dose translated from doses of Al to which humans are exposed via diet [10,23]. A previous study using the same experimental model measured the Al levels in animal blood and revealed that the treated animals showed higher Al levels (AlCl 3 : 56.4 ± 3.94 µgL −1 ; control: 24.61 ± 5.21 µgL −1 , p < 0.05) [10]. The control group received only distilled water (H 2 Od) following the same protocol.…”

“…The presence of residual Al in drinking water is one of the most common forms of exposure to the metal [7] and studies indicate that Al can enter the human body through a combination of Al ions with other molecules, forming aluminum salts that can be easily absorbed in the stomach [8,9]. Then, Al is distributed throughout the organism and can affect many organs, such as the cerebellum [10], kidneys [11] and even the salivary glands [12] of animals.…”