Effects of cadmium chloride and sodium selenite alone or in combination on the liver of male Sprague-Dawley rats assessed by different assays

Assessment of copper nanoparticles (Cu-NPs) and copper (II) oxide (CuO) induced hemato- and hepatotoxicity in Cyprinus carpio

Recently, Cu-based nanoparticles have drawn considerable attention for their various fascinating roles in multiple biological systems. It is recognized that their frequent use can create compatibility challenges for the recipient systems. Nevertheless, it is unclear how various biological interactions affect the compatibility of Cu oxide II (CuO) and Cu oxide nanoparticles (Cu-NPs) for different organisms. Consequently, it has been difficult to perform structured risk assessments for their use in biological systems. Therefore, this study compared the effects of different doses of waterborne Cu-NPs and CuO on the blood and liver of selected groups of Cyprinus (C) carpio. These fish while housed in suitable water tanks were exposed to one of the following treatments for 14 d: control (no added Cu) or 0.5 or 1 or 1.5 mg Cu as Cu-NPs or CuO l^-1 of water. We found significant changes in all assessed blood parameters of fish in response to increasing doses from 0 to 1.5 mg of Cu-NPs or CuO. Similarly, increased levels of lipid peroxide and reduced glutathione (GSH) were also observed in the livers of C. carpio in Cu-NPs or CuO treated groups. Enhanced levels of lipid peroxidation and GSH were also recorded in the Cu-NP treated groups compared with the CuO treated groups in a dose dependent manner. The lowest catalase activity was observed in the liver of C. carpio treated with the higer dose of Cu-NPs. Cu-NP or CuO exposure induced significant histological alterations in the liver of C. carpio including focal necrosis, cloudy swelling of hepatocytes, degenerative hepatocytes, vacuolization, pyknotic nuclei, damaged central vein, nuclear hypertrophy, dilated sinusoid, vacuolated degeneration, congestion, and complete degeneration in a dose dependent manner. Substantial alterations in blood and liver specimens were observed in the Cu-NP treated fish when compared with the CuO treated fish. It appeared that the Cu-NPs were more toxic than the CuO as shown by the hemato- and hepatotoxicity in C. carpio of this study.

Selenium Source Impacts Protection of Porcine Jejunal Epithelial Cells from Cadmium-Induced DNA Damage, with Maximum Protection Exhibited with Yeast-Derived Selenium Compounds

Selenium (Se) is found in inorganic and organic forms, both of which are commonly used in animal feed supplements. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of the chemical form of Se on its associated ameliorative effects on cadmium (Cd)-induced DNA damage in a porcine model. At a cellular level, Cd mediates free oxygen radical production leading in particular to DNA damage, with consequential mutagenesis and inhibition of DNA replication. In this study, porcine jejunal epithelial cells (IPEC-J2) were pre-incubated for 48 h with one of Se-yeast (Sel-Plex), selenomethionine (Se-M), sodium selenite (Se-Ni) or sodium selenate (Se-Na). The effects of this supplementation on cell viability and DNA damage following cadmium chloride (CdCl₂) exposure were subsequently evaluated. IPEC-J2 cells were cultivated throughout in medium supplemented with porcine serum to generate a superior model that recapitulated the porcine gut epithelium. The results illustrated that Se antioxidant effects were both composition- and dose-dependent as evident from cell viability (Alamar Blue and 5-carboxyfluorescein diacetate acetoxymethyl ester) and DNA damage assays (Comet and TUNEL). Both the Se-yeast and Se-M organic species, when used at the European Food Safety Authority guideline levels, had a protective effect against Cd-induced DNA damage in the IPEC-J2 model system whereas for inorganic Se-Ni and Se-Na sources no protective effects were observed and in fact these were shown to enhance the negative effects of Cd-induced DNA damage. It can be concluded that nutritional supplementation with organoselenium may protect porcine gut integrity from damage induced by Cd.

Tracing the Bioavailability of Three-Dimensional Graphene Foam in Biological Tissues

Graphene-based materials with a three-dimensional (3D) framework have been investigated for a variety of biomedical applications because of their 3D morphology, excellent physiochemical properties, volume stability, and their controllable degradation rate. Current knowledge on the toxicological implications and bioavailability of graphene foam (GF) has major uncertainties surrounding the fate and behavior of GF in exposed environments. Bioavailability, uptake, and partitioning could have potential effects on the behavior of GF in living organisms, which has not yet been investigated. Here, we report a pilot toxicology study on 3D GF in common carps. Our results showed that GF did not show any noticeable toxicity in common carps, and the antioxidant enzymatic activities, biochemical and blood parameters persisted within the standard series. Further histological imaging revealed that GF remained within liver and kidney macrophages for 7 days without showing obvious toxicity. An in vivo study also demonstrated a direct interaction between GF and biological systems, verifying its eco-friendly nature and high biocompatibility.

Toxic Effects of Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles and Titanium Dioxide Bulk Salt in the Liver and Blood of Male Sprague-Dawley Rats Assessed by Different Assays

This study evaluated the toxic effects of titanium dioxide (TiO2) bulk salt as well as its nanoparticles (NPs) in anatase phase with mean crystallite size of 36.15 nm in male Sprague-Dawley rats by subcutaneous injections at four different dose levels of either control (0), 50, 100 or 150 mg/kg of body weight (BW) of rat for 28 days on alternate days. Animal mortality, haematology, micronucleus assay, liver histology and activities of liver tissue damage markers like, alkaline phosphate (ALP), alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), as well as oxidative stress indicators like superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione S-transferase (GST), reduced glutathione (GSH) and lipid peroxidation (LPO) were investigated. The study revealed significant differences (P < 0.05) among control and experimental groups in all the haematological parameters at the end of experiment. Significantly elevated levels (P < 0.05) of ALT, AST and ALP were found for the group treated with TiO2 NPs at the dose of 150 mg/kg of body weight as compared to control. TiO2 and TiO2 NPs caused dose-dependent genotoxicity in the blood cells of the treated rat as revealed by micronuclei test. The highest frequency of micronuclei was observed in rats treated with NPs at the dose of 150 mg/kg BW which was significantly different (P < 0.001) from all other experimental groups after 28 days of exposure. Similarly, all the treatments showed dose-dependent oxidative stress in the treated rats. However, the significantly high decline in the activities of CAT, SOD, and GST as well as elevation in malondialdehyde and GSH was observed in the group receiving NPs at the rate of 150 mg/kg BW. TiO2 also caused histological alterations in the liver. The study revealed that higher dose of TiO2 NPs exerted significantly harmful effects on liver and blood as compared to its lower doses as well as from all other doses of their bulk counterparts.

Vitamin E attenuates liver injury induced by exposure to lead, mercury, cadmium and copper in albino mice

Water pollution is the contamination of water resources by harmful wastes or toxins. Both community and private sources of drinking water are susceptible to a myriad of chemical contaminants. Heavy metals pollution of surface water can create health risks. The present study was aimed to investigate the effect of vitamin E supplementation on male mice exposed to a mixture of some heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium and copper) in their drinking water for seven weeks. Significant increases of blood alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) were detected in heavy metals-treated mice. Histopathologically, the liver sections from heavy metals-treated mice showed severe changes including disarrangement of hepatic strands, rupture in hepatocytes, advanced hepatocellular necrosis, dilation and congestion of blood vessels with hemorrhage, dense lymphocytic infiltration round the central vein and dark stained hepatocytic nuclei indicating cell pycnosis. Administration of vitamin E at a dose of 50 IU/kg body weight, five times weekly improved the observed biochemical and histopathological changes induced by these heavy metals intoxication. Hence, the results of this study suggest that vitamin E protects against these heavy metals-induced liver injury and the attenuating effect of vitamin E may be due to its antioxidant activity.