Beneficial Effects of N-Acetyl-L-cysteine or Taurine Pre- or Post-treatments in the Heart, Spleen, Lung, and Testis of Hexavalent Chromium-Exposed Mice

Hexavalent chromium[Cr(VI)] compounds may induce toxic effects, possibly via reactive intermediates and radicals formed during Cr(VI) reduction. In this study, we probed the possible effects of N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) and taurine pre- or post-treatments on Cr(VI)-induced changes in lipid peroxidation and nonprotein thiols (NPSH) in mice heart, lung, spleen, and testis tissues. The mice were randomly assigned to six groups, consisting of control, Cr(VI)-exposed (20 mg Cr/kg, intraperitoneal ,ip), NAC (200mg/kg, ip) as pre-treatment and post-treatment, and taurine (1g/kg, ip) pre-treatment and post-treatment groups. Lipid peroxidation and NPSH levels were determined and the results were compared with regard to tissue- and antioxidant-specific basis. Exposure to Cr(VI) significantly increased lipid peroxidation in all tissues as compared to the control (p<0.05); and consistent with this data, NPSH levels were significantly decreased (p<0.05). Notably, administration of NAC and taurine, either before or after Cr(VI) exposure, was able to ameliorate the lipid peroxidation (p<0.05) in all tissues. In the case of NPSH content, while the decline could be alleviated by both NAC and taurine pre- and post-treatments in the spleen, diverging results were obtained in other tissues. The effects of Cr(VI) on the lung thiols were abolished by pre-treatment with NAC and taurine; however, post-treatments could not exert significant effect. While thiol depletion in the heart was totally replenished by NAC and taurine administrations, NAC pre-treatment was partially more effective than post-treatment. In contrast with lipid peroxidation data, NAC treatment could not provide a statistically significant beneficial effect on NPSH content of the testis, whereas the effect in this tissue by taurine was profound. Thus, these data highlight the importance of tissue-specific factors and the critical role of administration time. Overall, our data suggest that NAC and taurine may have potential in prevention of Cr(VI)-induced toxicity in the heart, lung, spleen, and testis tissues

Alevli atomik absorpsiyon spektroskopi ile yumusak plastik oyuncaklarda kursun düzeylerinin ön değerlendirilmesi

Objective: Lead is a heavy metal that can affect virtually every organ system in the body, particularly the nervous, hematologic and gastrointestinal systems. Children are more sensitive to the health problems as a consequence of lead exposure than adults. Studies have shown that lead contamination on the ground of inexpensive toys, much of them imported from China, is widespread. The goal of this study was to develop a method for determination of the lead levels in plastic toys using flame atomic absorption spectroscopy, and to evaluate whether or not these inexpensive toys are possible sources of toxic lead for children. Methods: This study involved 50 plastic toys. Turkish (n=19) and Chinese brands (n=31) of inexpensive plastic toys were purchased from the different places of Ankara in Turkey. Toys were classified as their color and origin of country. Samples were prepared by use of microwave acid digestion procedure. Flame atomic absorption spectroscopy was utilized for quantification of lead in the samples which were examined. Results: The method showed linearity in the range of 0-4 mg/kg with a detection and quantification limit equal to 0.01 mg/kg and 0.03 mg/kg, respectively. Lead levels in toys ranged between 0.10 mg/kg and 384.40 mg/kg while median and mean (±SD) lead levels were calculated as 50.01 mg/kg and 68.66±59.72 mg/kg, respectively. Mean lead levels of Turkish brands toys and Chinese brand toys were found 41.44±46.33 mg/ kg and 85.35±91.30 mg/kg, respectively. Samples were classified as their origin of country and colors. Hence, Chinese toys had statistically higher lead levels than Turkish brands toys (p=0.01; p < 0.05). In addition, black toys (144.01 ± 121.61 mg/kg) had statistically higher lead levels than other colored ones (54.31± 61.26 mg/ kg) (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Thus, it is suggested that inexpensive plastic toys are the potential health risk in terms of lead toxicity for the children. This study can be considered as a preliminary step to examine the potential lead exposure hazard occurring in children through plastic toys. Nevertheless, further research is needed to determine if the high lead concentration in toys poses a serious risk to child health. In addition, the proposed method is applicable for forensic or custom analysis of lead contents in plastic toys. © 2019, Refik Saydam National Public Health Agency (RSNPHA)