Iranian Journal of Toxicology
Volume:8 Issue: 1, Spring 2014

This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of silybum marianum seeds (SMSs) on blood biochemical profile of broiler chickens contaminated with Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). Combinations of three levels of AFB1 (0, 250 and 500 ppb) with three levels of SMSs (0, 0.5, and 1.0 %) were incorporated into the basal diet (corn and soybean meal). The effect of nine experimental treatments was assessed using 216 One-d-old Ross 308 male broiler chicks in a complete randomized design based on factorial design with 4 replicates of six birds. The individual effects of dietary AFB1 and SMSs on serum biochemistry factors and liver enzymes were evaluated at 35 days of age. Statistical package SAS (9.1) was used to perform the analysis. The main effects of uric acid, glucose, total bilirubin and liver enzymes (such as; aspartate amino-transferase (AST), alanine amino-transaminase (ALT) and γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT)) in groups received different levels of AFB1 significantly increased (P<0.01). In contrast, albumin, direct bilirubin, calcium, and phosphorus significantly decreased (P<0.05). However, the SMSs supplemented diets significantly decreased uric acid, glucose, AST and GGT enzymes compare to control group (P<0.01). SMSs might prevent the adverse effects of AFB1 in contaminated food and improve safety and quality of poultry products for human use.

Considering the toxic effects of heavy metals and microbial pathogens in industrial wastewaters, it is necessary to treat metal and microbial contaminated wastewater prior to disposal in the environment. The purpose of this study is to assess the removal of heavy metals pollution and microbial contamination from a mixture of municipal and industrial wastewater using membrane bioreactor. A pilot study with a continuous stream was conducted using a 32-L-activated sludge with a flat sheet membrane. Actual wastewater from industrial wastewater treatment plant was used in this study. Membrane bioreactor was operated with a constant flow rate of 4 L/hr and chemical oxygen demand, suspended solids concentration, six heavy metals concentration, and total coliform amounts were recorded during the operation. High COD, suspended solids, heavy metals, and microbial contamination removal was measured during the experiment. The average removal percentages obtained by the MBR system were 81% for Al, 53% for Fe, 94% for Pb, 91% for Cu, 59% for Ni, and 49% for Cr which indicated the presence of Cu, Ni, and Cr in both soluble and particle forms in mixed liquor while Al, Fe, and Pb were mainly in particulate form. Also, coliforms in the majority of the samples were <140 MPN/100mL that showed that more than 99.9% of total coliform was removed in MBR effluent. The Membrane Biological Reactor (MBR) showed a good performance to remove heavy metals and microbial matters as well as COD and suspended solids. The effluent quality was suitable for reusing purposes.

In recent years, the use of chemicals in agriculture, industry, and public health has become so common that the environment is continuously contaminated by the toxic substance-like metals. Aluminum released due to anthropogenic activities such as mining and industrial uses. Aluminium has several industrial uses. The present study was designed to investigate the effect of aluminium chloride (AlCl3) on enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants in the testis and epididymis of rats. Adult male rats were administered with aluminium chloride at two different doses, 50 mg and 100 mg/kg body weight, orally, daily for 45 days. At the end of the experimental period, the animals were sacrificed and their testis and the epididymis were removed. Antioxidant enzymes like catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), and glutathione-s-transferase (GST) were assayed. Lipid peroxidation (LPO), vitamin C, and vitamin E levels were also determined. Aluminium chloride administration had no effect on the bodyweight of the animals but the weight of the testis and epididymis was decreased. Almost all the antioxidant enzymes studied markedly diminished in the testis and epididymis of aluminium chloride treated animals. The non-enzymatic antioxidants, vitamin C and vitamin E, also declined. Lipid peroxidation, on the other hand, significantly increased. The influence was found to be more in 100 mg treated rats when compared to 50 mg treated rats. The present study suggests the reproductive toxicity of aluminium by inducing the oxidative stress in the testis and epididymis and possible interference in sperm production and further maturational processes

In this study, the toxicity of the different xenobiotics was tested on the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster model system. Fly larvae were raised on food supplemented with xenobioticsat different concentrations (sodium nitroprusside (0.1-1.5 mM), S-nitrosoglutathione (0.5-4 mM), and potassium ferrocyanide (1 mM)). Emergence of flies, food intake by larvae, and pupation height preference as well as aconitase activity (in 2-day old flies) were measured. Food supplementation with xenobiotics caused a developmental delay in the flies and decreased pupation height. Biochemical analyses of oxidative stress markers and activities of antioxidants and their associated enzymes were carried out on 2-day-old flies emerged from control larvae andlarvae fed on food supplemented with chemicals. Larval exposure to chemicals resulted in lower activities of aconitase in flies of both sexes and perturbation in activities of antioxidant enzymes. The results of this study showed that among a variety of parameters tested, aconitase activity, developmental endpoints, and pupation height may be used as reliable early indicators of toxicity caused by different chemicals

The use of herbal or medicinal plants in various forms has been popular for thousands of years. It is estimated that about 70–80% of the world’s population relies on alternative medicine, mainly of herbal origin. However, due to the nature and sources of these plants, they are sometimes contaminated with toxic heavy metals, which pose serious health risks to consumers. Herbal formulations, especially those used in the treatment of diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and weight loss may require long-term usage and the patient might be at risk of heavy metal poisoning. In this study, the levels of toxic heavy metals (Pb, Cd) were evaluated in 11 Iranian common herbal drugs for their health implications. In this investigation, concentrations of lead and cadmium were quantitatively determined in Iranian herbal drugs sampled from pharmacies in Tehran, Iran, using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (wet digestion). The results indicated that lead and cadmium were present in all investigated herbal drugs. The concentrations of metals in drugs ranged from 0.19 to 1.75 µg/g for Cd and 9.61 to 52.74 µg/g for Pb. The concentrations of lead and cadmium were higher than the maximum permissible daily levels in the majority of these herbal drugs, whereas the quantities of Pb and Cd were well below provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI). Daily total intake of these metals is considered in accord with the recommended daily intake of their corresponding formulations.

Phthalates are a group of multifunctional chemicals. Diethyl phthalate (DEP) is one of the most frequently used phthalates in solvents and fixatives for numerous industrial products. The present experiment was designed to assess oxidative stress, if any, caused by diethyl phthalate. For this the homogenates of liver and kidney were treated with different concentrations (10-40 µg/mL) of DEP. 10% liver and kidney homogenates were prepared in phosphate buffered saline and used for estimation of lipid peroxidation.In final step lipid peroxidation and total protein content were analyzed. The result revealed significant and dose - dependent increase in lipid peroxidation, whereas protein content reduced significantly. Maximum increase in LPO and decrease in protein content was observed at 40 µg/mL of DEP concentration. From this study, it can be concluded that different concentrations of DEP leads to dose- dependent significant increase in lipid peroxidation and decrease protein content.So at the different concentration of DEP cause oxidative stress.

This investigation describes the cyto-architectural alterations observed in the corpuscles of Stannius of stinging catfish Heteropneustes fossilis after treatment with a botanical pesticide Nerium indicum. Heteropneustes fossilis were subjected to 11.27 and 2.81 mg/L of Nerium indicum leaf extract over short- and long-term exposure periods, respectively. Blood was collected for calcium analysis and corpuscles of Stannius (CS) gland were fixed on 24, 48, 72 and 96 h in the short-term experiment and after 7, 14, 21, and 28 days in the long-term experiment. Serum calcium levels decreased from 48 h to 96 h. CS remains unaffected till 72 h. After the 96-hour treatment, increased granulation was observed in AF- positive cells. Nuclear volume of these cells exhibited no change throughout the short-term treatment. Slight increases in nuclear volume of AF-negative cells were recorded after 96 h. Nerium indicum caused decreases in serum calcium levels of H. fossilis from day 14 to 28. CS exhibited no alterations up to 14 days of exposure. AF-positive cells of CS depicted increased granulation after 21 days of treatment. Nuclear volume of these cells exhibited a slight decrease from day 21 to 28. Heavy accumulation of AF-positive granules was observed and few degenerating cells were noticed. Nuclear volume of AF-negative cells increased after 21 and 28 days of treatment. Vacuolization and degeneration occurred in certain places. It is inferred from the present study that the botanical pesticide Nerium indicum induced severe changes in the corpuscles of Stannius of catfish.

Aflatoxins are fungal toxins which may be present in some foods and due to their negative health effects, represent a major concern for humans and food industries. In the present study, total aflatoxin contamination in products from eight feed materials production centers located in Qom City of Iran were evaluated by an ELISA technique in November 2012. A total of 40 feed samples were analyzed for total aflatoxin. The samples were collected randomly from eight feed materials production centers (C1-C8) located in Qom city. Samples were conditioned in sterile plastic container and kept at 4 ᵒC until analyses that were carried out in same day. The total average of Aflatoxins concentration in samples were 1.83µg/kg. All samples demonstrated total aflatoxin levels lower than European Union standard and National Standard of Iran recommended limits. Considering the low values of aflatoxin contamination, maintaining vigilant preventive measures is recommended.These results do not preclude the need for continuing comprehensive studies for aflatoxin contamination.

Iron, manganese, and aluminum are three abundant metals on earth and their concentrations have increased in aquatic environments as a result of natural and industrial activities. This study was undertaken to report the median acute toxicity (LC50) and accumulation of the sub-lethal concentration (10% 96-h LC50) of iron (Fe), manganese (Mn) and aluminum (Al) in kutum (Rutilus kutum) fingerlings. For the 96-h LC50, the fish were exposed to concentrations of 105, 111, 117, 123, 129 and 135 mg/l of Fe and 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, and 65 mg/l of Mn and 18, 22, 26, 30, 34 and 38 mg/l of aluminum for 4 days. For sublethal exposure, they were exposed to mediums with concentrations of 12.3, 5.4 and 2.9 for Fe, Mn, and aluminum, respectively. Metal concentrations were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry in the gill tissues. Probit analysis showed the 96-h LC50 values of 122.98, 54.39, and 28.89 mg/l for Fe, Mn, and aluminum, respectively. Sub-lethal tests were conducted with nominal concentrations of 12.3, 5.4, and 2.9 mg/l of Fe, Mn, and aluminum for four days, respectively. Significant accumulations were observed in gills for all tested metals as compared to the control groups in short-term exposure (P<0.05). Obtained results clearly show that aluminum is the most toxic metal among tested ones for kutum fingerlings and it has the highest branchial AF value during sub-lethal exposure.

Lidocaine is a local anesthetic and antiarrhythmic agent. There are reports on accidental and intentional cases of poisoning following injection of lidocaine while rare are the fatal cases realized after oral ingestion of lidocaine. Suicidal poisoning with lidocaine pharmaceutical formulations is rare since no pharmaceutical dosage forms for oral use are available except gels and sprays used as local anesthetics in dentistry. Cases: Three cases of suicidal poisoning by ingestion of the content of lidocaine topical spray are reported in the present study. The cases developed episodes of seizure requiring diazepam and other therapeutic modalities upon admission. Eventually, one of the cases expired. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first reported case of suicidal poisoning after ingestion of this formulation which highlights the fact that lidocaine topical spray formulation may be used for committing suicide. Ingestion of lidocaine present in topical spray can induce varying levels of toxicity that can even be fatal.