Comparative effect between chitosan and chitosan-Cu complex on carbon-tetrachloride [CCL[4]] induced liver damage in rats

Carbon tetrachloride [CCI[4]] is a toxic material known to induce lipid peroxidation and liver damage. The possible protective roles that involved by chitosan or chitosan-Cu complex against CCI[4] induced liver intoxication were investigated in male rats. CCI[4] administred at dose 20 mg/kg body weight i.p., exceed malondialdehyde [MDA] and protein carbonyle [PC], depleted superoxide dismutase [SOD] and glutathione [GSH], in concomitant with marked increase in investigated' liver function parameters, alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase [ALT, AST], impaired serum and liver total protein, albumin and globulin. An elevation in serum and hepatic total lipids, total cholesterol, triglycerides and serum LDL and VLDL levels as well as a low level of HDL were recorded. In the same time, there was a significant increase in sodium and iron contents in the serum while a significant decrease in potassium and zinc contents were recorded. Animals pretreated with chitosan [200 mg /kg body weight] orally by stomach tube for 21 consecutive days prior to CCI[4] challenge significantly attenuated most of the tested parameters, strengthen antioxidant defense system, ameliorated liver function effectively. Chitosan-Cu complex has a protective effect by a higher degree than that of chitosan only. These findings suggest that pretreatment with chitosan-Cu complex has higher hepato-protective effects than that of only chitosan against CCI[4] induced toxicity in rat

Toxic effect of dimethoate on pregnant rats and their offspring 1 Histopathological study

Fifteen pregnant rats with their offspring and five virgin rats were used in this study. The histopathological changes of 1/4 LD 50 doses of dime thoate were examined in parenchymatous organs including liver, kidney in addition to bony changes in the growing ends of long bones. The results were compared with five pregnant and five virgin rats not exposed to the insecticide dimethoate. The results showed distinct degenerative changes up to necrosis in the parenchymatous organ. However the epiphyseal lines showed disturbance of the proliferating cartilage cell as regard number and degree of their maturation.It was concluded that hazardous effects of exposure to these insecticide on pregnancy and off- springs