ABSTRACT
The current study was carried out in order to assess the toxic effects enforced by nicotine on liver, lung, and testes of mice. Experimental study. This study was conducted at the Animal House of Lahore College for Women University Lahore for a period of thirty days. The initial body weights of mice were obtained. A control group consisting of 20 mice injected with saline solution and an experimental group containing 40 mice treated with 1 mg/kg of nicotine subcutaneously were designed. The treatment lasted for 6 weeks after which final body weights were recorded. Later the mice of both groups were slaughtered and their livers, lungs, and testes were taken out and directly preserved in 10% formalin. A considerable decrease of body weight and food intake was evident in the experimental group and so was observed in the organs weight too. The decrease of body weight and food intake was from 36.89 +/- 1.31 to [35.39 +/- 1.25] and [119.41 +/- 5.76] to [115.01 +/- 5.50] respectively. All the three organs also showed a prominent decrease of the weight and resulted in the degeneration and alteration of the histology. Major histological changes in liver were widening and enlargement of sinusoids, necrosis, degeneration of hepatocytes, and fat deposition. Testes had disruptions in the seminiferous tubules and less number of Leydig cells, and experimental lungs showed proliferation of cells, damaged connective tissue network and congestion of lungs. Nicotine administration to the encountered animals reduces the body weight. Decrease in body weight is considered to be due to reduction in food intake. By examining the liver, lungs, and testes affected by nicotine, it can be figured out that nicotine greatly affects the histoarchitecture of the three organs in several ways. For functional integrity of the organs, extreme and direct exposure to such drugs must be prevented