ABSTRACT
Forty adult male albino rats were used in the current study [control rats n =20, 10 rats per each experimental group, group 1 - experimental "after 3 hoursof injection", and group 2 - experimental" after 6 hours of injection" n =10]. The experimental groups were injected intraperitoneally with a singledose of lead acetate, 150 mg/kg body weight dissolved in distilled water. Retro-orbital blood was sampled for the determination of blood lead level,complete blood count, and differential leucocytic count. In addition, bloodand bone marrow samples were obtained for transmission electron microscopicstudies from ten randomly chosen animals. Blood lead levels showed asignificant increase in both group 1 and group 2. Red blood cells countshowed a nonsignificant decrease in both experimental groups, while the totalleucocytic count showed a nonsignificant increase. Hemoglobin concentrationand platelet count decreased in both experimental groups, but this decreasewas significant only in group 2. Hypersegmentation of the neutrophilicnucleus was observed in both experimental groups. The ultrastructuralalterations such as irregular nuclei, occasional nuclear pockets, the presenceof cytoplasmic vacuoles containing inclusions, dilatation of rough endoplasmicreticulum cisternae were most clearly expressed in some neutrophils of group 2. Furthermore, electron dense nuclear inclusions, with a densecenter and outer fibrilly zone, together with dilated nuclear membrane werepresented among the erythroid cell series. Besides, bizarre shaped ordeformed red cells were also seen. Platelets showed hypo-granularity withdilated open canalicular system [OCS] and satellitism