Characteristics to Consider when Choosing an Animal Model for the Study of Lead Bioavailability

Bioavailability of Lead to Juvenile Swine Dosed with Soil from the Smuggler Mountain NPL Site of Aspen, Colorado

“…enteric bioavailability of Pb in young children necessitated selection based on similar physiological characteristics. Young pigs have similar physiology and have been used successfully as a model for gastrointestinal function of children (Dodds, 1982;Miller and Ullrey, 1987;Weis and Lavelle, 1991). Aspects of the pig model that make it uniquely attractive for bioavailability studies compared to rats and rabbits include: (1) the lack of coprophagy and the anatomical and physiological differences associated with this behavior; (2) the absence of complicating factors connected with the relatively high biliary excretion of Pb in rats; (3) the absence of rapid postnatal developmental changes in the active transport mechanism for Pb across the intestinal barrier of swine as seen in juvenile rats; (4) the similarity of immature swine in physiologic age and body weight to the childhood population; and (5) the ease of serial blood sampling without risk of anemia.…”

Arsenic Speciation of Contaminated Soils/Solid Wastes and Relative Oral Bioavailability in Swine and Mice

“…Molecular Formula As Oxidation and Covalence Type 6 -As(V) Arsenate coppt with calcite (syn) CaCO 3 -As(V) Lead Arsenate PbHAsO 4 As (V) ads Goethite (syn) 5 α-FeO(OH)-As(V) As (V) ads Ferrihydrite (syn) 5 FeOOH•0.4(H 2 O)-As(V) As (V) ads Birnessite (syn) 5 MnO 2 -As(V) As(V) ads Gibbsite (syn) 5 Al(OH) 3 -As(V)…”

“…Juvenile swine were chosen due to the gastrointestinal system similarities between swine and humans. The growth rate and subsequent parameters of juvenile swine are similar to that of children who are often identified as the most susceptible population regarding exposure to As contaminated soils [5,6]. In addition to the juvenile swine bioassay, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) developed a bioassay with adult mice, which has been used to determine As bioavailability for a number of soils [7,8].…”

Characterizing Golden Eagle Risk to Lead and Anticoagulant Rodenticide Exposure: A Review

“…Rat pups absorb approximately 40-50 times more lead via the diet than do adult rats Forbes and Reina 1972;Kostial et al 1978). This age difference in absorption may be due, in part, to the shift from the neonatal to adult diet, and to postnatal physiological development of intestine (Weis and LaVelle 1991).…”