Effects of zinc on tissue uptake and toxicity of lead in Sprague Dawley rat

Abstract

Lead (Pb) exposure occurs together with other metals including zinc (Zn). This study investigated the impact of Zn on Pb tissue accumulation and Pb-induced toxicities. Animals (n = 6 rats per group) were exposed to lead acetate (PbAc) or a combination of PbAc and zinc acetate (ZnAc) under the following groups: control (deionized water), low PbAc [12 mg/kg PbAc (3 mg PbAc/rat/day)], low PbAc-ZnAc [12 mg/kg PbAc (3 mg PbAc/rat/day) + 0.2 mg ZnAc/rat/48 hr], high PbAc [120 mg/kg (30 mg PbAc/rat/day)], and high PbAc-ZnAc [120 mg/kg (30 mg PbAc/rat/day) + 1 mg ZnAc/rat/48 hr] for 8 weeks. A significant reduction in body weight gain was observed in the high PbAc group relative to the control group. Muscles and testes both had reduced and increased Pb uptake in low PbAc-ZnAc and high PbAc-ZnAc groups compared to PbAc only groups, respectively. Bone Pb levels in the high PbAc-ZnAc group were lower than the high PbAc group. Zinc co-administration attenuated Pb-induced inhibition of delta aminolaevulinic acid dehydratase enzyme and enhanced catalase enzyme activity at a high level of exposure. Moreover, ZnAc seems to have minimized the effects of Pb-induced mRNA dysregulation in antioxidant and antiapoptotic enzymes encoding genes. Heme oxygenase-1 was downregulated in the kidney and brain in the low PbAc group. Liver glutathione peroxidase and thioredoxin reductase-1 were downregulated in the high PbAc group. These findings suggest that zinc co-administration with lead may partially mitigate against Pb-induced toxicities.

Hesperidin alleviates zinc-induced nephrotoxicity via the gut-kidney axis in swine

“…A number of studies have shown that appropriate amount of Zn added to feed can improve the growth efficiency of animals ( Li et al., 2021c ). However, excessive intake of Zn can cause acute and chronic poisoning in animals ( Kataba et al., 2021 ). Studies have pointed out that the toxic effect of Zn is mainly through disrupting the physiological homeostasis of lipid bimolecular structure and changing the structure of glycoprotein on the cell surface, and causing disorders to the structure and function of Zn-containing enzymes such as ATP and nucleotidase, resulting in reduction of ATP synthesis, dysfunction of membrane active transport, organelle edema and other diseases ( Alhasawi et al., 2014 ; Ren et al., 2017 ).…”

Influence of environmental factors on changes in the speciation of Pb and Cr in sediments of Wuliangsuhai Lake, during the ice-covered period

“…Heavy metals can persist in the environment and disrupt the biochemical and physiological systems of plants, animals, and humans. Speci cally, Pb can be absorbed by organisms through water, air, and nutrients and disrupt nucleic acid and protein formation, antioxidant enzyme activity, and cell membrane function (Yabe et al, 2015;Hu et al, 2016;Chen et al, 2019;Kataba et al, 2021;Kataba et al, 2021;Aytekin, 2022;Pham et al, 2022). Cr is the second most common metal contaminant in groundwater, soil, and sediments, and Cr occurs in two main oxidation states in surface water, as an immobile and less soluble Cr(III) under reducing conditions and as a mobile, toxic, and bioavailable Cr(VI) under oxidising conditions.…”

Ameliorative effects of virgin olive oil, propolis, and zinc chloride on lead acetate-induced genetic variation in mice using 16S rRNA sequence

“…Zinc is particularly renowned as an antioxidant in cases of lead poisoning, as it can increase the antioxidant system either directly or indirectly by stabilizing the chemical components of the antioxidant enzymes (Kataba et al, 2021). Zinc involved in several crucial biological processes such cell division, growth, and differentiation (Soussi et al, 2018).…”