EFFECT OF IN UTERO CADMIUM AND/OR ZINC EXPOSURE ON OCCURRENCE OF SQUELETAL ABNORMALITIES.

Cadmium (Cd) is widely dispersed heavy metal, of current environmental concern. It is well known that many toxic effects of Cd result from interactions with essential elements, including zinc (Zn) which is necessary for growth, development and maintenance of bone health. This study explored the effect of in utero Cd exposure on the induction of skeletal deformities and the protective effect of Zn against Cd toxicity. For this purpose, female rats received either tap water, Cd, Zn or Cd+Zn in their drinking water during gestation and skeletal deformities were indentified and quantified in their fetuses removed at the 20th day of pregnancy (GD20). Numerous skeletal defects were documented during examination of the stained fetal specimens. The identified malformations were localized at the axial skeleton level in different regions (skull, sternum, thoracic region, lumbar region and phalange) and the highest incidence occurred after exposure to Cd. Compared to Cd group, co-treatment with Cd and Zn has no significant effect on body and femur weight but a significant reduction of the occurrence of skeletal abnormalities was observed. Our results highlight the protective role of Zn against Cd-induced skeletal abnormalities and indicate that the toxic effect of Cd can be mediated, at least in part, by the perturbation of Zn metabolism.