Prenatal blood levels of some toxic metals and the risk of spontaneous abortion.

High-level toxic metal exposure has become rare in the recent years. Although, it has not known whether relatively lower exposure may adversely affect human reproductive system. Spontaneous abortion (SA) is a serious reproductive problem, which, in many cases, the cause(s) is not clearly understood.

Hair Metal Levels and Childhood Weight Gain.

Background: Exposure to toxic metals remains a public health problem with lifelong impacts on childhood growth and development. We aimed to investigate metals effects on preschool children's anthropometric variables.

Methods: The study was conducted in Tehran, Iran, from Jul 2013 to Mar 2016.

Biphasic adverse effect of titanium nanoparticles on testicular function in mice.

The male reproductive system is being recognized as toxic targets of nanoparticles including titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiNP). Most of these reports are, however, obtained from the results of long-term exposure of TiNP. In this study, we diversely examined the acute effects of TiNP on the male reproductive system.

Lethal chronotoxicity induced by seven metal compounds in mice.

The aim of the present study is to investigate the "chronotoxicity" of seven metal compounds (Hg, Pb, Ni, Cr, Cu, Zn, or Fe) by assessing how their toxicity varies with circadian periodicity. Male ICR mice were injected with each metal compound intraperitoneally at 6 different time points over the course of a day (zeitgeber time [ZT]: ZT2, ZT6, ZT10, ZT14, ZT18 and ZT22). Mortality was then monitored until 14 days after the injection.

Prenatal mercury exposure and birth weight.

Adverse effects of prenatal mercury exposure on pregnancy outcomes remain a public health concern. We assessed the relationship between prenatal mercury exposure and newborn anthropometric characteristics in 334 mother-child pairs from the early stages of pregnancy to delivery in Tokyo, Japan, between December 2010 and October 2012. We found a negative correlation between blood mercury levels during the first and second trimesters of gestation and birth weight (r = -0.

Epididymal phospholipidosis is a possible mechanism for spermatotoxicity induced by the organophosphorus insecticide fenitrothion in rats.

Fenitrothion (FNT) is used worldwide in agricultural and public health settings. Spermatogenesis is a toxicological target of FNT under high-dose exposure. Although anti-androgenic action is postulated to be the mechanism associated with this toxicity, few studies have examined histopathology of androgen-dependent male accessory sex organs.

Multidirectional analyses of hepatic chronotoxicity induced by cadmium in mice.

The expression levels or activities of biological defense factors can fluctuate daily following biological rhythms. We have focused on the relationship between injection timing and the degree of toxicity of cadmium (Cd) to promote the concept of "chronotoxicology," which introduces chronobiology to the field of toxicology. Our previous studies have clearly indicated that Cd may be subject to chronotoxicity.

Effects of Hair Metals on Body Weight in Iranian Children Aged 20 to 36 Months.

Background: Although the level of exposure to many toxic metals decreased recently, the adverse effects of these metals on children's growth and development remain a serious public health issue.

Methods: The present study was conducted in three teaching hospitals affiliated with Tehran University of Medical Sciences (Tehran, Iran) from Sep 2012 to Mar 2013. To study the relationship between metals and childhood growth, concentrations of zinc and several potentially toxic metals (lead, cadmium, antimony, cobalt, and molybdenum) were measured in scalp hair for 174 children, aged 20 to 36 months.

High sensitivity of testicular function to titanium nanoparticles.

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiNPs) present toxicity in organs such as the liver, lung, and intestine. The testis has also been reported as a target organ of TiNPs. We recently reported that TiNPs had no genotoxic effect in the liver and bone marrow, while showing clear testicular dysfunction.

Chronotoxicity of bromobenzene-induced hepatic injury in mice.

The aim of the present study is to investigate whether or not bromobenzene (BB) toxicity varies with circadian periodicity. Seven-week-old male ICR mice were injected with 900 mg/kg (5.73 mmol/kg) BB intraperitoneally at 4 different time points of a day (zeitgeber time [ZT]: ZT0, ZT6, ZT12, and ZT18).

Increased prenatal blood manganese may induce gestational blood pressure.

Objective: Pregnancy hypertension is the most common gestational complication and poses a critical risk for mother and fetus. Whether environmental factors may play an important role in disease occurrence is not fully determined.

Methods: To investigate the effects of prenatal manganese (Mn) exposure on gestational blood pressure, 386 women were examined.

The relation of maternal blood arsenic to anemia during pregnancy.

To clarify the relationship of prenatal arsenic exposure to hemoglobin concentrations and anemia during pregnancy, a longitudinal study was conducted of 364 participants during early pregnancy from October 2006 to March 2011 in Tehran, Iran. Maternal whole blood (taken between 8-12 and 20-24 weeks of gestation, and at delivery) and umbilical cord blood samples were collected for arsenic measurement. The mean concentration of maternal blood arsenic in the first trimester of pregnancy was significantly lower in anemic women compared with non-anemic participants (mean ± SD: 12.

Fenitrothion action at the endocannabinoid system leading to spermatotoxicity in Wistar rats.

Organophosphate (OP) compounds as anticholinesterase agents may secondarily act on diverse serine hydrolase targets, revealing unfavorable physiological effects including male reproductive toxicity. The present investigation proposes that fenitrothion (FNT, a major OP compound) acts on the endocannabinoid signaling system in male reproductive organs, thereby leading to spermatotoxicity (sperm deformity, underdevelopment, and reduced motility) in rats. FNT oxon (bioactive metabolite of FNT) preferentially inhibited the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), an endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA) hydrolase, in the rat cellular membrane preparation from the testis in vitro.

Low level prenatal blood lead adversely affects early childhood mental development.

The effect of prenatal lead exposure on child development has been a topic of public health concern for decades. To estimate prenatal lead exposure effects on early childhood development, maternal blood (n = 364) and umbilical cord blood (n = 224) samples were collected during pregnancy and at delivery. Mental development was assessed using the Harold Ireton Early Child Development Inventory from 174 children.

Assessment of the reproductive toxicity of inhalation exposure to ethyl tertiary butyl ether in male mice with normal, low active and inactive ALDH2.

No data are available regarding aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) polymorphisms related to the reproductive toxicity possibly caused by ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE). In this study, two inhalation experiments were performed in Aldh2 knockout (KO), heterogeneous (HT) and wild type (WT) C57BL/6 male mice exposed to ETBE, and the data about general toxicity, testicular histopathology, sperm head numbers, sperm motility and sperm DNA damage were collected. The results showed that the 13-week exposure to 0, 500, 1,750 and 5,000 ppm ETBE significantly decreased sperm motility and increased levels of sperm DNA strand breaks and 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine in both WT and KO mice, the effects were found in 1,750 and 5,000 ppm groups of WT mice, and all of the three exposed groups of KO mice compared to the corresponding control; furthermore, ETBE also caused decrease in the relative weights of testes and epididymides, the slight atrophy of seminiferous tubules of testis and reduction in sperm numbers of KO mice exposed to ≥500 ppm.

Mechanisms of cadmium-induced chronotoxicity in mice.

Biological defense factors show diurnal variations in their expression levels or activities. These variations can induce the different sensitivity to external toxicants of a day. We reported earlier that mice showed clear diurnal variation of cadmium (Cd)-induced toxicity, i.

Increase in blood manganese induces gestational hypertension during pregnancy.

Objective: Pregnancy hypertension can lead to many pregnancy complications and increases the risk of maternal morbidity and mortality.

Methods: To investigate the effects of blood manganese (Mn) on the development of pregnancy hypertension, 364 healthy women were examined during early pregnancy until delivery.

Results: At the first and second trimesters of pregnancy, concentrations of Mn in maternal blood were significantly higher in the hypertensive pregnant women than in the normotensive women.

Subchronic exposure to ethyl tertiary butyl ether resulting in genetic damage in Aldh2 knockout mice.

Ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE) is biofuel additive recently used in Japan and some other countries. Limited evidence shows that ETBE has low toxicity. Acetaldehyde (AA), however, as one primary metabolite of ETBE, is clearly genotoxic and has been considered to be a potential carcinogen.

Influence of injection timing on severity of cadmium-induced testicular toxicity in mice.

Cadmium (Cd) is one of the endocrine disrupter and is a well-known testicular toxicant. Recently, we reported that Cd-induced mortality was markedly different by injection timing. In this report, we investigated whether severity of testicular toxicity was affected by injection timing of Cd.

Lack of effects for dietary exposure of bisphenol A during in utero and lactational periods on reproductive development in rat offspring.

The potential for health effects on humans with exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) has raised concerns, and the adverse effects of low-dose exposure to BPA on reproduction have been controversial. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of low-dose exposure to BPA on reproductive development in F(1) rat offspring. Pregnant female Sprague-Dawley rats (F(0)) were fed a diet containing low doses of BPA (0, 0.

Diurnal variation of cadmium-induced mortality in mice.

Circadian timing largely modifies efficacy of many medicinal drugs. This viewpoint has been applied in the clinical medicine, known as chronotherapy. We think this viewpoint should also be introduced into toxicology as "chronotoxicology", however, information about the diurnal variation in toxicant sensitivity is still very scarce.

Differential genotoxic effects of subchronic exposure to ethyl tertiary butyl ether in the livers of Aldh2 knockout and wild-type mice.

Ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE) is used as an additive to gasoline to reduce carbon monoxide emissions in some developed countries. So far, ETBE was not found with positive results in many genotoxic assays. This study is undertaken to investigate the modifying effects of deficiency of aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) on the toxicity of ETBE in the livers of mice.

Aldh2 knockout mice were more sensitive to DNA damage in leukocytes due to ethyl tertiary butyl ether exposure.

To clarify the genotoxicity of ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE), a gasoline additive, male and female C57BL/6 mice of Aldh2+/+ and Aldh2-/- genotypes, aged 8 wk, were exposed to 0, 500, 1,750, or 5,000 ppm ETBE for 6 h/day, 5 d per week for 13 wk. DNA damage in leukocytes was measured by the alkaline comet assay and expressed quantitatively as Tail Intensity (TI). For male mice, TI was significantly higher in all three groups exposed to ETBE than in those without exposure within Aldh2-/- mice, whereas within Aldh2+/+ mice, TI increased only in those exposed to 5,000 ppm of ETBE as compared with mice without exposure.

Dietary exposure to low doses of bisphenol A: effects on reproduction and development in two generations of C57BL/6J mice.

The present study was conducted to examine the effects of low-dose exposure to bisphenol A on reproduction and development in two generations of mice. Pregnant female C57BL/6J mice (F(0)) were fed a diet containing low doses of bisphenol A (0, 0.33, 3.