The potential role of Acrylamide in inducing developmental toxicity and neurotoxicity of pregnant rats and their fetuses.

Abstract

The present work was undertaken to evaluate the potential role of Acrylamide (ACR) in inducing developmental toxicity and neurotoxicity in pregnant rats and their fetuses. Three groups of pregnant rats were treated by gavage with; distilled water (control group, n= 10), low dose of acrylamide (25 mg/kg b.wt., n=10) and high dose of acrylamide (50 mg/kg b.wt., n= 13) daily from 7th to 19th day of gestation. The data indicated that ACR treatment did not adversely affect the percentage of resorptions/litter or incidences of external or skeletal malformations in fetuses. However, reduction of fetal body weight as well as skeletal developmental retardation were observed accompanied by decreased dam body weight gain. Also, exposure to ACR resulted in neurological defects revealed by hind limb paralysis, significant reduction of maternal brain weight and DNA damage of the cerebral tissue of both mothers and fetuses. Moreover, ACR treatment resulted in different changes in cerebral protein patterns of treated mothers and their fetuses. The most pronounced changes were represented in the form of the appearance of new protein bands and disappearance of some others compared to control. It can be concluded that ACR exposure during pregnancy induced in dose-related effects, fetal developmental retardation, DNA breakdown and change in protein patterns of the cerebral tissue of treated mothers and their fetuses.