Lipid Peroxidation in Rats Subacutely Exposed to a Low Concentration of Aerosolized Cadmium Chloride

Abstract

Lipid peroxidation (LPO) was evaluated at 1, 5, 10, 15, and 45 days in the lungs, liver, and kidneys of rats exposed to a low concentration of aerosolized cadmium chloride (50 μg Cd/m³ as CdCl₂ MMAD 0.3 µm; σ_g - 1.3) during 4 h/day for 14 days. Results demonstrate that LPO was significantly increased in lung tissue 24 h aher the first exposure (178%; p ≤ .01), while activities of the antioxidant defense components, namely, glutathione peroxidase (GPX), glutathione reductase (GR), and superoxide dis-mutase (SOD), were not affected. On the other hand, activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) was significantly increased at day 1. Subsequent exposures had no effect on lung LPO but produced significant changes in GR and G6PDH, while CPX and SOD remained unchanged. These various parameters were not significantly altered in liver and kidneys. The results reported in the present study demonstrate that LPO is an early response of the lung tissue following inhalation of low concentrations of CdCl₂ They also suggest that alterations of the antioxidant defense system are not responsible for the stimulation of the LPO reaction.