Postnatal Effects of Gestational and Lactational Gavage Exposure to Boric Acid in the Developing Sprague Dawley Rat

Boric Acid (Boron) Attenuates AOM-Induced Colorectal Cancer in Rats by Augmentation of Apoptotic and Antioxidant Mechanisms

Boric acid (BA) is a naturally occurring weak Lewis acid containing boron, oxygen, and hydrogen elements that can be found in water, soil, and plants. Because of its numerous biological potentials including anti-proliferation actions, the present investigates the chemopreventive possessions of BA on azoxymethane (AOM)-induced colonic aberrant crypt foci (ACF) in rats. Thirty laboratory rats were divided into 5 groups: negative control (A) received two subcutaneous inoculations of normal saline and nourished on 10% Tween 20; groups B-E had two injections of 15 mg/kg azoxymethane followed by ingestion of 10% Tween 20 (B, cancer control), inoculation with intraperitoneal 35 mg/kg 5-fluorouracil injection (C, reference group), or ingested with boric acid 30 mg/kg (D) and 60 mg/kg (E). The gross morphology results showed significantly increased total colonic ACF in cancer controls, while BA treatment caused a significant reduction of ACF values. Histopathological evaluation of colons from cancer controls showed bizarrely elongated nuclei, stratified cells, and higher depletion of the submucosal glands than that of BA-treated groups. Boric acid treatment up-surged the pro-apoptotic (Bax) expression and reduced anti-apoptotic (Bcl-2) protein expressions. Moreover, BA ingestion caused upregulation of antioxidant enzymes (GPx, SOD, CAT), and lowered MDA contents in colon tissue homogenates. Boric acid-treated rats had significantly lower pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-6) and higher anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10) based on serum analysis. The colorectal cancer attenuation by BA is shown by the reduced ACF numbers, anticipated by its regulatory potentials on the apoptotic proteins, antioxidants, and inflammatory cytokines originating from AOM-induced oxidative damage.

A comprehensive review of toxicity of coal fly ash and its leachate in the ecosystem

Coal fly ash (CFA), a byproduct of coal combustion, is a hazardous industrial solid waste. Its excessive global production, coupled with improper disposal practices, insufficient utilization and limited awareness of its inherent hazards, poses a significant threat to both ecological environment and human health. Based on the physicochemical properties of CFA and its leachates, we elucidate the forms of CFA and potential pathways for its entry into the human body, as well as the leaching behavior, maximum tolerance and biological half-life of toxic elements present in CFA. Furthermore, we provide an overview of current strategies and methods for mitigating the leaching of these harmful elements from CFA. Moreover, we systemically summarize toxic effect of CFA on organisms across various tiers of complexity, analyze epidemiological findings concerning the human health implications resulting from CFA exposure, and delve into the biotoxicological mechanisms of CFA and its leachates at cellular and molecular levels. This review aims to enhance understanding of the potential toxicity of CFA, thereby promoting increased public awareness regarding the disposal and management of this industrial waste.

Boron Exposure Assessment of Desalinated Seawater on an Island in China

This study aimed to investigate the boron level in drinking water and daily boron intake of island residents, and to have a health risk assessment of the boron exposure. One-year water boron surveillance was made through the 18 selected sampling sites (5 finished water and 13 tap water) covered by 5 water treatment plants with different water sources. We recruited 220 healthy volunteers (half men and half women) from 89 families covering all age groups living in Shengshan to provide basic information and living habits. One-third of the families attended the daily food boron intake evaluation through the double meal method for three days. In each family, only one family member provided the food samples. Urine samples were collected from all subjects to get the urine boron level. Furthermore, we used the EPA model and TDI for health risk assessments. The boron level in finished water and tap water with different sources were 0.68-1.46 mg/L and 0.62-1.26 mg/L for desalinated water, 0.30-0.39 mg/L and 0.20-0.50 mg/L for reservoir water, and 0.32-0.43 mg/L and 0.20-0.79 mg/L for mixture water. The average level of water boron intake, diet boron intake, and total boron intake was 0.113 ± 0.127 mg/d, 1.562 ± 0.927 mg/d, 1.674 ± 0.939mg/d, respectively, for the select sampling subjects. There were no significant differences in total boron intake for different age groups (1.685 ± 1.216 mg/d vs. 1.669 ± 0.793 mg/d for <45 yrs vs. ≥45 yrs, p = 0.968) and gender groups (1.754 ± 1.009 mg/d vs. 1.633 ± 0.923 mg/d for male vs. female, p = 0.735). Urine boron concentrations were similar in the two age groups (1.938 mg/g creatinine vs. 1.762 mg/g creatinine for <45 yrs vs. ≥45 yrs, p = 0.635). There were significant differences in urinary boron between males and females (1.569 mg/g creatinine vs. 2.148 mg/g creatinine, p = 0.018). The largest hazard quotient (HQ) of drinking water was 0.31, and the total boron exposures in this population were 0.03 mg/kg bw per day. The study showed that there was no possible non-carcinogenic risk of water boron exposure and lower health risk of total boron exposure to humans in this region, but its toxicity should not be ignored. The subsequent studies should strengthen the analysis of the subgroup populations.

Annexin A1 inhibition facilitates NLRP3 inflammasome activation in arsenic-induced insulin resistance in rat liver

Hepatic insulin resistance (IR) is the primary pathology of type 2 diabetes (T2D). The role of the NOD-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome in arsenic-induced hepatic IR has been previously demonstrated. However, the mechanism of the arsenic-induced activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is still unclear. Here, we demonstrate that NaAsO₂ downregulated the mRNA and protein level of Annexin A1 (AnxA1), an anti-inflammatory factor, in rat livers and L-02 cells. Moreover, AnxA1 overexpression significantly alleviated arsenic-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation and IR in L-02 cells. Importantly, Co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) results showed that AnxA1 1-190 peptide could bind to the domain encompassing amino acids 1-210 and 211-550 of NLRP3. In conclusion, our experiments demonstrated that arsenic exposure could activate the NLRP3 inflammasome and IR by inhibiting the AnxA1 activity. These findings suggest that AnxA1 may be a promising therapeutic target of arsenicosis.

Adsorptive Membrane for Boron Removal: Challenges and Future Prospects

The complexity of removing boron compounds from aqueous systems has received serious attention among researchers and inventors in the water treating industry. This is due to the higher level of boron in the aquatic ecosystem, which is caused by the geochemical background and anthropogenic factors. The gradual increase in the distribution of boron for years can become extremely toxic to humans, terrestrial organisms and aquatic organisms. Numerous methods of removing boron that have been executed so far can be classified under batch adsorption, membrane-based processes and hybrid techniques. Conventional water treatments such as coagulation, sedimentation and filtration do not significantly remove boron, and special methods would have to be installed in order to remove boron from water resources. The blockage of membrane pores by pollutants in the available membrane technologies not only decreases their performance but can make the membranes prone to fouling. Therefore, the surface-modifying flexibility in adsorptive membranes can serve as an advantage to remove boron from water resources efficiently. These membranes are attractive because of the dual advantage of adsorption/filtration mechanisms. Hence, this review is devoted to discussing the capabilities of an adsorptive membrane in removing boron. This study will mainly highlight the issues of commercially available adsorptive membranes and the drawbacks of adsorbents incorporated in single-layered adsorptive membranes. The idea of layering adsorbents to form a highly adsorptive dual-layered membrane for boron removal will be proposed. The future prospects of boron removal in terms of the progress and utilization of adsorptive membranes along with recommendations for improving the techniques will also be discussed further.

Toxicity of boric acid, borax and other boron containing compounds: A review

Boron, often in the form of boric acid, is widely used as a flame retardant in insulation products, and although humans ingest boron through food, high exposure may lead to unwanted health effects. We assessed the toxicity of boric acid, borax and other forms of boron, after inhalation, dermal and oral exposure. After oral exposure, boron is absorbed over the gastrointestinal tract. Intact skin seems to pose a more effective barrier to boron than compromised skin. Boron excretion seems to mainly occur via the urine, although after skin exposure boron has been demonstrated in bile and gastrointestinal contents. Inhalation toxicity data are sparse, but one animal study showed reduced foetal weight after inhalation of cellulose that had a boric acid content of 20%. Skin exposure to boric acid has proven fatal in some cases, and the range of toxicity effects include abdominal as well as local effects on the skin. Fatalities from boric acid also have occurred after oral ingestion, and the endpoints in animals are weight loss and reproductive toxicity. Concerning genotoxicity studies, the overall picture indicates that boron-containing compounds are not genotoxic. There was no evidence of the carcinogenicity of boric acid in a 2-year study in mice.