Effects of Chronic Exposure to Microcystin-LR on Kidney in Mice.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2019;
16:ijerph16245030. [PMID:
31835602 PMCID:
PMC6950095 DOI:
10.3390/ijerph16245030]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/1970] [Revised: 12/05/2019] [Accepted: 12/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Microcystin-LR (MC-LR) is a potent hepatotoxin, but a few studies suggested that it might also induce nephrotoxicity. However, nephrotoxicity induced by prolonged oral exposure to MC-LR is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential influence of MC-LR on the kidney in mice following chronic exposure to MC-LR. In this study, we evaluated the nephrotoxicity of MC-LR in mice drinking water at different concentrations (1, 30, 60, 90, and 120 μg/L) for 6 months for the first time. The results showed that the kidney weights and the kidney indexes of mice were not altered in the MC-LR treated mice, compared with the control group. In addition, the renal function indicators revealed that the serum creatinine (SCr) levels were not significant changes after exposure to MC-LR. The blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels were markedly decreased after exposure to 90 and 120 μg/L MC-LR for 3 months. The BUN levels were lower than that of the control group after exposure to 120 μg/L MC-LR for 6 months. The histopathological investigation revealed enlarged renal corpuscles, widened of kidney tubules, and lymphocyte infiltration in the interstitial tissue and the renal pelvis after exposure to 60, 90, and 120 μg/L MC-LR. Consequently, our results suggested that long-term exposure to MC-LR might be one important risk of kidney injury, which will provide important clues for the prevention of renal impairment.
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