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The present study was designed to investigate the hematotoxicity, sero-biochemical and histological changes due to the accumulation of BaCl 2 and BaCO 3 , the most important barium salts in our daily lives, in different soft tissues including the liver, kidney, heart, and spleen of adult rats after an oral exposure for 30 consecutive days, and to explain the different mechanisms by which this metal can exert these impacts. For this purpose, adult male rats were divided into three main groups of 15 animals each: group I, serving as controls, group II, receiving BaCl 2 orally in a dose of 179 mg barium/kg b.wt, and group III, receiving BaCO 3 orally in a dose of 418 mg barium/kg b.wt. for 30 consecutive days. Obviously, normocytic normochromic anemia was evident in both barium groups. Serum biochemical analysis revealed significant declines in glutathione peroxidase, catalase, superoxide dismutase, and urea with significant elevations in malondialdehyde, lactate dehydrogenase, and creatine kinase levels. Hyperphosphatemia, hypokalemia, hypocalcemia, and hypochloremia were also evident in both barium groups. Besides, residual analysis of both barium salts in different body organs revealed significantly abundant barium residues in the liver, spleen, heart, and kidney, respectively in both barium salts groups. Moreover, splenic tissue showed hemosiderosis, peritubular congestion, and necrotic glomeruli with intratubular hemorrhage. Sever subepicardial congestion with intramuscular edema was evident in the heart. In conclusion, BaCl 2 and BaCO 3 were able to deliver mortalities, antioxidant enzymes exhaustion, and a sort of normocytic normochromic anemia, as well as marked disturbances in cardiac, hepatic, and renal functions due to the accumulation of these two salts in the soft tissues. Therefore, these results demonstrate the unrecognized toxicity of those two barium salts due to their accumulation in various soft tissues of the body and so, this needs to reconsider about barium exposure.

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) compounds are widely accepted as human lung carcinogens. However, there have been few investigations of the genotoxicity of Cr(VI) in human lung cells. Moreover, our knowledge of the effects of Cr(VI) in human lung cells is further limited because the available data generally focus on the effects of only lead chromate (PbCrO(4)) and sodium chromate (Na(2)CrO(4)). To fully understand these carcinogenic compounds, the genotoxic effects to its target cells need to be evaluated for additional Cr(VI) salts. Accordingly, we investigated the cytotoxicity and clastogenicity of barium chromate (BC) in a human lung cell culture model (WTHBF-6 cells). We found that BC induced concentration-dependent cytotoxicity in WTHBF-6 cells, with relative survival of 88%, 74%, 67%, 12%, 3%, and 0.1% after exposure to 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.5, 1, and 5 microg/cm(2) BC, respectively. Similarly, the amount of chromosomal damage also increased with concentration after a 24-h exposure. Specifically, 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.5 microg/cm(2) BaCrO(4) damaged 5%, 9%, 22%, and 49% of metaphase cells, with the total damage reaching 5, 10, 28, and 65 aberrations per 100 metaphases, respectively. Concentrations of 1 and 5 microg/cm(2) BC induced a profound cell cycle delay, and no metaphases were observed. The spectrum of damage included chromatid and chromosome-type lesions consistent with mechanistic events associated with the activation of oncogenes and inactivation of tumor suppressor genes. Overall the data indicate that BC is cytotoxic and genotoxic to human lung cells., (Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.)