Two factorial experiments were conducted to determine if
high dietary fluoride would inhibit selenite toxicity in
rats. In each study, two levels of selenite (0.05 and 5
mg/kg diet) were matched against two levels of fluoride (1
and 150 mg/kg diet) for either 6 or 8 weeks. Fluoride failed
to prevent the depressive effect of selenite on food intake
and body weight gain in either study. Although liver
selenium concentration was slightly (15%) but significantly
(P < 0.005) reduced when the highest fluoride and selenium
level were combined in the first study, this effect could not
be repeated. These three measures therefore failed to
provide evidence for a fluoride and selenium interaction.
Fluoride, however, prevented hepatic necrosis seen in most of
the selenite-toxic rats. Hepatic lesions seen histologically
in selenite-toxic rats were not observed for either kidney or heart. With regard to a possible mechanism for the fluoride
effect upon selenite liver pathology, fluoride partially
(26%) but significantly (P < 0.025) reduced thiobarbituricreactive
substances (an indicator of peroxidative cell
membrane damage) in selenite-toxic rats, but there was no
fluoride effect on an enzyme system (liver xanthine oxidase)
that potentially could generate an initiator of lipid
peroxidation. In agreement with results of others, fluoride
deposition into bone was inconsistently affected by selenite,
Overall, the protective effect of fluoride on selenite
toxicity appears to be confined to liver pathology. The
exact mechanism for this effect, however, remains unclear. / Graduation date: 1992
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/27040 |
| Date | 28 January 1992 |
| Creators | Yu, Qing, 1966- |
| Contributors | Cerklewski, Florian L. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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