Melatonin protects against lead acetate-induced changes in blood corpuscles and lipid profile of male Wistar rats

Treatment of rats with lead acetate at a dose of 15 mg / kg body weight intraperitoneally (i.p) for a period of seven consecutive days caused alterations in the total count of erythrocyte, total count of leukocyte, hemoglobin content, mean corpuscular hemoglobin content, neutrophil count, small lymphocyte count, eosinophil count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, Total cholesterol: HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol :HDL cholesterol. All these changes were ameliorated when the rats were pretreated with melatonin at a dose of 10 mg / kg (fed orally) for a similar period of time. The results of the current studies indicate melatonin’s ability to mitigate heavy metal-induced alterations in blood tissue. This is probably brought about through the antioxidant activity of melatonin and may have future therapeutic relevance in humans exposed to lead environmentally or occupationally and in situations where chelation therapy has limited success.