Toxicité à long terme du cadmium administré à trés faible dose chez le rat: Réponse à l'agression par le froid

Abstract The toxic action of cadmium, as well as its interaction with a cold stress, has been studied on four groups of COBS-CD rats (10 ♂, 10 ♀), absorbing 0 (TT and TF) or 2.5 (CdT, CdF) ppm of cadmium (drinking water). After 12 months under observation, the TF and CdF groups were housed at +1°C for 48 hr. In the course of, or just after, this stress, various urinary parameters (volume, Na + , K + , urea, creatinine) and blood parameters (hemoglobin, Na + , K + , Ca 2+ , Cl − , P i , urea, creatinine, blood sugar) were measured. In the CdT groups, cadmium was responsible for lower urea concentrations in urine (16%), and lower phosphate and creatinine in serum (16 and 10%). Under cold stress, treated animals (CdF) reacted differently than the control animals (TF): less polyuria, and no trace of hypokalemia, hypophosphatemia, and hyperglycemia; as opposed to the TF groups, the presence of hypercreatinemia (15%) and hypocalcemia (6%). These results hint at the existence of latent noxious effects related to the well-known toxicity of high doses of cadmium.