pH Dependence of Cadmium-Contaminated Drinking Water on the Development of Cardiovascular Injury in Wistar Rats

The purpose of our study was to investigate the effect of water pH in the genesis of cardiovascular injury caused by cadmium poisoning. For this study, 90 male Wistar rats were used, divided into six groups: A, 15 rats that received 400 mg/l cadmium chloride (CdCl2) in drinking water at a neutral pH of 7.0; B, 15 rats that received CdCl2 (400 mg/l) in drinking water at an acidic pH of 5.0; C, 15 rats that received CdCl2 (400 mg/l) in drinking water at a basic pH of 8.0; D, 15 rats that received water at an acidic pH of 5.0; E, 15 rats that received water at a basic pH of 8.0; and F, 15 rats that received water at a neutral pH of 7.0. All animals were euthanized after 6 months. We collected the heart and aorta from each rat for microscopic analysis. No microscopic changes were observed in the hearts. In the aorta, fatty streaks appeared in a large proportion of animals in groups A (50 %) and B (46 %), but fatty streaks appeared in a smaller minority of animals in groups C (15.3 %), D (0 %), E (7 %), and F (13.3 %) (p < 0.05). Cadmium exposure caused the development of fatty streaks in the aorta of animals and the exposure to this metal in basic pH decreased the formation of these lesions.