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Abstract
Ingestion of chromium(VI) (250, 500 or 750 ppm as potassium dichromate, K2Cr2O7) through
drinking water by female rats for 3 months prior to gestation was toxic to embryo
and fetus. There was a significant reduction in number of implantations and number
of fetuses and an increase in number of resorptions and pre-implantation and post-implantation
losses. No significant visceral abnormality was found. The increase in the number
of subdermal hemorrhagic patches on the thorax and abdomen was significant. Skeletal
abnormality in the form of reduced ossification in parietal, interparietal and caudal
bones was observed in fetuses. Chromium levels in the blood of mothers, placenta and
fetuses showed a significant increase. Duration of the estrous cycle was also increased
significantly. The study revealed that long-term chromium exposure in rats did not
cause embryo and fetotoxicity in a duration-dependent manner compared to short-term
treatment as observed earlier. A possible explanation could be that, in the 90-day
study, the female rats did not mate for three estrous cycles, thus giving time for
clearance of a sizable amount of chromium from their bodies.