[A study on developmental toxicity of vanadium pentoxide in Wistar rats]

Timed-pregnant Wistar rats were injected intraperitoneally with V2O5 at 0.33, 1.0 and 3.0 mg/kg/day on days 6-15 of gestation. Maternal toxic symptoms, decreased of weight gain during treatment and placenta weight, increased incidence of embryo-fetus mortality and external or skeletal malformation and fetal growth retardation were observed in the 3.0 mg/kg group. Increased incidence of embryo-fetus mortality and external or skeletal malformation, delayed ossification of bone and decreased placenta weight were observed in the 1.0 mg/kg group. These results indicate that V2O5 is a developmental toxicant with or without obvious maternal toxicity in Wistar rats. Although vanadium can be accumulated in placenta, it could passed through placenta. In this study, vanadium could induce a decrease of placenta weight without obvious maternal toxicity, and an A/D ratio of 3 was noted. These results suggest that vanadium may exert a direct effect on embryo-fetues or a "double effect" on the placenta function and embryo-fetus both. It has been reported that vanadium does not increase mal formation in NIN, Kunming, Swiss, NMRI mice or Syrian golden hamster. The dose for inducing developmental toxicity of vanadium in mice is higher than that in rats. This suggests that rats be more sensitive than mice to the developmental toxicity of vanadium.