Histopathological Effects of Paint Effluent on Swiss Albino Mice (Mus musculus)

Abstract; Industrial effluents are seen as the most potential and hazardous waste containing compounds like heavy metals and nutrients that are toxic. In this study, the compositions of effluent from a paint industry were assessed along with its histopathological effects on the Swiss albino mice. The effluent was taken from Golden Key Paints found along Lagos State University (LASU) Road, Akesan, Lagos. Twenty (20) laboratory mice were obtained from Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Yaba, Lagos. There were four mice (a male and three females) in each group comprising of five groups. Group one was the control group. They were given distilled water, while groups 2 to 5 had 25, 50, 75 and 100 % v/v of the paint effluent, respectively as the single source of water. By the 4th week, the control mice had live birth of 12 young mice (babies) while the mice treated with paint effluent had no birth. It was observed that at least a mouse died in each cage of the treated group. These observations could be attributed to the treatment concentrations. Histopathological examination of the tissues of treated mice showed severe necrosis and fibromatosis colli of the kidney, hepatic necrosis of the liver, lung atrophy, tubular atrophy of the heart, loss of myocardial striation and tissue hyalination due to the concentrations of the effluents. These results express the harmful effects of paint effluent on the treated mice and are sensitive index to changes in ecological conditions. This can serve as a good diagnostic tool in toxicological studies. People are therefore advised to handle paints with care and keep them away from children.

摘要：工业废水被视为最具潜在危害性的废弃物，其含有重金属与有毒营养物质等各类有害成分。本研究针对金钥匙涂料（Golden Key Paints）排放的废水成分进行了分析，并探究其对瑞士白化小鼠的组织病理学影响。该废水取自拉各斯市阿凯桑地区拉各斯州大学（LASU）路沿线的该涂料厂。实验小鼠共计20只，购自拉各斯市雅巴地区的尼日利亚医学研究所。实验分为5组，每组4只小鼠（1雄3雌），其中第1组为对照组，饮用蒸馏水；第2至5组分别以体积分数25%、50%、75%、100%的涂料废水作为唯一饮用水源。至第4周时，对照组小鼠共产下12只幼崽，而涂料废水处理组小鼠均未产仔。观察发现，处理组每笼小鼠均至少死亡1只，上述现象可归因于废水处理浓度的影响。对处理组小鼠组织的病理学检查显示，受废水浓度影响，小鼠出现严重肾脏坏死及颈部纤维瘤病、肝脏肝坏死、肺脏萎缩、心脏管状萎缩、心肌横纹消失以及组织透明样变。本研究结果证实了涂料废水对受试小鼠的毒害作用，同时可作为生态环境变化的敏感监测指标，亦可为毒理学研究提供有效的诊断参考工具。因此，建议民众谨慎操作涂料，并将其放置在儿童无法接触的区域。