TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR CHROMIUM - Davidborowski.com

CHROMIUM 1912. HEALTH EFFECTSwater (Al-Hamood et al. 1998). Several reproductive effects have been observed in female mice exposedto 5 mg chromium(VI)/kg/day as potassium dichromate for 12 weeks, including a decrease in the numberof implantations and viable fetuses, an increase in relative ovarian weight, and a decrease in uterineweight (Elbetieha and Al-Hamood 1997).The results of animal studies therefore indicate that chromium(VI) and chromium(III) compounds arereproductive toxicants at high doses. Levels of chromium found in drinking water and food, however, areprobably not high enough to elicit reproductive effects.Developmental Effects. No studies were located regarding developmental effects in humans afterexposure to chromium compounds.A number of oral exposure animal studies have shown that chromium(VI) is a developmental toxicantfollowing premating and/or in utero exposure. Exposure of female rats to $37 mg chromium(VI)/kg/dayand mice to $52 mg chromium(VI)/kg/day to potassium dichromate(VI) in drinking water for 20 or90 days followed by mating to unexposed males resulted in fetal mortality (post-implantation losses,resorptions, and decreased number of live fetuses), decreased growth (decreased fetal body weights andcrown-rump length), reduced ossification, subdermal hemorrhagic patches, and kinky tails (Junaid et al.1996a; Kanojia et al. 1996, 1998). Similar effects (increased resorptions, increased post-implantationlosses, subdermal hemorrhages, decreased cranial ossification, tail kinking, decreased fetal body weightand decreased crown-rump length) were observed in the offspring of mice exposed to 46 mgchromium(VI)/kg/day as potassium dichromate in drinking water during gestation (Trivedi et al. 1989).In mice exposed to 53 mg chromium(VI)/kg/day as potassium dichromate in drinking water duringgestational days 6–14, fetal mortality, subdermal hemorrhagic patches, and reduced ossification wereobserved in the offspring (Junaid et al. 1996b). Impaired development of the reproductive system(delayed vaginal opening) was observed in the offspring of mice exposed to 66 mg chromium(VI)/kg/dayas potassium dichromate in the drinking water on gestation day 12 through lactation day 20 (Al-Hamoodet al. 1998). No developmental effects were seen in a multigeneration study involving inhalationexposure of rats to sodium dichromate at 0.2 mg chromium(VI)/m 3 (Glaser et al. 1984).In addition, intravenous injection of pregnant hamsters with 3.9 or 4.2 mg chromium(VI)/kg as chromiumtrioxide on various days during gestation resulted in developmental effects. Treatment on gestation dayeight resulted in cleft palate, poor ossification of the skull, vertebrae, sternum, fore-, and hind-limb, andhyoid bone, tail bud abnormalities, hydrocephalus, and encephalocoele in the fetuses (Gale 1978, 1982).