Reproductive and developmental toxicities of zinc supplemented rats

Reproductive and developmental toxicities of zinc supplementation in F0 rats and F1 progeny were examined. Rats were treated by gavaging with zinc chloride (ZnCl2) at 0.0, 7.5, 15 and 30 mg/kg-d. ZnCl2 treatment was associated with deficient energy imbalances, reduced number of live pups/litter, decreased live birth index, increased mortality and increased fetal resorption. Changes in serum clinical chemistry and hematologic parameters were sex-related. In F0 females, ZnCl2 was associated with increased liver/body weight ratios, reduced creatinine and reduced alkaline phosphatase concentrations. In F0 males, ZnCl2 significantly increased relative liver weight and elevated γ-GGT. In addition, at birth, F1 males exhibited, a significant (p < 0.05) increase in anogenital distance, whereas ZnCl2 hastened the time of eye opening and incisor eruption in males and females. These results indicate that excess ZnCl2 supplementation before and during pregnancy and during lactation could pose some health risk concerns to pregnant mothers and their offspring.