Subject: Prevention of fumonisin-induced maternal and developmental toxicity in rats by certain plant extracts   http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/abstract/109793854/ABSTRACT Journal of Applied Toxicology Volume 24, Issue 6 , Pages 469 - 474 Published Online: 19 Nov 2004 Prevention of fumonisin-induced maternal and developmental toxicity in rats by certain plant extracts Mosaad A. Abdel-Wahhab 1 *, Azza M. Hassan 2, Hany A. Amer 3, Khayria M. Naguib 1 1Food Toxicology and Contaminants Department, National Research Centre, Dokki, Egypt 2Forensic Medicine & Toxicology Department, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Nasr City, Cairo, Egypt 3Animal Reproduction and Artificial Insemination Department, National Research Centre, Dokki, Egypt email: Mosaad A. Abdel-Wahhab (Mosaad_Attia@yahoo.com) *Correspondence to Mosaad A. Abdel-Wahhab, Mycotoxins Laboratory, National Research Centre, Dokki, Cairo, Egypt. Keywords fumonisin • garlic • cabbage • antioxidants • teratology • protection • toxicity Abstract: In earlier work we have reported that garlic and cabbage extracts can protect laboratory animals from the toxic effects of different mycotoxins. Previous research demonstrated that fumonisin (FB) induced developmental effects in mice, rats and hamsters. The objectives of the present study were to utilize the pregnant rat as an in vivo model to compare the potential of garlic and cabbage seed extracts to prevent the developmental toxicity of FB and the effects of these extracts on sphingolipid metabolism in dam and foetus livers. Six treatment groups included a control group, a group fed on an FB-containing diet (150 mg kg-1 feed) and groups treated orally with garlic or cabbage extracts (5 mg kg-1 body wt.) with or without FB during gestation days 6-15. Evaluations of toxicity were performed on day 20. These include: maternal (mortality, body weight, feed intake and litter weight), developmental (embryonic resorption, foetal body weight, foetal soft-tissue anomalies and foetal skeletal examinations) and maternal and foetal sphingolipid metabolism. Fumonisin alone resulted in significant decreases in feed intake, body weight gain, litter weight, number of live foetuses and foetal body weight, whereas it increased significantly the number of resorbed foetuses and the number of skeletal malformations (30.4% for skull and 26.08% for sternebrae) and also increased the sphinganine/sphingosine (Sa/So) ratio in dam but not fetus livers. Garlic alone or plus FB was comparable to the control regarding all the tested parameters. On the other hand, cabbage seed extract alone or plus FB resulted in 10% maternal mortality and a decrease in maternal body weight and litter weight. It resulted in 4.65% skull malformations in foetuses but it was comparable to the control with regard to the other tested parameters. It could be concluded that both garlic and cabbage seed extracts have protective effects in pregnant rats. Moreover, garlic extract was found to have a greater protective effect than cabbage seed extract.