Protective effects of garlic juice against embryotoxicity of methylmercuric chloride administered to pregnant Fischer 344 rats

In order to investigate the beneficial effects of 0.5 or 1.0 g/kg Korean ga rlic juice against the embryotoxicity of 20 mg/kg methylmercury chloride (M MC, CH3HgCl), pregnant Fischer 344 rats were simultaneously orally administ ered on day 7 of gestation. On day 20 of gestation the dams were laparotomi zed under ether anesthesia, and the fetuses were removed and examined for t oxicity of methylmercury. Garlic juice depressed the toxicity in terms of s ome parameters. In the case of simultaneous treatment with 0.1 g/kg garlic juice and MMC, rates of increase were 17.5% in maternal body weight, 13.2% and 41.9% in feral and litters' weight respectively, and 37.0% in fecal sur vival rate. Decreasing rates were 10.0% in maternal death race, and 6.9% an d 31.3% in pre- and post-implantation loss respectively. Decreasing rates o f mercury levels in dams were 67.2% in liver, 57.6% in brain, 47.2% in kidn ey, 42.1% in spleen and 40.9% in blood. As well, decreasing rates of mercur y level in fetuses were 54.9% in an body burden, 55.9% in liver, 46.7% in k idney and 37% in brain, respectively. The number of fetal ossification cent ers were reduced by 23.8% to 58.0% following simultaneous treatment with 1. 0 g/kg garlic juice. These findings indicated thar garlic juice effectively inhibited the embryotoxicity of methylmercury in pregnant Fischer 344 rats .