Model of vitamin and mineral deficiency for toxicological research: Apoptosis activity under conditions of CCL4 intoxication

The apoptosis activity and clinical state in vitamin and mineral supplemented male Wistar rats was evaluated after carbon tetrachloride exposure (CCL4). The animals were divided equally into 6 groups (3 control groups and 3 exposure groups) with the control groups (C-75, C-30, C-19) receiving AIN-93, a specific diet for rodents, consisting of a 75%, 30% and 19% ratio of vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B6) and minerals (Fe3+ and Mg2+) and exposure groups (E-75, E-30, E-19) receiving the same diet paradigm as with the control groups but with the additional CCL4 administered once a week as an olive oil solution (control groups received the same ratio of olive oil without CCL4) for a duration of 64 days. The systemic condition of the male Wistar rats was evaluated based on morphological parameters and hematological and biochemical analysis, whereas the apoptosis activity in the liver was evaluated via comet assay techniques. The apoptosis activity in the liver of control and exposure groups increased compared to the decrease in the essential substance provisions with the E-75 group reaching 129% (p < 0.05) higher levels compared to the C-75 group, and 98% (p < 0.05) and 23% (p > 0.05) higher in the E-30 and E-19 groups compared to the C-30 and C-19 groups, respectively. From the apoptosis results and clinical state evaluation, it is clearly demonstrated that the effectiveness of using apoptosis activity as a biomarker after CCL4 exposure and the vitamin and mineral absorption capability in male Wistar rats can be applied as an evaluating method for toxicological research.