Morphological and histochemical changes occurring in the brain of rats fed large doses of zinc oxide.

An experimental study on the effect of feeding large doses of ZnO on the morphological and histoenzymatic pattern of the brain was conducted. 12 Wistar rats were given daily 100 mg of ZnO via a gastric tube. The poison was fed over a period of 10 days. The experimental rats developed minor morphological changes mainly in the hippocampal cortex and in the basal ganglia. A generalisation decrease of acP, ATPase, AChE and BuTJ activities along with an appreciable increase of TPPase and NsE activity was found in the brains of the intoxicated animals. An attempt was made to elucidate the pathogenesis of some of the findings.