ABSTRACT This study sought to establish the effects of sub-chronic exposure of female albino rats to permethrin, a major constituent in Solignum. Thirty-two female rats were randomly divided into four groups (containing 8 rats each): control and three Solignum treatment concentrations (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg body weight (BW)) per day orally for four weeks. Results indicated a significant (≤0.05) increase in the body weight of rats in the 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg BW groups compared to the control group. Biochemical analysis showed a significant (≤0.05) increase in serum Na+ (100 and 400 mg/kg treatment groups), and urea concentration (400 mg/kg only), while the creatinine, K+, and Cl- levels significantly (≤0.05) reduced in comparison with the control group. Serum bilirubin, total protein, glyceraldehyde, and cholesterol concentrations for most of the treatment groups increased significantly (≤0.05) when compared with control. Haematological parameters recorded a significant (≤0.05) increase in the red blood cells count (200 and 400 mg/kg groups), the packed cell volume PCV (200 mg/kg only), mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH) of the 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg compared to the control group, and the haemoglobin concentration for test groups were significantly (≤0.05) lower than the control group. There was a significant (≤0.05) difference in the mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) and white blood cell count (WBC) of all test groups compared to the control group. The platelet count, lymphocyte and neutrophil concentration were significantly (≤0.05) higher than the control, while there was a significant (≤0.05) reduction in monocyte count in a dose-dependent manner across the three test groups in comparison to the control. Histopathological examination of hepatocytes, kidneys, and ovarian tissues revealed variations from the control rats. This study shows that some biochemical, hematological, and histological changes can occur when there is sub-chronic exposure to the commercial wood preservative, Solignum.
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