Influence of lead poisoning and ultrastructural changes in the body wall of Eisenia foetida (Savigny), Oligochaeta. I. Short action of different concentrations of lead and ultrastructural changes in the cells of the body wall.
The effect of short term influence of different concentrations of Pb(NO3)2 in the soil on the accumulation and localization of lead in the body wall cells of the earthworm Eisenia foetida (Savigny), Oligocheta, was studied histochemically. The experimental animals displayed the presence of lead deposits in the cytoplasm and vacuols of the epithelial gland cells which also showed morphological changes indicative of their increased secretory activity. Furthermore, a considerable accumulation of lead was found in the sarcoplasm and particularly in the sarcoplasmic reticulum of the muscle cells in the body wall. The histochemical data show that the most intense accumulation of lead is found in animals kept in an environment containing 0-05 mg Pb per 1 g of the soil. At this concentration of lead noteworthy morphological changes together with deposits of this metal are found in the mitochondria. This mitochondrial changes occurred together with the above mentioned, lead induced cytological deviations. They did not appear in other groups of experimental animals.
D000818:Animals; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004817:Epidermis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D007854:Lead / Q000378:metabolism; D007855:Lead Poisoning / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D009132:Muscles / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D009835:Oligochaeta / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D012519:Sarcoplasmic Reticulum / Q000378:metabolism
D007854:Lead