Effects of methyl mercury at different dose regimes on eggshell formation and some biochemical characteristics of the eggshell gland mucosa of the domestic fowl

Abstract

Eggshell formation and egg production in domestic fowl were studied following the administration of methyl mercury (two dose regimes: 5 mg daily for 6 consecutive days and 1 mg daily for 50 consecutive days). A daily oral dose of 5 mg of methyl mercury for 6 consecutive days induced significant eggshell thinning and deformation and inhibited egg production. Uptake of 45Ca and synthesis of prostaglandins by a homogenate of eggshell gland mucosa from methyl-mercury-treated birds were significantly reduced, as was the calcium content of blood plasma. A daily oral dose of 1 mg of methyl mercury administered for 50 consecutive days also induced eggshell deformation and thinning and reduced egg production. This dose did not, however, have significant effects on the following: 45Ca uptake and prostaglandin synthesis by a homogenate of the eggshell gland mucosa; 45Ca uptake by a homogenate of duodenal mucosa; the Ca content of the blood plasma, shell gland mucosa or shell gland lumen; the HCO 3 − content of the shell gland lumen or the specific gravity of tibia. Methyl mercury added in vitro to a homogenate of eggshell gland mucosa significantly stimulated the synthesis of prostaglandins PGF 2α and PGE 2. Addition of mercury chloride to the same type of preparation stimulated the synthesis of PGF 2α at the expense of thromboxane (T × B 2) synthesis. Administration of 5 mg methyl mercury for 6 consecutive days seemed to reduce the availability of calcium for eggshell formation. This effect could have been due to a direct inhibitory effect of methyl mercury on calcium uptake from the gastrointestinal tract and/or to mobilization of medullary bone. The administration of 1 mg methyl mercury for 50 consecutive days probably induced the reproductive effects by another mechanism. The effects of methyl mercury on avian eggshell formation are quite different from the effects p, p′-DDE exerts on that process.