Distribution and Speciation of Arsenic by Transplacental and Early Life Exposure to Inorganic Arsenic in Offspring Rats

The amount of arsenic compounds was determined in the liver and brain of pups and in breast milk in the pup's stomach in relation to the route of exposure: transplacental, breast milk, or drinking water. Forty-eight pregnant rats were randomly divided into four groups, each group was given free access to drinking water that contained 0, 10, 50, and 100 mg/L NaAsO₂ from gestation day 6 (GD 6) until postnatal day 42 (PND 42). Once pups were weaned, they started to drink the same arsenic-containing water as the dams. Contents of inorganic arsenic (iAs), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), dimethylarsinic acid (DMA), and trimethylarsenic acid (TMA) in livers and brains of the pups on PND 0, 15, 28, and 42 and breast milk taken from the pup's stomach on PND 0 and 15 were detected using the hydride generation atomic absorption spectroscopy method. Concentrations of iAs, MMA, and DMA in the breast milk, the brain, and the liver of the pups increased with the concentration of arsenic in drinking water on PND 0, 15, 28, and 42. Compared to the liver or brain, breast milk had the lowest arsenic concentrations. There was a significant decrease in the levels of arsenic species on PND 15 compared to PND 0, 28, or 42. It was confirmed that arsenic species can pass through the placental barrier from dams to offspring and across the blood–brain barrier in the pups, and breast milk from dams exposed to arsenic in drinking water contains less arsenic than the liver and brain of pups.