New Delhi, June 06: Wastewater from the textile industry has been found to have a deleterious effect on the mice blood in a study that has implications for human health. Though there have been studies on the adverse effects of exposure to lead and other pollutants on fish, reports on mammals and especially on blood are scanty, a study-report in the `Journal of Environmental Biology` said.

In the study, a team of scientists from the University of Rajasthan, administered adult Swiss mice with five per cent solution of textile industry wastewater orally for 25 days.
Reporting their findings, Neera Mathur, Richa Krishnatrey, Subhasini Sharma, Shipra Pathak and K P Sharma said that quantity of red blood cells, white blood cells and concentration of haemoglobin, the component that carries oxygen, declined in the mice treated with the textile wastewater significantly.
The decrease in haemoglobin concentration after exposure to textile effluents may be the result of increase in oxidative damage of red blood cells, the report said adding that the degree of anaemia is directly related to the concentration and exposure time to toxics.
Interaction of toxic substances in the waste-water with red blood cells may cause metabolic alteration in the red blood cells and haemoglobin carrying capacity of the blood, the report said.
Bureau Report