| male NaF water |
Subchronic (30-90 days) |
The experimental groups (15-18 rats per group) received sodium fluoride solution (filtered water plus sodium fluoride) containing 50 or 100 ppm. The control group was given access to drinking water containing 1.54 ppm NaF (tap water, delivery by the State Water Company to all residences and buildings in Curitiba, Brazil, corresponding to 0.7 ppm of fluoride).; Adult male Wistar rats weighing 280-350 g, from our own breeding colony, were randomly allocated for each test (50 or 100 ppm NaF) and control group (1.54 ppm NaF, tap water). The rats were housed alone in order to record individual food and water intake. The room temperature was maintained at 22 +/- 1 deg C, with lights on from 07:00 to 19:00 h. Food and water were freely available throughout the experiment. The experiments reported here were performed in accordance with National Institute of Health Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (USA), and were approved by the internal Ethics Committee for Animal Experimentation of the Federal University of Paraná State (protocol number 088). |