Aluminium and Acrylamide Disrupt Cerebellum Redox States, Cholinergic Function and Membrane-Bound ATPase in Adult Rats and Their Offspring Imen Ghorbel 1 & Ibtissem Ben Amara 1 & Naourez Ktari 2 & Awatef Elwej 1 & Ons Boudawara 3 & Tahia Boudawara 3 & Najiba Zeghal 1 Received: 4 December 2015 /Accepted: 19 April 2016 # Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016 Abstract Accumulation of aluminium and acrylamide in food is a major source of human exposure. Their adverse effects are well documented, but there is no information about the health problems arising from their combined exposure. The aim of the present study was to examine the possible neurotoxic effects after co-exposure of pregnant and lactating rats to aluminium and acrylamide in order to evaluate redox state, cholinergic function and membrane-bound ATPases in the cerebellum of adult rats and their progeny. Pregnant fe- male rats have received aluminium (50 mg/kg body weight) via drinking water and acrylamide (20 mg/kg body weight) by gavage, either individually or in combination from the 14th day of pregnancy until day 14 after delivery. Exposure to these toxicants provoked an increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) and advanced oxidation protein product (AOPP) levels and a decrease in SOD, CAT, GPx, Na + K + -ATPase, Mg 2+ -ATPase and AChE activities in the cerebellum of mothers and their suckling pups. A reduction in GSH, NPSH and vitamin C levels was also observed. These changes were confirmed by histological results. Interestingly, co-exposure to these toxi- cants exhibited synergism based on physical and biochemical variables in the cerebellum of mothers and their progeny. Keywords Aluminium chloride . Acrylamide . Cerebellum . Oxidative stress . Adult and suckling rats Abbreviations AChE Acetylcholinesterase ACR Acrylamide AlCl 3 Aluminium chloride AOPP Advanced oxidation protein product CAT Catalase DNPH Dinitrophenyl hydrazine DTNB 5,5′-Dithiobis-2-nitrobenzoic acid EGL External granular layer GPx Glutathione peroxidase GSH Reduced glutathione IGL Internal granular layer MDA Malondialdehyde ML Molecular layer NPSH Non-protein thiol PCL Purkinje cell layer SOD Superoxide dismutase TBA Thiobarbituric acid TBARS Thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances; Introduction Aluminium (Al) is a trace element and one of the most abun- dant metals in the earth’s crust. Its absorption and accumula- tion in all tissues of mammals can occur via the diet, including water and therapeutic preparations administered in large quan- tities such as antacids, antidiarrheal agents and buffered aspi- rins [1]. Aluminium can also be found in various food prod- ucts, especially corn, yellow cheese, salt, herbs, spices and tea. This metal can be transferred from cookware and utensils into Ibtissem Ben Amara and Naourez Ktari contributed equally to this work * Najiba Zeghal naj_zgh@yahoo.fr 1 Animal Physiology Laboratory, LR 11/ ES-53 Sciences Faculty of Sfax, University of Sfax, BP 1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia 2 Laboratoire de Génie Enzymatique et de Microbiologie, Université de Sfax-Ecole Nationale d’Ingénieurs de Sfax, 3038 Sfax, Tunisia 3 Anatomopathology Laboratory, CHU Habib Bourguiba, University of Sfax, 3029 Sfax, Tunisia Biol Trace Elem Res DOI 10.1007/s12011-016-0716-1