Cadmium is a heavy metal and a non-biodegradable environmental contaminant, and its omnipresence ensures its recurrent exposure to humans and animals. Its intake by chicks leads to fatal implications. Cadmium chloride (CdCl2) because of its bio-accumulative nature is an emerging threat to the poultry industry as well as to the humans which consumes these cadmium-intoxicated chickens. In the current study, the target was to elucidate the toxic effects of CdCl2on body weight, hematological, and biochemical parameters as well as its bioaccumulation in different organs of broiler chicks. Various concentrations of CdCl2 (0, 12, 24, 38, and 48 mg/kg body weight) were administered orally to five groups (A, B, C, D, and E) of broiler chicks, respectively. The biometric screening of the exposed birds was carried out by hematological parameters such as packed cell volume (PCV), total erythrocyte count (TEC), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), total protein, white blood cells (WBC), and hemoglobin (Hb), as well as biochemical parameters superoxide dismutase (SOD), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) with commercially available kits. Metal accumulation in different organs was detected using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The compound exposure produced a varied impact on broiler birds. Hematological parameters showed a significant decrease except for WBC. Biochemical parameters also decreased significantly in a dose-dependent manner. However, it was revealed that the body weight of chickens was not affected considerably after CdCl2 exposure. A direct relationship was detected between the accumulation of metal within tissues (lungs, heart, and flesh) and exposure frequency. It can be deduced that an increase in Cd deposition in tissues may lead to an alteration in hematological-biochemical markers which may significantly contribute to systemic toxicity in broilers.
Keywords: Bioaccumulation; Biochemical; Cadmium chloride; Hematological; Toxicity.