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Section E
Case Study: Renal Toxicity of Melamine
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Melamine Toxicity
! Outbreaks of renal toxicity in dogs and
cats
! 2004–05: Korea and Taiwan
! 2007: United States
! Melamine added to “inflate” apparent
protein content
! Health effects: kidney failure, kidney
stones
! Attributed to: commercially supplied
dog and cat food from Asia
! Melamine: present in powdered infant
formula in China
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Histologic Diagnosis of Melamine-Associated Renal Failure
Source: (2007). J Vet Diagn Invest. 19:525–531 (2007)
Cat—distal tubules
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Mechanisms of Toxicity
! No human data on oral toxicity
! Animal data: low acute toxicity
! LD50 in rat = 3,161 mg/kg
! Melamine alone has not been found to cause renal failure or formation of kidney stones
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Mechanisms of Toxicity
! Evidence from the studies done on the acute renal failure in cats and dogs
! Kidney failure and stones caused by melamine + cyanuric acid
! Cyanuric acid: likely a contaminant of melamine
Cyanuric acid
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Contamination of Baby Formula in China
! Infants in China
! 300,000 children became sick
! 40,000 cases of kidney stones
! 6 deaths
! Recent instances of food contamination
in China
! Aflatoxin, mercury
! New York Times, (July 23, 2012):
“Carcinogen Found in Chinese Baby Formula”
! Link to article in the Online Library in
Hepato/Renal Toxicity folder
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