Abstract
Summary
A mild but specific zinc deficiency was produced in female rats by the use of a purified diet lacking the element and by stringent elimination of sources of zinc contamination from the environment. Almost all of the full-term fetuses produced under such conditions showed gross congenital malformations encompassing a wide variety of organ systems, including skeletal, brain, eye, heart, lung, and urogenital defects. The fetuses from zinc-deficient females contained less zinc than did their controls, suggesting that the congenital anomalies resulted from a direct effect of lack of zinc in the fetal tissues.
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