Acute toxicity and histopathological effects of pyriproxyfen in adult male and female zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Abstract

Pyriproxyfen (PPF) is a larvicide used to combat and control insects in agriculture, veterinary medicine and public health, particularly targeting vectors such as mosquitoes that transmit dengue fever. Despite being generally considered toxic to non-target organisms, the toxic effects of this substance have already been described. In this study, we investigated the effects of acute exposure (96 h) on the mortality and histopathology of different organs: the liver, gills, intestine, kidneys and gonads of adult individuals of the species Danio rerio. The results showed that the solubility of PPF prevents the accurate determination of LC_{50–96 h}; however, despite causing slight toxicity to female gills and gonads, the substance presented deleterious effects on the other tissues analyzed. We conclude that PPF proved to be toxic even in acute exposures; however, more studies with this substance should be expanded to chronic experiments.