title: DNA damage after acute and chronic treatment with malathion in rats.
abstract: Malathion is an insecticide widely used in agriculture and in public health programs that when used indiscriminately in large amounts can cause environmental pollution and risk to human health. However, it is possible that during the metabolism of malathion, reactive oxygen species can be generated, and malathion may produce oxidative stress in intoxicated rats that can be responsible for alterations in DNA molecules related in some studies. As a result, the present study aimed to investigate the DNA damage of cerebral tissue and peripheral blood in rats after acute and chronic malathion exposure. We used single cell gel electrophoresis (Comet assay) to measure early damage in hippocampus and peripheral blood and the Micronucleus test in total erythrocytes samples. Malathion was administered intraperitoneally once a day for one day (acute) or for 28 days (chronic) protocols (in both protocols, malathion was administered at 25, 50, 100, and 150 mg/kg). Our results showed that malathion (100 and 150 mg/kg) increased the DNA damage index in the peripheral blood and in the hippocampus after both chronic and acute treatment. Malathion increased the frequency of micronuclei only in chronic treatment at 150 mg/kg dose, and induced a cytotoxic dose-dependent decrease in the frequency of polychromatic erythrocytes in the peripheral blood of rats. In conclusion, since malathion increased both the peripheral blood and hippocampus DNA damage index using the Comet assay and increased the frequency of micronuclei in the total peripheral blood, it can be regarded as a potential mutagen/carcinogenic agent.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Neurociencias, Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Ciencias da Saude, Unidade Academica de Ciencias da Saude, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, 88806-000 Criciuma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gislaine Z
authors.initials: GZ
authors.lastname: Réus
authors.forename: Samira S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Valvassori
authors.forename: Hellen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nuernberg
authors.forename: Clarissa M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Comim
authors.forename: Roberto Buss
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Stringari
authors.forename: Peterson Teodoro
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Padilha
authors.forename: Daniela D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Leffa
authors.forename: Priscila
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Tavares
authors.forename: Gracilene
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dagostim
authors.forename: Marcos M S
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Paula
authors.forename: Vanessa M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Quevedo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002273:Carcinogens; D020552:Comet Assay; D004247:DNA / Q000097:blood; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000187:drug effects*; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects; D007306:Insecticides / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008294:Malathion / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000633:toxicity*; D008297:Male; D015162:Micronucleus Tests; D009153:Mutagens; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
chemical_list: D002273:Carcinogens; D007306:Insecticides; D009153:Mutagens; D004247:DNA; D008294:Malathion