title: Biochemical and standard toxic effects of acetaminophen on the macrophyte species Lemna minor and Lemna gibba.
abstract: Acetaminophen is globally one of the most prescribed drugs due to its antipyretic and analgesic properties. However, it is highly toxic when the dosage surpasses the detoxification capability of an exposed organism, with involvement of an already described oxidative stress pathway. To address the issue of the ecotoxicity of acetaminophen, we performed acute exposures of two aquatic plant species, Lemna gibba and Lemna minor, to this compound. The selected biomarkers were number of fronds, biomass, chlorophyll content, lipid peroxidation (TBARS assay), and proline content. Our results showed marked differences between the two species. Acetaminophen caused a significant decrease in the number of fronds (EC50 = 446.6 mg/L), and the establishment of a dose-dependent peroxidative damage in L. minor, but not in L. gibba. No effects were reported in both species for the indicative parameters chlorophyll content and total biomass. However, the proline content in L. gibba was substantially reduced. The overall conclusions point to the occurrence of an oxidative stress scenario more prominent for L. minor. However, the mechanisms that allowed L. gibba to cope with acetaminophen exposure were distinct from those reported for L. minor, with the likely involvement of proline as antioxidant.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM), Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal, nunes.b@ua.pt.
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Nunes
authors.forename: Glória
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pinto
authors.forename: Liliana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Martins
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gonçalves
authors.forename: Sara C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Antunes
mesh_terms: D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000633:toxicity*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D058633:Antipyretics / Q000633:toxicity*; D029064:Araceae / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D002734:Chlorophyll / Q000378:metabolism; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation / Q000187:drug effects; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D011392:Proline / Q000378:metabolism; D013045:Species Specificity; D017392:Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances; D023382:Toxicity Tests, Acute; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D058633:Antipyretics; D017392:Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D002734:Chlorophyll; D000082:Acetaminophen; D008315:Malondialdehyde; D011392:Proline