EFFECTS OF BUTACHLOR ON ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEM OF GRASS CARP (Ctenopharyngodon idellus)

Abstract

Pesticides has been widely used in agriculture all over the world. They cause contaminationof natural aquatic environment, that can affect the organism, particularly fish.In this paper, the biochemical perturbations of grass carp {Ctenopharyngodon idellus)exposed to butachlor at different concentrations (1.8 ppm and 3.6 ppm) over 24 hours wereinvestigated. After exposure, fish liver, gill, white muscle, red muscle, heart and pancreas wereexcised and used for experiments. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT),the content of glutathione (GSH), and lipid peroxidation were determined. Our result showedthat SOD, P-ase and C-ase were all sensitive and changed their antioxidant activities againstpesticide toxicity. These enzymes could be induced by a slight oxidative stress due tocompensatory response; however, a severe oxidative stress suppressed the activities of theseenzymes due to oxidative damage and the loss of compensatory mechanisms. Butachlor mayenhance the lipid peroxidation value by direct interaction with the cell membrane. Thesechanges reflected that the antioxidant systems of the tested fishes were affected. The presentwork demonstrated that butachlor induced oxidative stress in Ctenopharyngodon idellus. It isevident that the use of butachlor in agriculture and aquaculture must be carefully evaluated. Our results suggested that the parameters analyzed could be good biomarkers of exposure tooxidative stress caused by butachlor.