The Impact of Tetraethyl Pyrophosphate (TEPP) Pesticide on the Development and Behavior of Danio rerio: Evaluating the Potential of Cork Granules as a Natural Adsorbent for TEPP Removal from Aqueous Environments

Fernanda Blini Marengo Malheiros (), Lorrainy Victoria Rodrigues de Souza, Angélica Gois Morales, Eduardo Festozo Vicente, Paulo C. Meletti and Carlos Alberto-Silva ()
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Fernanda Blini Marengo Malheiros: Centro Universitário de Adamantina, Adamantina 17805-500, SP, Brazil
Lorrainy Victoria Rodrigues de Souza: Centro Universitário de Adamantina, Adamantina 17805-500, SP, Brazil
Angélica Gois Morales: Research Group on Environmental Management and Education (PGEA), Department of Management, Development and Tecnology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Tupã 17602-496, SP, Brazil
Eduardo Festozo Vicente: Department of Biosystems Engineering, School of Science and Engineering, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Tupã 17602-496, SP, Brazil
Paulo C. Meletti: Department of Physiology Sciences, Biological Sciences Center, Londrina State University, Londrina 86057-970, PR, Brazil
Carlos Alberto-Silva: Natural and Humanities Sciences Center, Experimental Morphophysiology Laboratory Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC), São Bernardo do Campo 09606-070, SP, Brazil

Clean Technol., 2025, vol. 7, issue 3, 1-15

Abstract: Toxicological studies of pesticides in animal models provide critical insights into their mechanisms of action, while adsorption strategies offer potential solutions for decontaminating polluted waters. We evaluated toxicity induced by tetraethyl pyrophosphate (TEPP), an organophosphate pesticide and AChE inhibitor, on zebrafish ( Danio rerio ) development and behavior, alongside the efficacy of wine cork granules as a natural adsorbent. TEPP exposure reduced embryo viability following an inverted U-shaped dose–response curve, suggesting non-monotonic neurodevelopmental effects, but did not alter developmental timing or morphology in survivors. In juveniles, TEPP increased preference for dark environments (33% vs. controls) and enhanced swimming endurance approximately 3-fold, indicating disrupted phototaxis and stress responses. Most strikingly, water treated with cork granules retained toxicity, increasing mortality, delaying embryogenesis, and altering behavior. This directly contradicts in vitro adsorption studies that suggested cork’s efficacy. These results demonstrate the high sensitivity of zebrafish to TEPP at nanomolar concentrations, which contrasts with in vitro models that require doses approximately 1000 times higher. Our findings not only highlight TEPP’s ecological risks but also reveal unexpected limitations of cork granules for environmental remediation, urging caution in their application.

Keywords: tetraethyl pyrophosphate; acetylcholinesterase; acetylcholinesterase inhibition; adsorption; organophosphate pesticides; sustainable sorbent; zebrafish ( Danio rerio ); zebrafish embryo toxicity assay (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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