Liver ?-Aminolevulinate Dehydratase Activity is Inhibited by Neonicotinoids and Restored by Antioxidant Agents

Elisa Sauer, Angela M. Moro, Natália Brucker, Sabrina Nascimento, Bruna Gauer, Rafael Fracasso, Adriana Gioda, Ruy Beck, José C. F. Moreira, Vera Lucia Eifler-Lima and Solange Cristina Garcia
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Elisa Sauer: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Angela M. Moro: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Natália Brucker: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Sabrina Nascimento: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Bruna Gauer: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Rafael Fracasso: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Adriana Gioda: Department of Chemistry, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), Rio de Janeiro, RJ 22453900, Brazil
Ruy Beck: Department of Production and Drug Control, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
José C. F. Moreira: Department of Biochemistry, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90035003, Brazil
Vera Lucia Eifler-Lima: Department of Production of Source-Material, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil
Solange Cristina Garcia: Laboratory of Toxicology (LATOX), Department of Clinical and Toxicology Analysis, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 90610000, Brazil

IJERPH, 2014, vol. 11, issue 11, 1-15

Abstract: Neonicotinoids represent the most used class of insecticides worldwide, and their precursor, imidacloprid, is the most widely marketed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of imidacloprid on the activity of hepatic ?-aminolevulinate dehydratase (?-ALA-D), protective effect of potential antioxidants against this potential effect and presence of chemical elements in the constitution of this pesticide. We observed that ?-ALA-D activity was significantly inhibited by imidacloprid at all concentrations tested in a dose-dependent manner. The IC 50 value was obtained and used to evaluate the restoration of the enzymatic activity. ?-ALA-D inhibition was completely restored by addition of dithiotreitol (DTT) and partly by ZnCl 2, demonstrating that the inhibition occurs by oxidation of thiol groups and by displacement of the Zn (II), which can be explained by the presence of chemical elements found in the constitution of pesticides. Reduced glutathione (GSH) had the best antioxidant effect against to ?-ALA-D inhibition caused by imidacloprid, followed by curcumin and resveratrol. It is well known that inhibition of the enzyme ?-ALA-D may result in accumulation of its neurotoxic substrate (?-ALA), in this line, our results suggest that further studies are needed to investigate the possible neurotoxicity induced by neonicotinoids and the involvement of antioxidants in cases of poisoning by neonicotinoids.

Keywords: neonicotinoids; ?-ALA-D activity; toxicity; antioxidants (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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