Department of Zoology, Sophia College, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India - 400 026.

Author(s): S. Kadiru*

Abstract: Widespread and indiscriminate use of insecticides is a major concern for human as well as environmental health. A fraction of the insecticides used in agriculture and domestic use finally enter aquatic ecosystems. While insecticides are used to control insect pests, their mechanisms of action are often not specific enough to prevent undesired effects, such as on non-target aquatic populations. Cyfluthrin is a non-systemic synthetic pyrethroid which affects both the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system and is widely used in agriculture and households as an insecticide. In this study, developmental toxicity of cyfluthrin at sublethal concentrations of 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 ng/L were studied on zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hpf (hours post fertilization). The results showed that cyfluthrin caused severe cardiac abnormalities such as failure of embryonic hearts to loop properly, pericardial edema and increased rate of heartbeat. Cyfluthrin also caused reduced skin pigmentation in treated animals, indicating decelerated overall development. This study indicates that sublethal concentrations of cyfluthrin causes developmental defects in zebrafish early life stages after short term exposure. Use of cyfluthrin as an insecticide could potentially affect non-target species like fishes in aquatic ecosystems. Further research is necessary to understand the effect of cyfluthrin on aquatic ecosystems.

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