Cardiotoxicity of Permethrin in Offspring of Mothers Exposed During Pregnancy: Evaluation in the Adult Phase of the Offspring

• Grant number: 25/14272-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2025
• End date: July 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology - Toxicology
• Principal Investigator: Danilo Roman Campos
• Grantee: Simone Nunes Giacomini
• Host Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 21/05584-7 - Assessment of acute and chronic toxicity of the heart and brain exposed to pesticides found in potable water in Brazil, AP.JP2

Abstract

Maternal exposure to harmful agents poses a potential risk to intrauterine development. In mammals, the heart is the first organ to form during organogenesis, and after birth, the capacity for replication and differentiation of cardiac tissue becomes limited. Thus, damage to cardiac tissue during cardiogenesis can result in malformations and alterations that will impact heart function in other life stages. Permethrin (PER) is one of the most widely used insecticides worldwide, with cardiotoxic effects already reported following in vitro and in vivo exposure. **Objective**: To investigate whether maternal exposure to PER during pregnancy can cause cardiotoxic effects in the adult offspring of mice. **Methods**: Swiss Webster mice, males and females (9-10 weeks old), will be mated in trios (1 male to two females). After confirmation of a vaginal plug, the females will be randomly assigned to control and PER-exposed groups. Both groups will be dosed daily by gavage throughout the entire pregnancy period (~17-21 days). The control group will receive 1 mL/kg of corn oil, while the PER-exposed group will receive 1 mg/kg of the insecticide dissolved in 1 mL/kg of corn oil. After birth, the offspring will remain with the mother until the end of lactation (~21 days). At approximately 84 days of age, the offspring will undergo experimental protocols: in vivo electrocardiogram and morphometric measurements of the heart and other organs. (AU)