Diclofenac and caffeine inhibit hepatic antioxidant enzymes in the freshwater fish Astyanax altiparanae (Teleostei: Characiformes)

Author(s)

Munoz-Penuela, Marcela ^[1] ; Lo Nostro, Fabiana Laura ^{[2, 3]} ; Gomes, Aline Dal'Olio ^[1] ; Tolussi, Carlos Eduardo ^[4] ; Branco, Giovana Souza ^[1] ; Silva Pinheiro, Joao Paulo ^[1] ; Andrade de Godoi, Filipe Guilherme ^[1] ; Moreira, Renata Guimaraes ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Lab Metab & Reprod Organisms Aquat, Inst Biociencias, Dept Fisiol, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Univ Buenos Aires, Fac Ciencias Exactas & Nat, Dept Biodiversidad & Biol Expt, Lab Ecotoxicol Acuat, Ciudad Univ, Buenos Aires, DF - Argentina

^[3] CONICET UBA, IBBEA, Ciudad Univ, Buenos Aires, DF - Argentina

^[4] Univ Anhembi Morumbi, Campus Mooca, Sao Paulo - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: COMPARATIVE BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY C-TOXICOLOGY & PHARMACOLOGY; v. 240, FEB 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 2

Abstract

Although concentrations of pharmaceutical compounds in aquatic ecosystems are low, they can cause toxic effects on organisms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of diclofenac (DCF), a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, and caffeine (CAF), a central nervous system stimulant, both alone or combined, in Astyanax altiparanae males under acute exposure (96 h), measuring neurotoxicity biomarkers, antioxidant response and damage at biochemical and cellular levels. DCF concentration in water, separated and combined, was 3.08 mg L-1 and that of CAF was 9.59 mg L-1. To assess neurotoxicity, brain and muscle acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activities were measured. To evaluate oxidative stress, the enzymatic activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), catalase (CAT) and glutathione S-transferase (GST), as well as lipoperoxidation (LPO), were analyzed in liver and gills. Activity of hepatic cyclooxygenase (COX) was also evaluated. Genotoxicity was assessed in blood using comet assay and micronucleus test, as well as nuclear abnormalities. DCF and CAF, alone or combined, had neither effect on AChE activity, nor in the activity of SOD, CAT, GPx and GST in gills. In liver, DCF inhibited SOD and GPx activity, CAF inhibited CAT activity, the mixture inhibited SOD and GST activity; although only fish exposed to CAF showed increased hepatic LPO. Under these experimental conditions, no effect on COX activity was observed, nor cytotoxic and genotoxic damage. The most pronounced effects were caused by the drugs separately, since both compounds altered the enzymes, but only CAF triggered LPO, showing more harmful effects. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/11530-1 - Physiological adjustments of tropical teleosts in anthropogenic reservoirs
• Grantee: Renata Guimarães Moreira Whitton
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 14/16320-7 - Impacts of climate/environmental change on the fauna: an integrative approach
• Grantee: Carlos Arturo Navas Iannini
• Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - Thematic Grants