Effects of Butachlor on antioxidant system of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus)

Pesticides has been widely used in agriculture all over the world. They cause contamination of natural aquatic environment, that can affect the organism, particularly fish. In this paper, the biochemical perturbations of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) exposed to butachlor at different concentrations (1.8 ppm and 3.6 ppm) over 24 hours were investigated. After exposure, fish liver, gill, white muscle, red muscle, heart and pancreas were excised and used for experiments. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), the content of glutathione (GSH), and lipid peroxidation were determined. Our result showed that SOD, P-ase and C-ase were all sensitive and changed their antioxidant activities against pesticide toxicity. These enzymes could be induced by a slight oxidative stress due to compensatory response; however, a severe oxidative stress suppressed the activities of these enzymes due to oxidative damage and the loss of compensatory mechanisms. Butachlor may enhance the lipid peroxidation value by direct interaction with the cell membrane. These changes reflected that the antioxidant systems of the tested fishes were affected. The present work demonstrated that butachlor induced oxidative stress in Ctenopharyngodon idellus. It is evident that the use of butachlor in agriculture and aquaculture must be carefully evaluated. Our results suggested that the parameters analyzed could be good biomarkers of exposure to oxidative stress caused by butachlor.