Tolerance of ARPE 19 cells to organophosphorus pesticide chlorpyrifos is limited to concentration and time of exposure

•Oxidative stress is a causal factor for Age related macular degeneration (AMD), a blinding disease common in elderly adults.•Cholorpyrifos may have association with macular degeneration by inducing oxidative stress.•This study established a cell model (ARPE 19) for understanding the effects of chlorpyrifos exposure to eye.•Chlorpyrifos exposure to ARPE 19 cells for short-term caused increase antioxidant enzymes whereas longer exposure decreased.•HPLC analysis showed entry of chlorpyrifos into the cell. Age related macular degeneration is a blinding disease common in elder adults. The prevalence of age related macular degeneration has been found to be 1.8% in the Indian population. Organophosphates are widely used insecticides with well documented neurological effects, and the persistent nature of these compounds in the body results in long term health effects. Farmers exposed to organophosphorus pesticides in USA had an earlier onset of age related macular degeneration when compared to unexposed controls. A recent study found significant levels of an organophosphate, termed chlorpyrifos, in the blood samples of Indian farmers. Therefore, in understanding the link between age related macular degeneration and chlorpyrifos, the need for investigation is important. Our data show that ARPE-19 (retinal pigment epithelial cells) exhibit a cytoprotective response to chlorpyrifos as measured by viability, mitochondrial membrane potential, superoxide dismutase activity, and increased levels of glutathione peroxidase and reduced glutathione, after 24 h exposure to chlorpyrifos. However, this cytoprotective response was absent in ARPE-19 cells exposed to the same range of concentrations of chlorpyrifos for 48 h. These results have physiological significance, since HPLC analysis showed that effects of chlorpyrifos were mediated through its entry into ARPE-19 cells. HPLC analysis also showed that chlorpyrifos remained stable, as we recovered up to 80% of the chlorpyrifos added to 6 different ocular tissues.