Biochemical and developmental effects of thyroid and anti-thyroid drugs on different early life stages of Xenopus laevis

[Display omitted] •Propylthiouracil and levothyroxine caused growth retardation in embryos and tadpoles.•Propylthiouracil caused lethality and malformations in the FETAX test.•Significant enzyme inhibition was identified in stage 46 tadpoles exposed to drugs.•LDH induction in the AMA test indicates that drug exposure affects energy metabolism.•The developmental stages of Xenopus showed different sensitivities to drug exposure. The effects of two drugs containing the synthetic thyroid hormone levothyroxine (LEV) and an anti-thyroid drug containing propylthiouracil (PTU) on the three early life stages of Xenopus laevis were evaluated with the Frog Embryo Teratogenesis Assay-Xenopus, Tadpole Toxicity Test, and Amphibian Metamorphosis Assay using biochemical and morphological markers. Tested drugs caused more effective growth retardation in stage 8 embryos than stage 46 tadpoles. Significant inhibition of biomarker enzymes has been identified in stage 46 tadpoles for both drugs. AMA test results showed that LEV-I caused progression in the developmental stage and an increase in thyroxine level in 7 days exposure and growth retardation in 21 days exposure in stage 51 tadpoles. On the other hand, increases in lactate dehydrogenase activity for both drugs in the AMA test may be due to impacted energy metabolism during sub-chronic exposure. These results also show that the sensitivity and responses of Xenopus laevis at different early developmental stages may be different when exposed to drugs.