The Ameliorative Effect of Vitamin C against Sub-chronic
Thiamethoxam Toxicity in Male Rats
El-Sayed A. El-Sheikh1, Ibrahim A. Hamed1,
Manal Abduallah Alduwish2, Maha Abdullah Momenah3,
Sahar J. Melebary4*, Soha A. Alsolmy4,Mariam S. Alghamdi4,Asmaa Ali Alharbi5,Refat M. Sherif1 and Aly A. Shalaby1
1Department
of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University,
Zagazig 44511, Egypt;
2Department
of Biology, College of Science and Humanities in Al-Kharj, Prince
Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Alkarj 11942, Saudi Arabia; 3Department
of Biology, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman
University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia; 4Department
of Biological Sciences, College of Science, University of Jeddah,
P.O. Box 80237, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia; 5Department
of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University,
Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
*Corresponding author:Sjmelebary@uj.edu.sa
Abstract
Thiamethoxam (THM), a
neonicotinoid insecticide, controls various insect pests that attack fruits,
vegetables, and field crops. However, improper handling and prolonged exposure
to thiamethoxam can lead to adverse health effects. The objective of this study
was to eliminate the toxic effects of THM in liver, kidney and brain of male
rats by incorporating vitamin C into their diets. Rats were divided into six
groups (8 males per group): the control group (which supplied distilled water orally), the vitamin C
group (which injected 200 mg/kg BW of vitamin C), three THM groups received two
graded levels as follows, 1/10 LD50 (156.3) and 1/20 LD50
(78.15) mg/kg BW orally. The results showed that exposure to THM at the
two levels (1/10 and 1/20) reduces food intake, which reduces body weight gain,
as well as carcass weights. It also reduces red blood cells and hemoglobin. It
raises blood glucose and liver enzymes (ALT, AST, and ALP), as well as MDA,
which indicates a high level of oxidative stress leading to decrease in
immune-markers (IgM and IgA). Therefore, adding vitamin C in the rats' diet
reflects all the above-mentioned parameters near to the control levels. The
simultaneous application of vitamin C along with THM eliminated the harmful
impacts of the pesticide on the enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant system,
enhancing the liver, kidney, and immunoglobulin markers. The side effects of THM
were also confirmed in histopathological examinations, where major alterations
in liver, kidney, and brain tissues’ structure were recorded. It concluded
that vitamin C can mitigate adverse effects of the THM toxicity in non-target
species.
To Cite This Article:
El-Sheikh E-SA, Hamed
IA, Alduwish MA, Momenah MA, Melebary SJ, Alsolmy SA,Alghamdi MS,Alharbi AA,Sherif RM and Shalaby AA, 2024. The ameliorative
effect of vitamin C against sub-chronic thiamethoxam toxicity in male rats. Pak
Vet J, 44(3): 803-811.
http://dx.doi.org/10.29261/pakvetj/2024.206