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 alongwith
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.
http://dx.doi.org/10.29261/pakvetj/2024.206