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Exposure to the Environmental Toxins Microcystin-LR and Roundup® Causes Cellular Damage in the Hepatopancreas of the White River Crayfish (Procambarus acutus)

delete2026-08-13
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OA
AI
M
Mona Khalil
A
Antonillamarein E. Hanna
B
Brandon T. Kenaya
A
Amira S. Abuhmoud
S
Sarah A. Magid
M
Miranda J. Jasinski
S
Shaza Ahmed
A
Andrew A. Bosah
S
Sabrina A. Cacanindin
O
Oswaldo Celestino Escobar
Y
Yara A. El-Sheikh
E
Evelyn M. Rihacek
K
Kendra R. Evans
G
Gregory M. Grabowski
L
Levi Storks
R
Rachelle M. Belanger *
DOI:10.3390/toxics14080712delete
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Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Aquatic ecosystems are routinely exposed to natural and anthropogenic stressors, and when multiple pollutants co-occur, their synergistic effects may exceed those of individual contaminants. This study evaluated the individual and combined effects of the widely used agrochemical Roundup®, whose active ingredient is glyphosate (GLY) and the cyanobacterial toxin microcystin-LR (MC-LR) on the hepatopancreas of crayfish. Following a seven-day exposure to MC-LR (15 ppb), GLY (75 ppb), or their combination (MC-LR + GLY), cellular and morphological alterations were assessed using flow cytometry and histological analyses. MC-LR exposure increased hepatopancreatic vacuole number 3.7-fold and vacuole proportion 6.8-fold relative to controls, whereas GLY increased vacuole proportion 5.2-fold. Combined exposure increased tubule lumen proportion by approximately 65%, while epithelial height remained unchanged. GLY reduced viable (fluorescein diacetate-positive) hepatopancreatic cells by approximately 86%, and both GLY and MC-LR + GLY increased non-viable (propidium iodide-positive) cells by 4.8-fold and 4.3-fold, respectively. MC-LR alone did not significantly affect cell viability. These findings indicate that MC-LR primarily induces structural alterations, whereas GLY causes pronounced cellular cytotoxicity. Although co-exposure did not consistently produce synergistic toxicity, it enhanced tissue remodeling, emphasizing the importance of evaluating environmentally relevant contaminant mixtures and their implications for freshwater ecosystem health.
Keywords:
herbicide
cell death
apoptosis
cyanotoxin
morphology
toxicity

Journal

Toxics cover
Toxics
IF:
4.1
Papers:
5.0K
Citations:
1.2W

Organization

U
University of Detroit Mercy
Scholars:
434
Papers: 328
Citations: 209
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