Tonietto_2022_Environ.Toxicol.Pharmacol__103924

Imidacloprid (IMI) is a neonicotinoid insecticide employed worldwide for crop protection. IMI's mode of action occurs through the agonism of postsynaptic nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs), with high specificity for insect nAChRs although there are reports of mammals' toxicity. Studies on IMI's neurotoxicity are not conclusive; therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the subchronic toxic effects of an IMI based commercial pesticide on rats. Adult male Wistar rats received an IMI suspension via the oral route at doses of 1.5, 5, and 15mg/kg for 45 consecutive days. IMI caused an increase in rearing and time spent at the periphery in the locomotor activity test and a decrease in time spent to finish the OX maze task (p<0.05; ANOVA/Bonferroni). In blood, there was a decrease in mean corpuscular hemoglobin and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (p<0.05; ANOVA/Bonferroni) and an increase in serum butyrylcholinesterase activity (p<0.001; ANOVA/Bonferroni). Therefore, subchronic administration of an IMI-based-pesticide caused behavioral and systemic impairments in rats.