Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Nov:96:104000.
doi: 10.1016/j.etap.2022.104000. Epub 2022 Oct 15.

Mitochondrial dysfunction from malathion and chlorpyrifos exposure is associated with degeneration of GABAergic neurons in Caenorhabditis elegans

Thitipa Thosapornvichai  1 , Chananya Huangteerakul  1 , Amornrat Naranuntarat Jensen  2 , Laran T Jensen  3
Affiliations

Mitochondrial dysfunction from malathion and chlorpyrifos exposure is associated with degeneration of GABAergic neurons in Caenorhabditis elegans

Thitipa Thosapornvichai et al. Environ Toxicol Pharmacol. 2022 Nov.

Abstract

Toxicity resulting from off-target effects, beyond acetylcholine esterase inhibition, for the commonly used organophosphate (OP) insecticides chlorpyrifos (CPS) and malathion (MA) was investigated using Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Caenorhabditis elegans model systems. Mitochondrial damage and dysfunction were observed in yeast following exposure to CPS and MA, suggesting this organelle is a major target. In the C. elegans model, the mitochondrial unfolded protein response pathway showed the most robust induction from CPS and MA treatment among stress responses examined. GABAergic neurodegeneration was observed with CPS and MA exposure. Impaired movement observed in C. elegans exposed to CPS and MA may be the result of motor neuron damage. Our analysis suggests that stress from CPS and MA results in mitochondrial dysfunction, with GABAergic neurons sensitized to these effects. These findings may aid in the understanding of toxicity from CPS and MA from high concentration exposure leading to insecticide poisoning.

Keywords: Chlorpyrifos; Malathion; Mitochondria dysfunction; Neurodegeneration; Organophosphate insecticides.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Laran T. Jensen reports financial support was provided by Thailand Science Research and Innovation. Amornrat Naranuntarat Jensen reports financial support was provided by Thailand Science Research and Innovation. Conflicts of interest The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

LinkOut - more resources