Selective inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase in vivo in horses by the feed-through larvacide Equitrol®

The organophosphate insecticide tetrachlorvinphos (TCVP, Rabon) is the active ingredient in “feed-through” larvacides (e.g., Equitrol®) for fly control around horse stables. As with other organophosphates, TCVP elicits toxicity by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase, leading to accumulation of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine and cholinergic signs. Relatively little is known, however, on the effects of TCVP-containing larvacides on acetylcholinesterase or other esterases in horses. Previous in vitro studies indicated that horse plasma cholinesterase activity was substantially (>10,000-fold) more sensitive than erythrocyte cholinesterase activity to inhibition by TCVP. In the current study, we examined the relative proportion of acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase activities in horse plasma and muscle, and evaluated the in vivo effects of Equitrol® on target and non-target esterases following oral feeding in horses. In vitro inhibition studies suggested that essentially all cholinesterase activity in horse plasma was butyrylcholinesterase, while muscle contained >90% acetylcholinesterase activity. For in vivo studies, adult, male horses (364–590 kg; n = 3/treatment group) were given either sweet feed alone or sweet feed supplemented with Equitrol® daily for 21 consecutive days at the recommended rate. Clinical signs (vital signs, abdominal auscultation, ophthalmic exam, body temperature) were recorded on a daily basis. Heparinized blood samples were taken at days −1, 1, 3, 7, 21, 28, and 42 while muscle (semimembranosus) biopsies were taken under aseptic conditions on days −1 and 21. No signs of overt toxicity were noted at any time during the study. Plasma cholinesterase activity was significantly inhibited (33%) in larvacide-treated horses as early as one day after treatment and peak inhibition (69–71%) was noted at days 7 and 21. Following cessation of dosing, plasma cholinesterase activity recovered (46% and 83% of control on days 28 and 42, respectively). Neither erythrocyte cholinesterase activity nor plasma carboxylesterase activity was affected by larvacide treatment in vivo. Muscle cholinesterase activity was highly variable among individual horses (pre-treatment range: 0.50–4.92 nmole/min/mg protein), but there was no suggestion of a treatment-related reduction in muscle cholinesterase activity. These in vivo results confirm our previous in vitro studies indicating marked differential sensitivity of horse plasma and erythrocyte cholinesterase to inhibition by TCVP. Furthermore, the results suggest that recommended dosing levels of the TCVP-containing larvacide in horses are unlikely to affect acetylcholinesterase activities or disrupt cholinergic neurotransmission in target tissues.