Apoptotic effects and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase responses in liver and gill tissues of rainbow trout treated with chlorpyrifos

• We examined apoptotic effects and changes in glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase enzyme activity in gill and liver after acute exposure to pesticide chlorpyrifos in rainbow trout.
• Chlorpyrifos treatment causes apoptosis in gill and liver tissues.
• Our study makes contributions to ecotoxicology.
• Chlorpyrifos inhibits G6PD enzyme activity.

We investigated apoptotic effects and changes in glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) enzyme activity in liver and gill tissues of fish exposed to chlorpyrifos. Three different chlorpyrifos doses (2.25, 4.5 and 6.75 μg/L) were administrated to rainbow trout at different time intervals (24, 48, 72 and 96 h). Acute exposure to chlorpyrifos showed time dependent decrease in G6PD enzyme activity at all concentrations (p < 0.05). Immunohistochemical results showed that chlorpyrifos caused mucous cell loss in gill tissue and apoptosis via caspase-3 activation in fish. The present study suggested that chlorpyrifos inhibits G6PD enzyme and causes mucous cell loss in gill and apoptosis in gill and liver tissues.