Chiral bioaccumulation behavior of tebuconazole in the zebrafish (Danio rerio)

•The possibility of chiral bioaccumulation behavior in zebrafish was investigated.•There was significant enantioselective in the zebrafish.•The BCFk values for each enantiomers were confirmed in the zebrafish.

Tebuconazole is an effective chiral fungicide, and previous studies have demonstrated that tebuconazole enantiomers exhibit enantioselective toxicity to non-target aquatic organisms. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the chiral bioaccumulation behavior of tebuconazole in zebrafish (Danio rerio). Two exposure concentrations (0.107 and 1.07 mg/L) of tebuconazole were used. The uptake experiments lasted for 8 days, and subsequently, the zebrafish were transferred to another clean tank containing water without tebuconazole for depuration experiments (up to 14 days). A significant trend in enantioselective bioaccumulation was observed in these zebrafish with the preferential accumulation of (−)-R-tebuconazole at two dose levels. The results of the depuration experiments indicated that the degradation of (−)-R-tebuconazole in zebrafish was slower than that of (+)-S-tebuconazole. The BCFk values for (+)-S-tebuconazole and (−)-R-tebuconazole in a low dose of this chemical were 11.22 and 16.25, respectively, while at a high dose, these values were 9.79 and 10.31, respectively. The enantiomer fraction of tebuconazole in zebrafish and water ranged from 0.31-0.49. Hence, future research should focus on the fate of tebuconazole in the aquatic environment at the enantiomer levels.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide