2,4-D-based herbicide underdoses cause mortality, malformations, and nuclear abnormalities in Physalaemus cuvieri tadpoles

Abstract

Amphibians are considered bioindicators of the environment due to their high sensitivity and involvement in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. In the last two decades, 2,4-D has been one of the most widely used herbicides in Brazil and around the world, as its use has been authorized for genetically modified crops and therefore has been detected in surface and groundwater. Against this background, the aim of this work was to investigate the effects of environmentally relevant concentrations of 2,4-D-based herbicides on survival, malformations, swimming activity, presence of micronuclei and erythrocyte nuclear abnormalities in Physalaemus cuvieri tadpoles. The amphibians were exposed to six concentrations of 2,4-D-based herbicides: 0.0, 4.0, 30.0, 52.5, 75.0, and 100 μg L−1, for 168 h. At concentrations higher than 52.5 μg L−1, significantly increased mortality was observed from 24 h after exposure. At the highest concentration (100 μg L−1), the occurrence of mouth and intestinal malformations was also observed. The occurrence of erythrocyte nuclear abnormalities at concentrations of 30.0, 52.5, 75.0 and 100 μg L−1 and the presence of micronuclei at concentrations of 52.5, 75.0, and 100 μg L−1 were also recorded. These effects of 2,4-D in P. cuvieri indicate that the ecological risk observed at concentrations above 10.35 μg L−1 2,4-D may represent a threat to the health and survival of this species, i.e., exposure to 2,4-D at concentrations already detected in surface waters in the species' range is toxic to P. cuvieri.