Abstract:
The increasing amount of pharmaceuticals in the environment is an emerging
environmental issue. In the Philippines, studies regarding the long-term effects of these
drugs on non-target organisms are lacking up to now. To determine their developmental
toxicity on the development of fish embryos, zebrafish eggs were exposed to various
concentrations of paracetamol, ibuprofen (1,000 |ig/L, 5,000 pig/L, 10,000 |ig/L) and a
combination of both (500:500 jig/L, 2,500:2,500 pg/L, 5,000 |ig/L:5,000 |ig/L). Early
developmental stage parameters such as embryo mortality, gastrulation, somite
formation, tail detachment, contraction, and pigmentation were noted and described
within the 48 hours and 96 hours time exposure. Results revealed that both drugs and the
combination of the two caused teratogenic effects on the embryos. Delays in hatching
were observed but the embryos did not differ morphologically from normally hatched
embryos. Data on percent abnormality and percent survival showed significant
differences for all embryos exposed to the pharmaceutical treatments. The higher
concentrations of ibuprofen (5,000 pg/L, 10,000 pg/L) and that of the combination of the
two drugs (2,500:2,500 pg/L, 5,000 |ig/L:5,000 pig/L) caused the greatest teratogenic
effects on the embryos. These data indicate that the concentration thresholds at which
paracetamol and ibuprofen induced teratogenic effects on the embryos were met in the
current study.
