Spirulina (Arthrospira maxima) mitigates the toxicity induced by a mixture of metal and NSAID in Xenopus laevis.

Cadmium (Cd) is often detected in the environment due to its wide use in industry; also, NSAIDs are one of the most consumed pharmaceuticals, particularly diclofenac (DCF). Several studies have reported the presence of both contaminants in water bodies at concentrations ranging from ng L-1 to µg L-1; in addition, they have shown that they can induce oxidative stress in aquatic species and disturb signal transduction, cell proliferation, and intercellular communication, which could lead to teratogenesis. Spirulina has been consumed as a dietary supplement; its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, and nutritional properties are well documented. This work aimed to evaluate if Spirulina reduces the damage induced by Cd and DCF mixture in Xenopus laevis at early life stages. FETAX assay was carried out: 20 fertilized oocytes were exposed to seven different treatments on triplicate, control, Cd (24.5 µg L-1), DCF (149 µg L-1), Cd + DCF, Cd+DCF+Spirulina (2 mg L-1), Cd+DCF+Spirulina (4 mg L-1), Cd+DCF+Spirulina (10 mg L-1), malformations, mortality, and growth were evaluated after 96 h, also lipid peroxidation, superoxide dismutase and catalase activity were determined after 192 h. Cd increased DCF mortality, Cd and DCF mixture increased the incidence of malformations as well as oxidative damage; on the other hand, the results obtained show that Spirulina can be used to reduce the damage caused by the mixture of Cd and DCF since it promotes growth, reduce mortality, malformations, and oxidative stress in X. laevis.

The relationship between cyto-genotoxic damage and oxidative stress produced by emerging pollutants on a bioindicator organism (Allium cepa): The carbamazepine case.

The carbamazepine (CBZ) is one of the most frequently detected anticonvulsant drugs in water bodies. Although there are reports of its ecotoxicological effects in the scientific literature, toxicity studies have not focused on establishing the mechanism by which CBZ produces its effect at environmentally relevant concentrations. The objective of this work was to evaluate cyto-genotoxicity and its relationship with oxidative stress produced by carbamazepine in the Allium cepa model. The cytotoxicity and genotoxicity, as well as the biomarkers of oxidative stress were analyzed in the roots of A. cepa, exposed to 1 and 31.36 µg L-1 after 2, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h. The results show that genotoxic capacity of this drug in the roots of A. cepa is related to the generation of oxidative stress, in particular with production of hydroperoxides and oxidized proteins. Also, the cytotoxic effect has a high correlation with DNA damage. The results of the present study clearly indicate that bioassays with sensitive plants such as A. cepa are useful and complementary tools to evaluate the environmental impact of emerging contaminants.