Influence of sex on biomarkers of oxidative stress in the kidney, lungs, and liver of rabbits after exposure to diazinon.

The present study evaluated the effect of two oral doses of the pesticide diazinon (25 and 125 mg/kg bw) on four biochemical parameters (malondialdehyde and glutathione levels, and catalase and glutathione S-transferase enzymatic activities) in the kidney, lungs, and liver of rabbit after 10 days of exposure. Malondialdehyde levels were significantly greater in exposed animals compared to controls, especially in the animals exposed to the higher dose of the pesticide. This result was reflected in the glutathione levels, which were significantly lower at that same higher dose. Catalase activity was also inhibited by the higher dose of the pesticide in all three organs analysed, whereas inhibition of glutathione S-transferase activity was only significant for the kidney and lungs. There were some slight differences between the sexes: taking the results for all three organs, the higher dose of diazinon resulted in a clearly significant inhibitory effect on the catalase activity and glutathione levels in males, and a significant enhancing effect on the malondialdehyde levels in females. These results help to confirm the interest of considering such endogenous factors in future ecotoxicological studies, and that the four biomarkers considered are suitable for reflecting the toxic effects of diazinon on rabbits, especially the effects related to oxidative stress. Graphical abstract.