Biological effects of a copper-based fungicide on the fruit fly, drosophila melanogaster

The increased consumption of pesticides can have a negative environmental impact by increasing the essential metals to toxic levels. Bordasul® is a commonly used fungicide in Brazil and it is composed of 20% Cu, 10% sulfur, and 3.0% calcium. The study of fungicides in vivo in non-target model organisms can predict their environmental impact more broadly. The Drosophila melanogaster is a unique model due to its ease of handling and maintenance. Here, the potential toxicity of Bordasul® was investigated by assessing the development, survival, and behavior of exposed flies. Exposure to Bordasul® impaired the development (p < 0.01) and caused a significant reduction in memory retention (p < 0.05) and locomotor ability (p < 0.001). Fungicides are needed to assure the world’s food demand; however, Bordasul® was highly toxic to D. melanogaster. Therefore, Bordasul® may be potentially toxic to non-target invertebrates and new environmentally-safe biofertilizers have to be developed to preserve the biota.

• Autores: Rieder, G.S.; Zamberlan, D.C.; Aschner, M.; Silva, L.F.O.; da Rocha, J.B.T.
• Tipo de recurso: Article of investigation
• Fecha de publicación: 2024
• Institución: Corporación Universidad de la Costa
• Repositorio: REDICUC - Repositorio CUC
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:repositorio.cuc.edu.co:11323/13436
• Acceso en línea: https://hdl.handle.net/11323/13436; https://repositorio.cuc.edu.co/
• Palabra clave: Behavior; Environment; Memory; Pesticides; Toxicity
• Rights: closedAccess
• License: Atribución 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0)