Histopathological Effects of Chlorpyrifos on Kidneys in Albino Rats

Background: Histopathological lesions have long been employed as biomarkers for assessing the health of organisms exposed to pollutants, and they can also serve as early warning signs of illness. We decided to conduct this investigation because there are few data on histomorphological changes in the kidney after exposure to the pesticide chlorpyrifos.

Methods: The rats used in this investigation were 45 inbred adult Wistar albino rats, both sexes, weighing 145–165 gms. These animals were divided into three groups at random: A, B, and C.The experimental groups B and C were given oral chlorpyrifos at doses of 5 mg/kg body weight and 10 mg/kg body weight, respectively. Group A was designated as the control group and was left as such. After 1 week, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks, and 8 weeks of the experiment, 3 mice from each group were sacrificed to see the histological alterations in the kidney architecture.

Results: There are no histological changes in Group A. After one week, there were no histological changes in the kidneys in Group B. At the beginning of treatment, there was glomerulus shrinkage, tubular dilation, glomerular hypercellularity, tubular epithelial hypertrophy, degeneration of renal tubules, and deposition of eosin positive substance in the glomerulus and renal tubules. There was lymphocyte infiltration and enhanced vascularity in the form of dilated vessels, fibrosis, and interstitial oedema in the interstitium. All of these changes pointed to glomerulonephritis, acute tubular necrosis, and interstitial nephritis, all of which can contribute to acute renal failure that progresses to chronic renal failure over time. The kidneys of 1 week Chlorpyrifos-treated rats showed reduced glomeruli and renal tubular epithelial hypertrophy in Group C.

The differences between Group A and Group B were more pronounced from the second to the eighth week.

Conclusion: The current study found that Chlorpyrifos caused significant histomorphological changes in the kidneys of rats. These changes were noticeably different from those seen in control rats. As a result, this study shed light on the renal toxicity caused by chlorpyrifos, which was discovered to be significant at high dose levels.