The mutagenic effects of ivermectin in germinal cells and serum protein of the mouse.

Ivermectin (IVM) is a broad-spectrum anti-parasite agent. It is extremely toxic to fish and aquatic life. Some animals showed reduction in the fertility, the number of variable fetuses and sperm count following treatment with (IVM). Therefore, the objective of the current work was to investigate the mutagenicity of IVM on meiotic chromosomes of mice. The variations in protein fractions of blood serum were also studied using sodium Dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE).Animals received single injections only of 200ug/kg b.wt. for meiotic chromosome study. Whereas single and double treatment for serum protein examinations. Analysis of the treated samples revealed significant increase in meiotic aberrations, 33.83% vs 5.8% for the control (P < 0.001). Single injection induced much variation in the percentage area of the separated protein than that produced by double treatment. These findings supports the mutagenicity of IVM, accordingly cautious use of IVM is advisable.

Chromosome aberrations in bone marrow cells of rats treated with MTBE.

In the present study, genotoxic effect of methyl tert butyl ether MTBE was analyzed by measuring chromosomal aberrations (CAs) in bone marrow cells of rats. Rats administered MTBE orally at 800, 1600mg/kg/day in corn oil for 14 and 28 consecutive days. Control rats received injection of distilled water. An additional two groups of rats received corn oil and served as vehicle controls. Treatment of corn oil for 14 and 28 days failed to induce chromosomal aberrations. The highest percentage of chromosomal aberrations was produced by the two tested dose 14 days after treatment. The most structural aberrations were Robertsonion translocations, deletion, dicentric, end to end association while, ring, acentric fragment and gaps were rare. The present results indicate that MTBE is harmful to mammalian genetic material.

The effect of ivermectin on secondary spermatocytes and serum total proteins.

Ivermectin, a broad-spectrum anti-parasitic agent first used in veterinary medicine, is active against numerous species of helminths and arthropods. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the effects of administration of ivermectin on secondary meiotic division and serum total proteins. Male mice treated with single injections of 200ug/kg b.w. IVM. Meiotic chromosomes were prepared after 6 hours, 2, 5, 10 and 12 days to cover the different phases of meiotic division. Blood samples were collected after 1, 7 and 14 days of the last injection to determine total protein content. Euploidy (haploid no which equal 20 chromosomes) was recorded in 8.6 of the scored cells of secondary spermatocytes. Hyperhaploid (metaphases that include more than 20 and less than 23 chromosomes) was also considered. A total of 46 hyperhaploid metaphases were registered for 2100 examined cells. The hyper-haploidy index was 2.49% versus 0.8% for the control. Acentric fragments were occasionally occurred. After 1 and 7 days, single injections of IVM led to elevate the total protein content than that resulted after double treatment. However, the data obtained after 14 days were closed together. In conclusion, IVM is produced a considerable signs of chromosomal damage to germ cells. So, the cytogenetic studies revealed high clastogenicity of the drug. On the other hand, the differences in total protein concentration obtained between treated and control samples indicate genotoxic potential for IVM.