Bioavailability, Effects and Quantification o...

Bioavailability, Effects and Quantification of Organophosphate (OP) and Carbamate (CM) Pesticide Mixtures in Aquatic Medium vis-à-vis Molluscs – A Review

Author Name : Himadri Guhathakurta

ABSTRACT

Almost all pesticides we use end up in the waters surrounding us. The basic problem this creates is that of toxicity, especially to non-target organisms. Organophosphates and Carbamates are two of the newer classes of pesticides in increasing use these days, preferred due to their high acute toxicity and short half-lives in solution. However, though environmentally realistic conditions are generally very low, it has been proved time and again that pesticide mixtures often act synergistically to produce more damaging and potent effects than when acting alone. Molluscs are generally overlooked in toxicity studies because of their considerable tolerance to xenobiotics. However, in view of their frequently documented economic importance, some researchers have tried to document the effects of these two most-used classes of pesticides on their physiology, both singly and in mixtures. This review attempts to bring together a coherent and synchronous view of the work done in this area.

KEY WORDS: Organophosphates, Carbamates, Molluscs, Effects, Bioavailability