Mecoprop-p, a chlorophenoxy herbicide, has been widely used since the 1980s. Due to its high water solubility, it could be detected in the aquatic environment, as it has already been detected in the surface water or groundwater in several countries. The toxicity of other chlorophenoxy herbicides has been reported; however, there are few studies on the toxicity of mecoprop-p, one of the chlorophenoxy herbicides, on aquatic organisms. Here, we investigated the toxic effects of mecoprop-p using zebrafish. After mecoprop-p exposure, we observed that the zebrafish larvae eyes did not form normally, heart edema was generated, and the body length was shortened. The number of cells undergoing apoptosis also increased in the anterior part including head, heart, and yolk sac of the mecoprop-p-treated zebrafish compared to the untreated controls. Moreover, cardiovascular structures, including the heart and aortic arches, were also malformed after exposure to mecoprop-p. Therefore, our results suggest that mecoprop-p could cause abnormal development in zebrafish larvae and there is also a high possibility that mecoprop-p would be toxic to other aquatic organisms.

ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
MATERIALS AND METHODS
RESULTS
DISCUSSION
CONCLUSION
REFERENCES

• Junho Park(Institute of Animal Molecular Biotechnology and Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University)
• Garam An(Institute of Animal Molecular Biotechnology and Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University)
• Hahyun Park(Institute of Animal Molecular Biotechnology and Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University)
• Taeyeon Hong(Department of Biological Sciences, Sungkyunkwan University)
• Gwonhwa Song(Institute of Animal Molecular Biotechnology and Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University) Corresponding author
• Whasun Lim(Department of Biological Sciences, Sungkyunkwan University)