Chlorpyrifos is one of the organophosphorothionates mostly used pesticide. Chlorpyrifos is highly preferred due to its cost-effectiveness and its broad competitive spectrum of activity as compared to other related products. Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphorothionates (OPT)pesticide which does not have a systemic anticholinesterase activity with contact and the respiratory action. The pesticide is widely used in agriculture, viticulture, horticulture, and forestry. Again, the pesticide is applied to a variety of crops in both private and non-residential practices. Insects like; cockroaches, ticks on domestic animals, fleas and pests are eradicated by the use of this insecticide. The pesticide exhibits acute toxicological and toxicokinetic characteristics. The characteristics are similar to CYP-mediated Oxon formation as well as inhibition of AChE (Smith, Timchalk, Bartels, & Poet, 2011). Among other characteristics exhibited by the pesticide include effects obtained from exposing it for a long time. The following paper presents an analysis of chlorpyrifos and its negative impact on the environment.
Identify the Main Active Ingredient of the Pesticide and How the Pesticide Is Used
Upon contact with insects, the pesticide kills them by affecting their normal nervous system functioning. Chlorpyrifos inhibits the chemical breakdown of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh). Chlorpyrifos adheres to the active site of cholinesterase (ChE) when exposed to air. Enzyme cholinesterase inhibits the breakdown of Ach in the synaptic cleft. The reaction results to accumulation of Ach which causes excessive stimulation of neuronal cells. The excess stimulation of neuronal cells causes neurotoxicity and hence death (Smith, Timchalk, Bartels, & Poet, 2011). Insecticides like malathion also have the same mechanism of toxicity like chlorpyrifos, and therefore they cannot pose positive results against insects’ populations that are resistant to organophosphate. The chemical structure of chlorpyrifos consists of (O, O-diethyl O-3,5,6-trichloropyridin-2-Cyl phosphorothioate, O, O-diethyl O-3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridylphosphorothionatechlorpyrifos-ethyl) which is a colorless to white crystalline solid with a strong mercaptan smell.
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Identifies and Describes Which of the Four Cornerstones of Xenobiotic Pharmacokinetics Are Affected In the Way the Pesticide Works To Kill the Target Organism
When chlorpyrifos is exposed to the environment, the organism absorbs the chemical content of the pesticide through the inhalation process. The substance exists in the solid state, but it is easily be taken up through inhalation. The substance is oxidized in the body to form Oxon. Oxon is a compound of organophosphate that is more poisonous compared to chlorpyrifos. The compound is resulted through inhaling a chemical compound of chlorpyrifos called AChE. The oxidation of the chlorpyrifos takes place in liver microsomal of the nervous system of the enzyme, and it requires oxygen (Smith, Timchalk, Bartels, & Poet, 2011). The degenerate liver Oxon through hydrolysis in the microsome. However, the substance kills insects faster compared to non-target organisms because it passes through the hydrolysis process which allows rapid accumulation of toxic substances. This process leads to the failure of the nervous system causing the death of the insect.
Metabolites of the Active Ingredient of the Pesticide, and the Toxicity and Lifespan of the Metabolites
Chlorpyrifos can be absorbed through the skin, mucus, ingestion, and inhalation . After CPF is applied to the environment, it is absorbed through all routes of exposure as a lipophilic compound that readily crosses biological membranes such as the blood-brain barrier, and the placenta. Again, it enters the bloodstream and distributes into tissues at amounts that trigger neuro damage through inhibiting acetylcholinesterase (AChE). When CPF enters the body, it is metabolically converted into its respective oxygen form chlorpyrifos Oxon (CPO). The reaction involves the elimination of Sulphur group replacing it with oxygen. The biotransformation reaction is carried out by cytochromeP450 (CYP-dependent monooxygenase system that exists in the liver (Ware, 2012). Chlorpyrifos is proven to last in the air for more than 245 days after application. CPF toxicity mechanism revolves its ability to interact with and hinder AChE enzyme which is a co-enzyme within the nervous system that destroys neurotransmission at the peripheral and central synapsis. The continuous of AChE process results in a decrease in the degradation of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine into choline and acetate as well as the resultant accumulation of Ach in the synaptic cleft (Ware, 2012).
Whether Or Not This Pesticide Is Safe For the Overall Ecosystem
Chlorpyrifos is highly sensitive and can be lethal if exposed to minute concentrations for animals. EPA is an indication of a single application of chlorpyrifos and possible risks that it causes more so to endangered species like fish, birds, amphibians, and bees. Beneficial insects are also at risk of the potent insecticides. Chlorpyrifos shows moderate persistence in soil and takes years to disintegrate. When it reaches rivers, lakes, and streams, it concentrates in the fatty tissue of fish (Giesy, & Solomon, 2014). National water quality assessment program states that chlorpyrifos contaminated water surfaces in agricultural streams and urban areas posing a threat to aquatic life. Chlorpyrifos has the potential to travel long distances far from its source. The report obtained from the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program reveals that chlorpyrifos in places like surface water, ice fog, Alaskan snow as well as arctic and subarctic Canadian lakes. Chlorpyrifos has been proposed for consideration as a global elimination pesticide under Stockholm convention on persistent organic pollutants.
References
Giesy, J. P., & Solomon, K. R. (2014). Ecological Risk Assessment for Chlorpyrifos in Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems in the United States . Berlin, Germany: Springer Science & Business Media.
Smith, J. N., Timchalk, C., Bartels, M. J., & Poet, T. S. (2011). In Vitro Age-Dependent Enzymatic Metabolism of Chlorpyrifos and Chlorpyrifos-Oxon in Human Hepatic Microsomes and Chlorpyrifos-Oxon in Plasma. Drug Metabolism and Disposition , 39 (8), 1353-1362. doi:10.1124/dmd.111.038745
Ware, G. W. (2012). Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology: Continuation of Residue Reviews . Berlin, Germany: Springer Science & Business Media.
