Integrated biomarker response index using a Neotropical fish to assess the water quality in agricultural areas

Aquatic ecosystems in areas with intense agricultural activity are subject to pesticide contamination, which may compromise the health of the fish. In order to verify the quality of the water and the possible effects of pesticides on fish, a method that combines different biomarker responses into an index named integrated biomarker response (IBR) was applied using the biological alterations in the Neotropical fish Astyanax altiparanae. Fish were maintained in situ at five sites along a stream that runs in an agricultural area and in a stream within a forest fragment, considered a reference site. After seven days of exposure the following alterations were observed in fish confined at experimental sites: increased activity of glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and catalase (CAT) and increase in the content of reduced glutathione (GSH) in liver and gills, reduction of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in the brain and muscle, increase in the occurrence of DNA strand breaks and in the frequency of micronuclei (MN) and nuclear abnormalities (ENA) in erythrocytes. The IBR highlighted three sites as the most affected, as the animals confined at these sites showed greater variations in biological responses. The biomarkers most important for the IBR results were GST, AChE, DNA breaks and ENA.