Investigation into the curative potential of dietary vitamin c supplementation on atrazine toxicity: behaviour and growth performance of Clarias gariepinus Juveniles (Burchell, 1822)

Abstract

Atrazine is one of the most widely used pesticides in Nigeria. Several studies have shown the toxic effects of this herbicide on aquatic  organisms, such as fish. Thus, it is critical to identify mitigation options to protect the health of fish, particularly commercially important  aquaculture species exposed to atrazine from agricultural runoffs. -1 This study investigated the toxic effects of 10, 20, and 30 µg L of  atrazine on the behaviour and growth performance of Clarias gariepinus juveniles and the curative potentials of dietary Vitamin C  supplementation. The fish samples were taken weekly from different tanks to determine the specific growth rate, condition factor, and  behavioural pattern following sub-chronic exposure to atrazine. The exposed fish groups showed a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in their  specific growth rate (SGR) and condition factor with increasing concentrations of atrazine. Atrazine exposure also resulted in behavioural  anomalies, including erratic swimming, clinging to the water surface, loss of equilibrium, lethargy, and skin discolouration. Co-exposure with Vitamin C did not significantly improve the growth performance or ameliorate the observed behavioural impairments. Therefore,  findings from this study indicate that atrazine interferes with the behaviour and growth performance of C. gariepinus juveniles. However,  the antioxidant property of Vitamin C supplementation in the fish diet did not significantly mitigate the toxicity of atrazine in the exposed fish.