Combined Toxicity of Heavy Metal Cadmium and Insecticide Chlorpyrifos to Drosophila S2 Cells.

Cadmium (Cd) is a heavy metal, and chlorpyrifos (CPF) is a widely used organophosphorus insecticide, which are widespread environmental pollutants. These two chemicals can induce the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mammals and cause oxidative damage. However, the mechanism of their combined toxicity in invertebrates and especially insects has not been well documented. In this study, we investigated the combined toxicity of Cd and CPF by using Drosophila S2 cell as a test model. We found that cell viability and antioxidant enzyme activities were reduced and the lipids and proteins peroxidation as well as ROS were induced after the treatment. Cd and CPF displayed an antagonistic interaction in the induction of oxidative damage and the reduction of cell viability. The results indicated that Cd and CPF interfere with the toxicity of each other in the cells, which implies that Cd could influence the effect of CPF used for pest insects control.