Neonicotinoid insecticides exert diverse cytotoxic and genotoxic effects on cultivated sunflower

Contamination with neonicotinoids is a global problem affecting environment and target and non-target organisms including plants. The present study explored the potential genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of the insecticides Actara 25 WD and Nuprid 200 SL containing the active substances thiamethoxam (TMX) and imidacloprid (IMI), respectively, on cultivated sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). The half maximal effective concentration (½EC₅₀) of the tested substances was calculated using a dose-response inhibition analysis of the growth of plant roots relative to the corresponding controls. Application of approximately ½EC₅₀ or higher TMX doses significantly increased the antioxidant activity in sunflower leaves, whereas IMI led to a significant decrease in root antioxidant capacity, indicating organ-specific insecticide effects on sunflower plants. Even low doses (½EC₅₀) of the studied neonicotinoids led to irregularities in mitotic phases and abnormalities in the cytokinesis and chromosome segregation, such as bridges, laggards, stickiness, and C-mitosis. Genotoxic effects manifested by a dose-independent induction of primary DNA damages and retrotransposon dynamics were also observed. The used set of physiological, biochemical, and genetic traits provides new information about the organ-specific effects of neonicotinoids in sunflower plants and elaborates on the complexity of mechanisms underpinning these effects that include DNA damages, cytokinesis defects, and genome instability.