Teratogenicity testing of dimethoate containing insecticide formulation (BI 58 EC) in chicken embryos.

BI 58 EC insecticide formulation was tested for teratogenicity in chicken embryos after the treatment of embryonated eggs. The pesticide was diluted in water to 0.8% concentration level, and the emulsion was injected into air space in a volume of 0.1 ml/egg or hen eggs were treated by the immersion technique. The morphological examinations were done on the days 13, 15 and 19 of incubation of chicken embryos. BI 58 EC produced an increased embryo mortality after the treatment which was the most expressive on day 15 of incubation. The trend of embryo weight showed similarity in the control and treated groups after both treatments. The developmental anomalies were sporadic and dose-effect dependency was not seen. Light microscopic findings exhibited a degenerative change in the liver tissue of both treated groups. In summary, the 38% dimethoate containing pesticide formulation (BI 58 EC) was toxic to the developing embryo at 0.8% concentration in our study.