Exposure to the mixture of organophosphorus pesticides is embryotoxic and teratogenic on gestational rats during the sensitive period

Mixture of organophosphorus pesticides (MOPs) has been used worldwide to increase food production. The MOPs are harmful, and the exposure to them is both agricultural and nonagricultural through contaminated food. The neurotoxicity of MOPs has received more consideration recently due to the increased cases of malformed fetuses suspected to be caused by the MOPs exposure during gestation; however, relevant studies in animal model are rare. In this study, we performed a comprehensive analysis and demonstrated potential perinatal embryotoxicity and teratogenicity of MOPs exposure. As results, we found that MOPs decreased in utero fetal growth and alter the ratio of organs to whole body weight of the pregnant rats. MOPs also had been shown to disturb the balance of sex hormones and affect the reproduction of rats. Furthermore, we found various significantly elevated deformities in MOPs exposed embryos, confirming the embryotoxic and teratogenic effects of maternal exposure to MOPs.