Histopathological changes in liver and kidney of common carp exposed to sub-lethal doses of malathion

The present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of an organophosphorous pesticide malathion on histo-architecture of liver and kidney of common carp exposed to two sub-lethal concentrations (1.5 and 3.0 mg/l) for a period of 8 days. the 96 h lc50 value of malathion for common carp was 15.24 mg/l. several morphological changes were observed in the liver after exposure to the malathion. hypertrophy of hepatocytes,mild to severe necrosis and minor vacuolation was found in liver exposed to both concentrations. similarly,a number of changes such as,pycknosis,necrosis,disintegrated renal tubule,vacuole,shrunk glomerulus etc were observed in the kidney exposed to both concentrations. the changes in these vital organs might have resulted in physiological and metabolic dysfunction. therefore,the use of pesticide in the agricultural field may be a threat to fish health and their population in the aquatic environment. copyright 2015 zoological society of pakistan.