Abstract
Atrazine is one of the most widely used herbicides in the United States because it is effective at mitigating broad leaf weeds and is easily broken down by crop plants. However, atrazine poses a significant ecological concern because it has been shown to be an endocrine disruptor in amphibian species. This research focused on the effects of atrazine exposure on adipocyte area and triglyceride content via the lipid membrane associated protein perilipin 1 to explain the metamorphic irregularities exhibited by Xenopus laevis tadpoles exposed to atrazine. Prior to tadpole husbandry, water samples were obtained from agricultural environments in Ohio and Michigan to determine environmentally relevant atrazine water concentrations. Xenopus laevis tadpoles were then exposed to various concentrations of atrazine and were measured for overall growth characteristics. Hematoxylin and eosin staining was performed to determine mean adipocyte area and fluorescent immunohistochemistry was performed to observe the fluorescence of perilipin 1. Mean adipocyte area and fluorescence were compared between the treatment groups using two sample t-tests to quantify the effects of atrazine. It was found that that while atrazine did not have a significant effect on adipocyte size, it did significantly impact perilipin 1 presence, which could be a potential biomarker for stunted or irregular tadpole maturation.