Ticlopidine has inhibitory effects on platelet aggregation via
ADP (
adenosine diphosphate), platelet release reaction and depolymerization. In clinical practice, it is commonly used to prevent heart, cerebrovascular and other thromboembolic diseases. However,
ticlopidine has also been reported to have teratogenic effects on the heart, though its specific molecular mechanism remains unclear. In this study, zebrafish embryos were used as model organisms to examine the toxicity effect of
ticlopidine. Zebrafish embryos exposed to 6, 7.5, and 9 mg/L
ticlopidine solutions manifested several abnormalities, including body curvature, smaller eyes, slower absorption of the vitella sac, pericardial
edema, slower heart rate, increased mortality, longer venous sinus - arterial ball (SV-BA) distance, and increased oxidative stress, which indicated developmental and
cardiac toxicity. Abnormal expression of key genes related to heart development was observed, and the level of apoptotic gene expression was up-regulated. Further experiments revealed up-regulation of embryonic oxidative stress following
ticlopidine exposure, leading to a decrease in cardiomyocyte proliferation. Conversely, the
aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) inhibitor
CH223191 protected embryos from the
cardiotoxicity effect of
ticlopidine, confirming further the role of up-regulated oxidative stress as the molecular mechanism of
ticlopidine-induced
cardiotoxicity in zebrafish. In conclusion,
ticlopidine exposure leads to developmental and
cardiotoxicity in zebrafish embryos. Therefore, further studies are warranted to ascertain such potential harms of
ticlopidine in humans, which are vital in providing guidance in the safe use of drugs in clinical practice.