Diclofenac as an environmental threat: Impact on the photosynthetic processes of Lemna minor chloroplasts

Mechanisms of pharmaceuticals action on biochemical and physiological processes in plants that determine plant growth and development are still mostly unknown. This study deals with the effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac (DCF) on photosynthesis as an essential anabolic process. Changes in primary and secondary photosynthetic processes were assessed in chloroplasts isolated from Lemna minor exposed to 1, 10, 100, and 1000 mu M DCF. Decreases in the potential and effective quantum yields of photosystem II (F-V/F-M by 21%, Phi(II) by 44% compared to control), changes in non-photochemical fluorescence quenching (NPOJ, and a substantial drop in Hill reaction activity (by 73%), especially under 1000 mu M DCF, were found. Limitation of electron transport through photosystem II was confirmed by increased fluorescence signals in steps) and I (by 50% and 23%, respectively, under 1000 mu M DCF) in OJIP fluorescence transient. Photosystem I exhibited changes only in the redox state of P700 reaction centres (decrease in Pm by 10%, increase in reduced P700 by 5% under 1000 mu M DCF). Similarly, RuBisCO activity was only lowered by 30% under 1000 mu M DCF. In contrast, a significant increase in reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (by 116% and 157%, respectively) was observed under 10 mu M DCF, and lipid peroxidation increased even at 1 mu M DCF (by nearly seven times compared to the control). Results demonstrate the ability of environmentally relevant DCF concentrations to induce oxidative stress in isolated duckweed chloroplasts; however, photosynthetic processes were affected considerably only by the highest DCF treatments. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.