Assessment of Barium Carbonate Toxicity on the Developmental Stages of Sarcophaga ruficornis (Diptera: Sarcophagidae)

Barium (Ba) with CAS number 513-77-9 and atomic number 56 is a soft silvery metallic alkaline earth metal. It has a high chemical reactivity and is never found in nature as a free element. It is highly toxic upon acute and chronic exposures (Bhoelan et al., 2014). Barium has been tested for its toxicity in different studies (Llugany et al., 2000; Langdon, 1994; Akinfieva and Gerasimova, 1984). Some studies have been conducted on rats and mice to assess the toxicity of barium and its compounds (Constant et al., 1996; Dietz et al., 1992). Various naturally occurring barium compounds include barium nitrate [Ba(NO3)2], barium chloride (BaCl2) and barium carbonate (BaCO3). It has been found that toxicity of barium compounds depends upon their solubility (Gad, 2014). Water soluble barium compounds are found to be poisonous and more toxic as compared to insoluble forms. Insoluble barium compounds have been found to cause baritosis, a benign condition which occurs because of their accumulation in the lungs. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 6 Number 5 (2017) pp. 485-494 Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com