Photocatalysis is well-known as an effective tool for the removal of pollutants but its eco-friendly aspect has not been well explored in the literature. In this study, we prepared an ultraviolet-active photocatalyst by the growth of cerium oxide/sulfide nanoparticles in the zeolite channels via a facile coprecipitation method. The photocatalyst was comprehensively characterized by different analysis methods and showed good activity toward removal of acetamiprid, ACP, a commonly used insecticide. As the main focus of the current work, an in vivo bioassay was carried out to investigate the acute toxicity of the contaminant solutions before and after photoreaction. Accordingly, acetamiprid and the phototreated solutions were orally injected to different groups of laboratory rats. The results indicated that the number of white blood cells and hemoglobin level of the rats exposed to the phototreated solutions decreased from 7.57 ± 1.17 and 15.47 ± 0.85–6.15 ± 0.84 and 14.07 ± 1.31, respectively, compared to the control group’s pathological markers. Also, the level of ALT and AST enzymes increased from 268 ± 33 and 66.7 ± 19.2–375 ± 29 and 98.7 ± 32.3, respectively, indicating the liver dysfunction. These results along with the weight loss and increase in body temperature verified that unlike the pristine ACP solution, the phototreated solutions induced significant toxicity to the laboratory rats. In addition, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis was served to clarify the toxicity assessment results and propose a suitable photoproduct generation pathway.

众所周知，光催化是一种有效的去除污染物的工具，但其环保方面尚未在文献中得到很好的研究。在这项研究中，我们通过一种简便的共沉淀方法，通过在沸石通道中生长氧化铈/硫化物纳米粒子，制备了一种紫外线活性光催化剂。通过不同的分析方法对光催化剂进行了全面表征，并显示出对除去常用的杀虫剂乙酰胺，ACP的良好活性。作为当前工作的主要焦点，进行了体内生物测定以研究光反应之前和之后污染物溶液的急性毒性。因此，将乙酰胺和光处理溶液口服注射到不同组的实验大鼠中。结果表明，与对照组的病理学指标相比，暴露于光处理溶液的大鼠白细胞数量和血红蛋白水平分别从7.57±1.17和15.47±0.85–6.15±0.84和14.07±1.31降低。另外，ALT和AST酶的水平分别从268±33和66.7±19.2–375±29和98.7±32.3增加，表明肝功能异常。这些结果以及体重减轻和体温升高证明，与原始的ACP溶液不同，光处理过的溶液对实验大鼠产生明显的毒性。此外，液相色谱-质谱分析用于阐明毒性评估结果并提出合适的光产物产生途径。