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Antidepressants were found to have increased potency in fish by making them extra-horny.
Biologists from Australia’s Monash University found that the antidepressant fluoxetine, more commonly known as Prozac, in contaminated water tend to increase the sexual drive of fish swimming in it, according to a statement from the university.
The study involved mosquitofish caught in the wild and exposing them to the contaminated water. Exposure to the antidepressant-laced water resulted in “males spending a greater amount of time pursuing females.”
“The effects of fluoxetine on wildlife behaviour have seldom been investigated across multiple fitness-related contexts, especially at environmentally realistic concentrations,” said lead study author Jake Martin.
The study, published in the scientific journal Science of the Total Environment, highlighted the effects of pharmaceutical pollution on wildlife.
A separate study done by co-author Bob Wong also found fluoxetine affected behavior needed to evade predators. /ra
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