Acute oral toxicity of squid and cuttlefish ink powder enzyme hydrolysates in Sprague-Dawley rats in accordance with the OECD Test Guideline 425

The objectives of this study were to determine LD50 and establish the safety of ink squid and cuttlefish hydrolysates. In the acute toxicity study, three groups of female rats were randomly assigned. One group served as the control and two groups orally received a single limiting dose (2000 mg/kg body weight) of ink hydrolysates. There were no signs of adverse toxicity observed in behavioural patterns, clinical signs, and no significant differences (p>0.05) between the control and treated rats regarding their food and water consumption and body weight for up to 14 days. The histopathological evaluation revealed a normal structure and the absence of noticeable lesions in the vital organs of treated animals. It can be concluded that LD50 value is greater than 2000 mg/kg. The results showed that the squid ink powder enzyme hydrolysate (SIPEHs) and cuttlefish ink powder enzyme hydrolysate (CIPEHs) possess low toxicity, as indicated in the rat model. The preliminary results suggested that it should be further evaluated for long-term use and repeated dose effects to support the safe use of these hydrolysates.