Induction of EROD activity in European eel (Anguilla anguilla) experimentally exposed to benzo[a]pyrene and beta-naphthoflavone.
The induction of liver ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase (EROD) activity was investigated in the European eel, Anguilla anguilla, collected from a Mediterranean brackish environment and experimentally exposed to benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) and beta-naphthoflavone (BNF). Eels were injected intraperitoneally at increasing doses (0.1, 1, 10, and 50 mg/kg wet body weight) using corn oil as a carrier and sacrificed after 7 days. The main objectives of the present study are: (1). to assess of the sensitivity of EROD induction as a biomarker to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure; (2). to determine an EROD dose-response relationship of the contaminants used; and (3). to compare the efficiency of B[a]P and BNF as inducers of EROD activity. Results showed that both chemicals resulted in a dose-dependent EROD induction, but increases were not linear. EROD activity seemed to reach a plateau at the exposure of 10 mg/kg in both treatment groups; B[a]P was a more potent inducer than BNF was at the higher doses (10 and 50 mg/kg), while the opposite result was observed at the lower ones (0.1 and 1 mg/kg). The greatest induction occurred in eels treated with 10 mg/kg B[a]P, in which a 261-fold increase in EROD activity was observed. Results showed that EROD activity in A. anguilla is significantly induced by B[a]P and BNF exposure, responding to a wide range of concentrations of these contaminants. We infer that this tool may be suited as a diagnostic biomarker for biomonitoring PAHs pollution in Mediterranean brackish environments and further field research is suggested.
Bonacci
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Department of Environmental Sciences "G Sarfatti," University of Siena, Via delle Cerchia 3, I-53100 Siena, Italy. bonacci@unisi.it
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D000811:Anguilla / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001564:Benzo(a)pyrene; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D019363:Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004790:Enzyme Induction; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000009:adverse effects*; D019324:beta-Naphthoflavone / Q000009:adverse effects*
D015415:Biomarkers; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D001564:Benzo(a)pyrene; D019324:beta-Naphthoflavone; D019363:Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1