title: Effects of an oil spill in a harbor assessed using biomarkers of exposure in eelpout.
abstract: Oil spills occur commonly, and chemical compounds originating from oil spills are widespread in the aquatic environment. In order to monitor effects of a bunker oil spill on the aquatic environment, biomarker responses were measured in eelpout (Zoarces viviparus) sampled along a gradient in Göteborg harbor where the oil spill occurred and at a reference site, 2 weeks after the oil spill. Eelpout were also exposed to the bunker oil in a laboratory study to validate field data. The results show that eelpout from the Göteborg harbor are influenced by contaminants, especially polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), also during "normal" conditions. The bunker oil spill strongly enhanced the biomarker responses. Results show elevated ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activities in all exposed sites, but, closest to the oil spill, the EROD activity was partly inhibited, possibly by PAHs. Elevated DNA adduct levels were also observed after the bunker oil spill. Chemical analyses of bile revealed high concentrations of PAH metabolites in the eelpout exposed to the oil, and the same PAH metabolite profile was evident both in eelpout sampled in the harbor and in the eelpout exposed to the bunker oil in the laboratory study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Box 463, SE-405 30, Göteborg, Sweden, joachim.sturve@bioenv.gu.se.
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sturve
authors.forename: Lennart
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Balk
authors.forename: Birgitta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liewenborg
authors.forename: Margaretha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Adolfsson-Erici
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Förlin
authors.forename: Bethanie
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Carney Almroth
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001646:Bile / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D019363:Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1 / Q000378:metabolism; D018736:DNA Adducts / Q000235:genetics; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D029941:Fish Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D010473:Perciformes / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010578:Petroleum / Q000009:adverse effects*; D059392:Petroleum Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D018736:DNA Adducts; D029941:Fish Proteins; D010578:Petroleum; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D019363:Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1