The plasticizer benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) alters the ecdysone hormone pathway, the cellular response to stress, the energy metabolism, and several detoxication mechanisms in Chironomus riparius larvae.
Butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP) has been extensively used worldwide as a plasticizer in the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) industry and the manufacturing of many other products, and its presence in the aquatic environment is expected for decades. In the present study, the toxicity of BBP was investigated in Chironomus riparius aquatic larvae. The effects of acute 24-h and 48-h exposures to a wide range of BBP doses were evaluated at the molecular level by analysing changes in genes related to the stress response, the endocrine system, the energy metabolism, and detoxication pathways, as well as in the enzyme activity of glutathione S-transferase. BBP caused a dose and time-dependent toxicity in most of the selected biomarkers. 24-h exposures to high doses affected larval survival and lead to a significant response of several heat-shock genes (hsp70, hsp40, and hsp27), and to a clear endocrine disrupting effect by upregulating the ecdysone receptor gene (EcR). Longer treatments with low doses triggered a general repression of transcription and GST activity. Furthermore, delayed toxicity studies were specially relevant, since they allowed us to detect unpredictable toxic effects, not immediately manifested after contact with the phthalate. This study provides novel and interesting results on the toxic effects of BBP in C. riparius and highlights the suitability of this organism for ecotoxicological risk assessment, especially in aquatic ecosystems.
Grupo de Biología y Toxicología Ambiental, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, UNED, Paseo de la Senda del Rey 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: oscar.herrero@ccia.uned.es.
Óscar
Ó
Herrero
Grupo de Biología y Toxicología Ambiental, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, UNED, Paseo de la Senda del Rey 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: rplanello@ccia.uned.es.
Rosario
R
Planelló
Grupo de Biología y Toxicología Ambiental, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, UNED, Paseo de la Senda del Rey 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: gmorcillo@ccia.uned.es.
Gloria
G
Morcillo
D000818:Animals; D002683:Chironomidae / Q000187:drug effects*; D004440:Ecdysone / Q000378:metabolism*; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000378:metabolism*; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000187:drug effects*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000378:metabolism; D018840:HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D007814:Larva / Q000187:drug effects; D010795:Phthalic Acids / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D010968:Plasticizers / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D011987:Receptors, Steroid / Q000378:metabolism
D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D018840:HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins; D010795:Phthalic Acids; D010968:Plasticizers; D011987:Receptors, Steroid; C055469:ecdysone receptor; D004440:Ecdysone; D005982:Glutathione Transferase; C027561:butylbenzyl phthalate
Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP); Chironomus riparius; Ecotoxicology; Endocrine disruption; Genetic biomarkers