title: Use of a Novel Double-Crested Cormorant ToxChip PCR Array and the EROD Assay to Determine Effects of Environmental Contaminants in Primary Hepatocytes.
abstract: In vitro screening tools and 'omics methods are increasingly being incorporated into toxicity studies to determine mechanistic effects of chemicals and mixtures. To date, the majority of these studies have been conducted with well-characterized laboratory animal models. In the present study, well-established methods developed for chicken embryonic hepatocyte (CEH) studies were extended to a wild avian species, the double-crested cormorant (DCCO; Phalacrocorax auritus), in order to compare the effects of several environmental contaminants on cytotoxicity, ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase (EROD) activity, and mRNA expression. Five organic flame retardants and one plasticizer decreased cormorant hepatocyte viability in a similar manner to that observed in previous studies with CEH. EROD activity was induced in a concentration-dependent manner following exposure to two dioxin-like chemicals and the calculated EC50 values were concordant with domestic avian species from similar species sensitivity categories. Transcriptomic effects were determined using a novel DCCO PCR array, which was designed, constructed and validated in our laboratory based on a commercially available chicken PCR array. The DCCO array has 27 target genes covering a wide range of toxicity pathways. Gene profiles were variable among the 10 chemicals screened; however, good directional concordance was observed with regard to results previously obtained in CEH. Overall, the application of well-established methods (i.e., CEH and chicken PCR array) to the double-crested cormorant demonstrated the portability of the techniques to an indicator species of ecological relevance.
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University , Ottawa, ON Canada K1A 0H3.
authors.forename: Doug
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Crump
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University , Ottawa, ON Canada K1A 0H3.
authors.forename: Amani
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Farhat
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University , Ottawa, ON Canada K1A 0H3.
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University , Ottawa, ON Canada K1A 0H3.
authors.forename: Kim L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University , Ottawa, ON Canada K1A 0H3.
authors.forename: Stephanie P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Royal Military College of Canada, Kingston, Ontario K7K 7B4, Canada.
authors.forename: Valerie S
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Langlois
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds; D002645:Chickens / Q000235:genetics; D019363:Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D004147:Dioxins / Q000633:toxicity; D054750:Ecotoxicology / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005411:Flame Retardants / Q000633:toxicity*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000187:drug effects*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D004147:Dioxins; D005411:Flame Retardants; D019363:Cytochrome P-450 CYP1A1