Adverse morphological development in embryonic zebrafish exposed to environmental concentrations of contaminants individually and in mixture.
Exposure to environmental contaminants has been linked to developmental and reproductive abnormalities leading to infertility, spontaneous abortion, reduced number of offspring, and metabolic disorders. In addition, there is evidence linking environmental contaminants and endocrine disruption to abnormal developmental rate, defects in heart and eye morphology, and alterations in behavior. Notably, these effects could not be explained by interaction with a single hormone receptor. Here, using a whole-organism approach, we investigated morphological changes to developing zebrafish caused by exposure to a number of environmental contaminants, including bisphenol A (BPA), di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), nonylphenol, and fucosterol at concentrations measured in a local water body (Oldman River, AB), individually and in mixture. Exposure to nanomolar contaminant concentrations resulted in abnormal morphological development, including changes to body length, pericardia (heart), and the head. We also characterize the spatiotemporal expression profiles of estrogen, androgen, and thyroid hormone receptors to demonstrate that localization of these receptors might be mediating contaminant effects on development. Finally, we examined the effects of contaminants singly and in mixture. Combined, our results support the hypothesis that adverse effects of contaminants are not mediated by single hormone receptor signaling, and adversity of contaminants in mixture could not be predicted by simple additive effect of contaminants. The findings provide a framework for better understanding of developmental toxicity of environmental contaminants in zebrafish and other vertebrate species.
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada; Department of Medical Genetics, Cummings School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 3330 Hospital Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4N1, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Heritage Medical Research Building, 3330 Hospital Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4N1, Canada. Electronic address: cdmaier@ucalgary.ca.
Cassandra D
CD
Kinch
Department of Medical Genetics, Cummings School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 3330 Hospital Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4N1, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Heritage Medical Research Building, 3330 Hospital Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4N1, Canada. Electronic address: kurrasch@ucalgary.ca.
Deborah M
DM
Kurrasch
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada. Electronic address: habibi@ucalgary.ca.
Hamid R
HR
Habibi
D000818:Animals; D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds / Q000633:toxicity; D049628:Body Size / Q000187:drug effects; D004051:Diethylhexyl Phthalate / Q000633:toxicity; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D047108:Embryonic Development / Q000187:drug effects*; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000633:toxicity*; D006257:Head / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D010636:Phenols / Q000633:toxicity; D013265:Stigmasterol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000633:toxicity; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000633:toxicity*; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D000098826:Bisphenol A Compounds
D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds; D004051:Diethylhexyl Phthalate; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D010636:Phenols; D013265:Stigmasterol; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C015896:fucosterol; C025256:nonylphenol; C006780:bisphenol A; D000098826:Bisphenol A Compounds
Bisphenol A; DEHP; Development; Endocrine disruptor; Fucosterol; Nonylphenol