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Toxicity of a relative new flame retardant, namely decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), marketed as an alternative to decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) was assessed both in vivo and in vitro using the freshly separated fish hepatocyte assay and standardized water flea and zebrafish egg-larvae tests. The fish hepatocyte assay, based on the synthesis and secretion of vitellogenin from isolated male liver cells produced a clear dose-response curve in the presence of DBDPE. DBDPE induced the induction of hepatic ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity at low test concentrations, but started to inhibit the activity at higher concentrations. Also, the induction of the hepatocyte conjugation activity, uridinediphosphoglucuronosyltransferase (UDPGT), was induced with no signs of inhibition even at the highest test concentration. The reduced EROD activity resulted in a drop in the production of vitellogenin by the cells. In vivo tests showed that DBDPE was acutely toxic to water fleas, the 48 h EC-50 value being 19 microg/L. Moreover, DBDPE reduced the hatching rates of exposed zebra-fish eggs and raised significantly the mortality of hatched larvae. Because there is hardly any information available on the effects of DBDPE on the aquatic environments, it is crucial to obtain more data on the effects and effective concentrations of DBDPE along with its occurrence in the environment. Such data would enable reliable assessments of the risks posed by this flame retardant.