Effect of environmental contaminants on the health of Mytilus edulis from Puget Sound, Washington, USA. I. Cytochemical measures of lysosomal responses in the digestive cells using automatic image analysis

Abstract

Lysosomal responses in the digestive cells of Mytilus eduljs from 9 sites in Puget Sound, Washington. USA, with varying degrees of sediment contamination were measured using automatic image analysis. Mussels from urban-associated sltes (areas with elevated sediment concentration of anthropogenic contaminants such as PAHs, PCBs. DDTs, and toxic elements) showed pathological changes in the lysosomes (reduced lysosomal labilization period, reduced lysosomal stability and increased N-acetyl P-hexosaminidase activity), enhanced lipofuscin deposition and increased accumulat~on of lysosomal and cytoplasmic unsaturated neutral lipids. Morphometric measures of growth showed that mussels were generally smaller in size and that somatic tissue weight relative to shell length was lower in mussels from urban-associated sites relative to those from minimally contaminated sites. Highly significant correlations were observed between concentrations of tissue PAH, PCB, and selected toxic elements (measures of anthropogenic exposure) and lysosomal labil~zation period. Pathological alterations in the lysosomal system of mussels from the urban-associated sites were probably induced by the high tissue concentrations of organic and inorganic contaminants rather than as a result of potential confounding biotic (spawning stress) or abiotic (temperature, salinity and food availability) factors. The results show that cytochemical measurement of lysosomal responses combined with automatic image analysis have the potential to be used as sensitive, accurate and rapid techniques for assessing the biological impact of environmental contaminants in mussels in the near coastal environment.

Sex-specific biochemical and histological differences in gonads of sea urchins (Psammechinus miliaris) and their response to phenanthrene exposure

“…Pronounced accumulation of lipofuscin in fish liver and mussel digestive gland has been associated with oxidative stress caused by pollution with PAHs (Krishnakumar et al, 1994(Krishnakumar et al, , 1997Au et al, 1999;Au, 2004). In our study, lipofuscin did not accumulate in phenanthrene-exposed gonads, consistent with a previous study where exposure to even 500 mg L À1 of phenanthrene for 20 days did not result in elevated amounts of lipofuscin in ovaries of P. miliaris (Schäfer and Köhler, 2009).…”

“…Lipofuscin, also known as fluorescent age pigment, is an end product of protein and lipid peroxidation which accumulates as an ultimate consequence of oxidative stress (Au et al, 1999;Au, 2004;Terman and Brunk, 2004). In mussels and fish, contamination with PAHs has been associated with a more pronounced accumulation of lipofuscin in polluted groups compared to control groups (Krishnakumar et al, 1994(Krishnakumar et al, , 1997Au et al, 1999;Au, 2004).…”

Effects of chemical contaminants on the health of Mytilus edulis from Puget Sound, Washington. II. Cytochemical detection of subcellular changes in digestive cells

“…In the present study, we also observed a significant increase in CAT, a marker of peroxisome proliferation, and a suppression of GGT activity in mussels from the urbanassociated sites compared to those from the reference sites. Although the observed proliferation of peroxisomes could be a secondary response to nutritional differences amongst the sites, we reported in our previous study that particulate organic matter at all the sites were sufficient for normal growth (Krishnakumar et al 1994). Furthermore, in a preliminary laboratory study, we observed increased proliferation of peroxisomes in Mytilus edulis exposed via diet to a mixture of PAHs or PCBs (Krishnakumar unpublished data), supporting our field study results.…”

“…A more detailed description of the concentrations of organic and metal contaminants in mussel tissues from these sites has been given by Krishnakumar et al (1994).…”

Bioacumulación de hidrocarburos aromáticos policíclicos en Anadara tuberculosa (Sowerby, 1833) (Arcoida: Arcidae)

“…El fl uoranteno es más persistente que los compuestos más ligeros del grupo y se acumula en mayor proporción con respecto a los mismos tal y como se ha reportado en evaluaciones realizadas con otras especies de moluscos (Hellou et al 1993, Krishnakumar et al 1994. Su rápido incremento en concentración frente al naftaleno se relaciona con los diferentes grados de afi nidad lipofílica, toxicidad y persistencia de los HAP, que son más elevados cuanto mayor es el número de anillos de la molécula; su posterior descenso sugiere un proceso de depuración tras alcanzar un determinado nivel de incorporación, tal y como se ha observado en otros invertebrados expuestos a este compuesto (Krishnakumar et al 1997;Landrum et al 2002).…”