Exploring ecotoxicological fish bioassay for the evaluation of uranium reprotoxicity

Abstract

Although reproduction in fish is known to be sensitive to metal exposure, few ecotoxicological studies have focused on the toxicological effects of metals. Because uranium (U) is naturally present in aquatic ecosystems (0.6-2 mg/L), freshwater organisms are subjected to chronic U exposure. Although new standardized assays are currently being developed to mimic realistic exposure conditions, they could be improved by taking into account the contamination that occurs throughout the life cycle of fish. The authors initially evaluated the effect of food (commercial flakes vs pure Spirulina) and ionic composition of the exposure medium on the reproductive performance of Danio rerio. The effects of U exposure on reproduction then were assessed 1) for the F0 adult stage at short exposure times (5 d, 20 d, and 40 d), and 2) for the F0 stage and the F1 generation after 200 d of exposure to control, low (20 µg U/L), and moderate (250 µg U/L) waterborne levels of U. Reproductive endpoints (reproductive success, fecundity, number of spawns, egg and larvae viability, and hatching) were measured mainly after the first spawn and after 10 d of cumulative spawns. The authors evaluated the plasticity of these endpoints and compared the effect of exposure conditions to identify the most relevant markers of the effect of U exposure on reproductive performance of D. rerio.

Adverse effects induced by chronic gamma irradiation in progeny of adult fish not affecting parental reproductive performance

“…10d+F0R 36d, p = 0.077, n = 85). Simon et al 2014). Differences in reproductive performances were observed between the controls used in both lowDR and highDR experiments.…”

Insights into the nature of uranium target proteins within zebrafish gills after chronic and acute waterborne exposures

“…Zebrafish have often been used to study uranium (U) accumulation and associated adverse effects on behavior, reproduction, growth, and respiration after chronic and acute exposure . However, not much is known about the underlying toxicity mechanisms .…”

Use of fish otoliths as a temporal biomarker of field uranium exposure

“…All organs showed high accumulation levels, in particular gonads. U accumulation levels measured in wild fish could induce adverse effects on reproduction as observed in D. rerio after laboratory exposure conditions (Bourrachot et al, 2014;Bourrachot et al, 2008;Eb-Levadoux et al, 2017;Simon et al, 2014). U concentration in Danio ovaries (5300 ng g -1 ) led to significant drastic effects on spawning and fecondity numbers (Bourrachot et al, 2014).…”

“…U concentration in Danio ovaries (5300 ng g -1 ) led to significant drastic effects on spawning and fecondity numbers (Bourrachot et al, 2014). Long exposure durations at 20 µg L -1 altered the reproduction capacity of Danio (Simon et al, 2014). Molecular effects in Danio ovaries were also observed from a 20 µg L -1 exspoure ((Bucher et al, 2016;Eb-Levadoux et al, 2017;Simon et al, 2018).…”

“…and ionic composition of artificial water (low hardness and cation concentrations) were chosen to favor waterborne U bioavailability (Barillet et al, 2007;Bucher et al, 2014;Fortin et al, 2007;Markich, 2013;Simon et al, 2014;Simon et al, 2018). The selected U concentration in water (20 µg.L -1 ) was higher than the environmental quality guideline (e.g.…”