Fish histopathology as biomarker to evaluate water quality

Aquatic environments contaminated by industrial effluents and urban sewage present as common characteristic the release of xenobiotics complex mixture that potentially affects important aspects related with physiological aspects in fish. In the present work, fish specimens, Astyanax aff. fasciatus and Oreochromis niloticus, were used to evaluate the anthropogenic impact in two lakes (Lake Park and Cedeteg) situated in Guarapuava City, southern of Brazil. The occurrence of morphological changes in gills and liver associated with somatic indexes (Hepatosomatic - HSI and Condition Factor - CF) were used as biomarkers, and two reference sites were used. According to the results, individuals from both studied sites presented morphological damages in gills (aneurysms, hyperplasia, lamellar fusion and neoplasia) and liver (necrosis and leukocyte infiltration). The lesion indexes for liver and gills studied in both lakes were significantly impacted when compared with reference sites, but individuals from Lake Park were more affected. The HSI in both species was not different, but the CF in A. fasciatus decreased in both studied sites. These results suggest that the morphological findings found in the present study were developed due to the urban sewage release, reinforcing the importance of histopathological investigation in biomonitoring programs to evaluate the water quality and environmental assessment.

[1]  F. Rantin,et al.  Relationships between oxygen availability and metabolic cost of breathing in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus): aquacultural consequences , 1994 .

[2]  M. Shailaja,et al.  Evaluation of impact of PAH on a tropical fish, Oreochromis mossambicus using multiple biomarkers. , 2003, Chemosphere.

[3]  S. E. Bonga.  The stress response in fish , 1997 .

[4]  S. Adams.  Biological Indicators of Aquatic Ecosystem Stress , 2002 .

[5]  Z. Ayas,et al.  Histopathological changes in the livers and kidneys of fish in Sariyar Reservoir, Turkey. , 2007, Environmental toxicology and pharmacology.

[6]  E. Pelletier,et al.  Comparative uptake, bioaccumulation, and gill damages of inorganic mercury in tropical and nordic freshwater fish. , 2000, Environmental research.

[7]  Marcelo Rubens Machado.  Uso de brânquias de peixes como indicadores de qualidade das águas , 2015 .

[8]  M. Cestari,et al.  Monitoring water quality in reservoirs for human supply through multi-biomarker evaluation in tropical fish. , 2012, Journal of environmental monitoring : JEM.

[9]  R. Hooper,et al.  Histopathology in winter flounder (Pleuronectes americanus) living adjacent to a pulp and paper mill , 1994 .

[10]  B. Kuch,et al.  Heavy metals, PCDD/F and PCB in sewage sludge samples from two wastewater treatment facilities in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. , 2005, Chemosphere.

[11]  J. Mallatt.  Fish Gill Structural Changes Induced by Toxicants and Other Irritants: A Statistical Review , 1985 .

[12]  S. Crespo,et al.  Histo‐cytological study of the liver of the cabrilla sea bass, Serranus cabrilla (Teleostei, Serranidae), an available model for marine fish experimental studies , 1993 .

[13]  T. R. Sreekrishnan,et al.  Aquatic toxicity from pulp and paper mill effluents: a review , 2001 .

[14]  M. Cestari,et al.  Anthropic impact evaluation of two Brazilian estuaries through biomarkers in fish , 2009 .

[15]  E. U. Winkaler,et al.  Biomarcadores histológicos e fisiológicos para o monitoramento da saúde de peixes de ribeirões de Londrina, Estado do Paraná , 2008 .

[16]  T. Wahli,et al.  Histopathology in fish: proposal for a protocol to assess aquatic pollution , 1999 .

[17]  A. F. Camargo,et al.  Health variables and gill morphology in the tropical fish Astyanax fasciatus from a sewage-contaminated river. , 2005, Ecotoxicology and environmental safety.

[18]  P. Lam,et al.  Pollution monitoring in Southeast Asia using biomarkers in the mytilid mussel Perna viridis (Mytilidae: Bivalvia). , 2005, Environment international.

[19]  H. Roche,et al.  Bioaccumulation and the effects of organochlorine pesticides, PAH and heavy metals in the Eel (Anguilla anguilla) at the Camargue Nature Reserve, France. , 2005, Aquatic toxicology.

[20]  E. Pelletier,et al.  Effects of dietary Pb(II) and tributyltin on neotropical fish, Hoplias malabaricus: histopathological and biochemical findings. , 2005, Ecotoxicology and environmental safety.

[21]  F. Leboulenger,et al.  A pollution‐monitoring pilot study involving contaminant and biomarker measurements in the Seine Estuary, France, using zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) , 2006, Environmental toxicology and chemistry.

[22]  Jonathan M. Wilson,et al.  Fish gill morphology: inside out. , 2002, The Journal of experimental zoology.

[23]  Seizi Oga,et al.  Fundamentos de toxicologia , 2008 .

[24]  Oscar Akio Shibatta.  Reprodução do pirá-brasília, Simpsonichthys boitonei Carvalho (Cyprinodontiformes, Rivulidae), e caracterização de seu habitat na Reserva Ecológica do Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brasil , 2005 .

[25]  H. Roche,et al.  Bioaccumulation of chlorinated pesticides and PCBs in the tropical freshwater fish Hoplias malabaricus: histopathological, physiological, and immunological findings. , 2008, Environment international.

[26]  京 日比谷.  An Atlas of fish histology : normal and pathological features , 1982 .

[27]  J. L. Zajicek,et al.  Organochlorine residues and elemental contaminants in U.S. freshwater fish, 1976-1986: National Contaminant Biomonitoring Program. , 1999, Reviews of environmental contamination and toxicology.

[28]  F. Takashima,et al.  An atlas of fish histology Normal and pathological features, Second edition , 1995 .

[29]  T. Caquet,et al.  Use of Biomarkers for Environmental Quality Assessment , 2000 .

[30]  Response of the fish populations of the River Don in South Yorkshire to water quality and habitat improvements. , 2000, Environmental pollution.

[31]  I. Holopainen,et al.  Toxic effects of mining effluents on fish gills in a subarctic lake system in NW Russia. , 2004, Ecotoxicology and environmental safety.

[32]  A. Salibián,et al.  Biomarkers of a native fish species (Cnesterodon decemmaculatus) application to the water toxicity assessment of a peri-urban polluted river of Argentina. , 2005, Chemosphere.

[33]  E. Pelletier,et al.  Effects of dietary methylmercury on liver and kidney histology in the neotropical fish Hoplias malabaricus. , 2007, Ecotoxicology and environmental safety.

[34]  A. C. K. Benli,et al.  Sublethal ammonia exposure of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus L.): effects on gill, liver and kidney histology. , 2008, Chemosphere.

[35]  Grazyelle Sebrenski da Silva,et al.  Potential risks of natural mercury levels to wild predator fish in an Amazon reservoir , 2012, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment.

[36]  J. Mancera,et al.  A stereological study of copper toxicity in gills of Oreochromis niloticus. , 2009, Ecotoxicology and environmental safety.

[37]  S. Adams,et al.  Histopathological biomarkers as integrators of anthropogenic and environmental stressors. , 2002 .