Systematic developmental neurotoxicity assessment of a representative PAH Superfund mixture using zebrafish.

TitleSystematic developmental neurotoxicity assessment of a representative PAH Superfund mixture using zebrafish.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2018
AuthorsGeier, MC, D Minick, J, Truong, L, Tilton, S, Pande, P, Anderson, KA, Teeguardan, J, Tanguay, RL
JournalToxicol Appl Pharmacol
Volume354
Pagination115-125
Date Published2018 Sep 01
ISSN1096-0333
Abstract

Superfund sites often consist of complex mixtures of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). It is widely recognized that PAHs pose risks to human and environmental health, but the risks posed by exposure to PAH mixtures are unclear. We constructed an environmentally relevant PAH mixture with the top 10 most prevalent PAHs (SM10) from a Superfund site derived from environmental passive sampling data. Using the zebrafish model, we measured body burden at 48 hours post fertilization (hpf) and evaluated the developmental and neurotoxicity of SM10 and the 10 individual constituents at 24 hours post fertilization (hpf) and 5 days post fertilization (dpf). Zebrafish embryos were exposed from 6 to 120 hpf to (1) the SM10 mixture, (2) a variety of individual PAHs: pyrene, fluoranthene, retene, benzo[a]anthracene, chrysene, naphthalene, acenaphthene, phenanthrene, fluorene, and 2-methylnaphthalene. We demonstrated that SM10 and only 3 of the individual PAHs were developmentally toxic. Subsequently, we constructed and exposed developing zebrafish to two sub-mixtures: SM3 (comprised of 3 of the developmentally toxicity PAHs) and SM7 (7 non-developmentally toxic PAHs). We found that the SM3 toxicity profile was similar to SM10, and SM7 unexpectedly elicited developmental toxicity unlike that seen with its individual components. The results demonstrated that the overall developmental toxicity in the mixtures could be explained using the general concentration addition model. To determine if exposures activated the AHR pathway, spatial expression of CYP1A was evaluated in the 10 individual PAHs and the 3 mixtures at 5 dpf. Results showed activation of AHR in the liver and vasculature for the mixtures and some individual PAHs. Embryos exposed to SM10 during development and raised in chemical-free water into adulthood exhibited decreased learning and responses to startle stimulus indicating that developmental SM10 exposures affect neurobehavior. Collectively, these results exemplify the utility of zebrafish to investigate the developmental and neurotoxicity of complex mixtures.

DOI10.1016/j.taap.2018.03.029
Alternate JournalToxicol. Appl. Pharmacol.
PubMed ID29630969
PubMed Central IDPMC6087484
Grant ListP30 ES000210 / ES / NIEHS NIH HHS / United States
P42 ES016465 / ES / NIEHS NIH HHS / United States
T32 ES007060 / ES / NIEHS NIH HHS / United States