Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
4.3.4.1 Marine and Brackish Environments
Histopathological examination of the black quahog
Artica islandica
(a bivalve) proved use-
ful for the biomonitoring of dump sites, revealing tumors of the heart, fusion of gill fila-
ments, and swelling of the interlamellar connective tissue of the gills (Yevich and Yevich
1994). The sea anemone
Cerianthopsis americanus
was successfully used to assess the spa-
tiotemporal effects of dredged spoils: accumulation of cellular debris and necrosis in all
areas of the body, vacuolated epidermis, and loss of mucous secretory cells close to the
dumping site were attenuated after 1 year (Yevich and Yevich 1994). In mussels
Mytilus
edulis
, exposure to heat effluents from a power plant was responsible for cilia loss from the
gills and necrosis of the digestive diverticula (Yevich and Yevich 1994). In the framework
of the U.S. Mussel Watch Program, different impairments have been detected, particularly
in areas impacted by high population density and industrial activity; these impairments
include extensive parasitism, interference of parasites with reproduction, and hematopoi-
etic tumors (Yevich and Yevich 1994).
Associations between contaminant exposure and liver and skin tumor prevalence were
evaluated in fish, brown bullheads
Ameiurus nebulosus
, from the watershed of the tidal
Potomac River, USA (Pinkley et al. 2001). These authors found statistically significant dif-
ferences in liver tumor prevalences in the Anacostia (50 to 60% depending on the season),
an urban tributary designated as a region of concern; the Neabsco (17%), a tributary with
petroleum inputs from runoff and marinas; the Quantico (7%), near a Superfund site that
released OC contaminants; and the Tuckahoe (10%) as a reference. Skin tumor prevalences
were significantly different: Anacostia (10-37%), Neabsco 3%, Quantico 3%, and Tuckahoe
0%. Evidence was found of higher PAH exposure in Anacostia fish, but a cause-effect link-
age could not be established.
Another important field study dealing with liver histopathology in the Baltic floun-
der (
Platichthys flesus)
) was carried out in 2001 and 2002 in four coastal sampling areas
of the Baltic Sea: Kvädö fjärden (Swedish east coast, reference area), Klaipeda-Butinge
(Lithuanian coast), Gulf of Gdansk (Polish coast), and Wismar Bay (German coast) (Lang et
al. 2006). In total, 83.0% of the 436 female flounder examined were affected by liver lesions,
out of which 74.3% were assigned to the category of nonspecific, 3.4% to the category of
early toxicopathological nonneoplastic, 4.6% to the category of pre-neoplastic, and 0.7% to
the category of neoplastic lesions.
The prevalence of toxicopathological liver lesions in demersal fish was studied to deter-
mine whether wastewater discharge could affect fish health (Basmadjian et al. 2008).
Fish livers were sampled at different distances from the wastewater outfall on the San
Pedro Shelf, California, for a 15-year period (1988-2003). The prevalence of toxicopath-
ological lesion classes neoplasms (NEO), preneoplastic foci of cellular alteration (FCA),
and hydropic vacuolation (HYDVAC), varied among species and locations. Prevalence of
HYDVAC, NEO, and FCA in white croaker (
Genyonemus lineatus
) was 15.2%, 2.0%, and
0.7%, respectively. Bigmouth sole (
Hippoglossina stomata
) had a prevalence of FCA and NEO
of 1.3% and 0.35%, respectively. In hornyhead turbot (
Pleuronichthys verticalis
), the preva-
lence of FCA and NEO was 3.4% and 0.37%, respectively. Consistent spatial differences
for lesion prevalence were not demonstrated, and Basmadjian et al. (2008) underlined “the
analytical difficulties of detecting a possible point source impact when the effect is rare,
correlated with the size/age structure of the population, and may be caused by exposure
to unknown multiple sources.”
Fish diseases, including several variables associated with liver neoplasia, were investi-
gated in the flatfish
Limanda limanda
from geographically distinct offshore marine sites in
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