Consequences of Xenoestrogen Exposure on Male Reproductive Function in Spottail Shiners (Notropis hudsonius)

There is limited information on the physiological consequences associated with exposure to xenoestrogens under field conditions. The objectives of this study were to determine the presence of estrogenic chemicals in the St. Lawrence River and their effects on male reproduction in the spottail shiner...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Toxicological sciences 2004-03, Vol.78 (1), p.156-165
Main Authors: Aravindakshan, Jayaprakash, Paquet, Valérie, Gregory, Mary, Dufresne, Julie, Fournier, Michel, Marcogliese, David J., Cyr, Daniel G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Body Weight - drug effects
Cyprinidae - physiology
DNA Primers
Estrogens, Non-Steroidal - toxicity
Freshwater
intersex
Liver - drug effects
Liver - metabolism
Male
Notropis hudsonius
Organ Size - drug effects
Quebec
Reproduction - drug effects
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
RNA, Messenger - biosynthesis
RNA, Messenger - genetics
Sexual Maturation - drug effects
sperm motility
Sperm Motility - drug effects
spermatogenesis
Spermatogenesis - drug effects
toxicity
vitellogenin
Vitellogenins - biosynthesis
Vitellogenins - genetics
Xenobiotics - toxicity
xenoestrogen
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Summary:There is limited information on the physiological consequences associated with exposure to xenoestrogens under field conditions. The objectives of this study were to determine the presence of estrogenic chemicals in the St. Lawrence River and their effects on male reproduction in the spottail shiner (Notropis hudsonius). Hepatic vitellogenin (VTG) mRNA levels in immature shiners indicate extensive estrogenic contamination spanning almost 50 km both upstream and downstream from the island of Montreal. Stages of spermatogenesis were assessed in fish captured at sites having varying levels of estrogenic contamination. In control fish, 95% had testis of either stage IV (50%) or stage V (45%) of spermatogenesis. At Île Dorval, where VTG mRNA levels are moderate, fish had testes of stage III (38%) and IV (45%) and only 15% of fish were at spermatogenic stage V. In contrast, at Îlet Vert and Île Beauregard, located in the sewage effluent plume from the City of Montreal and where hepatic VTG mRNA levels are high in fish, none of the fish were at stage V and 8% of fish at Îlet Vert were at stage II of development. Sperm concentration and various motility parameters were significantly lower in shiners from Îlet Vert as compared with those from Îles de la Paix (reference). Histological analyses of testes revealed that more than one-third of the fish captured at sites with the highest estrogenic contamination displayed intersex, a condition in which ovarian follicles were developing within the testis. These data indicate that there is significant estrogenic contamination in the St. Lawrence River that is associated with impaired reproductive function in male fish.
ISSN:1096-6080
1096-0929
1096-0929
DOI:10.1093/toxsci/kfh042