You are here:
Use of NMR-based Metabolite Profiling to Study Responses of Fathead Minnows Exposed to the Potent Androgen 17β-trenbolone
Citation:
EKMAN, D. R., T. W. COLLETTE, Q. TENG, G. T. ANKLEY, E. J. DURHAN, K. M. JENSEN, M. D. KAHL, E. A. MAKYNEN, D. MARTINOVIC, AND D. L. VILLENEUVE. Use of NMR-based Metabolite Profiling to Study Responses of Fathead Minnows Exposed to the Potent Androgen 17β-trenbolone. Presented at SETAC 29th Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL, November 16 - 20, 2008.
Impact/Purpose:
The mission of the ERD Metabolomics Team is to study the impact of stressors on various species using NMR and other advanced analytical approaches to characterize changes in endogenous metabolites. The main focus is to define responses in ecologically-relevant organisms (e.g., small fish) upon exposure to potentially toxic xenobiotic chemicals.
Description:
Exposure of organisms in aquatic ecosystems to chemicals which possess endocrine disrupting properties can produce numerous detrimental effects. Furthermore, due to the potency of these chemicals, even relatively low level exposures can reduce fitness. As a result, classical exposure assays are not always practical (due to low sensitivity, speed, etc.) for conducting assessments. In response, governmental agencies responsible for regulating such compounds are working to establish molecular approaches in order to overcome these limitations. One potential approach is to measure the impact(s) these compounds have on endogenous metabolite levels in various tissues and biofluids. Here we describe the results of using such an approach to elucidate molecular level effects of the potent androgen 17β-trenbolone in small fish (fathead minnow, Pimephales promelas). Using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, we are able to discriminate concentration level and gender specific effects of exposures both rapidly and at a low per-sample cost. As a result, large exposure studies using numerous fish per class (defined by sex, exposure level, etc.) and including sampling of fish at several time points during and after the exposure are easily achieved. This is necessary for obtaining a more informed assessment of the effect(s) of these chemicals.