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THE USE OF EMBRYOS OF PALAEMONETES PUGIO IN EVALUATING THE DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY OF COMPOUNDS
Citation:
Rayburn, J. R., S S. Foss, K. A. Reinsel, P. S. Glas, AND W S. Fisher. THE USE OF EMBRYOS OF PALAEMONETES PUGIO IN EVALUATING THE DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY OF COMPOUNDS. Presented at Second International Symposium on the Molecular and Cell Biology of Egg-and Embryo-Coats, Sapporo, Japan, Oct. 12-17, 1997.
Description:
The grass shrimp, Palaemonetes pugio, is a common, well distributed species along the eastern coast of America that is an important part of the food web. The embryos of P. pugio have shown sensitivity to the water-soluble fraction of Number 2 fuel oil, which indicates they may be a useful test species in estuarine developmental toxicity tests. Also, the embryos have shown sensitivity to three carrier solvents (ethanol, dimethylsulphoxide and acetone) similar to that of other developmental toxicity assays. Detailed concentration-response curves for copper sulphate and methylene chloride were generated using a 4 day and 12 day exposure, and LC50 values were calculated. The 4 day assay included exposure through the time of hatch, a critical life state of these embryos. The 12 day assay included exposure from tissue cap stage embryos (approximately 3 days post-ovipositioning) through 2 days post-hatch for embryos incubated at 27?C, or about 15 days after ovipositioning. The average 4 day LC50 values for copper sulphate and methylene chloride were 1.8 mg/l and 0.07% v/v, respectively. The average 12 day LC50 values for copper sulphate and methylene chloride were 1.4. mg/l and 0.03% v/v, respectively. Eye malformations were observed in embryos exposed to concentrations greater than 3 mg/l copper sulphate and 0.07% v/v methylene chloride. Experiments with copper sulphate showed abnormal development of the larvae as well as embryo malformations at concentrations greater than 1 mg/l. These experiments show that grass shrimp can be used to investigate the effects of environmental toxicants on embryo development, and suggest further investigation is warranted.