Grantee Research Project Results
1999 Progress Report: Biomarkers for Organochlorine-Associated Immunosuppression in Birds: Field Investigations in the Great Lakes and Laboratory Studies
EPA Grant Number: R825216Title: Biomarkers for Organochlorine-Associated Immunosuppression in Birds: Field Investigations in the Great Lakes and Laboratory Studies
Investigators: Grasman, Keith A.
Institution: Wright State University - Main Campus
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: December 1, 1997 through November 30, 2001
Project Period Covered by this Report: December 1, 1999 through November 30, 2000
Project Amount: $488,000
RFA: Exploratory Research - Early Career Awards (1996) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Early Career Awards , Environmental Justice
Objective:
The objectives of this project are to: (1) elucidate recently documented associations between environmental contaminants and immunosuppression in fish-eating birds of the Great Lakes by conducting field and laboratory studies that evaluate new immunological biomarkers and interactive effects of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners; (2) investigate infectious diseases in fish-eating birds of the Great Lakes; (3) elucidate the relevance of immunological biomarkers by simultaneously measuring suppression of these biomarkers and susceptibility to infections; and (4) investigate population-level effects of contaminants in Great Lakes birds by continuing long-term reproduction and banding studies.Progress Summary:
Fish-eating birds such as gulls and terns are effective "sentinel species" for assessing the toxic effects of contaminants on the Great Lakes ecosystem. Previous studies revealed associations between PCBs and suppression of T-cell-mediated immunity in herring gull and Caspian tern chicks at highly contaminated Great Lakes sites. During 1997?1999, herring gulls and Caspian terns were studied at high and low contamination sites in the Great Lakes and Atlantic Ocean. In herring gull embryos, PCBs were associated with reduced thymocyte (developing T cells) viability and numbers. The masses of the thymus and bursa of Fabricius, and the number and viability of developing lymphocytes in the bursa were not associated with PCBs. The phytohemagglutinin (PHA) skin test, an integrative in vivo assay for T-cell function, was suppressed approximately 57?72 percent in gulls from Saginaw Bay, Western Lake Erie (two colonies), and eastern Lake Ontario. The PHA response in terns from Saginaw Bay was suppressed 43 percent, and this response was correlated negatively with plasma PCB concentrations measured in individual birds. Significant abnormalities in the gonadal histology of 4-week-old herring gull chicks from highly contaminated Great Lakes sites also were found. Low survival of herring gull chicks from Western Lake Erie and herring gulls and Caspian tern chicks from Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron were observed.In a series of experiments, PCB 126 was injected into chicken eggs to determine effects on the developing immune system. PCB 126 caused atrophy of the thymus and bursa. Lymphoid cell numbers were more sensitive to PCB 126 than organ masses, and doses necessary to reduce the number of viable lymphoid cells in the thymus and bursa were at least one order of magnitude lower with full-term incubation as compared to exposure only during later stages of incubation. PCB 126 caused dose-dependent decreases in the percentage of thymocytes expressing TCRab+. The percentages of all other measured phenotypes (CD4-CD8-, CD4+CD8-, CD4-CD8+, CD4+CD8+, and TCR(*+) were unaltered. The number of apoptotic thymocytes was elevated in embryos exposed to doses of PCB 126 that caused decreased numbers of thymocytes.
Future Activities:
Additional field studies will continue to investigate the effects of organochlorines on immune function of Great Lakes gulls, terns, black-crowned night herons, and bald eagles. Experiments with chicken embryos and chickens will examine the interactions of planar PCBs with other organochlorines and the consequences of in-ovo exposure after hatch. Effects of planar PCBs on apoptosis in developing T and B cells will be investigated. The last phase of the project will calibrate specific levels of suppression of immunological tests to decreased resistance to infections.Journal Articles on this Report : 2 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
| Other project views: | All 42 publications | 6 publications in selected types | All 6 journal articles |
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Fox LL, Grasman KA. Effects of PCB 126 on primary immune organ development in chicken embryos. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health 1999, Volume: 58 , Number: 4 (OCT 29) , Page: 233-244. |
R825216 (1999) |
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Grasman KA, Armstrong M, Hammersley DL, Scanlon PF, Fox GA. Geographic variation in blood plasma protein concentrations of young herring gulls (Larus argentatus) and Caspian terns (Sterna caspia) from the Great Lakes and Lake Winnipeg. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology C-Pharmacology, Toxicology and Endocrinology 2000;125(3):365-375. |
R825216 (1999) R825216 (2000) |
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Supplemental Keywords:
dioxin, indicators, monitoring, aquatic, avian, endocrine disruptors, immunotoxicology, health effects, ecological effects, animal, cellular, enzymes, chemicals, toxics, metals, Ohio, OH, Michigan, MI, Canada., RFA, Health, Scientific Discipline, Toxics, Geographic Area, Ecosystem Protection/Environmental Exposure & Risk, Toxicology, Health Risk Assessment, Ecosystem/Assessment/Indicators, Ecosystem Protection, exploratory research environmental biology, Endocrine Disruptors - Environmental Exposure & Risk, pesticides, State, Epidemiology, endocrine disruptors, Environmental Microbiology, Ecological Effects - Environmental Exposure & Risk, Biochemistry, Endocrine Disruptors - Human Health, International, Immunology, Ecological Indicators, aquatic ecosystem, bioindicator, risk assessment, susceptibility to infections, ecological effects, ecological exposure, avian development, biomarkers, fish, EDCs, endocrine disrupting chemicals, exposure studies, PCBs, bird habitat, organochlorine compounds, animal models, immune system response, pathogen, toxicity, PCB, Ohio (OH), reproductive processes, immunotoxicology, Canada, birds, dioxinsRelevant Websites:
http://biology.wright.edu/BioSite/Personnel/Faculty/Grasman.html
Progress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.