You are here:
Adaptation of the Estuarine Fish, Fundulus heterclitus (Atlantic Killifish) to Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
Citation:
NACCI, D. E., D. M. CHAMPLIN, AND S. JAYARAMAN. Adaptation of the Estuarine Fish, Fundulus heterclitus (Atlantic Killifish) to Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs). Estuaries and Coasts. Estuarine Research Federation, Port Republic, MD, 33(4):853-864, (2010).
Impact/Purpose:
The purpose of the research was to describe adaptive tolerance to highly toxic pollutants displayed by populations of a common fish species resident to U.S. Atlantic coastal estuaries.
Description:
To characterize intra-specific variation in sensitivity to highly toxic pollutants in the non-migratory estuarine Atlantic killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus), we compared early life stage responses to the prototypical dioxin-like compound, 3,3’4,4’,5 hexachlorobiphenyl (PCB126). In summarizing results from this and prior studies, we show that populations vary widely in their sensitivity in a manner that is adaptive to the magnitude of contamination at their residence site. We compared chemical tolerance to this contaminant in four killifish populations residing in sites >100 km apart from one another (MA, CT, NJ, and VA) that are highly contaminated yet differ in contaminant composition. Prior reports have characterized some form of pollution tolerance in three of these populations, with mixed evidence concerning the genetic nature of this trait. Tolerance to PCB126 among these populations is extreme in comparison to the most sensitive wild populations (>102 to >104 fold), and exhibits some shared phenotypic attributes. However, these populations do not respond identically to each other in the F1 and F2 generations tested, and the degradation of tolerance is suggested in at least one population. Ongoing studies using complementary molecular approaches provide opportunity to identify unique and shared genetic correlates of tolerance in these independently evolving populations, and more generally to explore recent evolutionary responses and their adaptive benefits and costs in the wild.