Immunotoxicity in plaice exposed to marine sediments in Baie des Anglais on the St. Lawrence Estuary
- Univ. of Quebec, Montreal, Quebec (Canada)
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Mont-Joli, Quebec (Canada)
The sediments of Baie des Anglais on the St. Lawrence Estuary have a history of environmental contamination. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether or not the immune system of American Plaice (Hippoglossoides Platessoides) could be affected following in-situ exposure at three different sites in and near Baie des Anglais. These sites vary with their proximity to local industry, Sites 1 and 2 (within the bay) being the closest and Site 3 (outside the bay) the furthest away. Fishes placed in cages at each site for three weeks, displayed head kidney cell immune responses (i.e., phagocytosis) modifications indicating that Site 1 was most immunotoxic and site 3 the least. Sediment chemical analysis show a gradient in contaminant concentrations with the highest levels recorded at Site 1, about 10-fold less at Site 2 and 100-fold less at Site 3. Organics predominated (PAHs, PCBs, PCDFs) with heavy metal concentrations low and representative of background levels for the St. Lawrence Estuary. The results obtained indicate that contaminants present in the sediments are bioavailable to fish and significantly affect their immune system.
- OSTI ID:
- 460496
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-961149--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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