Relationships between hepatic neoplasms and related lesions and exposure to toxic chemicals in marine fish from the US West Coast

Journal Article · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1991 · Environmental Health Perspectives; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2307/3430840· OSTI ID:5010806

Myers, M S; Landahl, J T; Krahn, M M; McCain, B B ^[1]

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1. National Marine Fisheries Service, Seattle, WA (United States)

English sole (Parophrys vetulus) inhabiting polluted waterways and embayments of Puget Sound, Washington, are affected with a variety of multiple, co-occurring idiopathic hepatic lesions, including unique degenerative conditions, putatively preneoplastic foci of cellular alteration, and neoplasms. Results of a statistical analysis of the patterns of co-occurrence of these lesions in wild English sole are consistent with the concept that these lesions represent morphologically identifiable steps forming a sequence of progression ultimately leading to the development of hepatic neoplasms. The rationale for the hypothesis that these lesions in wild English sole can be caused by exposure to certain hepatoxic and hepatocarcinogenic xenobiotic compounds in the marine environment is based on the demonstration of significant and consistent statistical associations between levels of aromatic hydrocarbons (AHs) in sediment and prevalences of these idiopathic liver lesions; a significant contribution by sediment AHs to the variability in hepatic neoplasm prevalence in a logistic regression model; significantly increased probabilities for several idiopathic lesions in sole from chemically contaminated site in Puget Sound; significant correlations between uptake of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and prevalences of several hepatic lesion types; and experimental induction of unique degenerative, proliferative, and putatively preneoplastic focal lesions in English sole injected with either benzo(a)pyrene or a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) enriched fraction of an extract from a contaminated urban sediment from Puget Sound. Because PAHs are extensively metabolized in the liver of fish, sensitive and reliable methods for detection of PAH metabolites in fish tissues need to be developed before credible assessments of human health risk due to consumption of PAH-contaminated fish muscle can be conducted.

• OSTI ID: 5010806
• Journal Information: Environmental Health Perspectives; (United States), Journal Name: Environmental Health Perspectives; (United States) Vol. 90; ISSN 0091-6765; ISSN EVHPA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

560300* -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
AROMATICS
BENZOPYRENE
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
BODY
CELL PROLIFERATION
CONDENSED AROMATICS
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
FISHES
GLANDS
HYDROCARBONS
LIVER
METABOLITES
NORTH AMERICA
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANS
PACIFIC OCEAN
PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES
POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
PUGET SOUND
SEAS
SEDIMENTS
SURFACE WATERS
USA
VERTEBRATES
WEST COAST
XENOBIOTICS