Survey of receiving-water environmental impacts associated with discharges from pulp mills; 4: Bioassay-derived 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin toxic equivalent concentration in white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) in relation to biochemical indicators of impact

Journal Article · Fri Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1994 · Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1897/1552-8618(1994)13[1117:SOREIA]2.0.CO;2· OSTI ID:7273430

Heuvel, M.R. van den; Dixon, D G ^[1]; Munkittrick, K R; Servos, M R ^[2]; Van Der Kraak, G J; McMaster, M E ^[3]; Portt, C B ^[4]

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1. Univ. of Waterloo, Ontario (Canada). Dept. of Biology
2. Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Burlington, Ontario (Canada). Great Lakes Lab. for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
3. Univ. of Guelph, Ontario (Canada). Dept. of Zoology
4. C. Portt and Associates, Guelph, Ontario (Canada)

The H411E rat hepatoma bioassay was used to measure 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin toxic equivalent concentrations (TECs) in livers of white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) collected downstream from eight Ontario pulp mills and five reference sites. Subsamples of liver were also chemically analyzed for dioxins and furans. Bioassay-derived TECs were compared with TECs calculated from chemical residues using toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) specifically generated for the H411E cell line. This indicated that the bioassay-derived TECs could be accounted for largely by the additive effect of the dioxin and furan congeners. Seven of the eight examined mills had significantly higher TECs than the corresponding reference locations. The bioassay-derived TECs were highest at mills that used kraft pulping and chlorine bleaching. Although lower than the kraft mills, the thermomechanical (TMP) and sulfite mills also had higher TECs than the adjacent preference locations. The TECs were compared with hepatic 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase activity (EROD), as well as with concentrations of the plasma steroid hormones 17[beta]-estradiol, 11-ketotestosterone, and testosterone. Significant correlations were found between EROD activity and TECs in both male and female white sucker. The correlation for males was stronger than that for females. Some of the variability in this relationship for females could be explained by a multivariate regression that added 17[beta]-estradiol to the analysis; a strongly negative relationship between 17[beta]-estradiol and EROD activity was superimposed on the positive EROD-TEC relationship. No significant correlations were found between TECs and 11-ketotestosterone in males, 17[beta]-estradiol in females, and gonadosomatic indexes in either sex. There were significant negative correlations between TECs and testosterone in both sexes.

• OSTI ID: 7273430
• Journal Information: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry; (United States), Journal Name: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry; (United States) Vol. 13:7; ISSN ETOCDK; ISSN 0730-7268
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540320* -- Environment
Aquatic-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
560300 -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
BIOLOGICAL INDICATORS
CANADA
CHEMICAL EFFLUENTS
CHEMICAL WASTES
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
DIOXIN
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
ENZYMES
FISHES
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS
INDUSTRY
NONRADIOACTIVE WASTES
NORTH AMERICA
ONTARIO
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
OXIDOREDUCTASES
POLLUTION
PROTEINS
SENSITIVITY
TOXICITY
VERTEBRATES
WASTES
WATER POLLUTION
WOOD PRODUCTS INDUSTRY