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(276) Biomarker responses and chemical residue analysis in two fish species bred in intensive aquaculture facilities. Corsi, Ilaria1, Chiea, Riccardo1, Michela, Mariottini1, Valentina, Menchi1, Nicoletta, Ademollo1, Marinella, Graziosi1, Cristiana, Balocchi1, Cristiana, Sensini1, Silvano, Focardi1, 1 ABSTRACT- Two fish species, the European seabass Dicentrarchus labrax and the gilthead seabream Sparus auratus, were collected from two intensive aquaculture facilities, (one located in an agricultural setting, the other inside a steel factory) shortly before being put on the market in order to assess the effects of the two practices on their health status and their commercial quality. The complexity of effects at different levels of biological organization and the extent of chemical impact related to the culture environment were evaluated by an integrated approach which includes a suite of biomarkers of increasing complexity (SLI, GSI, EROD, BPMO, AChE) and residues analysis of aquatic pollutants. Organochlorines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and heavy metals, were estimated in lipid- rich tissues (liver) and in the edible part of the fish (muscle) to evaluate the toxic impact on fish and the potential transfer to consumers including humans. In this respect, samples of commercial fish feed were analyzed for organochlorine content, with particular attention to polychlorinated biphenyl's (PCB). Light microscopy was also applied to detect potential reproductive abnormalities in gonadal histology. Multivariate analysis using all fish health responses showed a similar pattern in both fish species bred in the steel factory facility with higher levels of CYP-450 activities associated to a moderately high muscle and liver content of organochlorines, PAH and heavy metals. Fish bred in the agricultural setting showed the lowest levels of AChE activity and the highest mercury levels. High background values of mercury are in fact reported in that area. Aroclor 1260 and dioxin-like PCBs were also detected in all the commercial fish feeds analyzed. Key words: biomarker, aquaculture, fish, contaminants |
