Human Drug Pollution in the Aquatic System: The Biochemical Responses of Danio rerio Adults

To date, drug pollution in aquatic systems is an urgent issue, and Danio rerio is a model organism to study the toxicological effects of environmental pollutants. The scientific literature has analyzed the effect of human drug pollution on the biochemical responses in the tissues of D. rerio adults. However, the information is still scarce and conflicting, making it difficult to understand its real impact. The scientific studies are not consistent with each other and, until now, no one has grouped their results to create a baseline of knowledge of the possible impacts. In this review, the analysis of literature data highlights that the effects of drugs on adult zebrafishes depend on various factors, such as the tissue analyzed, the drug concentration and the sex of the individuals. Furthermore, the most influenced biochemical responses concern enzymes (e.g., antioxidants and hydrolase enzymes) and total protein and hormonal levels. Pinpointing the situation to date would improve the understanding of the chronic effects of human drug pollution, helping both to reduce it in the aquatic systems and then to draw up regulations to control this type of pollution.

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The Importance of Zebrafish in Biomedical Research

Acta Médica Portuguesa ◽

10.20344/amp.4628 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 26 (5) ◽

pp. 583

Author(s):

Bárbara Tavares ◽

Susana Santos Lopes

Keyword(s):

Biomedical Research ◽

Drug Screening ◽

Danio Rerio ◽

Scientific Literature ◽

Model Organism ◽

Toxicity Testing ◽

Vertebrate Development ◽

Automated Systems ◽

Ideal Model ◽

Research Drug

Introduction: Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is an ideal model organism for the study of vertebrate development. This is due to the large clutches that each couple produces, with up to 200 embryos every 7 days, and to the fact that the embryos and larvae are small, transparent and undergo rapid external development.Material and Methods: Using scientific literature research tools available online and the keywords Zebrafish, biomedical research, human disease, and drug screening, we reviewed original studies and reviews indexed in PubMed.Results: In this review we summarized work conducted with this model for the advancement of our knowledge related to several human diseases. We also focused on the biomedical research being performed in Portugal with the zebrafish model.Discussion: Powerful live imaging and genetic tools are currently available for zebrafish making it a valuable model in biomedicalresearch. The combination of these properties with the optimization of automated systems for drug screening has transformed the zebrafish into a “top model” in biomedical research, drug discovery and toxicity testing. Furthermore, with the optimization of xenografts technology it will be possible to use zebrafish to aide in the choice of the best therapy for each patient.Conclusion: Zebrafish is an excellent model organism in biomedical research, drug development and in clinical therapy.

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Assessing the leaching behavior of different gunshot materials in natural spring waters

Environmental Sciences Europe ◽

10.1186/s12302-019-0249-2 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 31 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Julian Fäth ◽

Axel Göttlein

Keyword(s):

Environmental Risks ◽

Aquatic Systems ◽

Toxicity Tests ◽

Toxicity Screening ◽

Leaching Tests ◽

Leaching Behavior ◽

Thin Coatings ◽

Toxicological Effects ◽

Potential Risks ◽

Natural Spring

Abstract Background Owing to the high environmental risk of lead-based gunshot, especially as the main source of acute lead poisoning in waterfowl, restrictions on its use in European wetlands are being put into place. In order to assess potential risks of alternative gunshot pellets to aquatic systems, we validated a recently published study that compared the leaching behavior of different game shot materials in an artificial solution and their toxicological effects to Daphnia magna. We therefore investigated the altered leaching of shot materials in natural spring waters. Results The different water conditions (geology/redox conditions) had a strong influence on the leaching behavior of the examined shot types. Spring water originating from siliceous bedrock showed the highest concentrations of nearly all leached metals under aerobic conditions. The results were similar to the former study, which used an artificial standardized medium for daphnids. Conclusions According to the conducted leaching tests, Cu- and Zn-based as well as Zn-coated gunshot should be avoided by reason of the high risks they pose to the aquatic environment. Furthermore, the use of Pb-based and Ni-alloyed or -coated game shot also should be hampered owing to their impact on birds or other wildlife. Since some of these shot materials are still on the European market, an effective toxicity screening of alternative gunshot materials is necessary. By conducting standardized leaching tests, in addition to chemical compositional standards and toxicity tests regarding birds, the environmental risks of each game shot would entirely be assessed. The method presented in this study provides a further step for initial ecotoxicological risk assessment of gunshot for aquatic systems, since it additionally assesses minor components, like thin coatings, which also can have a high impact to these ecosystems.

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Chronic Effects of Silver Nanoparticles on Micro-Crustacean Daphnia lumholtzi

VNU Journal of Science Natural Sciences and Technology ◽

10.25073/2588-1140/vnunst.4967 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 36 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Tran Thanh Thai ◽

Pham Thanh Luu ◽

Ngo Xuan Quang ◽

Dao Thanh Son

Keyword(s):

Silver Nanoparticles ◽

Chronic Toxicity ◽

Exposure Period ◽

Control Treatment ◽

Reproduction Rate ◽

Daphnia Lumholtzi ◽

Multiple Generations ◽

Toxicological Effects ◽

Chronic Effects ◽

And Control

This study aimed to enhance our insight on the potential toxicological effects of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) into the aquatic environment. To investigate the chronic toxicity of nanoparticles, freshwater micro-crustacean Daphnia lumholtzi was exposed to different concentrations of 0.2, 0.5 µg/l AgNPs, and control, for 21 days. Toxicological endpoints at different growing stages such as the maturation and reproduction were recorded. The reproduction rate of D. lumholtzi exposed to both AgNPs concentrations (0.2 and 0.5 µg/l ) was significantly lower than that of control. In turn, the maturation exposed to both AgNPs concentrations was not significantly different from the control treatment. This result indicates that AgNPs (with a concentration lower than 0.5 µg/l) did not have an adverse effect on the maturation of D. lumholtzi, but AgNPs with a concentration higher than 0.2 caused a toxic effect on the reproduction rate of D. lumholtzi during 21 days of the exposure period. In conclusion, the present results showed that AgNPs have toxic effects on D. lumholtzi and it has the potential to use as good freshwater aquatic zooplankton for assessment on the toxicity of nanomaterials in tropics. The future study should pay more attention to the effect of AgNPs on survival, growth rate, and multiple generations of daphnids to better understand the effects of nanoparticles in general and AgNPs in particular.

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