Effects of Exposure to Low Concentrations of Oil on the Expression of Cytochrome P4501a and Routine Swimming Speed of Atlantic Haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) Larvae In Situ

• Published in: Environmental science & technology Vol. 54; no. 21; pp. 13879 - 13887
• Main Authors: Cresci, Alessandro, Paris, Claire B, Browman, Howard I, Skiftesvik, Anne Berit, Shema, Steven, Bjelland, Reidun, Durif, Caroline M. F, Foretich, Matthew, Di Persia, Camilla, Lucchese, Veronica, Vikebø, Frode B, Sørhus, Elin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 03-11-2020
• Subjects: Animals; Crude oil; CYP1A protein; Cytochrome; Cytochrome P450; Cytochrome P4501A; Cytochromes; Ecotoxicology and Public Health; Embryos; Exposure; Fish; Gadinae; Haddock; Larva; Larvae; Low concentrations; Melanogrammus aeglefinus; North Sea; Nursery grounds; Ocean currents; Oil; Oil spills; Petroleum; Pollutants; Risk assessment; Sublethal effects; Swimming; Swimming behavior; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water Pollutants, Chemical - toxicity; North Sea; oil toxicity; sublethal impacts; oil impact; ecotoxicology; larval dispersal; larval fish; fish behavior
• ISSN: 0013-936X; 1520-5851
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c04889

Exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of oil could impact survival of fish larvae in situ through subtle effects on larval behavior. During the larval period, Atlantic haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) are transported toward nursery grounds by ocean currents and active swimming, which can modify their drift route. Haddock larvae are sensitive to dispersed oil; however, whether exposure to oil during development impacts the ability of haddock larvae to swim in situ is unknown. Here, we exposed Atlantic haddock embryos to 10 and 80 μg oil/L (0.1 and 0.8 μg ∑PAH/L) of crude oil for 8 days and used a novel approach to measure its effect on the larval swimming behavior in situ. We assessed the swimming behavior of 138 haddock larvae in situ, in the North Sea, using a transparent drifting chamber. Expression of cytochrome P4501a (cyp1a) was also measured. Exposure to 10 and 80 μg oil/L significantly reduced the average in situ routine swimming speed by 30–40% compared to the controls. Expression of cyp1a was significantly higher in both exposed groups. This study reports key information for improving oil spill risk assessment models and presents a novel approach to study sublethal effects of pollutants on fish larvae in situ.