Ability of 16 priority PAHs to be directly cytotoxic to a cell line from the rainbow trout gill

• Published in: Toxicology (Amsterdam) Vol. 127; no. 1; pp. 129 - 141
• Main Authors: Schirmer, K, Dixon, D.G, Greenberg, B.M, Bols, N.C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 15-05-1998; Amsterdam Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Acenaphthenes - toxicity; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Animals; Applied ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Carcinogens - toxicity; Cell Line - drug effects; Cell Membrane - drug effects; Cell Membrane - metabolism; Cell Survival - drug effects; Cytotoxicity; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Fluorenes - toxicity; Fresh water environment; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gills - drug effects; Gills - metabolism; Gills - pathology; Lysosomes - drug effects; Lysosomes - pathology; Microscopy, Phase-Contrast; Naphthalenes - toxicity; Oncorhynchus mykiss; Phenanthrenes - toxicity; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - chemistry; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - toxicity; Rainbow trout gill cell line; Structure-Activity Relationship; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Cytotoxicity; Rainbow trout gill cell line; Gill; Cytotoxicity test; Toxicity; Polycyclic aromatic compound; Oncorhynchus mykiss; In vitro; Freshwater environment; Pollutant; Vertebrata; Pisces; Animal; Established cell line; Detection
• ISSN: 0300-483X; 1879-3185
• DOI: 10.1016/S0300-483X(98)00030-4

Sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were screened for their ability to be directly cytotoxic to a cell line from the rainbow trout gill, RTgill-W1. Exposure times of 2 h or less were sufficient for direct cytotoxicity to be detected, which appeared to be caused by a common mechanism, the general perturbation of membranes. This was judged by the similarity of results obtained for three fluorescent indicator dyes, alamar Blue™, 5-carboxyfluorescein diacetate acetoxymethyl ester (CFDA-AM) and neutral red. Among the 16 PAHs tested, just two- and three-ring PAHs were found to be directly cytotoxic. These were naphthalene≅acenaphthylene≅acenaphthene>fluorene≅phenanthrene. The results suggest that water solubility and lipophilicity are the critical properties determining the direct cytotoxicity of PAHs and that they do so by influencing PAH accumulation in membranes. Only naphthalene was effective at concentrations well below its water solubility limit. Therefore, direct cytotoxicity is likely to be most environmentally relevant only with naphthalene.