Murvoll K M, Skaare J U, Nilssen V H, Bech C, Ostnes J E, Jenssen B M
Department of Zoology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, N-7034 Trondheim, Norway.
Arch Environ Contam Toxicol. 1999 Apr;36(3):308-15. doi: 10.1007/s002449900476.
To evaluate the possibilities of applying plasma retinol as a biomarker of response in seabirds exposed to chronic low levels of organochlorines, the relationship between yolk content of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and plasma retinol levels were studied in newly hatched shag chicks (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) from the coast of central Norway. The mean concentration of 29 PCB-congeners (SigmaPCB) in the yolk sac was 1.22 microgram/g ww (wet weight basis) (SD = 0.57, n = 10), or 17.99 ng/g lw (lipid weight basis) (SD = 6.26, n = 10). Expressed as TCDD-equivalents (SigmaTEQ), the exposure in the yolk sac was 43.9 pg/g ww (SD = 19.5, n = 10), or 637.1 pg/g lw (SD = 240.8, n = 10), considerably lower than the levels that have been associated with clear-cut lethal and sublethal effects such as egg mortality, hatchability, or live deformity in Phalacrocoracidae species. There were significant negative correlations between SigmaPCB ww and the variables egg volume, yolk mass, and hatchling mass. We suggest that these relationships are passive causes of a higher lipid concentration in small eggs, rather than the PCB affecting the variables. Analyses showed that there was a borderline significant positive correlation between SigmaPCB lw in yolk and plasma retinol concentration. Although the results indicate that plasma retinol level alone is a poor indicator of PCB exposure in shag hatchlings, the result may be related to the low level of contaminant exposure and the low sample size of the study.
为了评估将血浆视黄醇作为暴露于慢性低水平有机氯的海鸟反应生物标志物的可能性，我们研究了挪威中部海岸新孵化的鸬鹚雏鸟（Phalacrocorax aristotelis）中多氯联苯（PCBs）的卵黄含量与血浆视黄醇水平之间的关系。卵黄囊中29种多氯联苯同系物（总多氯联苯，SigmaPCB）的平均浓度为1.22微克/克湿重（SD = 0.57，n = 10），或17.99纳克/克脂重（SD = 6.26，n = 10）。以2,3,7,8-四氯二苯并对二恶英当量（总毒性当量，SigmaTEQ）表示，卵黄囊中的暴露量为43.9皮克/克湿重（SD = 19.5，n = 10），或637.1皮克/克脂重（SD = 240.8，n = 10），远低于与鸬鹚科物种中明显的致死和亚致死效应（如卵死亡率、孵化率或幼体畸形）相关的水平。总多氯联苯湿重与卵体积、卵黄质量和幼雏质量变量之间存在显著负相关。我们认为这些关系是小卵中脂质浓度较高的被动原因，而非多氯联苯影响这些变量。分析表明，卵黄中总多氯联苯脂重与血浆视黄醇浓度之间存在边缘显著的正相关。尽管结果表明仅血浆视黄醇水平是鸬鹚雏鸟多氯联苯暴露的不良指标，但该结果可能与污染物暴露水平低和研究样本量小有关。
