Cd-metallothionein in liver and kidney of goldfish (Carassius auratus): effects of temperature and salinity.

Treatment of goldfish with Cd, by intraperitoneal injection, resulted in Cd-metallothionein (Cd-MT) synthesis mainly in liver and kidney. The relative amount of Cd sequestered by liver metallothionein was always greater in fish maintained at 20 degrees C compared to those reared at 10 degrees C, indicating a temperature dependence of metallothionein biosynthesis; in the kidney this dependence was not so clearly evident. Changes in MT levels induced by adapting fish to different salinities did not correlate with the salinity change.