Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway.
Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway.
Environ Res. 2019 Oct;177:108586. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.108586. Epub 2019 Jul 15.
Environmental exposure to organohalogenated contaminants (OHCs), even at low concentrations, may cause detrimental effects on the development and health of wild birds. The present study investigated if environmental exposure to OHCs may influence the variation of multiple physiological parameters in Norwegian white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) nestlings. Plasma and feather samples were obtained from 70 nestlings at two archipelagos in Norway in 2015 and 2016. The selected physiological parameters were plasma concentrations of thyroid hormones (thyroxine, T4 and triiodothyronine, T3), plasma proteins (prealbumin, albumin, α-, α-, β- and γ-globulins) and selected blood clinical chemical parameters (BCCPs) associated with liver and kidney functioning. Feather concentrations of corticosterone (CORT) were also included to investigate the overall stress level of the nestlings. Concentrations of all studied physiological parameters were within the ranges of those found in other species of free-living birds of prey nestlings and indicated that the white-tailed eagle nestlings were in good health. Our statistical models indicated that perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) and legacy OHCs, such as polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorinated pesticides and polybrominated diphenyl ethers, influenced only a minor fraction of the variation of plasma thyroid hormones, prealbumin and CORT (5-15%), and partly explained the selected BCCPs (<26%). Most of the variation in each studied physiological parameter was explained by variation between nests, which is most likely due to natural physiological variation of nestlings in these nests. This indicates the importance of accounting for between nest variation in future studies. In the present nestlings, OHC concentrations were relatively low and seem to have played a secondary role compared to natural variation concerning the variation of physiological parameters. However, our study also indicates a potential for OHC-induced effects on thyroid hormones, CORT, prealbumin and BCCPs, which could be of concern in birds exposed to higher OHC concentrations than the present white-tailed eagle nestlings.
环境暴露于有机卤代污染物（OHCs），即使浓度很低，也可能对野生鸟类的发育和健康产生有害影响。本研究调查了环境暴露于 OHC 是否会影响挪威白尾鹰（Haliaeetus albicilla）雏鸟的多种生理参数的变化。2015 年和 2016 年，在挪威的两个群岛中从 70 只雏鸟中获得了血浆和羽毛样本。选择的生理参数包括甲状腺激素（甲状腺素，T4 和三碘甲状腺原氨酸，T3）、血浆蛋白（前白蛋白、白蛋白、α-、α-、β-和γ-球蛋白）和与肝脏和肾脏功能相关的一些血液临床化学参数（BCCP）。羽毛中的皮质酮（CORT）浓度也被包括在内，以研究雏鸟的整体应激水平。所有研究的生理参数的浓度均在其他自由生活猛禽雏鸟的范围内，表明白尾鹰雏鸟的健康状况良好。我们的统计模型表明，全氟烷基物质（PFASs）和遗留的 OHCs，如多氯联苯、有机氯农药和多溴二苯醚，仅影响血浆甲状腺激素、前白蛋白和 CORT 变化的一小部分（5-15%），并部分解释了所选 BCCP（<26%）。每个研究的生理参数的大部分变化都可以用巢之间的变化来解释，这很可能是由于这些巢中的雏鸟的自然生理变化。这表明在未来的研究中，考虑巢间变化的重要性。在本研究的雏鸟中，OHC 浓度相对较低，与生理参数的变化相比，似乎处于次要地位。然而，我们的研究还表明，OHC 可能会对甲状腺激素、CORT、前白蛋白和 BCCP 产生影响，对于暴露于比本研究的白尾鹰雏鸟更高 OHC 浓度的鸟类来说，这可能是一个问题。
