Arsenic is ubiquitously present in the aquatic environment. We investigated the acute toxic effects of arsenite [As(III)] exposure on rare minnows (Gobiocypris rarus) in vivo. The 96-h LC50 value for exposure to As(III) was 13.73 mg/L. As(III) bioaccumulation in different tissues was measured using inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and the extent of As(III) accumulation was, from greatest to least, liver > intestine > gills > muscle > kidney > testis > brain. Histological examination revealed that in As(III)-treated fish, numerous cellular and tissue alterations were present in the gill, liver, and intestine tissues. Moreover, transmission electron microscopy showed ultrastructural alterations in hepatocytes. We also performed transcriptome analyses to investigate As(III)-induced toxicity response in the liver of As(III)-treated fish; various oxidative-related genes were differentially expressed, and their expression levels were further validated using qPCR. This study is one of the many steps we aim to take on the way to promote the rare minnow to an international standard laboratory animal.

中文翻译：

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组织病理学检查和转录组分析，以评估砷暴露对稀有小鱼（Gobiocypris rarus）的急性毒性作用。

砷普遍存在于水生环境中。我们调查了砷[As（III）]暴露对体内稀有小鱼（Gobiocypris rarus）的急性毒性作用。接触As（III）的96小时LC50值为13.73 mg / L。使用电感耦合等离子体质谱法测量不同组织中As（III）的生物积累，As（III）的积累程度从最大到最小为肝>肠>腮>肌肉>肾脏>睾丸>脑。组织学检查显示，在用As（III）处理的鱼中，腮，肝和肠组织中存在许多细胞和组织改变。此外，透射电子显微镜显示肝细胞中的超微结构改变。我们还进行了转录组分析，以研究As（III）处理的鱼肝脏中的As（III）诱导的毒性反应。各种氧化相关基因被差异表达，并使用qPCR进一步验证了它们的表达水平。这项研究是我们旨在将稀有的小鱼提升为国际标准实验动物的众多步骤之一。