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Histopathological examination and transcriptome analyses to assess the acute toxic effects of arsenite exposure on rare minnows (Gobiocypris rarus)

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Abstract

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.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dr Yuan Xiao (Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences) for assistance with transmission electron microscopy analysis.

Funding

This study was funded by the Key Lab of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, CAFS (Program SN: LFBC0903).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430072, China

    Lixia Shi, Xudong Hu, Nenghan Wang, Chenxi Wu & Hong Cao

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Lixia Shi, Xudong Hu & Nenghan Wang

  3. Key Lab of Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute, CAFS, Wuhan, 430223, China

    Lixia Shi & Hong Cao

  4. School of Life Sciences, Huizhou University, Huizhou, 516007, China

    Lixia Shi

  5. Hepatic Surgery Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China

    Huifang Liang

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  1. Lixia Shi
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  2. Xudong Hu
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Correspondence to Hong Cao.

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Shi, L., Hu, X., Wang, N. et al. Histopathological examination and transcriptome analyses to assess the acute toxic effects of arsenite exposure on rare minnows (Gobiocypris rarus). Ecotoxicology 29, 613–624 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-020-02222-3

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