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Gasque-Belz L, Raes K, Park B, Colville C, Siciliano S, Hogan N, Weber L, Campbell P, Peters R, Hanson M, Hecker M. Hazard assessment of complex legacy-contaminated groundwater mixtures using a novel approach method in adult fathead minnows. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 465:133299. [PMID: 38141307 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.133299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/25/2023]
Abstract
Traditional risk assessment methods face challenges in the determination of drivers of toxicity for complex mixtures such as those present at legacy-contaminated sites. Bioassay-driven analysis across several levels of biological organization represents an approach to address these obstacles. This study aimed to apply a novel transcriptomics tool, the EcoToxChip, to characterize the effects of complex mixtures of contaminants in adult fathead minnows (FHMs) and to compare molecular response patterns to higher-level biological responses. Adult FHMs were exposed for 4 and 21 days to groundwater mixtures collected from a legacy-contaminated site. Adult FHM showed significant induction of micronuclei in erythrocytes, decrease in reproductive capacities, and some abnormal appearance of liver histology. Parallel EcoToxChip analyses showed a high proportion of upregulated genes and a few downregulated genes characteristic of compensatory responses. The three most enriched pathways included thyroid endocrine processes, transcription and translation cellular processes, and xenobiotics and reactive oxygen species metabolism. Several of the most differentially regulated genes involved in these biological pathways could be linked to the apical outcomes observed in FHMs. We concluded that molecular responses as determined by EcoToxChip analysis show promise for informing of apical outcomes and could support risk assessments of complex contaminated sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Gasque-Belz
- Environment and Geography, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Katherine Raes
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Bradley Park
- Environment and Geography, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Carly Colville
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Steven Siciliano
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Natacha Hogan
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Lynn Weber
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | | | - Rachel Peters
- Federated Co-operatives Limited, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Mark Hanson
- Environment and Geography, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Markus Hecker
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada; School of the Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
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Mittal K, Ewald J, Crump D, Head J, Hecker M, Hogan N, Xia J, Basu N. Comparing Transcriptomic Responses to Chemicals Across Six Species Using the EcoToxChip RNASeq Database. ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY 2023. [PMID: 38085106 DOI: 10.1002/etc.5803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
The EcoToxChip project includes RNA-sequencing data from experiments involving model (Japanese quail, fathead minnow, African clawed frog) and ecological (double-crested cormorant, rainbow trout, northern leopard frog) species at multiple life stages (whole embryo and adult) exposed to eight chemicals of environmental concern known to perturb a wide range of biological systems (ethinyl estradiol, hexabromocyclododecane, lead, selenomethionine, 17β trenbolone, chlorpyrifos, fluoxetine, and benzo[a]pyrene). The objectives of this short communication were to (1) present and make available this RNA-sequencing database (i.e., 724 samples from 49 experiments) under the FAIR principles (FAIR data are data which meet principles of findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability), while also summarizing key meta-data attributes and (2) use ExpressAnalyst (including the Seq2Fun algorithm and EcoOmicsDB) to perform a comparative transcriptomics analysis of this database focusing on baseline and differential transcriptomic changes across species-life stage-chemical combinations. The database is available in NCBI GEO under accession number GSE239776. Across all species, the number of raw reads per sample ranged between 13 and 58 million, with 30% to 79% of clean reads mapped to the "vertebrate" subgroup database in EcoOmicsDB. Principal component analyses of the reads illustrated separation across the three taxonomic groups as well as some between tissue types. The most common differentially expressed gene was CYP1A1 followed by CTSE, FAM20CL, MYC, ST1S3, RIPK4, VTG1, and VIT2. The most common enriched pathways were metabolic pathways, biosynthesis of cofactors and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, and chemical carcinogenesis, drug metabolism, and metabolism of xenobiotics by cytochrome P450. The RNA-sequencing database in the present study may be used by the research community for multiple purposes, including, for example, cross-species investigations, in-depth analyses of a particular test compound, and transcriptomic meta-analyses. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;00:1-6. © 2023 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krittika Mittal
- Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Jessica Ewald
- Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Doug Crump
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Center, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jessica Head
- Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Markus Hecker
- Toxicology Center, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
| | - Natacha Hogan
- Toxicology Center, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
| | - Jianguo Xia
- Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Niladri Basu
- Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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Gasque-Belz L, Colville C, Kurukulasuriya S, Siciliano SD, Hogan N, Weber L, Campbell P, Peters R, Hanson M, Hecker M. Characterization of molecular and apical effects of legacy-contaminated groundwater on early life stages of fathead minnows. AQUATIC TOXICOLOGY (AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS) 2023; 264:106734. [PMID: 37913685 DOI: 10.1016/j.aquatox.2023.106734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2023] [Revised: 10/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023]
Abstract
Mechanistic toxicology approaches represent a promising alternative to traditional live animal testing; however, the often-noted uncertainties concerning the linkages between effects observed at molecular and apical levels curtails the adoption of such approaches. The objective of this study was to apply a novel transcriptomics tool, EcoToxChips, to characterize the effects of complex mixtures of contaminants in fish and to compare molecular response patterns to higher-level biological responses including swimming behavior, deformities, and mortality. Fathead minnow (FHM) embryos were exposed for seven days to increasing concentrations of groundwater collected from moderate (MIAZ) and high (HIAZ) industrial activity zones of a legacy contaminated site. There was a concentration-dependent disruption of photo-dependent swimming responses associated with avoidance behavior patterns and spinal deformities (HIAZ and MIAZ), and an induction of pericardial edema and mortality (HIAZ-10%). Parallel EcoToxChip analyses showed a shift from a majority of upregulated genes at lower concentrations to a majority of downregulated genes at higher concentrations for both treatment conditions. Many of the significantly differentially regulated genes were involved in biological pathways including induction of oxidative stress, activating of several metabolic processes and growth, cell death, and inhibition of signal transduction signaling processes. Several contaminants present in the groundwater mixtures could have contributed to an exceedance of antioxidant system capacities that possibly led to the deformities, altered swimming behaviours, and mortality observed in FHMs. Therefore, molecular response patterns could be linked to apical outcomes observed in this study. Overall, the results observed in this study demonstrate that transcriptomics approaches such as the EcoToxChip system could be supportive of risk assessment of complex contaminated sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Gasque-Belz
- Environment and Geography, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Carly Colville
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | | | | | - Natacha Hogan
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Lynn Weber
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | | | - Rachel Peters
- Federated Co-operatives Limited, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Mark Hanson
- Environment and Geography, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Markus Hecker
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada; School of the Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
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