The effects of naphthalene on the ultrastructure of the hepatopancreas of the fiddler crab, Uca minax

Assessment of biochemical components and enzyme activities in the estuarine crab Scylla tranquebarica from naphthalene contaminated habitants

To document the impact of naphthalene, a comparative toxicological research was performed in the estuarine crab Scylla tranquebarica habitant of Ennore creek (polluted site) and Kovalam creek (pristine site) for a period of 6 months. The biochemical constituents, such as protein, carbohydrate, lipid and enzyme activities like acid and alkaline phosphatase, aspartate and alanine transaminase were analysed in hepatopancreas, heamolymph and ovary of the female crabs collected from the two creeks. The results revealed that there was a significant measurable difference in these parameters in the tissues of crabs sampled from the polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) polluted site (Ennore creek) when compared with the reference site (Kovalam creek). In addition naphthalene was detected in gill, hepatopancrease, heamolymph and ovary of the crabs sampled from the polluted creek. The results indicate that the indicators selected for toxic impact in S. tranquebarica may be related to the uptake of naphthalene in the tissues examined and support the feasibility of employing these types of analyses as biochemical biomarkers for PAH contaminant-exposed organisms.

Automated measurement of lysosomal structure alterations in oocytes of mussels exposed to petroleum hydrocarbons

The present study examines the structure of the lysosomal system of mature oocytes in mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis, after a 21 day exposure to the water accommodated fraction (WAF) of two crude oils (types Ural and Maya) and of a commercial lubricant oil. The automated image analysis indicates that lysosomes, showing cytochemically demonstrable beta-glucuronidase activity, are smaller and much more numerous in oocytes of mussels treated with a 40% dose of Ural- and Lubricant-WAF when compared to controls. It is suggested that the structure of the lysosomal system of oocytes is different from that of somatic cells (i.e., digestive cells) and that budding or "fission" into smaller bodies occurs in oocyte lysosomes under certain petroleum hydrocarbon-exposure conditions. These changes in the lysosomal compartment appear to be associated to the process of gamete release or spawning.