Enantioselective Toxicity in Adult Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Induced by Chiral PCB91 through Multiple Pathways

Tingting Chai, Feng Cui, Yue Song, Linlin Ye, Tiantian Li, Jing Qiu, Xingquan Liu

Index: 10.1021/acs.est.8b00023

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Abstract

This study aimed to further investigate the toxic mechanism of chiral polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) 91 in adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) exposed to racemic (rac-), (+)-, or (−)-PCB91 for 63 days. The enantioselective mortalities of adult zebrafish exposed to rac-/(+)-/(−)-PCB91 were 95.86, 50.08, and 81.50%, respectively. Tubular necrosis and cellular hypertrophy occurred in the kidneys of (−)-PCB91-treated groups, whereas demyelination and immune cell infiltration occurred in brains of the rac-, (+)-, and (−)-PCB91-treated groups. Additionally, exposure to chiral PCB91 enantioselectively induced neurotoxicity, apoptosis, and inflammation in brain tissues owing to perturbations of gene expression, protein content and sphingolipid levels. The high mortality after rac-/(+)-PCB91 exposure might be due to toxic effects on brain tissue, while the high mortality after (−)-PCB91 exposure might be due to toxic effects on kidney as well as brain tissues. Thus, our findings offer an important reference for elucidating the enantioselective toxicological mechanism of chiral PCBs in aquatic organisms.