Light and scanning electron microscopic cytopathology of 3, 5-dichlorophenol in the permanent fish cell line RTG-2

Development and characterization of a new gill cell line from the striped catfish, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Sauvage, 1878)

Cell lines as an in vitro model developed from different target organs of fish find their use in virus susceptibility, cytotoxicity, gene expression studies. The striped catfish, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, is one of the main species in aquaculture, especially in Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Indonesia, China, India, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. The present study reports the development of a new permanent cell line from the gills of P. hypophthalmus designated as PHG and its application in toxicological research. Leibovitz's L-15 cell culture medium supplemented with 15% fetal bovine serum (FBS) was used to maintain cell line PHG. The morphology of the PHG cell line was observed fibroblastic-like. PHG cells grew well at varying temperatures ranging from 24 to 30 °C with an optimum temperature of 28 °C. The PHG cell line was characterized using a sequence of mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase subunit I, which authenticated the species of origin of the cell line. The cell line was transfected with a pEGFP-C1 plasmid, and the transfection reporter gene was successfully expressed 48 h post-transfection with 9% transfection efficiency. The toxicity assessment of two organophosphate pesticides, chlorpyrifos, and malathion using the PHG cell line revealed that the two organophosphate pesticides were cytotoxic to the cell line at varying concentrations.

Evaluation of the effect of 2,4-dichlorophenol on oxidative parameters and viability of human blood mononuclear cells (in vitro)

2,4-Dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) is formed in drinking water as a result of its chlorination, and it is created in the environment during transformation of various xenobiotics such as triclosan or herbicide 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). The molecular mechanism depicting the action of phenolic compounds on nucleated blood cells has been insufficiently studied, and therefore, we have assessed the effect of 2,4-DCP on the structure and viability of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). We have evaluated necrotic, apoptotic, and morphological changes (alterations in the size and granulation) in PBMCs incubated with 2,4-DCP in the concentration ranging from 10 to 500 µg mL−1 for 4 h at 37°C. Moreover, we have estimated changes in reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, lipid peroxidation, and protein carbonylation in the incubated cells. We have noted that 2,4-DCP increased ROS formation and lipid peroxidation (from 10 µg mL−1) and oxidized proteins (from 50 µg mL−1) in PBMCs. The compound studied also provoked apoptotic (from 50 µg mL−1), necrotic (from 100 µg mL−1) and alterations in the size and granulation (from 50 µg mL−1) in the incubated cells. The analysis of quinolinium 4-[(3-methyl-2(3 H)-benzoxazolylidene)methyl]-1-[3-(trimethyl-ammonio)-propyl]-diiodide/propidium iodide staining revealed that 2,4-DCP (50–250 µg mL−1) more strongly increased the number of apoptotic than necrotic cells, which suggests that this cell death type is mainly provoked by this compound in PBMCs. The observed changes were caused by relatively high concentrations of 2,4-DCP, which cannot influence human organism during environmental exposure and thus may only occur as a result of acute or subacute poisoning with this compound.

In vitro cytotoxicity assessment of two heavy metal salts in a fish cell line (RF)

Labeo rohita (rohu) is one of most important of Indian major carps, which is highly ranked among the important freshwater aquaculture species in the world. Heavy metals are major risk factors for aquatic health, which are biomagnified through the food chain. The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of different divalent salts of two heavy metals, such as zinc (ZnCl(2), ZnSO(4) and ZnNO(3)) and cadmium (CdCl(2) and CdSO(4)), in an established fish cell line, RF developed from fin tissue of L. rohita. The RF cell line was used for assessment of heavy metal cytotoxicity through various endpoint assays, including maximum tolerated dose (MTD) determination, 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, neutral red (NR) uptake assay, and Coomassie brilliant blue (CBB) assay. Results revealed that these heavy metal salts were cytotoxic to the RF cell line at varied concentrations. MTD values were found to be 1.563, 3.125, 6.25, 12.5 and 25 mg/L for CdCl(2), CdSO(4), ZnCl(2), Zn(NO(3))(2) and ZnSO(4), respectively. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration values calculated by MTT, NR and CB assay were 53.83 ± 7.02, 58.03 ± 9.12 and 79.20 ± 15.27 for ZnSO(4), 26.44 ± 7.01, 36.60 ± 7.82 and 155.6 ± 14.75 for Zn(NO(3))(2), 20.26 ± 17.95, 16.94 ± 7.05 and 87.54 ± 7.58 for ZnCl(2), 5.166 ± 0.57, 15 ± 1 and 41.80 ± 8.38 for CdSO(4) and 4.966 ± 0.56, 9.56 ± 1.73 and 20.93 ± 4.47 for CdCl(2). This study establishes the RF cell line as an in vitro tool for assessment and monitoring of heavy metal concentration in the aquatic environment.

In vitro cytotoxicity testing of three zinc metal salts using established fish cell lines

The utilisation of fish cell lines has proven to be a valuable, rapid and cost-effective tool in the ecotoxicological assessment of chemicals and environmental samples. The main objective of this study was to investigate the value of multiple endpoint measurements in evaluating the cytotoxicity of three divalent zinc salts in three established fish cell lines (EPC, CHSE and RTG-2) and the potential for their employment as effective screening tools for zinc contaminated environmental samples. A significant stimulatory effect was detected with the neutral red assay in EPC and RTG-2 cells exposed to the lower doses of some zinc compounds. Significant (p < or = 0.01) lactate dehydrogenase release was detectable only with the highest exposure concentration of ZnCl2. Toxicity ranking based on IC50 values calculated from the neutral red and coomassie blue assay data found that in general, ZnC2 was the most cytotoxic metal compound to the cell lines employed. Differential cell sensitivities were observed to be dependant on the particular compound tested and the endpoint employed. It was found that the use of light microscopy in the identification of cell morphological changes was a valuable adjunct in verifying the results of colorimetric tests. In conclusion, careful consideration should be given to study design and statistics applied and use of a battery style approach is recommended for toxicological screening studies.