High hydrostatic pressure influences the in vitro response to xenobiotics in Dicentrarchus labrax liver

In vitro Lipolysis and Leptin Production of Elephant Seal Blubber Using Precision-Cut Adipose Tissue Slices

Adipose tissue plays key roles in energy homeostasis. Understanding its metabolism and regulation is essential to predict the impact of environmental changes on wildlife health, especially in fasting-adapted species. However, in vivo experimental work in wild vertebrates can be challenging. We have developed a novel in vitro approach of precision-cut adipose tissue slices from northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris) as a complementary approach to whole animal models. Blubber biopsies were collected from 14 pups during early and late post-weaning fast (Año Nuevo, CA, United States), precision-cut into 1 mm thick slices and maintained in culture at 37°C for at least 63 h. The slices exhibited an efficient response to ß-adrenergic stimulation, even after 2 days of culture, revealing good in vitro tissue function. The response to lipolytic stimulus did not vary between regions of outer and inner blubber, but was higher at early than at late fast for inner blubber slices. At early fast, lipolysis significantly reduced leptin production. At this stage, inner blubber slices were also more efficient at producing leptin than outer blubber slices, especially in the non-lipolytic condition. This model will aid the study of adipose tissue metabolism and its response to environmental stressors in marine mammals.

Combined effects of high hydrostatic pressure and dispersed oil on the metabolism and the mortality of turbot hepatocytes (Scophthalmus maximus)

Since the DeepWater Horizon oil spill and the use at 1450 m depth of dispersant as a technical response, the need of relevant ecotoxicological data on deep-sea ecosystems becomes crucial. In this context, this study focused on the effect of high hydrostatic pressure (10.1 MPa) on turbot hepatocytes isolated from fish exposed either to chemically dispersed oil, mechanically dispersed oil or dispersant alone. Potential combined effects of oil/dispersant and hydrostatic pressure, were assessed on cell mortality (total cell death, necrosis and apoptosis), cell viability and on hepatocyte oxygen consumption (MO₂). No change in cell mortality was observed in any of the experimental conditions, whereas, the results of cell viability showed a strong and significant increase in the two oil groups independently of the pressure exposure. Finally, oil exposure and hydrostatic pressure have additive effects on oxygen consumption at a cellular level. Presence of dispersant prevent any MO₂ increase in our experimental conditions. These mechanistic effects leading to this increased energetic demand and its eventual inhibition by dispersant must be investigated in further experiments.

Measuring the biological impact of drilling waste on the deep seafloor: An experimental challenge

The depletion of traditional oil fields is driving the oil & gas industry to explore new exploitation sites previously considered as unprofitable. Deep-sea oil fields represent one of these new areas of exploitation. Well drilling during exploration and production operations generate large quantities of drilling waste whose biological impact on the deep-sea floor remains largely unknown. Because of the harsh abiotic factors characterizing this environment, the evaluation of this impact remains challenging. High hydrostatic pressure is the prominent factor which will affect in-situ biological processes. This review will examine the feedback on the various strategies used to evaluate the biological impact of deep-sea drilling waste deposition as well as the current technological limitations. Given the complexity of this issue, a good perspective strategy would be to trend towards the research and development of more relevant bioassays, especially considering the crucial factor of hydrostatic pressure.

Deep-sea versus shallow conditions: a comparative ecobarotoxicological study

In the context of new oil exploration/production areas, knowledge of the biological impact of dispersed oil in the deep-sea environment is essential. Hence, the aim of this study was to perform a comparison, at atmospheric pressure (0.1 MPa) and at a high hydrostatic pressure corresponding to 1000 m depth (10.1 MPa), of lethal concentrations (LC) on a model fish, Scophthalmus maximus, exposed to chemically dispersed oil. Fish were exposed concomitantly at 0.1 and 10.1 MPa using two exposure tanks connected to the same source tank thanks to a closed circuit. Acute toxicity was evaluated at 24 h through the determination of LC₁₀ and LC₅₀ (respectively, 10 and 50% of mortality) calculated from measured total petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations in the water. No statistical differences were observed between the LC₁₀ at 0.1 MPa (46.1 mg L^- 1) and the LC₁₀ at 10.1 MPa (31.0 mg L^- 1), whereas the LC₅₀ of fish exposed to 0.1 MPa (90.8 mg L^- 1) was significantly higher than the LC₅₀ at 10.1 MPa (50.9 mg L^- 1). These results clearly show an increase in oil toxicity under high hydrostatic pressure. This effect may be due to synergistic effects of pressure and oil contamination on fish energetic metabolism.

Precision-Cut Tissue Slices (PCTS) from the digestive gland of the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis: An ex vivo approach for molecular and cellular responses in marine invertebrates

The precision-cut tissue slices (PCTS) represent a largely used biological model in mammalian research. This ex vivo approach offers the main advantages of in vitro systems, while maintaining the natural architecture of the tissue. The use of PCTS in toxicological research has been proposed for investigating the cellular effects of xenobiotics or bioactive compounds mostly in mammalian models. Their application is increasing also in marine organisms, but still limited to fish. This work validates the use of PCTS in an invertebrate species, the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis. Intact tissue slices of different thicknesses (300, 350 and 400 μm) were successfully obtained from the digestive gland. The slices maintained the histological integrity and the viability after 6 h and 24 h incubation in culture medium, with some differences depending on the thickness. The enzymatic activities and mRNA levels of catalase and glutathione S-transferase, chosen as model biological endpoints, were measured until 24 h incubation, revealing the functionality of such systems. This work demonstrates the suitability of mussel PCTS for investigating molecular and cellular responses in ecotoxicological research.

The sensitivity of a deep-sea fish species (Anoplopoma fimbria) to oil-associated aromatic compounds, dispersant, and Alaskan North Slope crude oil

A predominant concern following oil spills is toxicity to aquatic organisms. However, few data are available on effects in deep-sea cold water fishes. The present study had 3 major objectives. The first was to investigate the relative sensitivity of the deep-sea species Anoplopoma fimbria (sablefish) to acute effects of 3 aromatic compounds (toluene, 2-methylnaphthalene, and phenanthrene), dispersant alone, and chemically enhanced water accommodated fractions (CEWAFs) of Alaskan North Slope crude oil. The second was to determine the critical target lipid body burden (CTLBB) for sablefish by fitting aromatic hydrocarbon toxicity data to the target lipid model (TLM), which then allowed expression of CEWAF exposures in terms of dissolved oil toxic units. The final aim was to apply a passive sampling method that targets bioavailable, dissolved hydrocarbons as an alternative analytical technique for improved CEWAF exposure assessment. The results indicate that sablefish exhibit sensitivity to Corexit 9500 (96-h median lethal concentration [LC50] = 72.2 mg/L) within the range reported for other fish species. However, the acute CTLBB of 39.4 ± 2.1 μmol/g_octanol lies at the lower end of the sensitivity range established for aquatic species. The utility of both toxic units and passive sampling measurements for describing observed toxicity of dispersed oil is discussed. The present study is novel in that a new test species is investigated to address the uncertainty regarding the sensitivity of deep-sea fishes, while also employing modeling and measurements to improve exposure characterization in oil toxicity tests. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;37:2210-2221. © 2018 SETAC.

Hydrostatic pressure and the experimental toxicology of marine fishes: The elephant in the room

Hydrostatic pressure (HP) increases linearly with depth in aquatic environments, so that many fish species routinely experience moderate-to-high HP levels (i.e., from a few to dozens of MPa). Biological effects of this thermodynamic variable are evidenced by a reduced functionality of many biomolecular systems, even in barotolerant and barophilic species. It is likely that environmentally-relevant HP levels (i.e., above atmospheric) could also modulate the responsiveness to and toxic effects of pollutants in fish. Still, only a few laboratories have investigated this possibility. The already-published ecobarotoxicological studies have brought strong support to the notion that HP can indeed modulate pollutant response in shallow-water and deep-sea animals. A careful reassessment of toxicity responses is therefore required. To quantify the exact influence of HP in marine fish toxicology, a research framework is proposed that should ensure the collection of meaningful data for risk assessment, using standard toxicity testing and mechanistic approaches.