Effects of heavy metal pollution on pigmented macrophages in kidney of Vardar chub (Squalius vardarensis Karaman)

Jordanova, Maja; Rebok, Katerina; Dragun, Zrinka; Ramani, Sheriban; Ivanova, Lozenka; Kostov, Vasil; Valić, Damir; Krasnići, Nesrete; Filipović Marijić, Vlatka; Kapetanović, Damir (2017) Effects of heavy metal pollution on pigmented macrophages in kidney of Vardar chub (Squalius vardarensis Karaman). Microscopy Research and Technique, 80 (8). pp. 930-935. ISSN 1059-910X

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Official URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/je...

Abstract

Freshwater pollution with heavy metals may influence the immune system of fish, leading to impairment of their health or even to increase of their mortality. The fish kidney is one of the first fish organs to be affected by water contamination. Amounts of kidney macrophages (MACs), which are involved in fish immune response, as well as the qualitative and quantitative changes in the pigmented MACs in fish kidney, are used as biomarkers of pollution. Therefore, in this study we have evaluated relative and total volumes of trunk kidney pigmented MACs, and analyzed the pigments accumulated within them, in Vardar chub (Squalius vardarensis Karaman) sampled from two mining impacted rivers, Kriva and Zletovska, highly contaminated with heavy metals, and from one reference river, Bregalnica, in spring and autumn of 2012. We have observed that main pigments found in kidney MACs of Vardar chub were melanin and lipofuscin/ceroid, as well as that relative volumes of MACs ranged from 0.56-1.68%. Moreover, the results showed that relative volumes of pigmented MACs were higher in metal contaminated rivers, especially in autumn season in the Zletovska River, concurrently with extremely high metal exposure. In addition, condition factors and kidney somatic indices were found significantly lower in the Zletovska River in both seasons, autumn and spring, possibly also as a consequence of high water pollution. Our data confirm that increase in relative volumes of pigmented MACs may serve as warning sign of potential heavy metal pollution in aquatic environment.

Item Type:

Article

Additional Information:

This study has been financially supported by the Ministry of Science, Education and Sport of the Republic of Croatia (projects No. 098-0982934-2721 and 098-0982934-2752) and particularly by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Macedonia (project No. 16-11935/1).

Uncontrolled Keywords:

heavy metals; macrophage; pigments; river pollution; trunk kidney; Vardar chub

Subjects:

NATURAL SCIENCES > Biology
NATURAL SCIENCES > Interdisciplinary Natural Sciences
NATURAL SCIENCES > Interdisciplinary Natural Sciences > Environmental Science
BIOMEDICINE AND HEALTHCARE > Veterinary Medicine

Divisions:

Division for Marine and Enviromental Research

Projects:

Project title	Project leader	Project code	Project type
Croatian-Macedonian bilateral project “The assessment of the availability and effects of metals on fish in the rivers under the impact of mining activities”	Zrinka Dragun	UNSPECIFIED	Bilateral
Croatian-Macedonian bilateral project “Bacterial and parasitical communities of chub as indicators of the status of environment exposed to mining activities”	Damir Kapetanović	UNSPECIFIED	Bilateral
Stanične promjene u vodnih organizama pobuđene metalima-	Marijana Erk	098-0982934-2721	MZOS
Patologija organizama iz voda u odnosu na zagađivala i akvakulturu-	Damir Kapetanović	098-0982934-2752	MZOS