Putative Roles for Metallothionein and HSP70 Genes in Relation with Heavy Metal Accumulation and Parasitic Cymothoid in the Fish Nemipterus furcosus
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Date
2016
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology
Abstract
To assess stress level induced by multiple
stressors in aquatic organism, biomarkers have been
adopted as early warning indicator due to their high
accuracy, rapidity, and sensitivity. We investigated the
effects of ectoparasitic isopod infection on heavy metal
bioaccumulation (Fe, Cu, Zn, and Cd) in the fish Nemipterus
furcosus and profiled the expression of metallothionein
(MT) and heat shock proteins 70 (HSP70) genes of
the fish host. Sixty individuals (parasitized and nonparasitized
with Cymothoa truncata) were collected from three
sites differing in the levels of anthropogenic activities off
the South China Sea. Our results revealed no significant
difference in heavy metal concentrations between infected
and nonparasitized fish. We observed a positive correlation
between heavy metal bioaccumulation in the fish host and
anthropogenic activities. Accordingly, expression analysis
of MT genes in fish liver showed significant differences in
expression level between sampling sites, with lowest level
in the least exploited site (Batu Rakit). A reverse pattern in
HSP70 gene expression was demonstrated in fish muscle,
showing the highest expression at Batu Rakit. While
cymothoid infection in N. furcosus had no significant
impact on fish MT gene expression, it resulted in a
reduction of HSP70 level in liver of parasitized fish. These
findings highlight the putative roles of MT in heavy metal
assessment. Future studies should determine the kinetics of
cymothoid infection and other potential stressors in characterizing
the HSP70 gene expression profile.
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Citation
Vol.71(4); 350-240 p.