Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent

Sewage effluent has been identified as a major source of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in the aquatic environment. The modified hemal spines (modified skeletal structures important in reproduction) of mosquitofish, Gambusia spp. have been shown to beunder androgenic control and to be affecte...

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Main Authors: Rawson, Christopher, Lim, R., Warne, M.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/14272
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author Rawson, Christopher
Lim, R.
Warne, M.
author_facet Rawson, Christopher
Lim, R.
Warne, M.
author_sort Rawson, Christopher
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Sewage effluent has been identified as a major source of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in the aquatic environment. The modified hemal spines (modified skeletal structures important in reproduction) of mosquitofish, Gambusia spp. have been shown to beunder androgenic control and to be affected by exposure to estrogen. The current study aimed to investigate the effects of two sewage treatment plants (STPs) in Sydney, Australia on the morphology of hemal spines in populations of Gambusia holbrooki and on the abilityof the fish to reach sexual maturity. The effluent from the two STPs had different effects on the hemal spines of males. At St. Marys differences in hemal spine morphology between fish upstream and downstream of the STP were not attributable to effluent from the STP.At Quakers Hill, results suggest that the effluent is generally estrogenic to G. holbrooki. There was a decrease in the proportion of males that were morphologically mature downstream of both STPs indicating potential population level effects that were associated with thepresence of the STPs.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-142722017-02-28T01:26:04Z Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent Rawson, Christopher Lim, R. Warne, M. Sewage treatment plant Gambusia holbrooki Hemal spines Endocrine disruption Australia Estrogenic Sewage effluent has been identified as a major source of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in the aquatic environment. The modified hemal spines (modified skeletal structures important in reproduction) of mosquitofish, Gambusia spp. have been shown to beunder androgenic control and to be affected by exposure to estrogen. The current study aimed to investigate the effects of two sewage treatment plants (STPs) in Sydney, Australia on the morphology of hemal spines in populations of Gambusia holbrooki and on the abilityof the fish to reach sexual maturity. The effluent from the two STPs had different effects on the hemal spines of males. At St. Marys differences in hemal spine morphology between fish upstream and downstream of the STP were not attributable to effluent from the STP.At Quakers Hill, results suggest that the effluent is generally estrogenic to G. holbrooki. There was a decrease in the proportion of males that were morphologically mature downstream of both STPs indicating potential population level effects that were associated with thepresence of the STPs. 2008 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/14272 Elsevier restricted
spellingShingle Sewage treatment plant
Gambusia holbrooki
Hemal spines
Endocrine disruption
Australia
Estrogenic
Rawson, Christopher
Lim, R.
Warne, M.
Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
title Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
title_full Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
title_fullStr Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
title_full_unstemmed Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
title_short Skeletal morphology and maturation of male Gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
title_sort skeletal morphology and maturation of male gambusia holbrooki exposed to sewage treatment plant effluent
topic Sewage treatment plant
Gambusia holbrooki
Hemal spines
Endocrine disruption
Australia
Estrogenic
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/14272