Abstract
Acutely lethal (24 h) exposure of adult rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to 4.9 μmol copper·l-1 in fresh water (pH 7.9, [Ca2+]≈0.8 mEq·l-1) caused a rapid decline of plasma Na+ and Cl- and arterial O2 tension, and initially a pronounced tachycardia. The internal hypoxia probably resulted from histopathologies observed in the gills of fish exposed to copper, such as cell swelling, thickening and curling of the lamellae, and haematomas. Copper cannot therefore be considered purely as an ionoregulatory toxicant during acutely lethal conditions. Mortality during exposure to copper could not simply be explained by the plasma ionic dilution, nor by the internal hypoxia, since arterial O2 content remained relatively unchanged. Secondary to the ionoregulatory and respiratory disturbances were a number of deleterious physiological responses which included a massive haemoconcentration (haematocrit values as high as 60%) and a doubling of the mean arterial blood pressure. The time-course of these changes suggest that cardiac failure was the final cause of death. In this respect copper exposure resembles low pH exposure in freshwater trout (Milligan and Wood 1982). Copper and H+ appear to be similar in both the primary site of their toxic action (the gills) and the secondary physiological consequences which result from acutely lethal exposures. Furthermore, the acute toxicity syndrome observed may be common to many metals which cause ionoregulatory and/or respiratory problems in freshwater fish.
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Abbreviations
- C aO2 :
-
arterial oxygen content
- FR:
-
water flow rate
- Hb:
-
haemoglobin
- Hct:
-
haematocrit
- ΔH +m :
-
net metabolic acid load
- IU:
-
international unit
- MABP:
-
mean arterial blood pressure
- MCHC:
-
mean corpuscular haemoglobin content
- MO2 :
-
rate of oxygen consumption
- P aCO2 :
-
arterial carbon dioxide tension
- P aO2 :
-
arterial oxygen partial pressure
- T amm :
-
total ammonia (=NH3+NH +4 )
- TCO2 :
-
total carbon dioxide
- TOC:
-
total organic carbon
- %Hb−O2 :
-
percentage of haemoglobin saturated with oxygen
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Wilson, R.W., Taylor, E.W. The physiological responses of freshwater rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, during acutely lethal copper exposure. J Comp Physiol B 163, 38–47 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00309663
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00309663