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Structural and functional changes in the zebrafish (Danio rerio) skeletal muscle after cadmium exposure

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Abstract

This report describes the alterations induced by an environmentally realistic concentration of cadmium in skeletal muscle fibre organization, composition, and function in the teleost zebrafish. Results demonstrate that the ion induces a significant quantitative and qualitative deterioration, disrupting sarcomeric pattern and altering glycoprotein composition. These events, together with a mitochondrial damage, result in a significant reduction in swimming performance. In conclusion, the evidence here collected indicate that in presence of an environmental cadmium contamination, important economic (yields in fisheries/aquaculture), consumer health (fish is an important source of proteins), and ecological (reduced fitness due to reduced swimming performance) consequences can be expected.

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Abbreviations

MS222:

Tricaine methanesulfonate

PAS:

Periodic acid–Schiff

LEA:

Lycopersicon esculentum agglutinin

UEA-1:

Ulex europaeus agglutinin-1

LCA:

Lens culinaris agglutinin

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Dr. S. Sorbo and Dr. B. Saccomanno, C.I.S.M.E., Naples for the technical support and Dr. Ted Howell for the critical reading of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Via Mezzocannone 8, Naples, 80134, Italy

    Bice Avallone, Claudio Agnisola, Raimondo Cerciello, Raffaele Panzuto & Chiara Maria Motta

  2. Department of Biophysics, GSI Helmholtz Center for Heavy Ion Research, Darmstadt, 64291, Germany

    Palma Simoniello

  3. Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy

    Patrizia Cretì

Authors
  1. Bice Avallone
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  2. Claudio Agnisola
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  3. Raimondo Cerciello
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  4. Raffaele Panzuto
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  5. Palma Simoniello
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  6. Patrizia Cretì
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  7. Chiara Maria Motta
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Correspondence to Bice Avallone.

Ethics declarations

The experiments were carried out in compliance with ethical provisions established by the EU Directive 2010/63/EU for animal experiment and in accordance with the “Guideline for Animal Experimentation” of the Italian Department of Health. They were organized to minimize stress and numbers of animals used and were approved by the Animal Care Review Board of the University of Naples Federico II.

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Avallone, B., Agnisola, C., Cerciello, R. et al. Structural and functional changes in the zebrafish (Danio rerio) skeletal muscle after cadmium exposure. Cell Biol Toxicol 31, 273–283 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10565-015-9310-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10565-015-9310-0

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