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Responses and recovery pattern of sex steroid hormones in testis of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) exposed to sublethal concentration of methomyl

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Abstract

Tilapia were exposed to sublethal methomyl concentrations of 0, 0.2, 2, 20 or 200 μg/L for 30 days, and then transferred to methomyl-free water for 18 days. The sexual steroid hormones 17β-estradiol (E2), testosterone (T), and 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) in tilapia testes were examined at 0, 6, 12, 18, 24 and 30 days after methomyl exposure, and at 18 days after fish were transferred to methomyl-free water. There were no significant changes in the hormone parameters in testes of tilapia exposed to low concentration 0.2 and 2 μg/L methomyl compared with the controls. However, high concentration 20 and 200 μg/L methomyl had the potential to disrupt the endocrine system of male tilapia, as shown by an increase in E2 and a decrease in T and 11-KT in the testes. Thus, it would appear that the 2 μg/L methomyl might be considered the no-observed-adverse-effect level. Recovery data showed that the effects produced by the lower concentration of 20 μg/L were reversible but the effects were not reversible at the higher concentration of 200 μg/L.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge support from Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province for Youth (No.BK20150117), Special Scientific Research Funds for Central Non-profit Institutes, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences (No.2015C02XK01) and China Agriculture Research System (No.CARS-49) for the financial supports.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Freshwater Fisheries Research Center, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Wuxi, 214081, P.R. China

    Shun Long Meng, Li Ping Qiu, Geng Dong Hu, Li Min Fan, Chao Song, Yao Zheng, Wei Wu, Jian Hong Qu, Dan Dan Li, Jia Zhang Chen & Pao Xu

  2. Laboratory of Quality & Safety Risk Assessment for Aquatic Products on Environmental Factors, Ministry of Agriculture, Wuxi, 214081, P.R. China

    Shun Long Meng, Li Ping Qiu, Geng Dong Hu, Li Min Fan, Chao Song, Yao Zheng, Wei Wu, Jian Hong Qu, Dan Dan Li, Jia Zhang Chen & Pao Xu

  3. Key Laboratory of Fishery Eco-environment Assessment and Resource Conservation in Middle and Lower Reaches of the Yangtze River, CAFS, Wuxi, 214081, P.R. China

    Shun Long Meng, Li Ping Qiu, Geng Dong Hu, Li Min Fan, Chao Song, Yao Zheng, Wei Wu, Jian Hong Qu, Dan Dan Li, Jia Zhang Chen & Pao Xu

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  1. Shun Long Meng
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Correspondence to Jia Zhang Chen or Pao Xu.

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This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors. All applicable international, national, and or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

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Meng, S.L., Qiu, L.P., Hu, G.D. et al. Responses and recovery pattern of sex steroid hormones in testis of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) exposed to sublethal concentration of methomyl. Ecotoxicology 25, 1805–1811 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-016-1726-7

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