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Reproductive effects of life-cycle exposure to difenoconazole on female marine medaka (Oryzias melastigma)

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Abstract

Difenoconazole (DFZ) is a widely used triazole fungicide which has been detected in some estuaries and embayments. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of DFZ on ovarian development in female marine medaka (Oryzias melastigma). After 180 days exposure of the embryo to DFZ (0, 1, 10, 100 and 1000 ng/L), the gonadosomatic index and percentage of mature oocytes produced were significantly reduced in the 1, 10 and 100 ng/L treatments but not the 1000 ng/L treatment compared to the control, thus exhibiting a U-shaped dose response curve. The relative mRNA levels of brain follicle-stimulating hormone, ovarian cytochrome P450 aromatase (CYP19s), hepatic estrogen receptors and vitellogenin, and the ratio of 17β-estradiol to testosterone in the muscle, also showed a U-shaped dose response, which was consistent with the development of oocytes. In addition, glutathione S-transferase activity in the ovary showed a U-shaped dose-response. These results gave an explanation for this U-shaped dose-response. The egg number produced, the hatch ability and the swim-up success in the F1 generation all showed a U-shaped dose response, indicating that exposure to DFZ at low concentrations can cause a decrease of fecundity and viability of the next generation. Thus, a more extensive evaluation of the impact of DFZ on marine fish reproduction at realistic environmental concentrations is needed.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41376118). Professor John Hodgkiss is thanked for his assistance with English.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, PR China

    Xiaocui Dong, Zhenghong Zuo, Jiaojiao Guo, Hongbin Li, Zhibin Yang & Chonggang Wang

  2. Key Laboratory of the Coastal and Wetland Ecosystems, Xiamen University, Ministry of Education, Xiamen, PR China

    Lemeng Zhang & Meng Chen

  3. State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, PR China

    Chonggang Wang

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  1. Xiaocui Dong
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  2. Zhenghong Zuo
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  3. Jiaojiao Guo
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  4. Hongbin Li
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  5. Lemeng Zhang
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  6. Meng Chen
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Correspondence to Chonggang Wang.

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The procedures described in the present paper respect national and international safety regulations and ethical principles for animal welfare.

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Dong, X., Zuo, Z., Guo, J. et al. Reproductive effects of life-cycle exposure to difenoconazole on female marine medaka (Oryzias melastigma). Ecotoxicology 26, 772–781 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-017-1808-1

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