Integrated spatial health assessment of yellow perch (Perca flavescens) populations from the St. Lawrence River (QC, Canada), part B: cellular and transcriptomic effects

Abstract

Multi-biological level assessments have become great tools to evaluate the health of aquatic ecosystems. Using this approach, a complementary study was designed to evaluate the health of yellow perch (Perca flavescens) populations in the St. Lawrence River (Quebec, Canada). In the present study, stress responses were compared at the transcriptomic, cellular, and tissue levels in yellow perch collected at six sites along the river: Lake St. François, Lake St. Louis (north and south), Beauregard Island and Lake St. Pierre (north and south). These results complement the physiological and chemical parameters as well as pathogen infection investigated in a companion paper published in the present issue. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) analyses indicated the presence of oxidative stress in fish collected in the southern part of Lake St. Louis and at the downstream sites of Lake St. Pierre. High lipid peroxidation levels were found in the muscle of yellow perch caught at Beauregard Island, located downstream of the Montreal's wastewater treatment plant, suggesting an impact of the municipal effluent on redox homeostasis. Transcriptomic results indicated the down-regulation of genes related to lipid, glucose, and retinoid in southern Lake St. Pierre as well as a decrease in retinoid storage. Overall, biochemical and molecular markers indicated that the health status of yellow perch followed a decreasing gradient from upstream to downstream of the St. Lawrence River. This gradient is representative of the cumulative negative impacts of human activities on water and habitat quality along the river.

Parasite responses to pollution: what we know and where we go in ‘Environmental Parasitology’

“…Another study utilized chemical measurements of the sediments, plus physiological biomarkers and parasites from the same individual fish [ 153 ]. Most recently, a study in a large river measured metals in surface waters, along with stable isotopes, condition, histological examination, transcriptomic and biochemical analyses and selected parasites in the same fish [ 154 , 155 ]. Marcogliese et al [ 156 ] summarizes a multidisciplinary research program, including parasitology, aimed at examining the effects of a major municipal effluent on the same large river ecosystem.…”

Transcriptome analyses in juvenile yellow perch (Perca flavescens) exposed in vivo to clothianidin and chlorantraniliprole: Possible sampling bias

“…A number of in situ studies have assessed the health of Lake St. Pierre YP population at different levels of biological organization (from gene transcription and protein activities to physiological endpoints) comparing it to other populations from upstream sites. In adult YP, results showed lower body condition index, increased liver damages as well as the presence of oxidative stress and altered retinoid metabolism at the gene and protein levels, and lower activity of acetylcholine esterase (AChE) [ 24 – 27 ]. In juveniles and larvae, similar impacts on antioxidant and retinoid metabolism were observed as well as a potential interaction of UV radiations and neonicotinoids on the fish nervous system [ 28 , 29 ].…”

Lingering Effects of Legacy Industrial Pollution on Yellow Perch of the Detroit River

“…These cover community bioindicators that rely on extensive taxonomic sampling, such as biodiversity and the presence of parasites (Giraudo et al, 2016; McQuatters‐Gollop et al, 2019; Vidal‐Martínez et al, 2010), population growth patterns that rely on extensive population sampling at different life stages (Trippel, 1995), as well as behavioral bioindicators (Bownik & Wlodkowic, 2021; Chen, 2020; Hong & Zha, 2019; Parker, 2016; Tierney et al, 2010), tissue and DNA damage (Blazer, 2002; Mix, 1986; Singh et al, 1988; Yancheva et al, 2016), and different molecular methods used to study the expression of detoxification molecules (Roesijadi, 1992; Schlenk et al, 2008) or oxidative stress responses (Hellou et al, 2012; Lushchak, 2011; Valavanidis et al, 2006). The search for new bioindicators of pollution has recently entered the era of exploratory analyses with very broad molecular coverage, including analyses of the proteome (López‐Pedrouso et al, 2020), transcriptome (Bruneau et al, 2016; Defo et al, 2018; Houde et al, 2014; Zare et al, 2018), metabolome (Bundy et al, 2009; Cappello, 2020), and gut microbiome (Evariste et al, 2019). The continued search for new bioindicators of fish health derives from limits on the quality of information obtained from most indicators used to date or constraints on their broad implementation for ecosystem management.…”