A fish hepatocyte model for the investigation of the effects of environmental contaminants

Abstract

An isolated fish hepatocyte culture system was developed as a models ystem to investigate the mechanisms of action of environmental contaminants. Hepatocytes were isolated from striped bass ( Morone saxatilis) by an adaptation of the two stage perfusion technique of Seglen. 1 The system was used to evaluate metal binding protein (MBP) induction in response to cadmium, a primary inducer of metallothionein (MT) in rat hepatocytes. Striped bass hepatocytes appeared to be refractory to the induction of MBP by cadmium, since there was no significant increase in the synthesis of MBP for any of the doses at any of the time points investigated. However, when a similar experiment was performed using rat hepatocytes there was induction of MBP that was related to both dose and time. These comparative experiments indicate that although there are similarities between the hepatocytes of the two species in regard to 35S incorporation into low molecular weight metal-binding proteins, there appear to be significant quantitative differences as well in regard to MBP kinetics. This in vitro model system could potentially be utilized to investigate the toxicological properties of other environmental contaminants.