Effect of oil pollution on serum growth hormone (GH) levels,histology and Ultrastructure of muscles of the Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

Abstract

ver the last decades, there has been a growing interest in studying the main problems that could be harmful to the River Nile system in Egypt. Attention was paid to one of the most important problems that face the River Nile, this is called River Nile transport project. So the main objective of the present study was to investigate the adverse effects that can result from spilled gasoline as petroleum product from various motor ships into the River Nile on one of the most important popular fishes in Egypt, Oreochromis niloticus to ascertain whether spilled gasoline into aquatic ecosystems can affect on the aquatic biota or not and to identify any potential public health risks that can be associated with dietary intake of such fish by histological and ultrastructural studies on its edible muscles. Levels of the growth hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which is essential to the development of skeletal muscles and growth rate was also examined. So, the fish were exposed to increasing concentrations of gasoline: 0 (control), 100, 200 and 500 mg/L for 30 days. Unexposed fish exhibited significantly higher levels of serum GH compared to that of tested fish. The GH levels decreased significantly with increasing gasoline concentrations. These data together indicate that Gasoline presents a hazardous substance for both the fish as well as the human consumers . Finally, the results revealed that the River Nile transport project can lead to serious harm to fish community that eventually become unsafe for human consumption. Therefore, this project must be carefully revised forbidden by health agencies.