Feasibility of using interspecies relationships for integration of human and environmental hazard assessment

Abstract

In this paper we have explored the possibilities and difficulties of integrating data between ERA and HRA, in particular how toxicity in fish could inform the toxicity in other (aquatic) vertebrates and how their relative sensitivity can be used to perform the risk assessment of chemical more efficiently. With respect to acute toxicity of chemicals with a nonspecific mode of action, the sensitivity of fish seems to correlate well with that of rats. For substances interfering via a specific mode of action, extrapolation between species might be feasible provided that the molecular features of the receptors involved are known. Overall, fish species appear to be rather sensitive to chemicals interacting with the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal/thyroid axes. Fish could therefore be a good model to identify estrogenic and androgenic and thyroid active substances and to determine whether or not developmental and/or reproductive effects in vertebrates via these mode of actions can be expected. It is therefore recommended for hazard assessment of endocrine disruptors to include histopathology of the thyroid gland and analysis of thyroid hormones into a fish reproduction assay, to reduce testing on other aquatic vertebrates.