Abstract
Metallothionein (MT), a ubiquitously distributed cysteine-rich metal binding protein, is considered to play an essential role in the regulation of intracellular metals. MT is also induced in tissues following heavy metal exposure and may serve as a defense mechanism as well as a bioindicator of environmental exposure to toxic metals. MT mRNA expression was characterized in non-spawning and spawning killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) following an eight day starvation, or waterborne Cd (CdCl2) and starvation exposure. Hepatic, gill, and intestinal MT mRNA, expressed as copy number per μg total RNA, was assessed by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and electrochemiluminescence. While no significant difference in liver, gill or intestine MT mRNA expression was observed in starved killifish compared to fed killifish during either reproductive season, a significant (p<0.05) increase in gill MT mRNA expression was observed in killifish exposed to starvation and waterborne Cd compared to killifish exposed to starvation alone during the non-spawning season.
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