The Relationship between Integrated Biochemical Index and Content of Organochlorine Xenobiotics in the Liver of the Black Scorpion Fish Scorpaena porcus Linnaeus, 1758, from Sevastopol Bays and Coastal Areas

Abstract

Despite the ban on the use of organochlorine compounds (OCs), they are still widely distributed in various components of the Black Sea ecosystem, including fish. Sevastopol marine area, as a region of active economic use, is subject to significant anthropogenic impact. To assess the condition of the Black Sea scorpion fish Scorpaena porcus Linnaeus, 1758, from Sevastopol bays (Aleksandrovskaya, Streletskaya, Balaklavskaya, and Kazach’ia) and coastal areas (Laspi bay and Lyubimovka region), the liver of fish was analyzed to compare integrated biomarker response (IBR) and the concentrations of OCs: six indicator congeners of polychlorinated biphenyls (ΣPCB6) and organochlorine pesticides – р,p’-DDT and its metabolites p,p’-DDE and p,p’-DDD (ΣDDT). High concentrations of PCBs and DDTs were found in fish liver from Alexandrovskaya and Streletskaya bays, which are subject to significant anthropogenic impact: 2044 and 2019 ng/g wet weight for ΣPCB6 and 162 and 319 ng/g wet weight for ΣDDT, respectively. To determine the response of scorpion fish to the level of pollution, the liver of fish was analyzed to measure such biochemical markers as cholinesterase and catalase activities, albumin content, and the levels of oxidized proteins and lipid peroxidation. The set of these biochemical markers was used to calculate IBR. IBR correlated well with the ΣPCB6 concentration in sediments and liver of scorpion fish (r=0.95, p<0.05). The maximum IBR was determined in the most polluted Alexandrovskaya and Streletskaya bays, where it was two orders of magnitude higher than the IBR in Laspi bay. Based on IBR values, the fish from Laspi and Kazach’ia bays and from the coastal area of Lyubimovka were in better condition than the fish from Alexandrovskaya, Streletskaya, and Balaklavskaya bays in summer seasons of 2016-2018