Dataset Information

Effects of Agricultural Pesticides in Aquafeeds on Wild Fish Feeding on Leftover Pellets Near Fish Farms.

ABSTRACT: Screening has revealed that modern-day feeds used in Atlantic salmon aquaculture might contain trace amounts of agricultural pesticides. To reach slaughter size, salmon are produced in open net pens in the sea. Uneaten feed pellets and undigested feces deposited beneath the net pens represent a source of contamination for marine organisms. To examine the impacts of long-term and continuous dietary exposure to an organophosphorus pesticide found in Atlantic salmon feed, we fed juvenile Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), an abundant species around North Atlantic fish farms, three concentrations (0.5, 4.2, and 23.2 mg/kg) of chlorpyrifos-methyl (CPM) for 30 days. Endpoints included liver and bile bioaccumulation, liver transcriptomics and metabolomics, as well as plasma cholinesterase activity, cortisol, liver 7-ethoxyresor-ufin-O-deethylase activity, and hypoxia tolerance. The results show that Atlantic cod can accumulate relatively high levels of CPM in liver after continuous exposure, which is then metabolized and excreted via the bile. All three exposure concentrations lead to significant inhibition of plasma cholinesterase activity, the primary target of CPM. Transcriptomics profiling pointed to effects on cholesterol and steroid biosynthesis. Metabolite profiling revealed that CPM induced responses reflecting detoxification by glutathione-S-transferase, inhibition of monoacylglycerol lipase, potential inhibition of carboxylesterase, and increased demand for ATP, followed by secondary inflammatory responses. A gradual hypoxia challenge test showed that all groups of exposed fish were less tolerant to low oxygen saturation than the controls. In conclusion, this study suggests that wild fish continuously feeding on leftover pellets near fish farms over time may be vulnerable to organophosphorus pesticides.

SUBMITTER: Olsvik PA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6775492 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Effects of Agricultural Pesticides in Aquafeeds on Wild Fish Feeding on Leftover Pellets Near Fish Farms.

Olsvik Pål A PA Larsen Anett Kristin AK Berntssen Marc H G MHG Goksøyr Anders A Karlsen Odd André OA Yadetie Fekadu F Sanden Monica M Kristensen Torstein T

Frontiers in genetics 20190926

Screening has revealed that modern-day feeds used in Atlantic salmon aquaculture might contain trace amounts of agricultural pesticides. To reach slaughter size, salmon are produced in open net pens in the sea. Uneaten feed pellets and undigested feces deposited beneath the net pens represent a source of contamination for marine organisms. To examine the impacts of long-term and continuous dietary exposure to an organophosphorus pesticide found in Atlantic salmon feed, we fed juvenile Atlantic c ...[more]

PMID: 31611904

Similar Datasets

Project description:BACKGROUND:Pesticide use is increasing in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) including Costa Rica. This increase poses health risks to farm owners, farm workers, and communities living near agricultural farms. OBJECTIVE:We aimed to examine the health effects associated with occupational pesticide exposure in farm owners and workers from conventional and organic smallholder farms in Costa Rica. METHODS:We conducted a cross-sectional study involving 300 owners and workers from organic and conventional horticultural smallholder farms in Zarcero County, Costa Rica. During the baseline study visit, we administered a structured, tablet-based questionnaire to collect data on sociodemographic characteristics, pesticide exposure, and health conditions (eg, respiratory and allergic outcomes and acute pesticide intoxication symptoms) and administered a neurobehavioral test battery (eg, Finger Tapping Test and Purdue Pegboard); we measured blood pressure, anthropometry (height, weight, and waist circumference), and erythrocytic acetylcholinesterase activity and also collected urine samples. In addition, a functional neuroimaging assessment using near-infrared spectroscopy was conducted with a subset of 50 study participants. During the follow-up study visit (~2-4 weeks after the baseline), we administered participants a short questionnaire on recent pesticide exposure and farming practices and collected hair, toenail, and urine samples. Urine samples will be analyzed for various pesticide metabolites, whereas toenails and hair will be analyzed for manganese (Mn), a biomarker of exposure to Mn-containing fungicides. Self-reported pesticide exposure data will be used to develop exposure intensity scores using an exposure algorithm. Furthermore, exposure-outcome associations will be examined using linear and logistic mixed-effects regression models. RESULTS:Fieldwork for our study was conducted between May 2016 and August 2016. In total, 113 farm owners and 187 workers from 9 organic and 83 conventional horticultural smallholder farms were enrolled. Data analyses are ongoing and expected to be published between 2019 and 2020. CONCLUSIONS:This study is one of the first to examine differences in health effects due to pesticide exposure between farm owners and workers from organic and conventional smallholder farms in an LMIC. We expect that this study will provide critical data on farming practices, exposure pathways, and how occupational exposure to pesticides may affect farm owners and workers' health. Finally, we hope that this study will allow us to identify strategies to reduce pesticide exposure in farm owners and workers and will potentially lay the groundwork for a future longitudinal study of health outcomes in farm owners and workers exposed to pesticides. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID):DERR1-10.2196/10914.

Project description:The assessment of residential exposure to agricultural pesticides is a major issue for public health, regulatory and management purposes. In recent years, research into this field has developed considerably. The purpose of this scoping review is to provide an overview of scientific literature characterizing residential exposure to agricultural pesticides and to identify potential gaps in this research area. This work was conducted according to the JBI and PRISMA guidelines. Three databases were consulted. At least two experts selected the eligible studies. Our scoping review enabled us to identify 151 articles published between 1988 and 2019 dealing with the assessment of residential exposure to agricultural pesticides. Of these, 98 (64.9%) were epidemiological studies investigating possible links between pesticide exposure and the onset of adverse health effects, principally cancers and reproductive outcomes. They predominantly used Geographic Information Systems and sometimes surveys or interviews to calculate surrogate exposure metrics, the most common being the amounts of pesticides applied or the surface area of crops around the dwelling. Twenty-six (17.2%) were observational measurement studies conducted to quantify levels of pesticide exposure and identify their possible determinants. These studies assessed exposure by measuring pesticides in biological and environmental matrices, mostly in urines and house dust. Finally, we found only eight publications (5.3%) that quantified the risk to human health due to residential exposure for management purposes, in which exposure was mainly determined using probabilistic models. Pesticide exposure appears to be largely correlated with the spatial organization of agriculture activities in a territory. The determinants and routes of exposure remain to be explored to improve the conduct of epidemiological and risk assessment studies and to help prevent future exposures. Improvement could be expected from small-scale studies combining different methods of exposure assessment.

Project description:In this study, we analyze changing patterns of pesticide use in agriculture in Great Britain over the 1990-2016 period, with respect to the risk they pose to birds. The weight of pesticides applied decreased by 51% between 1990 and 2016, but the area treated increased by 63% over the same period. Over this period, there has been considerable turnover in the pesticides used. The European Union (including Great Britain until 2020) has restricted or banned many pesticides for agricultural use, including organophosphates and carbamates. However, new generations of active substances have been introduced, such as the neonicotinoids, some of which have since been banned. In this analysis, we estimate the annual 'toxic load' of agricultural pesticide use in Great Britain for birds, measured as the total number of LD50 doses for corn buntings, Emberiza calandra. We have previously performed similar analyses for bees, for which the total toxic load increased six-fold during this period. In contrast, for birds the total toxic load fell by 80.5%, although still correspond to 8.3e+11 corn bunting LD50 doses in 2016. The decrease in toxicity is largely due to declining use of highly toxic organophosphates in recent years. We identify the pesticides in current use that may pose the highest risk to birds, which include a mix of insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, molluscicides, acaricides and plant growth regulators. The insecticide ethoprop was ranked highest in 2016, with a toxic load of 71 billion potential corn bunting kills. Some of the other chemicals presenting a high toxic load, such as the herbicide chlormequat, are not highly toxic to birds (in terms of LD50) but are used in very large quantities. However, it is important to stress that, in reality, only a tiny proportion of pesticides applied will be ingested by birds, and this will vary according to timing and method of application, persistence of the active substance and many other factors. We further note that impacts of pesticides on birds might often be indirect, for example via depleting their food supply, and that sublethal impacts may occur at much lower doses than the LD50, neither of which do we investigate here. Nonetheless, we suggest that this is a useful approach to highlight pesticides that might be worth closer study with regard to possible impacts.

Dataset Information

Effects of Agricultural Pesticides in Aquafeeds on Wild Fish Feeding on Leftover Pellets Near Fish Farms.

Publications

Effects of Agricultural Pesticides in Aquafeeds on Wild Fish Feeding on Leftover Pellets Near Fish Farms.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets