Immunotoxicological effects of dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls extracted from Zhanjiang Bay sediments in zebrafish

Dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (DLPCBs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants spread all over the world. They can cause disorders in the reproductive, nervous, gut, and immune systems. We investigated the effects of DL-PCB extracted from Zhanjiang (Guangdong Province, China) offshore area on the immune functions of adult zebrafish. Zebrafish were exposed to different levels of DL-PCBs, i.e., control, positive control (PCB77 at 16.0 μg/L), low (LD; PCB81 + PCB118 at 0.32 μg/L), and high-dose (HD; PCB81 + PCB118 at 16.0 μg/L) groups for 28 days. Compared with the control group, positive control and HD group showed a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in the number of red blood cells (RBC) on day 7 and the same decrease was observed in the LD group (P < 0.05) on day 21. The results of white blood cell (WBC) profiles were opposite to that of RBCs. Moreover, the serum lysozyme activity was significantly lower in positive control and HD group (P < 0.05) on day 21 but no significant effect was observed in the LD group. The mucus lysozyme activity and immunoglobulin concentration in positive control and HD group decreased significantly (P < 0.05) from day 14. A similar effect was observed in the LD group but was significant (P < 0.05) only on day 28. Additionally, histopathological examination showed accumulation of hemosiderin in the spleen of experimental animals, which was significant in positive control and HD group. Further, renal tubular epithelial cells of head kidney were swollen in the positive control and HD group while the expansion of lumen and renal interstitial edema was observed in the LD group on day 21 and with significant presence on 28 days. Therefore, these findings suggest that the exposure of zebrafish to DL-PCBs at > 16.0 μg/L can impair their immune functions.