Endocrine disruption in marine fish
P. Matthiessen
Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Lancaster Environment
Centre, Library Avenue, Bailrigg, Lancaster LA1 4AP, UK
Abstract: This topic reviews the whole field of endocrine disruption
(ED) in marine fish and compares this with our knowledge of the situation
in freshwater species. In broad terms, similar types of ED have been
observed in the two groups, although effects in the marine environment
tend to be less marked, presumably due to dispersion and dilution. There
are, however, some data which suggest that marine fish that are top-predators
can experience ED due to biomagnification of organochlorines. Processes
such as smoltification, metamorphosis, and hermaphroditism, which are
common in some marine species, may be particularly susceptible to ED,
but have as yet been scarcely studied. As with freshwater fish, firm
links to population-level effects have not yet been demonstrated, although
it is not unreasonable to suppose that they are occurring in some locations.
The topic concludes with some recommendations for future research.
*Report from a SCOPE/IUPAC project: Implication of
Endocrine Active Substances for Human and Wildlife (J. Miyamoto and
J.Burger, editors). Other reports are published in this issue,
pp. 1617-2615.
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