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The hydroxyl radical generation and oxidative stress for the earthworm Eisenia fetida exposed to tetrabromobisphenol A

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Abstract

Biochemical effects of tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) on the earthworm Eisenia fetida, including superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione-S-transferase, reduced glutathione, oxidized glutathione, GSH/GSSG ratio and malondialdehyde (MDA) level, were measured to assess ecological toxicity of TBBPA. With OECD standard filter-paper contact test method, earthworms were exposed to TBBPA of a range of concentrations (0.00, 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mg L−1). According to the electron paramagnetic resonance spectrum, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated in the earthworm was identified as the hydroxyl radical (•OH) which was significantly induced at all TBBPA concentrations. With the increasing of TBBPA concentration, the antioxidant enzymes, glutathione and MDA levels varied significantly. The results showed that TBBPA exerts its toxic effects on E. fetida by inducing the generation of ROS and resulting in oxidative damage. The results show that the •OH production leads to oxidative stress in the tissues of the earthworm E. fetida.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (20577021) and State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse (Tongji University, PR China, PCRRF07007). The authors wish to thank Yunxia Sui for her technical help with analysis of EPR spectra. The authors also wish to thank Professors Shupei Cheng and Lee Shugart for their kind help.

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  1. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse & School of the Environment, Nanjing University, 210093, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China

    Yingang Xue, Xueyuan Gu, Xiaorong Wang, Cheng Sun, Xianghua Xu, Jian Sun & Baogang Zhang

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  1. Yingang Xue
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  2. Xueyuan Gu
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Correspondence to Xiaorong Wang.

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Xue, Y., Gu, X., Wang, X. et al. The hydroxyl radical generation and oxidative stress for the earthworm Eisenia fetida exposed to tetrabromobisphenol A. Ecotoxicology 18, 693–699 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-009-0333-2

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