Effects and toxicity of phthalate esters to hemocytes of giant freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii

Phthalate esters (PAEs) have been considered as environmental pollutants and have been subject to control in the United States of America and Japan. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects and toxicity of eight PAEs to hemocytes and the defense functions of giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii), including hemocytic adhesion, pseudopodia formation, phenoloxidase (PO) activity, and superoxide anion (O-2(-)) production, by means of in vitro exposure experiments. After hemocytes were treated separately with eight PAEs at concentrations of 100 mug/ml, the results showed that two PAEs (dipropyl phthalate, DPrP and diethyl phthalate, DEP) increased cells with pseudopodia formation, but decreased adhesive cells; reduction in the percentages of both pseudopodia formation and adhesive cells were detected in the dihexyl phthalate (DHP) and diphenyl phthalate (DPP) experiment groups; and di(2-ethyl hexyl) phthalate (DEHP) decreased pseudopodia formation, but did not affect the adhesion. In addition, both PO activity and O-2(-) production were decreased after hemocytes were treated with five PAEs (benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), DEP, DHP and DPrP), respectively. At the same time, microscopy showed that both DPrP and DHP altered morphology of the cell nucleus and led to the presence of vacuoles in cytosol of hemocytes. Using the annexin assay, and after analysis of DNA fragmentation and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), it was found that hemocytes exposed to DHP and DPrP for more than 10 min would primarily die via apoptosis, the fatality correlates with increasing treatment time; and hemocytes treated with either BBP, dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCP), DEP or DPP would primarily die via necrosis. According to these results, we suggest that all eight PAEs examined could damage hemocytes and further influence the defense mechanism of prawns. This study reveals an important precaution for prawn cultivation. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.