Biological responses to PCB exposure in shorthorn sculpin from Saglek Bay, Labrador

A local source of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Saglek Bay, Labrador, has contaminated marine sediments and the coastal food web. As part of a larger assessment of ecological risks in the Bay, we evaluated biological responses to PCB concentrations in a northern fish species, the shorthorn sculpin (Myoxocephalus scorpius). Biological endpoints, including ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity in liver tissue, fish body condition, lipid content, and relative liver mass were examined in 35 sculpin collected during August–September 1999. Across a wide range of PCB concentrations (5.1–6920 ng/g wet weight (ww) in whole fish excluding liver), sculpin showed significant EROD induction (as much as 25-fold in the most exposed group). Responses varied directly with PCB concentrations but there was also an apparent threshold for induction at about 50 ng/g ww (whole fish excluding liver). A strong relationship between sculpin PCB concentrations and the concentrations of PCBs in the marine sediments of Saglek Bay suggests that concentrations above this threshold can arise from very low concentrations in sediments (2.3 ng/g dry weight). Other biological endpoints did not show significant responses to PCB concentrations, nor were they related to the observed EROD activity. Although PCDF compounds were present in trace amounts (primarily 2,3,4,7,8-PnCDF), mono-ortho and non-ortho substituted (coplanar) PCBs appeared to contribute the majority of the total dioxin toxic equivalent (TEQ) concentrations. Overall, the results indicate that biological responses occur in shorthorn sculpin with relatively low PCB concentrations (~50 ng/g), which are not unrealistic for even mildly contaminated areas in northern Canada.