Impact of the widespread pharmaceutical pollutant fluoxetine on behaviour and sperm traits in a freshwater fish
- PMID: 30278421
- DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.09.294
Impact of the widespread pharmaceutical pollutant fluoxetine on behaviour and sperm traits in a freshwater fish
Abstract
Pharmaceutical pollutants are detected in aquatic habitats and wildlife tissues globally. One widespread contaminant of major concern is the antidepressant fluoxetine, which can affect behavioural and physiological processes in non-target species. Despite this, effects of fluoxetine on wildlife behaviour have seldom been investigated across multiple fitness-related contexts, especially at environmentally realistic concentrations. Accordingly, we examined impacts of 35-day fluoxetine exposure at two environmentally relevant concentrations (31 and 374 ng/L) across a suite of fitness-related contexts in wild-caught male mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki). First, we investigated anxiety-related behaviours (boldness, exploration and activity) in a novel environment (maze arena) and found no significant impacts of exposure. Second, we tested effects of fluoxetine in a reproductive context, including mating behaviour and sperm quality. We found that, relative to controls, fluoxetine exposure resulted in males spending a greater amount of time pursuing females. Further, low-exposed males were more likely to attempt copulation than unexposed males. Lastly, we investigated across-context behavioural correlations, and how fluoxetine exposure might affect such relationships. A significant positive correlation was detected in control fish between activity levels in the maze and time spent pursuing females in the reproductive assay. This relationship was disrupted by fluoxetine at both exposure levels. This is the first evidence that field-detected concentrations of a pharmaceutical pollutant can disturb across-context behavioural correlations in wildlife. Our findings provide clear evidence that fluoxetine can produce context-specific behavioural effects in fish and underscore how pharmaceutical exposure at field-detected concentrations can induce important shifts in wildlife behaviour.
Keywords: Animal behaviour; Antidepressant; Anxiety; Behavioural syndrome; Reproduction; Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor; Sexual selection.
Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Similar articles
-
The antidepressant fluoxetine alters mechanisms of pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection in the eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki).Environ Pollut. 2018 Jul;238:238-247. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2018.03.006. Epub 2018 Mar 20. Environ Pollut. 2018. PMID: 29567445
-
Context-specific behavioural changes induced by exposure to an androgenic endocrine disruptor.Sci Total Environ. 2019 May 10;664:177-187. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.01.382. Epub 2019 Jan 30. Sci Total Environ. 2019. PMID: 30743111
-
The psychoactive pollutant fluoxetine compromises antipredator behaviour in fish.Environ Pollut. 2017 Mar;222:592-599. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2016.10.010. Epub 2017 Jan 4. Environ Pollut. 2017. PMID: 28063712
-
Aquatic ecotoxicology of fluoxetine.Toxicol Lett. 2003 May 15;142(3):169-83. doi: 10.1016/s0378-4274(03)00066-3. Toxicol Lett. 2003. PMID: 12691711 Review.
-
Pharmaceuticals as neuroendocrine disruptors: lessons learned from fish on Prozac.J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. 2011;14(5-7):387-412. doi: 10.1080/10937404.2011.578559. J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. 2011. PMID: 21790318 Review.
Cited by
-
Antidepressants as emerging contaminants: Occurrence in wastewater treatment plants and surface waters in Hangzhou, China.Front Public Health. 2022 Aug 11;10:963257. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.963257. eCollection 2022. Front Public Health. 2022. PMID: 36033732 Free PMC article.
-
Antidepressants as Endocrine Disrupting Compounds in Fish.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2022 Jun 16;13:895064. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2022.895064. eCollection 2022. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2022. PMID: 35784526 Free PMC article. Review.
-
A Review on Environmental Contaminants-Related Fertility Threat in Male Fishes: Effects and Possible Mechanisms of Action Learned from Wildlife and Laboratory Studies.Animals (Basel). 2021 Sep 27;11(10):2817. doi: 10.3390/ani11102817. Animals (Basel). 2021. PMID: 34679838 Free PMC article. Review.
-
A chemical prioritization process: Applications to contaminants of emerging concern in freshwater ecosystems (Phase I).Sci Total Environ. 2021 Jun 10;772:146030. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146030. Epub 2021 Feb 22. Sci Total Environ. 2021. PMID: 33676747 Free PMC article.
-
The Occurrence and Risks of Selected Emerging Pollutants in Drinking Water Source Areas in Henan, China.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct 25;16(21):4109. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16214109. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019. PMID: 31731401 Free PMC article.
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
Research Materials
Miscellaneous
