Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) have both been reported to induce adverse effects including immunotoxicity. Despite the widespread presence of these two chemicals in estuaries and seawater, their health effects on marine fish have received little attention. Oryzias melastigma is a potential marine fish model for immunological studies. In the present study, immune-related genes in O. melastigma were enriched at the transcriptome level. Three-month-old fish were exposed to PFOS and DEHP (single or combined) for one week. The liver index-hepatosomatic index (HSI) of the fish was higher in the PFOS-exposed group and combined group than in the control group. This result indicates that PFOS might lead to liver toxicity. The mRNA level of interleukin-1 beta (IL1β) was upregulated after exposure. For catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and cluster of differentiation 3 (CD3), single exposure did not affect mRNA levels, but the combined exposure did significantly alter the expression of these genes. In all, our study provides a useful reference for immunotoxicological studies with O. melastigma; it also highlights the importance of assessing the combined effects of pollutant mixtures when determining the risk to aquatic organisms.
Keywords: Combined exposure; Immunotoxicity; Oryzias melastigma; Perfluorooctane sulfonate; di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate.
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