Comparative effects of mercury chloride and methylmercury exposure on early neurodevelopment in zebrafish larvae

• Published in: RSC advances 2019-04, Vol.9 (19), p.1766-1775
• Main Authors: Zhu, Jun, Wang, Chundan, Gao, Xingsu, Zhu, Jiansheng, Wang, Li, Cao, Shuyuan, Wu, Qian, Qiao, Shanlei, Zhang, Zhan, Li, Lei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Brain; Calcium ions; Chemistry; Dopamine; Embryos; Exposure; Galactose; Larvae; Mercury (metal); Mercury compounds; Metabolism; Metabolites; Neurotoxicity; Neurotransmitters; Organic chemistry; Public health; Sucrose; Tryptophan; Tyrosine; Uric acid; Zebrafish
• ISSN: 2046-2069; 2046-2069
• DOI: 10.1039/c9ra00770a

Mercury (Hg) is a ubiquitous environmental toxicant with important public health implications. Hg causes neurotoxicity through astrocytes, Ca 2+ , neurotransmitters, mitochondrial damage, elevations of reactive oxygen species and post-translational modifications. However, the similarities and differences between the neurotoxic mechanisms caused by different chemical forms of Hg remain unclear. Zebrafish embryos were exposed to methylmercury (MeHgCl) or mercury chloride (HgCl 2 ) (0, 4, 40, 400 nM) up for 96 h. HgCl 2 exposure could significantly decrease survival rate, body length and eye size, delay the hatching period, induce tail bending and reduce the locomotor activity, and these effects were aggravated in the MeHgCl group. The compounds could increase the number of apoptotic cells in the brain and downregulate the expression of Shha , Ngn1 and Nrd , which contribute to early nervous development. The underlying mechanisms were investigated by metabolomics data. Galactose metabolism, tyrosine metabolism and starch and sucrose metabolism pathways were disturbed after HgCl 2 or MeHgCl exposure. In addition, the levels of three neurotransmitters including tyrosine, dopamine and tryptophan were reduced after HgCl 2 or MeHgCl exposure. Oxidative stress is related to metabolite changes, such as changes in the putrescine, niacinamide and uric acid contents in the HgCl 2 group, and squalene in the MeHgCl group. These data indicated that downregulation of these genes and abnormal metabolic profile and pathways contribute to the neurotoxicity of HgCl 2 and MeHgCl. The metabolomics and neurodevelopmental endpoints were integrated to reveal that abnormal metabolic pathway and expression of Shha , Ngn1 and Nrd may contribute to neurotoxicity induced by MeHg, which was more toxic than HgCl 2 in zebrafish larvae.