Endocrine disruptor is an exogenous substance that changes endocrine function and causes adverse effects at the level of the organism, its progeny, and/or (sub)populations of the organisms. Purported adverse effects are cancers, declines in reproducti...
Endocrine disruptor is an exogenous substance that changes endocrine function and causes adverse effects at the level of the organism, its progeny, and/or (sub)populations of the organisms. Purported adverse effects are cancers, declines in reproductive health, developmental learning disabilities in humans, and declining populations, altered morphology, physiology or behavior in wildlife. In these days, expert groups on chemicals in IPCS, IFCS and OECD are intensively discussing the identification of endocrine disruptors and the proper management of those chemicals. In this study, we screened the endocrine disrupting effects of lead using fertilized eggs of Oryzias latipes. In brief, the eggs were exposed to lead with different concentrations at Ringer's solution, and the mortality, the incidence of deformation, the body movement and the hatching success were determined after incubation. The histological analysis of normal and deformed larvae was also carried out. Compared to control, the mortality and the heart rate of eggs and/or larvae increased, but the hatching success and the tail movement decreased. The morphological observation showed the asymmetrical deformation of larvae and the distortion of spinal cord. The absorption of the liquid in yolk sac was hindered. The adverse effects of lead in the ontogeny of fertilized eggs of Oryzias latipes seemed to be stronger in pH5.6 than in pH7.5 solution. In summary, lead showed adverse effects on the ontogeny of fish fertilized eggs plays critical role in regulating biological systems and controlling developmental processes as an endocrine disruptor.