The detection of dioxin- and estrogen-like pollutants in marine and freshwater fishes cultivated in Pearl River Delta, China

In this study we aimed to assess the dioxin- and estrogen-like activities of contaminants extracted from twenty species of freshwater and seawater fishes, using luciferase reporter assays. Transfected MCF7 cells were treated with sample extracts and luciferase activities were then measured at 24-h of post-treatment. The mean values of the detected dioxin- and estrogen-like activities in the freshwater fishes were 25.3 pg TEQ/g ww and 102.3 pM EEQ/g ww whereas in the seawater fishes, the values were 46.2 pg TEQ/g ww and 118.8 pM EEQ/g ww. Using sample-relevant dosage of estrogen, inductions of cell proliferation markers (i.e. retinoblastoma, cyclin D) and stimulations of cell growth were revealed by Western blotting, colony formation and BrdU uptake assays. A cotreatment with TCDD significantly reduced these effects. Using the sample extracts with different dioxin- and estrogen-like activities, similar observation was revealed. The data highlighted the mixture effect of food contaminants on human health.