Interactive effects of cadmium and benzo[a]pyrene on metallothionein induction in mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus).

Previous experiments demonstrated that exposure of mummichog to cadmium (Cd) in combination with benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) caused a higher mortality than would be expected from simple additive effects. Experiments are described here that investigated whether BaP exposure inhibits the induction of metallothionein (MT), a major detoxifying protein for Cd, or if reactive BaP metabolites compete with Cd for binding sites on MT. Fish were injected with or without BaP (18 mg/kg) in combination with a low (1 mg/kg) or high (3.2 mg/kg) dose of Cd, and in one treatment BP was dosed 4 days after Cd. The results showed a rapid induction of MT to 1.5 mg/g wet weight liver, 1 day after injecting the low Cd dose. Simultaneous BaP exposure significantly delayed the induction of MT, for both low and high Cd doses, and BaP temporarily lowered the induced MT concentration when dosed 4 days after induction by Cd. To test if binding of BaP metabolites to MT reduces the detoxification potential for Cd, microsomes of CYP1A-induced fish were incubated with MT and radiolabeled BaP. Active metabolism of BaP was observed by high-performance liquid chromatography analysis, but no association of BaP metabolites with MT was found. Neither could this be demonstrated in vivo, in liver MT isolated from mummichog dosed with 3H-BaP and Cd. These results suggest that increased toxicity of Cd in combination with BaP exposure is likely to be caused by inhibited MT synthesis, rather than by interference of BaP metabolites with Cd binding on MT.