| Abstract |
Millions of fish are used annually to test the acute toxicity of water
samples, such as effluents or chemicals. Using an alternative model of
testing would not only reduce the need for animals, but would have added
benefits, such as much faster testing, using smaller volumes and creating
less waste. Using embryos of zebrafish prior to independent feeding has
partly filled this need for alternative fish acute toxicity testing.
This document describes a procedure that assesses fish acute toxicity
using a permanent fish cell line. Comparative work with both the zebrafish
embryo and the cell line has shown that they are expected to yield similar
results, i.e. within approximately a 10-fold range based on measured
concentrations. They also have a common limitation, i.e. a limited ability
to detect neurotoxic compounds. Resource needs, however, differ. For
example, while the use of the cell line omits any need for fish and the
time from exposure to obtaining the test results is reduced, it does
require sterile culture techniques. Thus, the choice of the assay may be
guided by the available resources and needs.
The fish cell line in the procedure described in this document is the
RTgill-W1 cell line established from rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)
gill. It is commercially available as ATCC CRL-2523. Two similarly
structured procedures are described: one for water samples, such as
effluents, and one for chemical testing.
The standards ISO 15088 and OECD 236 are also related to prediction of
waste water or chemical fish acute toxicity, relying on zebrafish embryos.
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