Issue 11, 2023

Mixture effect assessment applying in vitro bioassays to in-tissue silicone extracts of traditional foods prepared from beluga whale blubber

Abstract

We complement an earlier study on the nutrient and environmental contaminant levels in Arctic beluga whale traditional foods by mixture effect assessment using in vitro bioassays. Mixtures were extracted by in-tissue sampling of raw blubber and several traditional food preparations including Muktuk and Uqsuq using silicone (polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS) as sampler. PDMS extracts persistent and degradable neutral organic chemicals of a wide range of hydrophobicity with defined lipid-PDMS partition ratios. The solvent extracts of PDMS were dosed in various reporter gene assays based on human cell lines. Cytotoxicity was consistent across all cell lines and was a good indicator of overall chemical burden. No hormone-like effects on the estrogen receptor, the progesterone receptor and the glucocorticoid receptor were observed but a few samples activated the androgen receptor, albeit with low potency. The peroxisome-proliferator activated receptor (PPARγ) was the most sensitive endpoint followed by activation of oxidative stress response and activation of the arylhydrocarbon (AhR) receptor. The detected pollutants only explained a small fraction of the experimental mixture effects, indicating additional bioactive pollutants. The effect levels of the extracted mixtures were higher than those observed in blubber extracts of dugongs living off the shore of Australia. Roasting over an open fire or food preparation near a smokehouse led to increased PAH levels that were reflected in increased oxidative stress response and activation of the AhR. So far in vitro assays have only been used to quantify persistent dioxin-like chemicals in food and feed but this pilot study demonstrates a much broader potential for food safety evaluations complementing chemical analytical monitoring.

Graphical abstract: Mixture effect assessment applying in vitro bioassays to in-tissue silicone extracts of traditional foods prepared from beluga whale blubber

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
21 Feb 2023
Accepted
18 May 2023
First published
31 May 2023
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Environ. Sci.: Processes Impacts, 2023,25, 1759-1770

Mixture effect assessment applying in vitro bioassays to in-tissue silicone extracts of traditional foods prepared from beluga whale blubber

B. I. Escher, M. J. Binnington, M. König, Y. D. Lei and F. Wania, Environ. Sci.: Processes Impacts, 2023, 25, 1759 DOI: 10.1039/D3EM00076A

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