Toxic effects of dietary methylmercury on immune system development in nestling American kestrels (Falco sparverius).

Dawn M Fallacara, Richard S Halbrook, John B French

Cooperative Wildlife Research Laboratory, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, USA. fallacarad@battelle.org

Environmental toxicology and chemistry / SETAC 2011 Jun

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This study evaluated the effects of dietary methylmercury (MeHg) on immune system development in captive-reared nestling American kestrels (Falco sparverius) to determine whether T cell-mediated and antibody-mediated adaptive immunity are targets for MeHg toxicity at environmentally relevant concentrations. Nestlings received various diets, including 0 (control), 0.6, and 3.9 µg/g (dry wt) MeHg for up to 18 d posthatch. Immunotoxicity endpoints included cell-mediated immunity (CMI) using the phytohemagglutinin (PHA) skin-swelling assay and antibody-mediated immune response via the sheep red blood cell (SRBC) hemagglutination assay. T cell- and B cell-dependent histological parameters in the spleen, thymus, and bursa of Fabricius were correlated with the functional assays. For nestlings in the 0.6 and 3.9 µg/g MeHg groups, CMI was suppressed by 73 and 62%, respectively, at 11 d of age. Results of this functional assay were correlated with T cell-dependent components of the spleen and thymus. Dose-dependent lymphoid depletion in spleen tissue directly affected the proliferation of T-lymphocyte populations, insofar as lower stimulation indexes from the PHA assay occurred in nestlings with lower proportions of splenic white pulp and higher THg concentrations. Nestlings in the 3.9 µg/g group also exhibited lymphoid depletion and a lack of macrophage activity in the thymus. Methylmercury did not have a noticeable effect on antibody-mediated immune function or B cell-dependent histological correlates. We conclude that T cell-mediated immunosuppression is the primary target of MeHg toward adaptive immunity in developing kestrels. This study provides evidence that environmentally relevant concentrations of MeHg may compromise immunocompetence in a developing terrestrial predator and raises concern regarding the long-term health effects of kestrels that were exposed to dietary MeHg during early avian development. Copyright © 2011 SETAC.

Citation

Dawn M Fallacara, Richard S Halbrook, John B French. Toxic effects of dietary methylmercury on immune system development in nestling American kestrels (Falco sparverius). Environmental toxicology and chemistry / SETAC. 2011 Jun;30(6):1328-37