Primary cell cultures from fish in ecotoxicology

Fish cell cultures from fish are used in studies on the fate and effects of xenobiotics at the cellular level. So far, special attention has been paid to primary cultures of hepatocytes. This cell type has been particularly useful for studies on biotransformation of xenobiotics. Among biotransformation enzymes, a number of studies have been devoted to cytochrome P4501A due to its inducibility by ecotoxicologically relevant pollutants. Biomarkers of DNA damage, i.e., DNA adducts and single strand breaks, have also been investigated. Furthermore, primary cultures of fish hepatocytes appear as promising models for studies on the effects of xenobiotics on critical steps of fish reproductive physiology. All the data are discussed in an ecotoxicological perspective.