National Status and Trends, Benthic Surveillance Project Aryl Hydrocarbon Hydrolase (AHH) Data, 1988-1992, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science

In order to determine the current status of and detect any long-term trends in the environmental quality of U.S. nearshore waters, NOAA initiated the National Status and Trends program in 1984 with its National Benthic Surveillance Project.  The primary objective of the Benthic Surveillance Project was to quantify concentrations of a suite of organic and inorganic contaminants in the livers of fish and surficial sediments from selected sites in the coastal and estuarine waters of the United States.  In addition, the levels of certain indicators of the biological effects of these contaminants were measured.  Incidences of visible lesions, including fin erosion, have been noted and histopathological examinations of various tissues have been carried out.  Originally histopathological examinations determined the prevalence of any identifiable disease conditions in samples of liver, kidney, and gill tissue.In addition the Benthic Surveillance Project analyzed fish liver tissue sample for cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) activities in liver via analysis for aryl hydrocarbon hydrolase (ahh). The induction of hepatic CYP1A activity is one of the earliest physiological changes detected after exposure to chemical contaminants.  A number of studies have shown that measurement of these biochemical alterations combined with measurement of the above-mentioned injuries, give a more consistent assessment of contaminant exposure in indigenous fish that do single bioeffects measurements.

Tags: ahh, alabama, alaska, and restoration (simr), apalachicola bay, arlington channel, arroyo city, arroyo colorado, aryl hydrocarbon hydrolase, atlantic ocean, baltimore harbor, barataria bay, barataria pass, bioeffects/toxicity, biscayne bay, black point, bodega bay, boston harbor, brewerton channel, buzzards bay, calcasieu river, california, cape elizabeth, cape fear river, cape haze, castro creek, cedar bayou, cerritos channel, charleston harbor, charlotte harbor, chemical, chemical contaminants, cherry island range, chesapeake bay, chester river, chilkoot river mouth, choctawhatchee bay, clarks point, coastal monitoring, coastal ocean, colt head island, columbia river, commencement bay, connecticut, contaminant, coos bay, dana point, dana point harbor, deer island, delaware, delaware bay, desdemona sands, doc/noaa/nos/nccos, dog hammock, eagle point, east bay, east coast, east reach, elba island, elliott bay, englewood cliffs, escatawpa river, field observation, fish liver, florida, folger point, galveston bay, geographic area, georgia, goat islands, gravesend bay, great bay, greens bayou, gulf of america, gulf of mexico, harbor island, head of passes, horseshoe shaol, hudson river, hull bay, hunters point, impacts, indian head beach, inside harbor, intracoastal waterway, james river, johns bay, jones bay, laguna heights, lake pontchartrain, lavaca bay, lloyd point, long beach, long island, long island sound, long-term monitoring, louisiana, lower laguna madre, lutak inlet, maine, maryland, massachusetts, massachusetts bay, mid harbor, military point, mission bay, mississippi, mississippi river delta, mitigation, mobile bay, monitoring, monterey bay, morgans point, mosquito point, mystic river, narragansett bay, national centers for coastal ocean science, national city, national ocean service, nccos research data type, nccos research location, nccos research priority, nccos research topic, new bedford harbor, new jersey, new york, niantic bay, nisqually reach, noaa, north, north atlantic ocean, north bay, north bend, north carolina, north point, north shore, northern tampa bay, nsandt, oakland estuary, ocean, oceans, oceanside harbor, oregon, outer harbor, outside, pamlico sound, pascagoula river, patuxent river, pemaquid neck, penobscot bay, pensacola bay, plymouth entrance, point comfort, pollutant, port valdez, prien lake, prince william sound, prudence island, puget sound, quincy bay, raritan bay, redwood city, region, rhode island, richmond island, rocky point, salem harbor, san antonio bay, san diego bay, san francisco bay, san luis obispo bay, san pablo bay, san pedro bay, santa monica bay, sapelo sound, savannah river, seal beach, shelter island, skagway, skagway river, south, south carolina, south channel, south shore, southampton shoal, southeast, southeast pass, st. andrews bay, st. george island, st. johns river, st. lucie river, stressors, stuart, tampa bay, texas, twenty eighth street, u.s. department of commerce, u.s. exclusive economic zone, u.s. states and territories, upper bay, virginia, washington, west, west coast, west cove, west island, west reach
Organization: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce