[Toxicity effects of pentachlorophenol on Brachydanio rerio]

With embryo development technique, this paper determined the toxicity of pentachlorophenol (PCP) to Brachydanio rerio embryos. The results showed that the special effect duration of PCP on embryos was within 6 hours after embryos incubation. PCP could markedly inhibit the development of Brachydanio rerio embryos, and cause its malformation and even death. There were different toxicity endpoints which could be observed in embryos exposed to PCP with different time. The lethal effect sensitivity of embryos incubated after 48 hours was getting lower when the exposure time was getting shorter, the LC50 being the minimum (70.8 microg x L(-1)) for 0 hpf embryos, and the maximum (831.8 microg x L(-1)) for 24 hpf embryos. The acute toxicological endpoint of Brachydanio rerio embryos was in order of edema, no blood-circulation and heartbeat > incubation rate > stopping growth, and the most sensitive endpoints of Brachydanio rerio embryos to pentachlorophenol were no blood-circulation and half lethal concentration at 48 hrs.