The influence of environmental contaminants on lysosomal activity in the digestive cells of mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) from the Venice Lagoon

Lysosomes are subcellular organelles bounded by a semipermeable lipoprotein membrane that contain a battery of hydrolytic enzymes that are collectively capable of degrading all classes of indogenous and exogenous macromolecules. Lysosomes accumulate a diverse range of chemical contaminants which can lead to membrane damage resulting in leakage of their contents into the cytosol and damage to cells. Total lysosomal activity for two acid hydrolases, N-acetyl-beta-D-hexosaminidase and beta-glucuronidase, with different substrate specificities was determined histochemically in digestive gland sections of mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis from a series of sites in the Venice Lagoon and the Adriatic Sea and correlated, using multi-stepwise regression analysis, with tissue contaminant burdens in order to explore causality. The results indicated that whilst activity of N-acetyl-beta-D-hexosaminidase correlated with body burdens of mercury, 8-glucuronidase, by contrast, correlated with DDT, Arochlor 1254 and eight PCB congeners in combination with iron or zinc. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.