| Golden hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus Water), coturnix quail (Coturnix coturnix Teminck and Schlegal), fathead minnows (Pimphales promelas Rafinesque), and rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri Richardson) were subjected to various exposures of stripped oil shale retort water (SRW). Chronic low-level exposures of all experimental animals to SRW revealed no adverse histological effects attributable to SRW. Also, production and development of second generation fathead minnows and coturnix quail exposed to SRW was normal.; Subacute exposure of rainbow trout to SRW produced ultrastructural changes (detected by transmission, scanning, and freeze fracture electron microscopy) in the gill, liver, and kidney tissues. The gills showed a swelling of secondary lamellae, disorganization of normal tissue architecture, and sloughing of respiratory cells. The liver contained lamellar bodies not seen in the controls. Relatively large, electron dense, membrane-bounded deposits were present in proximal tubule cells of the kidney.; Sodium arsenite (a significant component of SRW) was shown to cause swelling of granular endoplasmic reticulum in quail liver tissue with an acute exposure. This effect could be related to the fact that aresenic inhibits ATP production, which would decrease the ability of the sodium pumps to maintain a normal osmotic balance.; Stripping of retort water involved boiling for 1 h, which would have removed compounds with a boiling point less than or equal to that of the retort water (120.9(DEGREES)C corrected to sea level). Loss of these compounds significantly reduced the acute toxicity of retort water to rainbow trout, as evidenced by a 96 h LC(,50) of 0.70 (percent dilution) as compared to 1.05 for SRW. Therefore, stripping may be an important treatment step in reducing the potential harmful effects of retort water to fish and wildlife. |
