POMELO

High-Throughput Multi-Cell Platform for the Analysis of Endocrine Disruptive Stress in Fish

2020 - 2024

The POMELO project focused on the "stress-on-stress" effects of exposure to tebuconazole (TBZ) and infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). The study involved three exposure conditions to TBZ: a control (no pollutant), an environmentally relevant concentration (230 ng/L), and an acute/accidental concentration (10 µg/L). Blood and tissue samples (liver, gills, gonads) were collected at multiple time points post-contamination (1, 7, and 28 days; T1–T3). 

Following 28 days of chemical exposure, surviving trout from each condition were subjected to a viral challenge using the IHNV strain N61 via immersion, or maintained as non-infected controls. Additional sampling was conducted at 48 and 96 hours post-infection (T4–T5).

A comprehensive set of analyses was performed, including transcriptomic, epigenetic, immunological, histopathological, and metagenomic assessments. Special attention was given to evaluating impacts on energy metabolism, antioxidant and detoxification pathways, immune parameters, reproductive function, microbiome composition (circulating and mucosal), and DNA methylation patterns. 

Complementary in vitro assays on human cell lines were also conducted to investigate the impact of TBZ on epigenetic regulators. Finally, biobanking strategies (e.g., FTA cards, tissue microarrays) were implemented to enable future targeted analyses. 

This integrative, high-throughput multi-omics approach provided a robust framework to investigate endocrine-disrupting stress in fish and supports the development of mechanistically informed environmental risk assessments.

Histology, energy metabolism, bancarization