Cadmium Inhibition of Erythropoiesis in Goldfish,Carassius auratus

Abstract

Goldfish (Carassius auratus) maintained on a highly nutritional diet under normoxic circumstances at 25 °C in soft water had mean half-recovery times of 22.5 h (hemoglobin) and 21.0 h (hematocrit) following anemia induced with phenylhydrazine HCl. Corresponding values for fish exposed under similar conditions to 1, 5, 15, and 25% of the softwater 240-h cadmium LC50 were 41.9, 53.1, 164.8, and 344.3 h (hemoglobin) and 44.7, 46.5, 348.9, and 263.2 h (hematocrit), respectively. We suggest that whereas cadmium has relatively little effect upon circulating erythrocytes, it seriously impedes red cell formation and hemoglobin synthesis at concentrations well below the acutely lethal level.