Evidence for developmental and skeletal responses as potential signals of endocrine-disrupting compounds in fishes

Integrated sets of bioindicators and ecological signals would be desirable for rapid detection and assessment of endocrine disruptor syndrome in wild populations of fish and wildlife. Early warning signals would be especially desirable to enable identification before the onset of major reproductive dysfunction or population consequences. Comparisons of various research reports in the literature reveals that many of the same compounds that induce developmental, morphological, and/or skeletal anomalies are later identified as endocrine disruptors. Kepone, mirex, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), tri-fluralin, dibutylphthalate (DBP), kraft-mill effluents (KMEs), and others induce skeletal, develop mental, and/or sex-linked morphological abnormalities that become manifest biomarkers among surviving mature fishes. This report examines several specific cases of skeletal and external morphological responses and suggests their relevance as markers signaling the probability of disruption of an endocrine modulated function.