Environmental pollution and toxic substances: cellular apoptosis as a key parameter in a sensible model like fish

WOS: 000449240800014PubMed ID: 30273782The industrial wastes, sewage effluents, agricultural run-off and decomposition of biological waste may cause high environmental concentration of chemicals that can interfere with the cell cycle activating the programmed process of cells death (apoptosis). In order to provide a detailed understanding of environmental pollutants induced apoptosis, here we reviewed the current knowledge on the interactions of environmental chemicals and programmed cell death. Metals (aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, zinc, copper, mercury and silver) as well as other chemicals including bleached kraft pulp mill effluent (BKME), persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and pesticides (organo-phosphated, organo-chlorinated, carbamates, phyretroids and biopesticides) were evaluated in relation to apoptotic pathways, heat shock proteins and metallothioneins. Although research performed over the past decades has improved our understanding of processes involved in apoptosis in fish, yet there is lack of knowledge on associations between environmental pollutants and apoptosis. Thus, this review could be useful tool to study the cytotoxic/apoptotic effects of different pollutants in fish species.Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural ResourcesWe would like to express a special thanks to Prof. Willem B. Van Muiswinkel for critical comments on the manuscript. We are indebted to Dr. B. Di Giacomo for help in realizing the figure in this manuscript. H. AnviriFar has been supported by a PhD student grant from Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources