Metabolism Of Benzo[a]Pyrene in Fish Hepatocytes Cultured on Microplates

The metabolism of benzo[a]pyrene (BP) by trout and catfish hepatocytes seeded on 96-well microplates was examined. The 9,10-; 4,5-; and 7,8-dihydrodiols, 1,6-; 3,6- quinones and 3-OH BP were found to be the major metabolites in both the trout and catfish hepatocytes exposed to BP for 4 h. The results were compared with the corresponding long term culture of hepatocytes on porous membranes and in microsomes isolated from the whole liver. It was found that cells cultured on microplates retained their BP metabolizing activities for at least 6 d after seeding. This method has the major advantage that only a small number of cells are required and in parallel, it is possible to perform cytotoxicity and cytogenetic microassays on cell populations characterized for their metabolic capacity.