Modulation of monoamine neurotransmitters in fighting fish Betta splendens exposed to waterborne phytoestrogens.

Endogenous estrogens are known to affect the activity of monoamine neurotransmitters in vertebrate animals, but the effects of exogenous estrogens on neurotransmitters are relatively poorly understood. We exposed sexually mature male fighting fish Betta splendens to environmentally relevant and pharmacological doses of three phytoestrogens that are potential endocrine disruptors in wild fish populations: genistein, equol, and ß-sitosterol. We also exposed fish to two doses of the endogenous estrogen 17ß-estradiol, which we selected as a positive control because phytoestrogens are putative estrogen mimics. Our results were variable, but the effects were generally modest. Genistein increased dopamine levels in the forebrains of B. splendens at both environmentally relevant and pharmacological doses. The environmentally relevant dose of equol increased dopamine levels in B. splendens forebrains, and the pharmacological dose decreased norepinephrine (forebrain), dopamine (hindbrain), and serotonin (forebrain) levels. The environmentally relevant dose of ß-sitosterol decreased norepinephrine and dopamine in the forebrain and hindbrain, respectively. Our results suggest that sources of environmental phytoestrogens, such as runoff or effluent from agricultural fields, wood pulp mills, and sewage treatment plants, have the potential to modulate neurotransmitter activity in free-living fishes in a way that could interfere with normal behavioral processes.

Serotonin decreases aggression via 5-HT1A receptors in the fighting fish Betta splendens.

The role of the monoamine neurotransmitter serotonin (5-HT) in the modulation of conspecific aggression in the fighting fish (Betta splendens) was investigated using pharmacological manipulations. We used a fish's response to its mirror image as our index of aggressive behavior. We also investigated the effects of some manipulations on monoamine levels in the B. splendens brain. Acute treatment with 5-HT and with the 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH-DPAT both decreased aggressive behavior; however, treatment with the 5-HT1A receptor antagonist WAY-100635 did not increase aggression. Chronic treatment with the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine caused no significant changes in aggressive behavior and a significant decline in 5-HT and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) concentrations. Treatment with the serotonin synthesis inhibitor p-chlorophenylalanine resulted in no change in aggression, yet serotonergic activity decreased significantly. Finally, a diet supplemented with L-tryptophan (Trp), the precursor to 5-HT, showed no consistent effects on aggressive behavior or brain monoamine concentrations. These results suggest a complex role for serotonin in the expression of aggression in teleost fishes, and that B. splendens may be a useful model organism in pharmacological and toxicological studies.