Peter Hodson - Professor

Research: Fish Toxicology

• Effect of chemical metabolism on chemical toxicity
• Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, complex mixtures
• The effect of chemical dispersants on the toxicity of spilled oil to fish
• Identification of the components of oil that cause toxicity
• Tools for assessing exposure and effects (biomarkers)
• Toxic equivalent factors based on structure-activity; bioassays of short-term indicators
• Responses of fish populations (especially American eel) to chemical stress
• The role of food webs in transferring mercury from sediments to fish
• The history of pesticide use in the St. Lawrence R.

My current interest is the role of metabolism in chemical toxicity to fish, with a focus on the reactive by-products of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) metabolism by liver cytochrome P450 or CYP1A enzymes. The goal is to understand the mechanism of PAH toxicity, specifically of the alkyl-substituted forms, to the early life stages (embryos and larvae) of fish and the consequences for larval survival and recruitment. The results are directly applicable to ecological risk assessment of PAHs from oil, coal tar, creosote, soot and the by-products of microbial degradation of resin acids from pulp mill effluents.