Transcriptional changes induced by in vivo exposure to pentachlorophenol (PCP) in Chironomus riparius (Diptera) aquatic larvae

• PCP induced over expression of EcR, usp, E74 and ERR gene in Chironomus riparius.
• Hsp70 expression in C. riparius reached up to a five-fold increase in mRNA levels.
• Hsp27 gene transcription activity decreased at 25 μg/L PCP.
• GST activity was not affected while CYP4G gene appeared down regulated.

Pentachlorophenol (PCP) has been extensively used worldwide as a pesticide and biocide and is frequently detected in the aquatic environment. In the present work, the toxicity of PCP was investigated in Chironomus riparius aquatic larvae. The effects following short- and long-term exposures were evaluated at the molecular level by analyzing changes in the transcriptional profile of different endocrine genes, as well as in genes involved in the stress response and detoxification. Interestingly, although no differences were found after 12- and 24-h treatments, at 96-h exposures PCP was able to induce significant increases in transcripts from the ecdysone receptor gene (EcR), the early ecdysone-inducible E74 gene, the estrogen-related receptor gene (ERR), the Hsp70 gene and the CYP4G gene. In contrast, the Hsp27 gene appeared to be downregulated, while the ultraspiracle gene (usp) (insect ortholog of the retinoid X receptor) was not altered in any of the conditions assayed. Moreover, Glutathione-S-Transferase (GST) activity was not affected. The results obtained show the ability of PCP to modulate transcription of different biomarker genes from important cellular metabolic activities, which could be useful in genomic approaches to monitoring. In particular, the significant upregulation of hormonal genes represents the first evidence at the genomic level of the potential endocrine disruptive effects of PCP on aquatic invertebrates.