Environmental factors such as chemical contamination can have immunomodulatory effects on the immune response of fish and may be contributing to the decline in salmonid populations by augmenting disease susceptibility. Xenobiotics can interfere with the immune system at several levels of complexity, and different immune cells and processes have variable...
Wild populations of fish are faced with a multitude of stressors, which may include human interaction, toxins, and disease. Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), a known carcinogen and immunotoxin, has been reported in the stomach contents of juvenile chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, in urban waterways. We investigated the impact of chronic dietary exposure...
Stress, including extreme or rapidly changing temperatures, are known to have deleterious effects on fish health and physiology. This thesis examines the combined effects of elevated acclimation temperature and acute handling stress on the number of antibody producing cells, plasma lysozyme concentrations, and the number of pronephric leukocytes in juvenile...