Cyanide (CN) continues to be used to illegally capture fish, primarily in the coral triangle, for use by the live reef fish trade including marine aquariums (MAT). CN is a poison and its use is harmful to target fish and non-target organisms including fish, corals, and invertebrates on the reef. A CN exposure test to ensure a supply chain free of cyanide-caught fish has long been sought by the MAT but to date, no such test exists. In fact, little is known about the toxicokinetics of CN metabolism in marine fish even though such information is crucial in developing a test for CN exposure. Recently the half-life of SCN, the principal metabolite of CN exposure in mammals, has been reported for Amphiprion sp. but direct measurements of CN in the blood of marine fish have never been reported. Such a measurement would be an indisputable indicator of exposure and provide much needed information on the fate of CN in the blood of a marine fish following exposure to CN. The concentration of CN in the blood of Centropyge bicolor (bicolor angelfish) and Chaetodon ephippium (saddle butterfly) will be determined after CN exposure. Fish of each species (n = 12) will be exposed for 45 s to a 50 ppm CN solution. Blood will be collected at 20 mins, 300 mins, and 1 day post-exposure. CN will be isolated from the blood using microdiffusion, and then derivatized with 2,3-naphthalene dicarboxaldehyde and taurine for analysis by HPLC with fluorescence detection. The data will be compared to levels observed in Amphiprion clarkii (yellow-tail clownfish), for which the half-life of CN in the blood following CN exposure is currently being measured.

Determination of CN concentration in the blood of 2 species of marine fish exposed to cyanide

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.