Recovery of ovary size, follicle cell apoptosis, and HSP70 expression in fish exposed to bleached pulp mill effluent

We hypothesized that impaired ovarian function (e.g., reduced ovary size) in wild fish chronically exposed to bleached pulp mill effluents is related to an increased rate of apoptosis in ovarian follicle (granulosa and (or) theca) cells. In 1996, vitellogenic white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) collected downstream of a bleached kraft pulp mill had reduced ovary size associated with increases in ovarian cell apoptosis and stress protein …