Publicação
Evaluating the toxicity and recovery of Mytilus galloprovincialis exposed to emerging and classic contaminants
| Resumo: | Emerging contaminants, such as rare earth elements (REEs) and platinum group metals (PGMs), have been receiving increasing attention from the international community. This is not only due to their economic value and broad application in new technologies, which has driven their extraction, but also because of the consequent rise in their concentrations in the environment. Compared to classical contaminants, emerging ones pose an uncertain threat due to the lack of studies on their environmental fate and toxicological effects on organisms. Coastal and marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable, given their high population density and industrial activities, which result in elevated inputs of these contaminants, mainly through domestic and industrial effluents. In this study, the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis (M. galloprovincialis), a widely used bioindicator species when it comes to ecotoxicological surveys involving metals, was exposed during 14 days to environmentally relevant concentrations (20 μg/L) of yttrium (Y), platinum (Pt), and mercury (Hg), followed by a 14-day recovery period in uncontaminated seawater to assess the recovery of these organisms. A broad set of biomarkers was studied, from energy reserves and metabolic capacity, antioxidant responses, biotransformation enzymes, cellular damage, and neurotoxicity. The results showed that Hg triggered the most severe and persistent effects, including energy reserves depletion, oxidative stress, and cellular damage, which remained even after the recovery period. Exposure to Pt induced moderate biochemical adjustments, largely related to detoxification pathways with limited reversibility. Y exposure led to milder responses, which were reversible during the recovery period. Overall, this study highlights the contrasting toxicity profiles of emerging versus classical contaminants and underscores the importance of M. galloprovincialis as a bioindicator species for environmental monitoring. This study also suggests that recovery potential strongly depends on the type of contaminant, concentration and period of exposure, with significant implications for ecological risk assessment and the management of coastal pollution. Consequently, future research efforts should be directed toward addressing the potential for an escalation of contamination of aquatic ecosystems by emerging pollutants. |
|---|---|
| Autores principais: | Oliveira, David Tobias Tavares de |
| Assunto: | Classic and emerging contaminants Rare earth elements Metabolism Oxidative status Bivalves Biochemical biomarkers |
| Ano: | 2025 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | dissertação de mestrado |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso embargado |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade de Aveiro |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | RIA - Repositório Institucional da Universidade de Aveiro |
| Resumo: | Emerging contaminants, such as rare earth elements (REEs) and platinum group metals (PGMs), have been receiving increasing attention from the international community. This is not only due to their economic value and broad application in new technologies, which has driven their extraction, but also because of the consequent rise in their concentrations in the environment. Compared to classical contaminants, emerging ones pose an uncertain threat due to the lack of studies on their environmental fate and toxicological effects on organisms. Coastal and marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable, given their high population density and industrial activities, which result in elevated inputs of these contaminants, mainly through domestic and industrial effluents. In this study, the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis (M. galloprovincialis), a widely used bioindicator species when it comes to ecotoxicological surveys involving metals, was exposed during 14 days to environmentally relevant concentrations (20 μg/L) of yttrium (Y), platinum (Pt), and mercury (Hg), followed by a 14-day recovery period in uncontaminated seawater to assess the recovery of these organisms. A broad set of biomarkers was studied, from energy reserves and metabolic capacity, antioxidant responses, biotransformation enzymes, cellular damage, and neurotoxicity. The results showed that Hg triggered the most severe and persistent effects, including energy reserves depletion, oxidative stress, and cellular damage, which remained even after the recovery period. Exposure to Pt induced moderate biochemical adjustments, largely related to detoxification pathways with limited reversibility. Y exposure led to milder responses, which were reversible during the recovery period. Overall, this study highlights the contrasting toxicity profiles of emerging versus classical contaminants and underscores the importance of M. galloprovincialis as a bioindicator species for environmental monitoring. This study also suggests that recovery potential strongly depends on the type of contaminant, concentration and period of exposure, with significant implications for ecological risk assessment and the management of coastal pollution. Consequently, future research efforts should be directed toward addressing the potential for an escalation of contamination of aquatic ecosystems by emerging pollutants. |
|---|