Assessment of heavy metal pollution in Laizhou Bay(China)using the ecological risk index and the integrated biomarker response of the goby Acanthogobius ommaturus

We used the Integrated Biological Responses version 2(IBRv2)method to evaluate the biological eff ects of heavy metals in the sediments in Laizhou Bay,China on the benthic goby Acanthogobius ommaturus.In December 2018,gobies and sediments were collected from 15 stations.We measured the activities of defense enzymes and the contents of malondialdehyde(MDA)and metallothionein(MT)in the goby liver as well as the levels of heavy metals in the sediments and goby muscle tissue.Most of the heavy metal concentrations in sediment at each station were below the Class I criteria set by Chinese Standards for Marine Sediment Quality,and the Håkanson ecological risk index suggested low risk for the heavy metals.We found that A.ommaturus could eff ectively accumulate mercury,cadmium,arsenic,and zinc and that the contents of MT and MDA and the activities of glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase were suitable biomarkers of heavy metal pollution in this species.The IBRv2 method integrated these four biomarkers and discriminated stations according to heavy metal pollution.Higher IBRv2 values suggested more adverse eff ects in gobies,corroborating more serious heavy metal contamination.The stations with high IBRv2 values and high contents of heavy metals were mainly distributed in the west and northeast parts of the bay.These results show that the IBRv2 approach is a feasible strategy for assessing heavy metal pollution through biological response and biological status and that it can be implemented for environmental monitoring in Laizhou Bay.

An innovative classification system for ranking the biological effects of marine aromatic hydrocarbons based on fish embryotoxicity

Petroleum hydrocarbon pollution is a global concern,particularly in coastal environments.Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) are regarded as the most toxic components of petroleum hydrocarbons.In this study,the biomonitoring and ranking effects of petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs on the marine fish model Oryzias melastigma embryos were determined in the Jiulong River Estuary(JRE) and its adjacent waters in China.The results showed that the levels of petroleum hydrocarbons from almost all sites met the primary standard for marine seawater quality,and the concentrations of the 16 priority PAHs in the surface seawater were lower compared with those in other coastal areas worldwide.A new fish expert system based on the embryotoxicity of O.melastigma(OME-FES) was developed and applied in the field to evaluate the biological effects of petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs.The selected physiological index and molecular indicators in OME-FES were appropriate biomarkers for indicating the harmful effects of petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs.The outcome of OME-FES revealed that the biological effect levels of the sampling sites ranged from level Ⅰ(no stress) to level Ⅲ(medium stress),which is further corroborated by the findings of nested analysis of variance(ANOVA) models.Our results suggest that the OME-FES is an effective tool for evaluating and ranking the biological effects of marine petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs.This method may also be applied to evaluate other marine pollutants based on its framework.

An integrated biomarker response index for the mussel Mytilus edulis based on laboratory exposure to anthracene and field transplantation experiments

Organic pollution is a serious environmental problem in coastal areas and it is important to establish quantitative methods for monitoring this pollution. This study screened a series of sensitive biomarkers to construct an integrated biomarker response （IBR） index using Mytilus edulis. Mussels were exposed to the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon anthracene trader controlled laboratory conditions and the activities of components of the glutathione antioxidant system, and the concentrations of oxidative-damage markers, were measured in the gills and digestive glands. Anthracene exposure resulted in increased levels of malondialdehyde （MDA） and superoxide radicals （O2-·）, indicating that oxidative damage had occurred. Correspondingly, anthracene exposure induced increased activities of glutathione S-transferase （GST）, glutathione peroxidase （GPx） and reduced glutathione （GSH） in digestive glands, and GPx and glutathione reductase （GR） in gills, consistent with stimulation of the antioxidant system. A field experiment was set up, in which mussels from a relatively clean area were transplanted to a contaminated site. One month later, the activities of GST, GPx and GR had increased in several tissues, particularly in the digestive glands. Based on the laboratory experiment, an IBR, which showed a positive relationship with anthracene exposure, was constructed. The IBR is suggested to be a potentially useful tool for assessing anthracene pollution.

Applying a fish expert system for ranking the biological effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on the rockfish Sebastiscus marmoratus in the Maowei Sea,China

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)pollution,particularly in coastal environments,is a global concern.In this study,the biomonitoring and ranking effects of PAHs in the rockfish Sebastiscus marmoratus were determined in the Maowei Sea,China.The results showed that the concentrations of the 16 priority PAHs detected in the surface seawater were moderate compared with those in other coastal areas worldwide,and the possible sources were rapid industrialization and urbanization combined with atmospheric deposition and runoff.Nested analysis of variance(ANOVA)suggested significant differences in the hepatic ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase(EROD)activities and phenanthrene-derived metabolites in bile between the port area and the oyster farming area.The fish expert system(FES)was applied to evaluate the biological effects of PAHs on fish.The FES data demonstrated that the biological effect levels of Site S1(level III,medium stress)were higher than those of the other sampling sites(level II,low stress).

Integrated biomarkers in wild crucian carp for early warning of water quality in Hun River, North China

Metabolizing enzymes play important roles in the detoxification of various pollutants in aquatic organisms, thereby they can also be used to provide early-warning signals of environmental risks. Real-time quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction assays were developed to quantify cytochrome P450 1A （CYP1A）, superoxide dismutase （SOD）, glutathione peroxidase （GPx）, catalase （CAT）, and glutathione-S-transferase （GST） in crucian carp （Carassius auratus）. The methods were then used to detect the respective mRNA expression levels in liver tissue in wild crucian carp from the Hun River, North China. CYP1A mRNA expression was significantly up-regulated in fish from stations $5, $6, and $8 （p 〈 0.05）. SOD mRNA expression was significantly down-regulated in downstream areas relative to fish from upstream sites （p 〈 0.05）; GPx and CAT mRNA expression levels were also down-regulated at $9 （p 〈 0.05）. In contrast, GST mRNA expression showed no obvious change between fish collected from up- or downstream areas of the river. Finally, an integrated biomarker response was used to evaluate the integrated impact of pollutants in the Hun River and allow better comprehension of the real toxicological risk of these investigated sites.

Fish transplantation and stress-related biomarkers as useful tools for assessing water quality

The active biomonitoring （ABM） approach was investigated using species of indigenous （from a pristine site） and transplanted （to a polluted area） fish Carassius auratus as an indicator organism of water/sediment pollution in Taihu Lake, a highly urbanized and industrialized area. The biotransformation enzymes 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase （EROD）, reduced glutathione （GSH） content, catalase activities （CAT） and lipoperoxidation （as MDA） in liver were determined as stress-related biomarkers during the field exposure period. At the same time, the contents of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs）, polychlorinated biphenyls （PCBs）, organochlorine pesticides （OCPs） and heavy metals in the surface sediments of biomonitoring sites were also determined. The results indicate that the in situ exposed organisms were stressed. The marked increases of EROD, GSH, CAT and MDA in transplanted animals, suggested their potential application as biomarkers in pollution monitoring. Integrated biomarker response （IBR） was used to evaluate an integrated impact of toxicants from different polluted sites.

Integrative assessment of biomarker responses in teleostean fishes exposed to glyphosate-based herbicide(Excel Mera 71)

Present study deals with the effects of glyphosate-based herbicide,Excel Mera 71 on Anabas testudineus,Heteropnestes fossilis and Oreochromis niloticus in field conditions(1.85 kg/ha)based on anti-oxidative,metabolic and digestive responses.For this study following biomarkers viz.,acetylcholinesterase(AChE),lipid peroxidation(LPO),catalase(CAT),glutathione-S-transferase(GST),alkaline phosphatase(ALP),aspartate aminotransferase(AST),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),amylase,lipase and protease were investigated in gill,stomach,intestine,liver,kidney,brain,muscle and spinal cord of the concerned fish species.Enzyme activities were significantly altered by glyphosate exposure after 30 days,these activities were tissue as well as species specific.The results suggested that these biomarkers could be used to assess the ecological risks of glyphosate on fish.Bioaccumulation factor(BAF)studied in different aquatic natural macrophytes showed order of Alternanthera philoxeroides>Azolla pinnata>Lemna sp.(Minor)>Lemna sp.(Major)>Pistia stratiotes,while transfer factor(TF)showed the order of Pistia stratiotes>Alternanthera philoxeroides>Lemna sp.Bioconcentration factor(BCF)study showed maximum accumulation of glyphosate in liver,kidney or intestine,and minimum either in bone or stomach irrespective of fish species.An integrated biomarker response(IBR),which uses a battery of biomarkers to calculate the standardized scores for each biomarker responses ranging from physiological to biochemical/molecular responses,was evaluated by combining the multiple biomarkers into a single value to evaluate quantitatively the toxicological effects of glyphosate.In general,the multiple indices exhibited variations and A.testudineus was more affected than other fish species;maximum IBR value was observed for LPO and minimum in case of ALT.The order of integrated biomarkers caused by glyphosate treatment was recorded as follows:LPO>Amylase>CAT>AST>Protease>Lipase>ALP>GST>AChE>ALT for A.testudineus,LPO>AChE>AST>Protease>CAT>Amylase>Lipase>GST>ALP>ALT for H.fossilis and AChE>CAT>LPO>AST>Amylase>GST>Protease>ALP>Lipase>ALT for O.niloticus.Finally,IBR analysis is able to distinguish the variations between different parameters and might be a useful tool for the quantification of integrated responses induced by glyphosate toward fish.

Integration of chemical and biological methods:A case study of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons pollution monitoring in Shandong Peninsula,China

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs),as persistent toxic substances(PTS),have been widely monitored in coastal environment,including seawater and sediment.However,scientific monitoring methods,like ecological risk assessment and integrated biomarker response,still need massive researches to verify their availabilities.This study was performed in March,May,August and October of 2018 at eight sites,Yellow River estuary(S1),Guangli Port(S2),Xiaying(S3),Laizhou(S4),Inner Bay(S5),Outer Bay(S6),Hongdao(S7)and Hongshiya(S8)of Shandong Peninsula,China.The contents of 16 priority PAHs in local seawater and sediment were determined,by which ecological risk assessment risk quotient(RQ)for seawater and sediment quality guidelines(SQGs)were calculated to characterize the PAHs pollution.Meanwhile,multiple biomarkers in the digestive gland of clam Ruditapes philippinarum were measured to represent different biological endpoints,including ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase(EROD),glutathione S-transferase(GST),sulfotransferase(SULT),superoxide dismutase(SOD)and lipid peroxidation(LPO),by which integrated biomarker response(IBR)was calculated to provide a comprehensive assessment of environmental quality.Taken together,these results revealed the heaviest pollution at S2 as both PAHs concentrations and biomarkers responses reflected,and supported the integrated biomarker response as a useful tool for marine environmental monitoring,through its integration with SQGs.