Quantification and characterization of microplastics ingested by mangrove oysters across West Africa.

Autor: Mahu E; Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana. edemmahu@gmail.com., Vanderpuye-Orgle TJ; Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana., Boateng CM; Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana., Edusei MO; Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana., Yeboah GA; Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana., Chuku EO; Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Taroona, 7053, Australia., Okpei P; University of Energy and Natural Resources, Sunyani, Ghana., Okyere I; Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, CANS, University of Cape Coast (UCC), Cape Coast, Ghana.; Centre for Coastal Management, Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience - (ACECoR), UCC, Cape Coast, Ghana., Dodoo-Arhin D; Department of Material Science and Engineering, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana., Akintoye EA; Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research, Lagos, VI, Nigeria.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Environmental science and pollution research international [Environ Sci Pollut Res Int] 2024 Aug; Vol. 31 (38), pp. 50283-50296. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Aug 01.
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-024-34470-9
Abstrakt: Microplastic ingestion by marine organisms presents a challenge to both ecosystem functioning and human health. We characterized microplastic abundance, shape, size, and polymer types ingested by the West African mangrove oyster, Crassostrea tulipa (Lamarck, 1819) sampled from estuaries and lagoons from the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Benin, and Nigeria using optical microscopy and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) techniques. A total of 780 microplastics were isolated in the whole tissues of the 250 oysters (n = 50 oysters per country). The abundance and distribution of microplastics in the oysters followed the pattern: the Gambia > Ghana > Sierra Leone > Nigeria > Benin. The Tanbi wetlands in the Gambia recorded the highest average of 10.50 ± 6.69 per oyster while the Ouidah lagoon in Benin recorded the lowest average of 1.80 ± 1.90 per oyster. Overall, microplastic numbers varied significantly (p < 0.05) among the five countries. Microfibers, particularly those within 1001-5000 μm size, dominated the total microplastic count with a few fragments and films. No spherical microplastics were isolated in the oysters. In the Sierra Leone and Benin oysters, fragments and films were absent in the samples. Microplastic between the 1001 and 5000 μm size class dominated the counts, followed by 501-1000 μm, 101-500 μm, and 51-100 μm. Five polymer groups namely polyethylene, polyester, nylon, polypropylene, and polyamide were identified across the five countries, with polyethylene occurring in oysters from all five countries and polyester occurring in all but the oysters from Nigeria. This diversity of polymers suggests varied sources of microplastics ingested by the studied oysters. The absence of microspheres across the five supports findings from other studies that they are the least ingested and highly egested by the oysters.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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