Influence of polyethylene-type microplastics on long-term exposure to heavy metals in freshwater phytoplankton.

Autor: Sánchez-Fortún A; Dpt. of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), w/n Puerta de Hierro Ave., 28040 Madrid, Spain., D'ors A; Dpt. of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), w/n Puerta de Hierro Ave., 28040 Madrid, Spain., Fajardo C; Dpt. of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Alcalá, Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona km 33.6, 28805 Alcalá de Henares, Spain., Costa G; Dpt. of Animal Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, Complutense University, w/n Puerta de Hierro Ave., 28040 Madrid, Spain., Sánchez-Fortún S; Dpt. of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), w/n Puerta de Hierro Ave., 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: fortun@ucm.es.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: The Science of the total environment [Sci Total Environ] 2024 Nov 25; Vol. 953, pp. 176151. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Sep 11.
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.176151
Abstrakt: The use of plastic materials has brought about significant social benefits but has also led to negative consequences, particularly their accumulation in aquatic environments. Studies have shown that small plastic particles, known as microplastics (MPs), can carry various harmful pollutants, such as heavy metals (HMs). Therefore, the aim of this research is to investigate the impact of polyethylene-type MPs on the long-term exposure of different HMs on freshwater microalgae Scenedesmus armatus and cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa, in both isolated cultures and phytoplanktonic community conditions. Over a period of 28 days, the strains were subjected to concentrations of Ag + , Cu +2 , and Cr +6 corresponding to their respective 72 h-EC 10 , with or without the presence of MPs. Throughout this period, the growth cell ratio, photosynthetic activity, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were monitored. The findings indicated a substantial inhibitory impact on cell growth during the initial 7-14 days of exposure, followed by a reduction until reaching values like the controls after 28 days of exposure. There was a disturbance in photosynthetic activity during the first 72 h of exposure, which gradually returned to control levels, mainly significantly affected the respiration phase. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) activity was also affected during the initial 14 days of exposure. The presence or absence of MPs in the culture medium did not significantly alter the observed effects. However, interspecies competition created a more favorable environment for M. aeruginosa over the freshwater microalgae S. armatus. These findings suggest that the formation of MP-HMs complexes may have a limited impact on reducing the adverse effects of HMs in long-term exposures. However, because the impact depends on the specific HM involved, further studies are needed to gain a better understanding of the interaction between these pollutants.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
(Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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