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Publication
Integration of sediment contamination with multi-biomarker
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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
For the purpose of biomonitoring, species that
combine ecological and commercial importance may provide
a link between ecological and human health risk. The
common cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis, holds both characteristics
in south-western Europe, albeit remaining unsurveyed
in ecotoxicological studies. Cuttlefish collected from
an impacted estuary in SW Portugal and a reference location
off the coast were analysed for a battery of biomarker
responses in the digestive gland and gills. The contrast to
reference animals revealed that biomarker responses,
especially those related to oxidative stress, were consistent
with sediment contamination by PAHs, even in a situation
that combines complex toxicant mixtures, moderate levels
of contamination and high ecotoxicological diversity.
However, environmental parameters related to the differences
between shore and estuarine habitats should not be
overruled. Also, digestive gland metallothionein retained
significant specificity to metals even though previous
studies in the area with clams and fish failed to trigger a
conclusive response. The highest net differences in biomarker
responses were detected in the gills, likely
indicating higher sensitivity to environmental stressors.
Still, the digestive gland responses were overall the most
consistent with sediment contamination and effectively
differentiated between estuarine industrial- and ruralimpacted
sites. The results indicate that S. officinalis may
be a candidate to meet the European Union’s requirements
for efficient biomonitoring programmes, with the additional
importance of being cosmopolitan, abundant, commercially
valuable and combining the molluscan biology
that has been granting bivalves their high value for biomonitoring
with foraging behaviour, thus better able to
reflect anthropogenic stressors impacting a wider area than
sedentary organisms. Nevertheless, further investigations
in unpolluted sites are needed to better evaluate the background
levels of biomarker responses in the species.
Description
Keywords
Cephalopods Cuttlefish Aquatic pollution Biomonitoring Integrated biomarker response Oxidative stress