Jimenez-Guri et al., 2023
PVC pellet leachates affect adult immune system and embryonic development but not reproductive capacity in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus
Jimenez-Guri et al. (2023) either exposed adult sea urchins Paracentrotus lividus to excessively high1 levels of PVC leachate or filtered seawater control for 2 weeks, and then force-spawned twice (once at the end of week 1 and once at the end of week 2) where embryos from control and exposed adults were split and incubated for development in either a filtered seawater control or a 65g/L PVC leachate (they call this 10% PVC leachate) treatment.
- 1
1000X higher than environmental measurements in the meditereanean (Middag et al., 2022)
Their 10% PVC leachate dose is 6.5g PVC pellets/100mL seawater, which is 65 grams of plastic in 1L of seawater… This compared to our 1mg/L ‘high’ dose is 65k times more highly concentrated!)
Embryos were culled at 24 and 48 hours and imaged and categorized as ‘developed’, ‘aberrant’, and ‘not developed’.
Intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) as well as total antioxidant capacity (TAC) was measured by spectrofluorometry
Rendell-Bhatti et al., 2021
Developmental toxicity of plastic leachates on the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus
Using the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus as a model, we studied the effects of leachates of three forms of plastic pellet: new industrial pre-production plastic nurdles, beached pre-production nurdles, and floating filters, known as biobeads, also retrieved from the environment. Our chemical analyses show that leachates from beached pellets (biobead and nurdle pellets) and highly plasticised industrial pellets (PVC) contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and polychlorinated biphenyls, which are known to be detrimental to development and other life stages of animals. We also demonstrate that these microplastic leachates elicit severe, consistent and treatment-specific developmental abnormalities in P. lividus at embryonic and larval stages. Those embryos exposed to virgin polyethylene leachates with no additives nor environmental contaminants developed normally, suggesting that the abnormalities observed are the result of exposure to either environmentally adsorbed contaminants or pre-existing industrial additives within the polymer matrix. In the light of the chemical contents of the leachates and other characteristics of the plastic particles used, we discuss the phenotypes observed during our study, which include abnormal gastrulation, impaired skeletogenesis, abnormal neurogenesis, redistribution of pigmented cells and embryo radialisation (Rendell-Bhatti et al. 2021).
Rendell-Bhatti, Flora, Periklis Paganos, Anna Pouch, Christopher Mitchell, Salvatore D’Aniello, Brendan J. Godley, Ksenia Pazdro, Maria Ina Arnone, and Eva Jimenez-Guri. 2021. “Developmental Toxicity of Plastic Leachates on the Sea Urchin Paracentrotus Lividus.” Environmental Pollution 269 (January): 115744. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115744.
This study used the same leachate preparation and concentrations as above.
Gambardella et al., 2024
High concentrations of phthalates affect the early development of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus
The toxicity of three phthalates (PAEs) - butylbenzyl phthalate (BBP), diethyl phthalate (DEP), and di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) - was tested on the Mediterranean sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. Fertilized eggs were exposed to environmental and high PAE concentrations for 72 h. The potential toxic effects on larval development and any morphological anomalies were then assessed to estimate PAEs impact. Environmental concentrations never affected development, while high concentrations induced toxic effects in larvae exposed to BBP (EC50: 2.9 ×103 μg/L) and DEHP (EC50: 3.72 ×103 μg/L). High concentrations caused skeletal anomalies, with a slight to moderate impact for DEP/DEHP and BBP, respectively. PAE toxicity was: BBP>DEHP>DEP. In conclusion, the three PAEs at environmental concentrations do not pose a risk to sea urchins. However, PAE concentrations should be further monitored in order not to constitute a concern to marine species, especially at their early developmental stages. - Gambardella et al. (2024)
Gambardella, Chiara, Roberta Miroglio, Marina Prieto Amador, Filippo Castelli, Laura Castellano, Veronica Piazza, Marco Faimali, and Francesca Garaventa. 2024. “High Concentrations of Phthalates Affect the Early Development of the Sea Urchin Paracentrotus Lividus.” Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 279 (July): 116473. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2024.116473.
Gandara e Silva et al., 2016
Leachate from microplastics impairs larval development in brown mussels
In this study, we conducted experiments to evaluate the toxicity of leachates from virgin and beached plastic pellets to embryo development of the brown mussel (Perna perna). We compared the efficiency of two test procedures, and evaluated the toxicity of beached pellets collected in a coastal marine protected area. We observed that mussel embryo is sensitive to leachate from both virgin and beached pellets. However, the toxicity of the leachate from beached pellets was much higher than that of virgin pellets. We suggest contaminants adsorbed onto the surface of beached pellets were responsible for the high toxicity of leachate from beached pellets, while the toxicity of leachate from virgin pellets was mainly due to plastic additives. Our results suggest microplastic debris may be harmful even if ingestion is not the only or main pathway of interaction of marine organisms with contaminated plastic debris. - Gandara e Silva et al. (2016)
Gandara e Silva, Pablo Pena, Caio Rodrigues Nobre, Pryscila Resaffe, Camilo Dias Seabra Pereira, and Felipe Gusmão. 2016. “Leachate from Microplastics Impairs Larval Development in Brown Mussels.” Water Research 106 (December): 364–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2016.10.016.
Mincarelli et al., 2021
Consequences of combined exposure to thermal stress and the plasticiser DEHP in Mytilus spp. differ by sex
Little is known about the combined effect of environmental factors and contaminants on commercially important marine species, and whether this effect differs by sex. In this study, blue mussels were exposed for seven days to both single and combined stressors (i.e., +3 ◦C elevated temperature and two environmentally relevant concentrations of the plastic softener DEHP, 0.5 and 50 μg/l) in a factorial design. Males were observed to be more sensitive to high temperature, demonstrated by the significant increase in out-of-season spawning gonads and higher gene expression of the antioxidant catalase and the estrogen receptor genes. On the other hand, while the gametogenesis cycle in females was more resilient than in males, DEHP exposure altered the estrogen-related receptor gene expression. We show that the combined stressors DEHP and increased temperature, in environmentally relevant magnitudes, have different consequences in male and female mussels, with the potential to impact the timing and breeding season success in Mytilus spp. - Mincarelli et al. (2021)
Mincarelli, Luana Fiorella, Jeanette M. Rotchell, Emma C. Chapman, Alexander P. Turner, and Katharina C. Wollenberg Valero. 2021. “Consequences of Combined Exposure to Thermal Stress and the Plasticiser DEHP in Mytilus Spp. Differ by Sex.” Marine Pollution Bulletin 170 (September): 112624. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112624.
Paganos et al., 2023
Plastic leachate-induced toxicity during sea urchin embryonic development: Insights into the molecular pathways affected by PVC
ere we investigate the effects of leachates from new and beach-collected pellets on the embryonic and larval development of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus and demonstrate that exposure of developing embryos to these leachates elicits severe, consistent and treatment-specific developmental abnormalities including radialisation of the embryo and malformation of the skeleton, neural and immune cells. Using a multi-omics approach we define the developmental pathways disturbed upon exposure to PVC leachates and provide a mechanistic view that pinpoints cellular redox stress and energy production as drivers of phenotypic abnormalities following exposure to PVC leachates. Analysis of leachates identified high concentrations of zinc that are the likely cause of these observed defects. Our findings point to clear and specific detrimental effects of marine plastic pollution on the development of echinoderms, demonstrating that chemicals leached from plastic particles into sea water can produce strong developmental abnormalities via specific pathways, and therefore have the potential to impact on a wide range of organisms. -Paganos et al. (2023)
Paganos, Periklis, Clemens Vinzenz Ullmann, Daniela Gaglio, Marcella Bonanomi, Noemi Salmistraro, Maria Ina Arnone, and Eva Jimenez-Guri. 2023. “Plastic Leachate-Induced Toxicity During Sea Urchin Embryonic Development: Insights into the Molecular Pathways Affected by PVC.” Science of The Total Environment 864 (March): 160901. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160901.