Accumulation and elimination of aqueous and dietary silver in Daphnia magna.

The dissolved uptake, dietary assimilation, and efflux of Ag in a freshwater cladoceran, Daphnia magna, were measured under different laboratory conditions. The dissolved uptake rate of Ag was proportional to the ambient Ag concentration, but the accumulation was highly variable due to the sorption of Ag onto the daphnid bodies. The ambient Na(+) but not the ambient K(+) concentration significantly decreased the dissolved uptake of Ag, suggesting a competitive uptake of Ag(+) with Na(+). The dietary assimilation efficiencies (AEs) of Ag are dependent on the concentration of the algal food available to D. magna. The AE was as low as 2% when the food concentration reached the saturation levels. In contrast, the Ag concentrations in the algae did not significantly affect the Ag AE in D. magna. The efflux rate constant of diet-incorporated Ag was twice that through dissolved uptake. The elimination of Ag was further separated into different compartments (excretion, egestion, molting, and reproduction) in the juveniles and adults after accumulation from dissolved and dietary sources. Regeneration into the dissolved phase was the predominant pathway by which the incorporated Ag was lost from D. magna, regardless of the exposure pathway. In contrast to the essential metals or Hg, there was minimal maternal transfer of Ag from the mothers to the offspring. By employing the biokinetic model, we further showed that water is a dominant pathway for Ag accumulation in D. magna. Trophic transfer is less significant primarily because of the low Ag AE when the food concentration reached the saturation levels.