Gomes T, Gonzalez-Rey M, Bebianno M J
CIMA, Faculty of Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-135, Faro, Portugal.
Ecotoxicology. 2009 Nov;18(8):1104-9. doi: 10.1007/s10646-009-0359-5. Epub 2009 Jul 25.
Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) known to be present in the marine environment, have great potential to influence reproductive status in aquatic organisms. A widespread incidence of intersex linked with EDCs exposure has been reported in molluscs and fish species. The species Scrobicularia plana is inherently gonochoristic; nonetheless, the feminisation of male clams was described in estuaries from the United Kingdom. Thus, this study reports the presence of oocytes in the testis of male clams of S. plana collected in the Guadiana River (Portugal). Samples were collected between June and September (2007), and gonad tissue analysed by light microscopy. Intersex with several degrees of intensity was detected during the first three months of sampling, in which the percentage of male clams affected varied between 5.9, 58.3 and 71.4%. Little is known about the causes of intersex in S. plana, being the urban, industrial and agricultural discharges possible major sources of induction. In the Guadiana River, the presence of several EDCs may be directly linked to the incidence of the intersex condition detected in Scrobicularia plana.
已知存在于海洋环境中的内分泌干扰化学物质（EDCs）极有可能影响水生生物的生殖状况。在软体动物和鱼类中，已报道了与EDCs暴露相关的广泛的雌雄同体现象。平面蚬（Scrobicularia plana）物种本质上是雌雄异体的；尽管如此，在英国的河口地区已描述了雄性蛤蜊的雌性化现象。因此，本研究报告了在瓜迪亚纳河（葡萄牙）采集的平面蚬雄性蛤蜊的睾丸中存在卵母细胞。于2007年6月至9月期间采集样本，并通过光学显微镜对性腺组织进行分析。在采样的前三个月检测到了不同强度的雌雄同体现象，其中受影响的雄性蛤蜊百分比在5.9%、58.3%和71.4%之间变化。关于平面蚬雌雄同体的原因知之甚少，城市、工业和农业排放可能是主要的诱发来源。在瓜迪亚纳河中，几种EDCs的存在可能与在平面蚬中检测到的雌雄同体状况的发生率直接相关。
