College of Life Science, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710119, People's Republic of China.
School of Water and Environment, Chang'an University, Xi'an, 710054, People's Republic of China.
Ecotoxicology. 2021 Apr;30(3):502-513. doi: 10.1007/s10646-021-02356-y. Epub 2021 Feb 15.
Copper (Cu) is one of the environmental contaminations which can pose significant risks for organisms. The current study explores the effects of Cu exposure on the growth, intestinal histology and microbial ecology in Bufo gargarizans. The results revealed that 0.5-1 μM Cu exposure induced growth retardation (including reduction of total body length and wet weight) and intestinal histological injury (including disordered enterocyte, changes in the villi and vacuoles) of tadpoles. Also, high-throughput sequencing analysis showed that Cu exposure caused changes in richness, diversity and structure of intestinal microbiota. Moreover, the composition of intestinal microbiota was altered in tadpoles exposed to different concentrations of Cu. At the phylum level, we observed the abundance of proteobacteria was increased, while the abundance of fusobacteria was decreased in the intestinal microbiota of tadpoles exposed to 1 μM Cu. At the genus level, a reduced abundance of kluyvera and aeromonas was observed in the intestinal microbiota of tadpoles under the exposure of 0-0.5 μM Cu. Finally, functional predictions revealed that tadpoles exposed to copper may be at a higher risk of developing metabolic disorders or diseases. Above all, our results will develop a comprehensive view of the Cu exposure in amphibians and will yield a new consideration for sublethal effects of Cu on aquatic organisms.
铜（Cu）是一种环境污染物，可能对生物体造成重大风险。本研究探讨了铜暴露对泽蛙生长、肠道组织学和微生物生态学的影响。结果表明，0.5-1 μM 的铜暴露会诱导蝌蚪生长迟缓（包括总体长和湿重减少）和肠道组织学损伤（包括肠细胞排列紊乱、绒毛和空泡改变）。此外，高通量测序分析显示，铜暴露导致肠道微生物群落的丰富度、多样性和结构发生变化。而且，暴露于不同浓度铜的蝌蚪肠道微生物群落的组成发生了改变。在门水平上，我们观察到暴露于 1 μM 铜的蝌蚪肠道微生物中变形菌门的丰度增加，而梭杆菌门的丰度减少。在属水平上，暴露于 0-0.5 μM Cu 的蝌蚪肠道微生物中 kluyvera 和 aeromonas 的丰度降低。最后，功能预测表明，暴露于铜的蝌蚪可能面临更高的代谢紊乱或疾病风险。总之，我们的研究结果将为两栖动物的铜暴露提供全面的认识，并为铜对水生生物的亚致死效应提供新的考虑。
