Department of Marine Science, University of Otago, New Zealand.
Department of Botany, University of Otago, New Zealand.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Jul;168:112369. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112369. Epub 2021 Apr 28.
Determining the effects of microplastic (MP) ingestion by marine organisms, especially during the sensitive larval stages, is an important step in understanding wider ecosystem responses. We investigated the ingestion, retention (1-5 μm), and short-term exposure effects (1-4 μm) of spherical MPs by larvae of the sea urchin Pseudechinus huttoni. Larvae ingested MPs in a dose-dependent manner and successfully egested particles after a short retention period. Survival was not significantly affected by exposure to MPs over the 10-day experimental period, however, a teratogenic response in terms of delayed development resulted in an increase of larval arm asymmetry. Additionally, MP exposure resulted in oxidative damage to lipids and proteins in larval body tissue despite a significant upregulation of antioxidant defences. The findings indicate MP exposure may impair cellular function, leading to negative consequences for an organism's fitness and survival.
确定海洋生物摄入微塑料（MP）的影响，特别是在敏感的幼虫阶段，是了解更广泛的生态系统反应的重要步骤。我们研究了球形 MPs 对海胆幼体 Pseudechinus huttoni 的摄入、保留（1-5μm）和短期暴露效应（1-4μm）。幼虫以剂量依赖的方式摄入 MPs，并在短时间的保留期后成功排出颗粒。在 10 天的实验期间，暴露于 MPs 并没有显著影响存活率，然而，胚胎畸形的延迟发育导致幼虫臂的不对称性增加。此外，尽管抗氧化防御系统显著上调，但 MPs 暴露导致幼虫体组织中的脂质和蛋白质发生氧化损伤。研究结果表明，MP 暴露可能会损害细胞功能，对生物体的适应性和生存能力产生负面影响。
