Department of Biological Sciences, Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, United States of America.
Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Geology, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2021 Sep 7;16(9):e0247739. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0247739. eCollection 2021.
Metaplasia is a well documented and deleterious effect of crude oil components on oysters. This reversible transformation of one cell type to another is a common response to petroleum-product exposure in molluscs. It has been shown experimentally in previous work that eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) exposed to petroleum products will exhibit metaplasia of digestive tissues. Here we document for the first time that wild adult oysters inhabiting coastal waters in the northern Gulf of Mexico during and in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (2010) exhibited metaplasia in both ctenidial (respiratory and suspension feeding) and digestive tract tissues at significantly higher frequencies than geographic controls of C. virginica from Chesapeake Bay. Metaplasia included the loss of epithelial cilia, transformations of columnar epithelia, hyperplasia and reduction of ctenidial branches, and vacuolization of digestive tissues. Evidence for a reduction of metaplasia following the oil spill (2010-2013) is suggestive but equivocal.
化生是原油成分对牡蛎的一种有充分文献记载的、有害的影响。这种从一种细胞类型向另一种细胞类型的可逆转化是软体动物对石油产品暴露的常见反应。在之前的实验中已经证明，暴露于石油产品的东方牡蛎（Crassostrea virginica）将表现出消化组织的化生。在这里，我们首次记录到，在墨西哥湾北部沿海地区，生活在那里的野生成年牡蛎，在深水地平线石油泄漏（2010 年）期间和之后，其栉状（呼吸和悬浮摄食）和消化道组织中的化生频率明显高于切萨皮克湾的 C. virginica 的地理对照。化生包括上皮纤毛的丧失、柱状上皮的转化、纤毛分支的增生和减少，以及消化组织的空泡化。有证据表明，石油泄漏（2010-2013 年）后化生减少，但证据不充分。
