School of Earth and Environmental Sciences & Research Institute of Oceanography, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea.
Department of Marine Environmental Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Republic of Korea.
Environ Int. 2023 Mar;173:107869. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2023.107869. Epub 2023 Mar 7.
Microalgal bioassays are widely applied to evaluate the potential toxicity of various persistent toxic substances in environmental samples due to multiple advantages, including high sensitivity, short test duration, and cost-effectiveness. Microalgal bioassay is gradually developing in method, and the scope of application to environmental samples is also expanding. Here, we reviewed the published literature on microalgal bioassays for environmental assessments, focusing on types of samples, sample preparation methods, and endpoints, and highlighted key scientific advancements. Bibliographic analysis was performed with the keywords 'microalgae' and 'toxicity' or 'bioassay', and 'microalgal toxicity'; 89 research articles were selected and reviewed. Traditionally, most studies implementing microalgal bioassays focused on water samples (44%) with passive samplers (38%). Studies using the direct exposure method (41%) of injecting microalgae into sampled water mainly evaluated toxic effects by growth inhibition (63%). Recently, various automated sampling techniques, in situ bioanalytical methods with multiple endpoints, and targeted and non-targeted chemical analyses have been applied. More research is needed to identify causative toxicants affecting microalgae and to quantify the cause-effect relationships. This study provides the first comprehensive overview of recent advances in microalgal bioassays performed with environmental samples, suggesting future research directions based on current understanding and limitations.
微藻生物测定法由于其灵敏度高、测试时间短、成本效益高的特点，被广泛应用于评估环境样品中各种持久性有毒物质的潜在毒性。微藻生物测定法在方法上逐渐发展，其在环境样品中的应用范围也在扩大。在这里，我们综述了有关环境评估的微藻生物测定法的已发表文献，重点介绍了样品类型、样品制备方法和终点，并强调了关键的科学进展。通过关键词“微藻”和“毒性”或“生物测定”、“微藻毒性”进行文献分析，共选取并综述了 89 篇研究论文。传统上，大多数实施微藻生物测定法的研究都集中在水样（44%）和被动采样器（38%）上。采用直接暴露法（41%）将微藻注入采样水中的研究主要通过生长抑制（63%）来评估毒性效应。最近，已经应用了各种自动化采样技术、具有多个终点的原位生物分析方法以及靶向和非靶向化学分析。需要进一步的研究来确定影响微藻的有毒物质，并量化因果关系。本研究提供了有关使用环境样品进行的微藻生物测定法最新进展的全面概述，根据当前的理解和局限性提出了未来的研究方向。
