Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo 90131, Italy.
J Hazard Mater. 2024 Jun 5;471:134220. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134220. Epub 2024 Apr 4.
The presence in marine shellfish of toxins and pollutants like rare earth elements (REEs) poses a major threat to human well-being, coastal ecosystems, and marine life. Among the REEs, neodymium (Nd) stands out as a widely utilized element and is projected to be among the top five critical elements by 2025. Gymnodinum catenatum is a phytoplankton species commonly associated with the contamination of bivalves with paralytic shellfish toxins. This study evaluated the biological effects of Nd on the mussel species Mytilus galloprovincialis when exposed to G. catenatum cells for fourteen days, followed by a recovery period in uncontaminated seawater for another fourteen days. After co-exposure, mussels showed similar toxin accumulation in the Nd and G. catenatum treatment in comparison with the G. catenatum treatment alone. Increased metabolism and enzymatic defenses were observed in organisms exposed to G. catenatum cells, while Nd inhibited enzyme activity and caused cellular damage. Overall, this study revealed that the combined presence of G. catenatum cells and Nd, produced positive synergistic effects on M. galloprovincialis biochemical responses compared to G. catenatum alone, indicating that organisms' performance may be significantly modulated by the presence of multiple co-occurring stressors, such those related to chemical pollution and harmful algal blooms. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS: Neodymium (Nd) is widely used in green technologies like wind turbines, and this element's potential threats to aquatic environments are almost unknown, especially when co-occurring with other environmental factors such as blooms of toxic algae. This study revealed the cellular impacts induced by Nd in the bioindicator species Mytilus galloprovincialis but further demonstrated that the combination of both stressors can generate a positive defense response in mussels. The present findings also demonstrated that the impacts caused by Nd lasted even after a recovery period while a previous exposure to the toxins generated a faster biochemical improvement by the mussels.
海洋贝类中存在毒素和污染物，如稀土元素 (REEs)，这对人类健康、沿海生态系统和海洋生物构成了重大威胁。在 REEs 中，钕 (Nd) 是一种广泛应用的元素，预计到 2025 年将成为前五大关键元素之一。链状裸甲藻是一种浮游植物，通常与双壳贝类麻痹性贝类毒素污染有关。本研究评估了 Nd 对贻贝物种厚壳贻贝在暴露于链状裸甲藻细胞 14 天后，再在未受污染的海水中恢复 14 天期间的生物学影响。共暴露后，与单独暴露于链状裸甲藻相比，Nd 和链状裸甲藻处理组贻贝的毒素积累相似。暴露于链状裸甲藻细胞的生物体表现出代谢和酶防御的增强，而 Nd 抑制了酶活性并导致细胞损伤。总的来说，这项研究表明，与单独暴露于链状裸甲藻相比，链状裸甲藻细胞和 Nd 的共同存在对厚壳贻贝生化反应产生了积极的协同效应，这表明生物体的表现可能会受到多种共存胁迫的显著调节，例如与化学污染和有害藻类大量繁殖有关的胁迫。环境影响：钕 (Nd) 广泛应用于风力涡轮机等绿色技术，而该元素对水生环境的潜在威胁几乎未知，尤其是当与其他环境因素如有毒藻类大量繁殖同时存在时。本研究揭示了 Nd 在生物指示剂物种厚壳贻贝中引起的细胞影响，但进一步表明，这两种胁迫源的组合可以在贻贝中产生积极的防御反应。本研究还发现，即使在恢复期后，Nd 造成的影响仍持续存在，而之前接触毒素会使贻贝更快地进行生化改善。
