Micropollutant effects in estuarine organisms (mussels, polychaetes and fish) in the Lagoon of Venice), Italy

This study aims to evaluate the effects of inorganic and organic micropollutants on the biological responses of mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis), polychaetes (Hediste diversicolor and Perinereis cultrifera) and fish (Zosterisessor ophiocephalus). Metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb e Zn) and PAH bioaccumulation and various biomarkers (malondialdehyde MDA and metallothioneins MT; Ethoxyresorufin D-deethilase activity EROD, fluorescent bile metabolites and somatic indices in fish only; latency of N-acetyl-â hesosaminidase, lipofuscin, neutral lipids and survival in air in mussels only) were evaluated in organisms seasonally collected from two different impacted areas: S. Giuliano and Sacca Sessola. Referring to the seasonal variations, the metal content showed a general summer decrease in mussels and in the polychaete H. diversicolor, in agreement with the trends of MDA and MT. PAHs were generally higher in summer in polychaetes, and in spring in fish. Intraspecific comparisons indicated similar metal bioaccumulation levels in the organisms from both areas, S. Giuliano mussels showing higher Pb and Cd concentrations. PAHs contents were generally higher in the organisms from S. Giuliano, in particular during the reproductive period. Additionally, the results of the biomarkers showed a similar biological response in the mussels of the two sites, and higher induction of exposure biomarkers in the polychaete P. cultrifera and in Z. ophiocephalus from S. Giuliano. The species H. diversicolor, found in S. Giuliano only, showed generally bioaccumulation capability and MDA levels higher than P. cultrifera from the same area. The multivariate analysis, performed on chemical and biological data, showed how the seasonality is the main factor discriminating the mussels samples, the sampling site resulted the main discriminating factor for the polychaetes, whereas both factors are important in fish.