Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Ecotoxicological Characterization of Seawater, Sediment, and Mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis from the Gulf of Rijeka, the Adriatic Sea, Croatia

Abstract

The pattern of spatial distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in seawater, sediment, and mussels, potential toxicity of different matrices, and mussel anoxic survival from six sampling sites of the Gulf of Rijeka, the Adriatic Sea, Croatia was examined. The total concentrations of 10 PAHs vary from below detection limit to 305 ng/L in seawater, from 213 to 695 microg/kg dry weight in sediment and from 49.2 to 134 ng/g wet weight in mussel tissue. Combustion is the principal source of PAH contamination in seawater and sediment samples. Sediment samples are distinguished from the majority of seawater and mussel samples by the presence of high molecular weight PAHs, whereas mussels from majority of sampling sites tend to accumulate PAHs of lower molecular weight. The PAH dynamic between different matrices is complex and site specific. Toxicity of seawater and sediment organic extract is correlated with PAH content, indicating that PAHs are the predominant toxic compounds. There is no correlation between toxicity of mussel biological fluids and toxicity of seawater and sediment, or between toxicity of mussel biological fluid and PAH content in mussel, seawater, or sediment. There is a positive correlation between potential toxicity of mussel biological fluids and reduction of anoxic survival time. Mussel anoxic survival is influenced by the presence of complex mixture of toxic contaminants, not only PAHs. The relationship between PAH contents in different marine matrices and their ability to affect mussels revealed specific interactions between an organism and complex mixture of toxic contaminants present in the marine environment.

Biochemical endpoints on juvenile Solea senegalensis exposed to estuarine sediments: the effect of contaminant mixtures on metallothionein and CYP1A induction

“…The opposite was observed in A-tested fish at T 28 , where a more than twofold increase in muscle pp 0 DDT was observed. PAHs failed to depict any significant variation between sampling times for all tests but it was observed that fish accumulated lower molecularweight PAHs (3-ring) and not the 4-to 5-ring forms that are the most representative PAHs in the sediments, a result that is similar to studies with other marine organisms (Bihari et al 2007). In general, bioaccumulation of both metals and organic compounds appears to reflect sediment contamination.…”

Comparative Effects of Ingested PVC Micro Particles With and Without Adsorbed Benzo(a)pyrene vs. Spiked Sediments on the Cellular and Sub Cellular Processes of the Benthic Organism Hediste diversicolor

“…The adsorption of B[a]P to PVC particles was performed by mixing solutions of microplastics (∼10 g/L in ASW) with B[a]P at an environmentally realistic concentration of 5 µg/L (Bihari et al, 2007;Maria and Bebianno, 2011;Avio et al, 2015). The incubating solutions were kept in 50 ml glass tubes under continuous rotation within a Gallenkamp chamber for 7 days at room temperature in darkness.…”

Advanced PAH pollution monitoring by bivalves

“…The toxic potential of M. galloprovincialis biological fluids was examined by Bihari et al (2007) in the Adriatic Sea of Croatia. Mussel biological extract obtained from the specimens' tissues was tested in the Microtox assay (inhibition of chemiluminescence of V. fischeri), and it was shown that indeed mussel metabolic pathways rendered PAH (and/or other pollutants found in water) highly toxic.…”