Abstract
The sorption of organic pollutants to marine plastic litter may pose risks to marine organisms, notably for what concerns their intake and transfer through microplastic (MP) ingestion. This study investigated the effects of polystyrene MP loaded with chrysene (CHR) on early-stage and physiological endpoints measured in the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis. The same concentrations of virgin microplastics (MP) and MP loaded with 10.8 µg CHR/mg (CHR-MP) were administered to mussel gametes/embryos (25 × 103 items/mL) and adults (5⋅× 103 items/L); further treatments included 0.1 mg/L of freely dissolved CHR and a second CHR concentration corresponding to that vehiculated by CHR-MP during exposure (3.78 µg/L and 0.73 ng/L for gamete/embryos and adults, respectively). None of the treatments affected gamete fertilization, while 0.1 mg/L CHR induced embryotoxicity. In adults, CHR-MP and MP similarly affected lysosomal membrane stability and neutral lipids and induced slight effects on oxidative stress endpoints. CHR affected tested endpoints only at 0.1 mg/L, with lysosomal, oxidative stress and neurotoxicity biomarkers generally showing greater alterations than those induced by CHR-MP and MP. This study shows that the CHR sorption on MP does not alter the impact of virgin MP on mussels and may pose limited risks compared to other routes of exposure.
Highlights
The demand for plastic products has globally risen over the past decades, resulting in the record of 368 million tonnes of plastics only produced in 2019 [1]
Tdheeniortema oretlialtiitvye/lvyihaibgihlidtyeg. rHeeoowf aedvaeprt,attiohneocf umrursesnetls’ksnpeorwmlaetdozgoeanosnto MthePphoyrsiPcaOl Ps tox mdofisuMtusPrsb-esalonrcgbeeaidmndaenutdceefdrfeeberylytmidliiizcsrasoot-ilsvoiezndedCisdHeRbstroiislnl, athlsiewmireimltleaodsti,alitanyne/gdvliigaebibvillieetnye.ffHelecotswosef vtihseer,kttehnsetoecwdurlnerevneotln the p ckunomwuleldagtievoen eMffPeocrtsPOinPdsutocxeicditybyonthmeuisrseilngtaemraectetifoenrt.iliFzuatriothneisr sitnilvl leimstiitgeda,taionndsevaerne e tleosscliasrkinfyowthneosne tphoeipnotsss. ible cumulative effects induced by their interaction
Data from this study show that the exposure to virgin and CHR-loaded polystyrene MP did not alter the M. galloprovincialis gamete fertilization and embryonic development, and generally induced qualitatively and quantitatively similar sub-lethal alterations in adult mussels
Summary
The demand for plastic products has globally risen over the past decades, resulting in the record of 368 million tonnes of plastics only produced in 2019 [1]. In addition to a prevalent use in modern society, the improper disposal of single-use items has progressively determined the widespread contamination of aquatic systems by plastic waste, which currently accounts for nearly the 80% of the oceanic litter [2,3]. The rate of plastic input in the marine environment is around 9.5 metric tonnes per year, with a two- to ten-fold increase projected by the ten years [4,5]. In this scenario, the potential environmental risks posed by microscopic plastic debris are capturing ever-growing attention [6,7,8]. MP mainly originates from the weathering-driven degradation of larger plastics, a lower fraction is represented by micro-sized items designed for industrial/engineering processes ( known as primary microplastics) [10,11]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
