Evidence for intraspecific endocrine disruption of Geukensia demissa (Atlantic ribbed mussel) in an urban watershed

Abstract

Populations undergo physiological adaptations in response to environmental stressors. Our 5-year bio-monitoring study of the Bronx River Estuary demonstrates comparatively low dissolved oxygen concentrations in this urbanized watershed. Additionally, our current results establish altered hormonal levels, resulting from endocrine disruption, in Geukensia demissa (Atlantic ribbed mussel) from the Bronx River Estuary. No studies have yet investigated a correlation between low dissolved oxygen and endocrine disruption in field-collected bivalves. Testosterone, estradiol, and progesterone levels were collected from male and female mussels in the oxygen depleted Bronx River and well-oxygenated Greenwich Cove. Bronx River mussels exhibited higher testosterone levels and lower estradiol levels than Greenwich Cove mussels. The resulting abnormal hormonal ratio seems to indicate that environmental conditions in the Bronx River facilitate an allosteric inhibition of the cytochrome P450 aromatase enzyme, which aids conversion of testosterone to estradiol. Low progesterone levels suggest that Bronx River mussels are experiencing a delay in sexual maturation, and morphometric data show a stalling of shell and tissue growth. To confirm that the mussels collected from both sites are the same species, the universal mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene was analyzed, through DNA barcoding. Minimal sequential heterogeneity confirmed the mussels are the same species. Such findings suggest intraspecific divergence in various endocrine processes, resulting from environmentally induced stress.