Abstract
The effects of environmentally relevant bisphenol A (BPA) concentrations (0.3, 1 and 3 μg L−1) were tested at 2, 4, 6 and 8 days, on intermediate leaves, of the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production, lipid peroxidation, protein, phenolic content and antioxidant enzyme activities were investigated. Increased H2O2 formation was detected even at the lowest BPA treatments from the beginning of the experiment and both the enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant defense mechanisms were activated upon application of BPA. Elevated H2O2 levels that were detected as a response to increasing BPA concentrations and incubation time, led to the decrease of protein content on the 4th day even at the two lower BPA concentrations, and to the increase of the lipid peroxidation at the highest concentration. However, on the 6th day of BPA exposure, protein content did not differ from the control, indicating the ability of both the enzymatic and non-enzymatic mechanisms (such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and phenolics) to counteract the BPA-derived oxidative stress. The early response of the protein content determined that the Low Effect Concentration (LOEC) of BPA is 0.3 μg L−1 and that the protein content meets the requirements to be considered as a possible early warning “biomarker” for C. nodosa against BPA toxicity.
Highlights
Published: 25 January 2022The ever-increasing leaches from plastic pollution, have unavoidably led to some endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) to be ubiquitous in most the aquatic environments [1,2]
Levels of H2 O2 in the epidermal cells of intermediate C. nodosa leaves increased with increasing incubation time and bisphenol A (BPA) concentrations, as indicated by the H2 DCF-DA
Seagrass consisting of horizontal rhizome, vertical rhizomes, roots and leaf shoots were incubated in non-BPA-based polypropylene (PP) copolymer (PPCO) constantly aerated aquaria, containing 20 L of 0.3, 1 and 3 μg L−1 bisphenol-A (BPA; Sigma, Taufkirchen, Germany) solutions in filtered seawater (0.45 μm Whatman GF/C) and filter seawater
Summary
The ever-increasing leaches from plastic pollution, have unavoidably led to some endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) to be ubiquitous in most the aquatic environments [1,2]. EDC compounds have detrimental effects on several organisms, since they disrupt the hormonal equilibrium. This plasticizer is an organic chemical used as an intermediate in the production of numerous plastic utensils [3]. Due to the increasing demand for the aformentioned products, BPA production has constantly grown in the last years. The global demand was 5.5 million tons in 2011 [4] and it was expected to have grown at a rate of 4.6% per year the period from 2013 to 2019 [4]. BPA leaching into the aquatic environment represents a potential risk [2]. Extensive toxicity studies concerning its impacts on aquatic organisms have been conducted mainly focusing on animals
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