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Integrative approach to assess the combined impact of microplastics and algal toxins in mussels
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Tiny plastic particles in the ocean can make harmful algal toxins stick around longer in mussels and cause more damage to their tissues than the toxins would alone. This matters because mussels are a food we eat, and these findings show that ocean pollution from microplastics could make seafood more dangerous by helping toxic chemicals accumulate and persist in the animals we harvest.
Microplastics (MPs) may alter the environmental fate and trophic transfer of lipophilic phycotoxins in coastal waters, but the consequences for marine organisms remain largely unresolved. We investigated whether cell-free extract of Prorocentrum lima , containing diarrhetic shellfish toxin okadaic acid (OA), could be transferred to and retained in Perna perna mussels . The extract was supplied either as dissolved compounds in seawater or adsorbed onto 5 μm polystyrene MPs, and both OA tissue distribution and the resulting histological and proteomic implications were evaluated over time. When delivered in the dissolved form (T-PL), OA accumulated mainly in digestive tissues (DT), reaching 19.0 ± 3.8 ng g −1 within seven days of exposure. When OA was associated with MPs (T-PLMP), the toxin OA was detected 2 days earlier and persisted at relatively high concentrations until day 14 in DT (12.8 ± 4.5 ng g −1 ), with 77–99% of the toxin present as conjugated (i.e., transformed) forms. In the remaining tissues, OA reached 5.7 ± 3.8 ng g −1 at day 2 and then declined. Mussels exposed to P. lima extract exhibited tissue alterations, including digestive tubule atrophy, vacuolation, and hemocyte infiltration, with more severe effects in the T-PLMP. Likewise, gill lesions were more frequent in mussels exposed to T-PLMP. Proteomic analysis revealed alterations in pathways related to protein turnover, cytoskeletal stability, apoptosis, and cellular stress. Overall, MP association modified OA toxicokinetics in mussels, promoting earlier detection and prolonged persistence in digestive tissues, while intensified structural damage and molecular stress. These results suggest that MPs can magnify the environmental hazard posed by lipophilic phycotoxins, underscoring the importance of considering multi-contaminant interactions in marine coastal risk assessments.
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Researchers discovered that mussels previously exposed to microplastics accumulated significantly higher levels of shellfish toxins when later exposed to toxin-producing algae. The prior microplastic exposure impaired the mussels' ability to break down and eliminate the toxins from their bodies. The findings raise concerns that widespread microplastic pollution could increase the risk of shellfish toxin contamination in seafood consumed by humans.
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