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Application of Reproductive Toxicity Caused by Endocrine Disruptors in Rotifers: A Review
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This review synthesizes research on how endocrine-disrupting chemicals, including microplastics, affect reproduction in rotifers, which are critical organisms in aquatic food webs. The study found that microplastics can cause transgenerational reproductive delays in rotifers, and that oxidative stress is a common toxicity mechanism, with combined pollutant exposures producing context-dependent synergistic or antagonistic effects on these organisms.
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), widespread in aquatic environments, interfere with endocrine function in organisms and threaten ecosystem stability. Rotifers, critical live feed for marine fish, shrimp, and crab larvae, link EDC-induced reproductive impairment to marine ecosystem stability and aquaculture sustainability. This PRISMA-compliant review synthesizes key findings, consequences, and gaps in EDC-rotifer reproductive toxicity research. Traditional EDCs (heavy metals, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), phenols, phthalate esters, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and steroid hormones) and emerging EDCs (disinfection byproducts, microplastics, pharmaceutical metabolites) induce distinct reproductive harm-e.g., Hg2+ shows extreme toxicity (24 h LC50 = 4.51 μg L-1 in Brachionus plicatilis), BDE-47 damages ovaries, and microplastics cause transgenerational delays. Rotifer species and exposure duration affect sensitivity (e.g., BDE-47: 96 h LC50 = 0.163 mg L-1 vs. 24 h LC50 > 22 mg L-1 in B. plicatilis). Oxidative stress is a universal mechanism, and combined EDC exposure produces context-dependent synergistic/antagonistic effects. EDC-induced impairment reduces rotifer population density, alters structure, and propagates through food webs, threatening aquaculture and biodiversity; transgenerational toxicity (e.g., 4-nonylphenol: F1 inhibition 28% vs. 12% in F0) weakens resilience. This review supports EDC risk assessment, with gaps including long-term low-concentration data, transgenerational mechanisms, EDC-microbiome interactions, and emerging PFAS toxicity-priorities for future research.
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Effects of microplastics on reproductive characteristics and mechanisms of the marine rotifer Brachionus plicatilis
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Researchers exposed marine rotifers (tiny animals at the base of the ocean food chain) to naturally aged microplastics collected from Japanese coastal waters and found reduced reproduction and population growth. The microplastics triggered oxidative stress and suppressed genes involved in reproduction. Since rotifers are food for many fish species, harm to their populations could ripple up through the food chain.
Mechanistic insights into microplastic-induced reproductive toxicity in aquatic organisms: A comprehensive review
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This review summarizes how microplastics cause reproductive harm in aquatic organisms by disrupting hormones, triggering oxidative stress, and interfering with cell death pathways. These effects lead to reduced fertility, abnormal egg and sperm development, and changes that can pass to future generations. Since microplastics accumulate through the food chain, these reproductive effects in aquatic life could have broader implications for ecosystem health and the seafood that humans consume.
Ecological Impacts of Microplastics on Rotifers and Fish
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This review pulls together existing research showing that microplastics harm tiny aquatic organisms called rotifers and the fish that eat them, causing everything from reproductive problems to organ damage. Because these plastics build up as they move through the food chain, they eventually end up in the fish we eat—meaning this isn't just an ecosystem problem, it's a potential seafood safety issue for humans too. The authors say more research is urgently needed to understand the risks and find ways to reduce them.
Effect of microplastics on the demography of Brachionus calyciflorus Pallas (Rotifera) over successive generations
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Researchers examined how microplastic exposure affects the population dynamics of a freshwater rotifer species across two successive generations. They found that microplastics reduced reproduction rates and lifespan, with effects carrying over into the second generation even when exposure was removed. The study suggests that microplastic pollution may have lasting population-level consequences for small aquatic organisms.
Variations in the life-cycle parameters and population growth of rotifer Brachionus plicatilis under the stress of microplastics and 17β-estradiol
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Researchers studied how polystyrene microplastics of different sizes (50, 100, and 500 nm) and 17-beta-estradiol affect the life history and population growth of the rotifer Brachionus plicatilis, finding that only the smallest 50 nm particles caused dose-dependent reductions in lifespan, fecundity, and population growth rate. Combined exposure to microplastics and estradiol significantly impaired multiple reproductive parameters even when neither compound alone caused significant effects.
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