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Effect of an antidepressant on aquatic ecosystems in the presence of microplastics: A mesocosm study
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In a three-month experiment using near-natural pond ecosystems, researchers found that microplastics changed how aquatic food webs responded to the antidepressant fluoxetine, altering plankton growth and microbial decomposition rates. The interaction between microplastics and the drug produced different effects than either pollutant alone. This study shows that microplastics can change how other common water pollutants affect ecosystems, making real-world impacts harder to predict.
Emerging pollutants, such as pharmaceuticals and microplastics have become a pressing concern due to their widespread presence and potential impacts on ecological systems. To assess the ecosystem-level effects of these pollutants within a multi-stressor context, we simulated real-world conditions by exposing a near-natural multi-trophic aquatic food web to a gradient of environmentally relevant concentrations of fluoxetine and microplastics in large mesocosms over a period of more than three months. We measured the biomass and abundance of different trophic groups, as well as ecological functions such as nutrient availability and decomposition rate. To explore the mechanisms underlying potential community and ecosystem-level effects, we also performed behavioral assays focusing on locomotion parameters as a response variable in three species: Daphnia magna (zooplankton prey), Chaoborus flavicans larvae (invertebrate pelagic predator of zooplankton) and Asellus aquaticus (benthic macroinvertebrate), using water from the mesocosms. Our mesocosm results demonstrate that presence of microplastics governs the response in phytoplankton biomass, with a weak non-monotonic dose-response relationship due to the interaction between microplastics and fluoxetine. However, exposure to fluoxetine evoked a strong non-monotonic dose-response in zooplankton abundance and microbial decomposition rate of plant material. In the behavioral assays, the locomotion of zooplankton prey D. magna showed a similar non-monotonic response primarily induced by fluoxetine. Its predator C. flavicans, however, showed a significant non-monotonic response governed by both microplastics and fluoxetine. The behavior of the decomposer A. aquaticus significantly decreased at higher fluoxetine concentrations, potentially leading to reduced decomposition rates near the sediment. Our study demonstrates that effects observed upon short-term exposure result in more pronounced ecosystem-level effects following chronic exposure.
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Researchers exposed juvenile brown trout to the antidepressant amitriptyline with and without polystyrene microplastics and found that microplastics modulated the pharmaceutical's effects on fish behavior and physiology, highlighting the complexity of combined pharmaceutical-plastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems.
Toxic interactions between fluoxetine and microplastics in zebrafish embryonic development
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Researchers studied the combined toxic effects of the antidepressant fluoxetine and microplastics on zebrafish embryos at concentrations found in the environment. They found that the mixture caused more severe harm than either substance alone, including pericardial swelling, spinal deformities, delayed hatching, and increased mortality. The study suggests that microplastics and pharmaceutical pollutants may interact in waterways to create compounding threats to developing fish.
Effects of microplastics on the uptake, distribution and biotransformation of chiral antidepressant venlafaxine in aquatic ecosystem
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Microplastics were found to affect how an antidepressant drug (venlafaxine) is absorbed and metabolized by fish, duckweed, and mud carp in lab aquatic systems. Microplastics can alter the behavior of pharmaceutical pollutants in water, potentially changing their toxicity to aquatic life.
Polystyrene microplastics alter the trophic transfer and biotoxicity of fluoxetine in an aquatic food chain
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Polystyrene microplastics changed how the antidepressant fluoxetine moves through a food chain of brine shrimp and zebrafish. While microplastics increased fluoxetine buildup in shrimp, they actually reduced its accumulation in fish and lessened some of its brain-specific toxic effects. However, microplastics worsened other types of damage in fish, including oxidative stress and immune disruption, showing that the combined effects of these pollutants are unpredictable.
Assessment on attenuation, accumulation, and ecological risk of venlafaxine in aquatic ecosystems Co-exposed to polypropylene microplastics
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Researchers studied how polypropylene microplastics affect the fate of the antidepressant venlafaxine in a 60-day aquatic microcosm containing multiple species. They found that biological communities accelerated venlafaxine breakdown, and microplastics further enhanced this attenuation while reducing the drug's accumulation in fish and snails by 1.3 to 2.1 fold. However, the microplastics also caused behavioral changes in fish, reproductive inhibition in snails, and oxidative stress, indicating complex ecological trade-offs.
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