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Reductive stress and cytotoxicity in the swollen river mussel (Unio tumidus) exposed to microplastics and salinomycin
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This study exposed freshwater mussels to microplastics and the antibiotic salinomycin, both alone and combined, and found that the mixture caused more severe cellular damage including disrupted antioxidant defenses and signs of programmed cell death. When heat stress was added, the harmful effects became even more unpredictable. The research demonstrates how microplastics can interact with other pollutants and environmental stressors in ways that are difficult to predict.
Multistress effects lead to unpredicted consequences in aquatic ecotoxicology and are extremely concerning. The goal of this study was to trace how specific effects of the antibiotic salinomycin (Sal) and microplastics (MP) on the bivalve molluscs are manifested in the combined environmentally relevant exposures. Unio tumidus specimens were treated with Sal (0.6 μg L), MP (1 mg L, 2 μm size), and both at 18 °C (Mix) and 25 °C (MixT) for 14 days. The redox stress and apoptotic enzyme responses and the balance of Zn/Cu in the digestive gland were analyzed. The shared signs of stress included a decrease in NAD/NADH and Zn/Cu ratios and lysosomal integrity and an increase in Zn-metallothioneins and cholinesterase levels. MP caused a decrease in the glutathione (GSH) concentration and redox state, total antioxidant capacity, and Zn levels. MP and Mix induced coordinated apoptotic/autophagy activities, increasing caspase-3 and cathepsin D (CtD) total and extralysosomal levels. Sal activated caspase-3 only and increased by five times Cu level in the tissue. Due to the discriminant analysis, the cumulative effect was evident in the combined exposure at 18 °C. However, under heating, the levels of NAD, NADH, GSH, GSH/GSSG and metallothionein-related thiols were decreased, and coordination of the cytosolic and lysosomal death stimuli was distorted, confirming that heating and pollution could exert unexpected synergistic effects on aquatic life.
More Papers Like This
Reductive stress and apoptotic activities in bivalve mollusc Unio tumidus exposed to the combination of microplastics, antibiotic salinomycin and heating
AI summary Read the abstract
This ecotoxicology study exposed freshwater mussels (Unio tumidus) to a combination of microplastics, the antibiotic salinomycin, and elevated temperature to test how multiple stressors interact. Combined exposure caused greater oxidative stress, disrupted zinc-copper balance, reduced lysosomal integrity, and altered apoptosis-related enzyme activity compared to individual stressors. The results demonstrate that real-world conditions — where organisms face plastics alongside other pollutants and warming — can produce compounded harm greater than any single factor alone.
Combined effect of microplastic, salinomycin and heating on Unio tumidus
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Researchers studied how microplastics interact with a common veterinary antibiotic and elevated water temperatures to affect freshwater mussels. While microplastics and the antibiotic alone caused mild stress, the combination under warmer conditions dampened the mussels' protective enzyme responses rather than amplifying them. This finding highlights that the effects of microplastics cannot be studied in isolation, as real-world conditions involve multiple stressors that interact in complex and sometimes unexpected ways.
The combined effects of phenanthrene and micro-/nanoplastics mixtures on the cellular stress responses of the thick-shell mussel Mytilus coruscus
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Scientists exposed thick-shell mussels to a combination of micro- and nanoplastics along with a common pollutant (phenanthrene) to study their combined effects. The mixtures caused more severe immune cell damage, increased oxidative stress, and stronger inflammatory responses than either pollutant alone. Evidence indicates that micro- and nanoplastics can worsen the toxic effects of organic pollutants in marine shellfish.
Microplastics aggravate the bioaccumulation of three veterinary antibiotics in the thick shell mussel Mytilus coruscus and induce synergistic immunotoxic effects
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Researchers studied how polystyrene microplastics interact with three common veterinary antibiotics in thick shell mussels. The study found that when microplastics and antibiotics were present together, mussels accumulated significantly more antibiotics in their tissues and suffered worse immune damage than from either pollutant alone. This synergistic effect included reduced immune cell counts, increased oxidative stress, and disrupted immune gene expression, suggesting that microplastic pollution may amplify the harmful effects of antibiotic contamination in coastal waters.
Combined toxic effects of nanoplastics and norfloxacin on antioxidant and immune genes in mussels
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Researchers studied the combined toxic effects of polystyrene nanoplastics and the antibiotic norfloxacin on mussels, focusing on genes related to antioxidant defense and immune function. They found that the mixture of both contaminants produced more severe disruptions to gene expression than either substance alone, indicating a synergistic toxic effect. The study suggests that the co-occurrence of nanoplastics and antibiotics in marine environments may pose compounding risks to shellfish health.
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