Article
?
AI-assigned paper type based on the abstract. Classification may not be perfect — flag errors using the feedback button.
Tier 2
?
Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence.
Human Health Effects
Marine & Wildlife
Nanoplastics
Sign in to save
Pearl Farming Micro-nanoplastics Affect Oyster Physiology and Pearl Quality
2023
Score: 40
?
0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Pearl oysters (Pinctada margaritifera) exposed to micro-nanoplastics shed from plastic pearl farming equipment showed disrupted energy metabolism, reduced assimilation of microalgae food, and impaired pearl quality over a five-month production cycle. The study is notable because it tested environmentally realistic plastic concentrations, linking the industry's own plastic infrastructure to measurable biological harm in the farmed animals.
<title>Abstract</title> Pearl farming is crucial for the economy of French Polynesia. Nonetheless, rearing structures contribute significantly to plastic waste, and the widespread contamination of pearl farming lagoons by microplastics has raised concerns about risks to the pearl industry. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of micro-nanoplastics (MNPs) on the pearl oyster (Pinctada margaritifera) over a 5-month pearl production cycle by closely mimicking ecological scenarios. MNPs were produced from plastic pearl farming gear and tested at environmentally relevant concentrations (0.025 and 1 µg L–1 ) to decipher biological and functional responses through integrative approaches. MNP exposure altered energy metabolism, primarily driven by lower assimilation efficiency of microalgae, causing shifts in gene expression patterns. A gene expression module was strongly correlated with physiological parameters impaired by MNP conditions, and key genes were identified as potential environmental proxies to assess nutritional-MNP stress conditions in cultured oysters. Pearl biomineralization was also affected, resulting in thinner aragonite crystals, and harvests were marked by abnormal biomineral concretions, known as keshi pearls. Ecological approaches are now necessary to assess the overall impact of MNPs on population maintenance and sustainability within the Polynesian pearl industry, considering the context of the exposome and global climate change.