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Short-Term Exposure to Nanoplastics Does Not Affect Bisphenol A Embryotoxicity to Marine Ascidian Ciona robusta
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Short-term exposure of marine ascidian Ciona robusta embryos to polystyrene nanoplastics (less than 1 micrometer) did not significantly alter the embryotoxicity of bisphenol A on sensory organ development. The results suggest that nanoplastics may not always act as carriers that amplify pollutant toxicity, at least for these particle sizes and exposure conditions.
Plastic pollution is recognized as a global environmental threat and concern is increasing regarding the potential interactions of the smallest fragments, nanoplastics (1 µm), with either physical and chemical entities encountered in the natural environment, including toxic pollutants. The smallest size of nanoplastics (<100nm) rebounds to their safety associated with remarkable biological, chemical and physical reactivity that allow them to interact with cellular machinery by crossing biological barriers and causing damage to living beings. Recent findings on nanoplastic occurrence in marine coastal waters, including the Mediterranean Sea, leave open the question on their ability to act as a vector of other contaminants of emerging concerns (CECs) concomitantly released by wastewater treatment plants and reaching marine coastal waters. Here, we assess for the first time the role of non-functionalized polystyrene nanoparticles (PS NPs, 20 nm) as a proxy for nanoplastics (1 and 10 µg/mL) alone and in combination with bisphenol A (BPA) (4.5 and 10 µM) on Ciona robusta embryos (22 h post fertilization, hpf) by looking at embryotoxicity through phenotypic alterations. We confirmed the ability of BPA to impact ascidian C. robusta embryo development, by affecting sensory organs pigmentation, either alone and in combination with PS NPs. Our findings suggest that no interactions are taking place between PS NPs and BPA in filtered sea water (FSW) probably due to the high ionic strength of seawater able to trigger the sorption surface properties of PS NPs. Further studies are needed to elucidate such peculiarities and define the risk posed by combined exposure to BPA and PS NPs in marine coastal waters.
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Nanoplastics were tested for toxicity during embryogenesis of the ascidian Ciona robusta, a Mediterranean marine invertebrate, at concentrations reflecting current Mediterranean Sea measurements. Nanoplastic exposure caused developmental abnormalities, demonstrating that embryonic stages of marine invertebrates are vulnerable to nanoplastic contamination at environmentally relevant levels.
Nanoplastic-Induced Developmental Toxicity in Ascidians: Comparative Analysis of Chorionated and Dechorionated Phallusia mammillata Embryos
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This study exposed sea squirt embryos to polystyrene nanoplastics and found that the tiny particles caused developmental problems including abnormal nervous system formation at lower doses and general toxic damage at higher doses. Embryos without their protective outer layer were twice as sensitive to the nanoplastics. These findings suggest that nanoplastic pollution in the ocean could harm the early development of marine organisms, potentially affecting ocean ecosystems and the seafood chain.
Single but Not Combined In Vitro Exposure to Bisphenol A and Nanoplastics Affects the Cholinergic Function of the Ascidian Ciona robusta
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Researchers tested the individual and combined effects of bisphenol A and polystyrene nanoplastics on a marine sea squirt species. They found that bisphenol A alone inhibited nerve-related enzyme activity in a dose-dependent manner, but nanoplastics did not cause additional harm when combined with the chemical. The study suggests that not all pollutant combinations produce amplified toxic effects, though individual contaminants like bisphenol A remain a concern for marine organisms.
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Researchers found that bisphenol A unexpectedly decreased the developmental toxicity and histopathological damage caused by polystyrene nanoplastics in marine medaka embryos, suggesting complex antagonistic interactions between co-existing pollutants at environmentally relevant concentrations.
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