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Integrated toxicological assessment of environmental microplastics and diuron on Mytilus galloprovincialis Larvae: Toward improved marine risk management
Summary
Researchers conducted the first combined toxicity study of environmental microplastics and the herbicide diuron on Mediterranean mussel larvae at environmentally relevant concentrations, finding that their mixture produced more severe developmental toxicity than either contaminant alone.
Coastal marine ecosystems are increasingly threatened by complex mixtures of emerging and persistent pollutants, including environmental microplastics (EMPs) and the herbicide diuron. These contaminants, frequently detected in coastal waters, can exert harmful effects even at low, environmentally relevant concentrations, particularly during sensitive early life stages of marine invertebrates. Here, we conducted the first investigation of the combined toxicity of EMPs and diuron at realistic exposure levels (100 μg/L EMPs, 50 ng/L diuron, and their mixture), reflecting concentrations commonly found in marine environments. We assessed their toxicological impact on Mytilus galloprovincialis larvae after 48 h of exposure. An integrated approach combining chemical, morphological, biochemical, and molecular markers was used to characterize induced cellular and physiological responses. Specifically, we analyzed larval abnormalities, micronucleus formation, antioxidant enzyme activity (catalase and GST), and the expression of genes involved in oxidative stress, apoptosis, and stress protein responses (cat, gst, caspase3, p53, dna ligase, bax, bcl2, hsp27, hsp70, calreticulin). The Integrated Biomarker Response (IBR), supported by correlation matrix analysis and hierarchical clustering, allowed us to identify functionally related groups of biomarkers exhibiting similar response patterns. Our findings reveal a synergistic toxicological interaction between EMPs and diuron, leading to enhanced oxidative stress, genotoxicity, and transcriptional disturbances. These results highlight the need to incorporate microplastic-chemical pollutant interactions into marine risk assessment frameworks to improve environmental monitoring and mitigation strategies, especially in vulnerable coastal ecosystems affected by agricultural and urban runoff. This study provides valuable insights and tools for evaluating the combined effects of pollutants on marine biodiversity.