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Microplastics exposures of fish: internalization and effects on behavior and growth
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This study examined how microplastics affect fish behavior and growth, finding that fish can ingest them but particles pass through the gut relatively quickly with limited effects at tested concentrations. The research highlights challenges in detecting microplastics in aquatic organisms and suggests risk depends heavily on exposure level and particle type.
Awareness of the presence of microplastics, i.e. plastic particles ranging in size from 1 μm to 5 mm, in marine and freshwaters has recently risen but detection and quantification is challenging. Furthermore, whether they pose a risk to aquatic organisms is not yet clear. Fish, for example, have been demonstrated to ingest microplastics particles but the link between quantification of uptake and impact assessment has not yet been made. In this context, we are exploring methods for particles quantification upon feeding juvenile fish with regular food and microplastics and assess whether exposure impacts behavior and growth. For quantification of uptake, we hypothesized that it is possible to analyze the fish tissue by flow cytometry in combination with viSNE, which allows the 2D clustering of particles with different features according to the fluorescence measured. Exposure experiments were carried out for up to three weeks, using different types of microplastic particles and a wide concentration range. In the flow, when particles were mixed with fish tissue, flow cytometry/viSNE was able to differentiate particles natures, numbers and sizes. About 10% of added particles were internalized by the fish from all particles that floated or settled on the bottom. Particles ingestion resulted in a slight impact on behavior. Yet, floating particles were massively incorporated by the fish and significant numbers remained even after 24h of depuration. Based on this, we are currently exploring if continuous feeding with microparticles contaminated food has consequences on juvenile fish growth. Taken together, our study demonstrates the power and limits of flow cytometry/viSNE for microplastics quantification in a complex biological matrix like fish.The setup could be extended to other types and forms of microplastics in different environmental matrices. Moreover, our study sheds light on ecological consequences that microplastics exposure might have on fish.
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