Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Seasonal patterns of infestation by monogenean parasites of fish and their relationship with water parameters in two rivers with different disturbance gradients in southeastern Brazil

This study examined how seasonal changes in water chemistry and host fish condition affected infection rates of monogenean parasites in two Brazilian rivers with different levels of human disturbance. Environmental pollution, including contaminants that affect host immunity, can alter parasite dynamics in freshwater fish populations.

2023 Brazilian Journal of Biology
Article Tier 2

Assessing land-use impacts on a 5th-order tropical river using multiple environmental indicators

Researchers combined multiple environmental indicators to assess the health of a tropical river system in Brazil affected by land-use change from agriculture and urbanization. Rivers in degraded landscapes also carry higher microplastic loads, and multi-indicator approaches provide a more complete picture of ecosystem health.

2021 Caderno de Geografia 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Survey of parasitic fauna of some fishes from Osun river, Osun state, southwestern, Nigeria

This survey documented the parasitic fauna of fish in the Osun River, Nigeria, examining parasite prevalence and distribution across nine fish species. The study provides baseline ecological health data for a freshwater system subject to increasing pollution pressures.

2023 International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Studies
Article Tier 2

Nematode functional traits and community structure change from river to the terrestrial border in Segara Anakan Mangrove, Indonesia

This study examined the spatial distribution of nematode functional traits and community structure across a mangrove ecosystem in Indonesia, from river to terrestrial border. Nematode communities are sensitive biological indicators of environmental health, including the effects of microplastic contamination in marine sediments.

2023 Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity
Article Tier 2

Effect of environmental factors on blood counts of Gambusia affinis caught at Brantas River watershed, Indonesia

Researchers assessed the ecosystem health of the Brantas River in Indonesia by combining six water quality parameters with hematological biomarker analysis of Gambusia affinis fish collected from 10 sampling sites, examining how environmental contamination levels relate to fish blood count profiles as indicators of aquatic health.

2022 F1000Research 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Effectiveness assessment of using water environmental microHI to predict the health status of wild fish

Researchers tested whether measuring the health of microbial communities in river water could predict the health status of wild fish living there. The study found that the environmental microbiota health index was effective for bottom-dwelling fish but less reliable for fish living in the open water, suggesting this non-invasive monitoring approach works best for certain types of aquatic species.

2024 Frontiers in Microbiology 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecological traits do not predict the uptake of microplastics by fishes in a Neotropical River

Researchers found that ecological traits such as feeding guild, habitat use, and body size do not reliably predict microplastic uptake in fish species from a Neotropical river, suggesting contamination patterns are driven more by local environmental conditions than by species-specific biology.

2023
Article Tier 2

Avaliando a poluição plástica em ecossistemas brasileiros: um estudo integrado da poluição em organismos e ambientes.

Researchers examined plastic ingestion by freshwater fish across 23 species in the Upper Parana River floodplain in Brazil, finding that nine species ingested plastics and that seasonality significantly influenced ingestion rates, with the highest levels recorded during dry season. The study also synthesized trends and gaps in Brazilian plastic pollution research, linking plastic contamination patterns to fishing activities, domestic waste, and anthropogenic pressures in aquatic ecosystems.

2024 LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas)
Article Tier 2

The sediment of a river having ‘’good ecological status” turned out to be toxic to midge Chironomus riparius larvae: Implication for environmental monitoring?

Researchers found that sediments from a river classified as having good ecological status were toxic to aquatic organisms in bioassays, highlighting that ecological status classifications may not capture all relevant contaminant pressures including microplastics.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in fishes in amazon riverine beaches: Influence of feeding mode and distance to urban settlements

Researchers found microplastics in the digestive tracts of 29 fish species from Amazon riverine beaches, with contamination levels influenced by fish feeding mode and distance to urban settlements within a protected area.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Nematode Community Structures in the Presence of Wastewater Treatment Plant Discharge

Researchers examined how wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) discharge affects nematode communities in sediments of St. Andrew Bay, Florida. Sites near WWTP outflows showed altered nematode diversity and abundance compared to reference sites. Nematode communities are sensitive indicators of sediment pollution and can be used to assess the ecological impact of wastewater discharge including microplastic contamination.

2023 Research Square (Research Square)
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Contamination and Ecological Status of Freshwater Ecosystems: A Case Study in Two Northern Portuguese Rivers

Microplastic contamination was assessed in sediments and Oligochaeta gut contents across two rivers with different ecological status scores, finding that urbanization rather than ecological status was the primary driver of sediment microplastic abundance. The results indicate that ecological quality indices alone are insufficient for tracking microplastic pollution in freshwater systems.

2022 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 12 citations
Article Tier 2

An update and ecological perspective on certain sentinel helminth endoparasites within the Mediterranean Sea

This review examines helminth parasites in the Mediterranean Sea as sentinel organisms for monitoring anthropogenic disturbances including pollution, seawater warming, and invasion by alien species. Trophically transmitted helminths are proposed as bioindicators of ecosystem health given their sensitivity to environmental changes in this biodiversity hotspot.

2023 Parasitology 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Contamination of stream fish by plastic waste in the Brazilian Amazon

Researchers evaluated plastic contamination in small fish from Amazonian headwater streams in Brazil, finding widespread plastic pollution in these understudied tropical freshwater ecosystems and characterizing the shapes, sizes, and abundance of plastic items ingested.

2020 Environmental Pollution 96 citations
Article Tier 2

Suitability of Free-Living Marine Nematodes as Bioindicators: Status and Future Considerations

This review examines how free-living marine nematodes have been used for over 40 years as biological indicators of ocean pollution, particularly for heavy metals and hydrocarbons. Researchers highlight their potential as bioindicators for microplastic contamination, an understudied class of pollutants threatening global biodiversity. The study calls for improved international collaboration and standardized methods to expand the use of these organisms in monitoring marine environmental health.

2021 Frontiers in Marine Science 116 citations
Article Tier 2

Biomonitoramento e Educação Ambiental como estratégias integradas para conservação da Bacia do Rio Iguaçu

This Brazilian study combined biomonitoring of fish bioindicators with environmental education activities in the Iguaçu River basin in Paraná, to assess water toxicity and build community awareness. Fish collected from 10 sites showed toxicity biomarkers consistent with contamination including microplastics, and the findings were used to design targeted environmental education programs in local schools.

2025 Revista Brasileira de Educação Ambiental (RevBEA)
Article Tier 2

Community Structure of Benthic Macroinvertebrates as Bioindicators of Water Quality in the Upstream Setail River, Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia

Researchers assessed the community structure of benthic macroinvertebrates as bioindicators of water quality in the upstream reach of the Setail River in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia, which has experienced declining water quality due to surrounding human activities. The study used macroinvertebrate assemblage composition and diversity indices to characterize ecological status and identify pollution pressure along the river corridor.

2025 Egyptian Journal of Aquatic Biology and Fisheries
Article Tier 2

Parasites as “Ecological Indicators” for Marine Vertebrates Monitoring and Ecosystem Stability

This review examines how parasites can serve as ecological indicators of marine ecosystem health and vertebrate population status, arguing that integrating parasitological data into marine monitoring programs would enhance understanding of ecosystem dynamics and improve conservation and management decision-making.

2024 IntechOpen eBooks
Article Tier 2

Ingestão e efeitos morfofisiológicos dos microplásticos em espécies de peixes da Amazônia Central

This Brazilian thesis investigates microplastic ingestion and its effects on fish from the Amazon basin, one of the world's most biodiverse freshwater systems. Given that aquatic organisms in even remote areas are exposed to microplastics, the research highlights risks to Amazon fish diversity and the potential for microplastics to disrupt aquatic food webs in previously pristine ecosystems.

2022
Article Tier 2

Impact of treated sewage on meiobenthic nematodes: a case study from the Tunisian Refining Industries Company

This study assessed how treated sewage discharge from an industrial refinery in Tunisia affected the diversity and health of small benthic worms (nematodes) in a coastal bay. Nematode communities are sensitive biological indicators of water quality, and their disruption can signal pollution that may include microplastics from industrial effluents.

2021 Brazilian Journal of Biology 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Aquatic pollution and its effects on fish health

Laboratory and field experiments in Bihar, India examined how plastic microbeads, pesticides, mercury, crude oil, and pharmaceuticals affect fish health, finding organ damage, reproductive failure, and elevated mortality across multiple pollutant types.

2025 International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Studies
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in aquatic communities of neotropical agroecosystems

Researchers surveyed streams running through agricultural areas in the Comandaí basin of Brazil to test whether macroinvertebrates and fish contained microplastics, and whether ecological traits or stream position predicted which organisms were most exposed. Both invertebrates and fish across diverse ecological roles were found to contain microplastics, suggesting that plastic pollution is pervasive throughout the food web in these farming-dominated waterways. This research expands our understanding of microplastic ingestion beyond well-studied coastal systems into inland freshwater ecosystems of the Global South.

2025 Environmental Pollution 1 citations
Article Tier 2

How Can Different Land Use Impact Aquatic Organisms? An Evaluation of Metabolic Alterations During Embryonic Development of Freshwater Fish, Rhamdia quelen

Not relevant to microplastics — this study uses embryonic development of a native catfish (Rhamdia quelen) as a biomarker to assess metabolic and neurotoxic effects of agricultural chemical runoff in Brazilian freshwater streams.

2023 Ecotoxicology and Environmental contamination 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic loads within riverine fishes and macroinvertebrates are not predictable from ecological or morphological characteristics

Researchers measured microplastic loads in riverine fish and macroinvertebrates and found that particle counts were not reliably predicted by species ecology or morphology, suggesting that individual variation and local environmental factors play a larger role in microplastic ingestion than feeding guild or habitat alone.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 24 citations