title: Ecotoxicological evaluation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using marine invertebrate embryo-larval bioassays.
abstract: The toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was determined using mussel, sea-urchin and ascidian embryo-larval bioassays. Fluorescent light exposure enhanced phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene and hydroxypyrene toxicity in comparison with dark conditions, but not naphthalene and fluorene toxicity. The toxicity of PAHs was inversely related to their K(OW) values following QSAR models derived for baseline toxicity of general narcotics, whereas the obtained regression using toxicity data from photoactivated PAHs significantly departed from the general narcosis model. Also, the mixture toxicity of five PAHs to the larval growth of the sea-urchin was compared with predictions derived from the concentration addition concept, indicating less than additive effects. Finally, we compared our toxicity data with worst-case environmental concentrations in order to provide a preliminary estimate of the risk to the marine environment. Naphthalene, fluorene and pyrene are not considered to pose a risk to sea-urchin, mussel or ascidian larvae, whilst phenanthrene and fluoranthene may pose a risk for mussel and sea-urchin. Moreover, a higher risk for those species is expected when we consider the photoactivation of the PAHs.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecoloxía e Bioloxía Animal, Universidade de Vigo, Estrada Colexio Universitario s/n, 36310 Vigo, Galicia, Spain. juan.bellas@uvigo.es
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bellas
authors.forename: Liliana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Saco-Alvarez
authors.forename: Oscar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Nieto
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Beiras
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001681:Biological Assay / Q000379:methods; D002938:Ciona intestinalis / Q000187:drug effects; D054750:Ecotoxicology / Q000379:methods; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000187:drug effects; D007448:Invertebrates / Q000187:drug effects*; D007814:Larva / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D007928:Lethal Dose 50; D008386:Marine Biology; D049878:Mytilus / Q000187:drug effects; D047328:Paracentrotus / Q000187:drug effects; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000633:toxicity*; D021281:Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical