title: Parasitism can be a confounding factor in assessing the response of zebra mussels to water contamination.
abstract: Biological responses measured in aquatic organisms to monitor environmental pollution could be also affected by different biotic and abiotic factors. Among these environmental factors, parasitism has often been neglected even if infection by parasites is very frequent. In the present field investigation, the parasite infra-communities and zebra mussel biological responses were studied up- and downstream a waste water treatment plant in northeast France. In both sites, mussels were infected by ciliates and/or intracellular bacteria, but prevalence rates and infection intensities were different according to the habitat. Concerning the biological responses differences were observed related to the site quality and the infection status. Parasitism affects both systems but seemed to depend mainly on environmental conditions. The influence of parasites is not constant, but remains important to consider it as a potential confounding factor in ecotoxicological studies. This study also emphasizes the interesting use of integrative indexes to synthesize data set.
authors.affiliation: Université Paul Verlaine-Metz, Laboratoire des Interactions Ecotoxicologie, Biodiversité, Ecosystèmes (LIEBE), CNRS UMR 7146, Metz, France.
authors.forename: Laëtitia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Minguez
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Buronfosse
authors.forename: Jean-Nicolas
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Beisel
authors.forename: Laure
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Giambérini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D016798:Ciliophora / Q000502:physiology*; D049875:Dreissena / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology; D054750:Ecotoxicology; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions / Q000187:drug effects*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000633:toxicity*; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical