title: Genetic variation of Lymnaea stagnalis tolerance to copper: A test of selection hypotheses and its relevance for ecological risk assessment.
abstract: The use of standardized monospecific testing to assess the ecological risk of chemicals implicitly relies on the strong assumption that intraspecific variation in sensitivity is negligible or irrelevant in this context. In this study, we investigated genetic variation in copper sensitivity of the freshwater snail Lymnaea stagnalis, using lineages stemming from eight natural populations or strains found to be genetically differentiated at neutral markers. Copper-induced mortality varied widely among populations, as did the estimated daily death rate and time to 50% mortality (LT50). Population genetic divergence in copper sensitivity was compared to neutral differentiation using the QST-FST approach. No evidence for homogenizing selection could be detected. This result demonstrates that species-level extrapolations from single population studies are highly unreliable. The study provides a simple example of how evolutionary principles could be incorporated into ecotoxicity testing in order to refine ecological risk assessment.
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR0985 INRA/Agrocampus-Ouest ESE Ecology and Ecosystem Health, Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Côte
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR0985 INRA/Agrocampus-Ouest ESE Ecology and Ecosystem Health, Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bouétard
authors.affiliation: INRA, Experimental Unit U3E, Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Yannick
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Pronost
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR0985 INRA/Agrocampus-Ouest ESE Ecology and Ecosystem Health, Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Anne-Laure
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Besnard
authors.affiliation: INRA, Experimental Unit U3E, Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Maïra
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Coke
authors.affiliation: ISAE, Institut en Santé Agro-Environnement, France.
authors.forename: Fabien
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Piquet
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR0985 INRA/Agrocampus-Ouest ESE Ecology and Ecosystem Health, Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Caquet
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR0985 INRA/Agrocampus-Ouest ESE Ecology and Ecosystem Health, Rennes, France. Electronic address: marie-agnes.coutellec@rennes.inra.fr.
authors.forename: Marie-Agnès
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Coutellec
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003300:Copper / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004463:Ecology; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000032:analysis; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000187:drug effects*; D008195:Lymnaea / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics*; D018570:Risk Assessment
chemical_list: D003300:Copper
keywords: Copper toxicity; Ecological risk assessment; Evolutionary pattern; Freshwater snail; Population genetics