title: The ascidian Styela plicata hemocytes as a potential biomarker of marine pollution: In vitro effects of seawater and organic mercury.
abstract: Toxic metals, such as mercury, contribute substantially to anthropogenic pollution in many estuarine environments. Animals living in those environments, particularly invertebrate filter feeders like tunicates, can be used as bioindicators. In an attempt to identify cellular markers for revealing pollution, this study examined in vitro the effects of different concentrations of methyl mercury on Styela plicata hemocytes. The harvested hemocytes from S. plicata that were exposed to the metal had a significant mortality, cellular count and morphometric alterations. These findings provided evidence of MeHg immunotoxic effects on S. plicata, resulting in hemocyte death and morphological changes induced by cytoskeleton alterations. Thus, a morphometric cellular parameter, such as spreading ability, was used as a complementary method for differentiation between hemocytes treated with a marine solution (as a negative control) and hemocytes incubated with methylmercury and/or Sicilian seawater samples.
authors.affiliation: Marine Immunobiology Laboratory, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche Chimiche e Farmaceutiche University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Parrinello
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e del Mare, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bellante
authors.affiliation: Marine Immunobiology Laboratory, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche Chimiche e Farmaceutiche University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.affiliation: Marine Immunobiology Laboratory, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche Chimiche e Farmaceutiche University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Sanfratello
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e del Mare, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Indelicato
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e del Mare, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Piazzese
authors.affiliation: Marine Immunobiology Laboratory, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche Chimiche e Farmaceutiche University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy. Electronic address: matteo.cammarata@unipa.it.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cammarata
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D006434:Hemocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D000922:Immunotoxins / Q000633:toxicity*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds / Q000633:toxicity*; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D014561:Urochordata / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D000922:Immunotoxins; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds
keywords: Ascidian; Hemocytes; Mercury; Pollution; SEM; Seawater; Toxic metals; Tunicate