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Kokotović I, Veseli M, Ložek F, Karačić Z, Rožman M, Previšić A. Pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds modulate adverse effects of climate change on resource quality in freshwater food webs. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 912:168751. [PMID: 38008314 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168751] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Revised: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/28/2023]
Abstract
Freshwater biodiversity, ecosystem functions and services are changing at an unprecedented rate due to the impacts of vast number of stressors overlapping in time and space. Our study aimed at characterizing individual and combined impacts of pollution with pharmaceuticals (PhACs) and endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) and increased water temperature (as a proxy for climate change) on primary producers and first level consumers in freshwaters. We conducted a microcosm experiment with a simplified freshwater food web containing moss (Bryophyta) and shredding caddisfly larvae of Micropterna nycterobia (Trichoptera). The experiment was conducted with four treatments; control (C), increased water temperature + 4 °C (T2), emerging contaminants' mix (EC = 15 PhACs & 5 EDCs), and multiple stressor treatment (MS = EC + T2). Moss exhibited an overall mild response to selected stressors and their combination. Higher water temperature negatively affected development of M. nycterobia through causing earlier emergence of adults and changes in their lipidome profiles. Pollution with PhACs and EDCs had higher impact on metabolism of all life stages of M. nycterobia than warming. Multiple stressor effect was recorded in M. nycterobia adults in metabolic response, lipidome profiles and as a decrease in total lipid content. Sex specific response to stressor effects was observed in adults, with impacts on metabolome generally more pronounced in females, and on lipidome in males. Thus, our study highlights the variability of both single and multiple stressor impacts on different traits, different life stages and sexes of a single insect species. Furthermore, our research suggests that the combined impacts of warming, linked to climate change, and contamination with PhACs and EDCs could have adverse consequences on the population dynamics of aquatic insects. Additionally, these findings point to a potential decrease in the quality of resources available for both aquatic and potentially terrestrial food webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iva Kokotović
- Department of Biology, Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Marina Veseli
- Department of Biology, Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Filip Ložek
- Department of Biology, Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia; South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Czech Republic.
| | | | | | - Ana Previšić
- Department of Biology, Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
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Pott A, Bundschuh M, Otto M, Schulz R. Assessing Effects of Genetically Modified Plant Material on the Aquatic Environment Using higher-tier Studies. BULLETIN OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION AND TOXICOLOGY 2023; 110:35. [PMID: 36592218 DOI: 10.1007/s00128-022-03678-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Genetically modified organisms are used extensively in agriculture. To assess potential side effects of genetically modified (GM) plant material on aquatic ecosystems, only a very small number of higher-tier studies have been performed. At the same time, these studies are particularly important for comprehensive risk assessment covering complex ecological relationships. Here we evaluate the methods of experimental higher-tier effect studies with GM plant material (or Bt toxin) in comparison to those well-established for pesticides. A major difference is that nominal test concentrations and thus dose-response relationships cannot easily be produced with GM plant material. Another important difference, particularly to non-systemic pesticides, is that aquatic organisms are exposed to GM plant material primarily through their feed. These and further differences in test requirements, compared with pesticides, call for a standardisation for GM-specific higher-tier study designs to assess their potentially complex effects in the aquatic ecosystems comprehensively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Pott
- Institute for Environmental Sciences, iES Landau, University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany.
- Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Konstantinstrasse 110, 53179, Bonn, Germany.
| | - Mirco Bundschuh
- Institute for Environmental Sciences, iES Landau, University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lennart Hjelms väg 9, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Mathias Otto
- Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Konstantinstrasse 110, 53179, Bonn, Germany
| | - Ralf Schulz
- Institute for Environmental Sciences, iES Landau, University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany
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Baudy P, Zubrod JP, Konschak M, Röder N, Nguyen TH, Schreiner VC, Baschien C, Schulz R, Bundschuh M. Environmentally relevant fungicide levels modify fungal community composition and interactions but not functioning. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2021; 285:117234. [PMID: 33962304 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2021.117234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2020] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/21/2021] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Aquatic hyphomycetes (AHs), a group of saprotrophic fungi adapted to submerged leaf litter, play key functional roles in stream ecosystems as decomposers and food source for higher trophic levels. Fungicides, controlling fungal pathogens, target evolutionary conserved molecular processes in fungi and contaminate streams via their use in agricultural and urban landscapes. Thus fungicides pose a risk to AHs and the functions they provide. To investigate the impacts of fungicide exposure on the composition and functioning of AH communities, we exposed four AH species in monocultures and mixed cultures to increasing fungicide concentrations (0, 5, 50, 500, and 2500 μg/L). We assessed the biomass of each species via quantitative real-time PCR. Moreover, leaf decomposition was investigated. In monocultures, none of the species was affected at environmentally relevant fungicide levels (5 and 50 μg/L). The two most tolerant species were able to colonize and decompose leaves even at very high fungicide levels (≥500 μg/L), although less efficiently. In mixed cultures, changes in leaf decomposition reflected the response pattern of the species most tolerant in monocultures. Accordingly, the decomposition process may be safeguarded by tolerant species in combination with functional redundancy. In all fungicide treatments, however, sensitive species were displaced and interactions between fungi changed from complementarity to competition. As AH community composition determines leaves' nutritional quality for consumers, the data suggest that fungicide exposures rather induce bottom-up effects in food webs than impairments in leaf decomposition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Baudy
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany
| | - Jochen P Zubrod
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany; Eußerthal Ecosystem Research Station, University of Koblenz-Landau, Birkenthalstraße 13, D-76857, Eußerthal, Germany
| | - Marco Konschak
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany
| | - Nina Röder
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany
| | - Thu Huyen Nguyen
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany
| | - Verena C Schreiner
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany
| | - Christiane Baschien
- Leibniz Institute DSMZ - German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures GmbH, Inhoffenstraße 7B, D-38124, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Ralf Schulz
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany; Eußerthal Ecosystem Research Station, University of Koblenz-Landau, Birkenthalstraße 13, D-76857, Eußerthal, Germany
| | - Mirco Bundschuh
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, D-76829, Landau, Germany; Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lennart Hjelms Väg 9, SWE-75007, Uppsala, Sweden.
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Bundschuh M, Zubrod JP, Wernicke T, Konschak M, Werner L, Brühl CA, Baudy P, Schulz R. Bottom-up effects of fungicides on tadpoles of the European common frog ( Rana temporaria). Ecol Evol 2021; 11:4353-4365. [PMID: 33976815 PMCID: PMC8093721 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Revised: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Biodiversity is under pressure worldwide, with amphibians being particularly threatened. Stressors related to human activity, such as chemicals, are contributing to this decline. It remains, however, unclear whether chemicals exhibiting a fungicidal activity could indirectly affect tadpoles that depend on microbially conditioned leaf litter as food source. The indirect effect of fungicides (sum concentration of a fungicide mixture composed of azoxystrobin, carbendazim, cyprodinil, quinoxyfen, and tebuconazole: 100 µg/L) on tadpoles was assessed relative to leaf litter colonized by microbes in absence of fungicides (control) and a worst-case scenario, that is leached leaf litter without microbial colonization. The quality of leaf litter as food for tadpoles of the European common frog (Rana temporaria) was characterized through neutral lipid fatty acid profiles and microbial sum parameters and verified by sublethal responses in tadpoles (i.e., feeding rate, feces production, growth, and fatty acid composition). Fungicides changed the nutritious quality of leaf litter likely through alterations in leaves' neutral lipid fatty acid profiles (i.e., changes in some physiologically important highly unsaturated fatty acids reached more than 200%) in combination with a potential adsorption onto leaves during conditioning. These changes were reflected by differences in the development of tadpoles ultimately resulting in an earlier start of metamorphosis. Our data provide a first indication that fungicides potentially affect tadpole development indirectly through bottom-up effects. This pathway is so far not addressed in fungicide environmental risk assessment and merits further attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mirco Bundschuh
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and AssessmentSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUppsalaSweden
| | - Jochen P. Zubrod
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
- Eusserthal Ecosystem Research StationUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
| | - Theo Wernicke
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
- Present address:
UFZ Department of Ecological ChemistryHelmholtz Centre for Environmental ResearchLeipzigGermany
| | - Marco Konschak
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
| | - Leon Werner
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
| | - Carsten A. Brühl
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
| | - Patrick Baudy
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
| | - Ralf Schulz
- iES LandauInstitute for Environmental SciencesUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
- Eusserthal Ecosystem Research StationUniversity of Koblenz‐LandauLandauGermany
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Cornejo A, Pérez J, Alonso A, López-Rojo N, Monroy S, Boyero L. A common fungicide impairs stream ecosystem functioning through effects on aquatic hyphomycetes and detritivorous caddisflies. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2020; 263:110425. [PMID: 32179487 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2019] [Revised: 02/24/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Fungicides can reach streams through runoff or adhered to leaf litter, and have the potential to adversely affect processes such as litter decomposition and associated communities. This study investigated the effects of chlorothalonil, a widely used fungicide, on litter decomposition, detritivorous invertebrates (larvae of the insect Sericostoma pyrenaicum) and aquatic hyphomycetes (AHs), using stream microcosms. We considered the single and combined effects of two exposure modes: waterborne fungicide (at two concentrations: 0.125 μg L-1 and 1.25 μg L-1) and litter previously sprayed with the fungicide (i.e., pre-treated litter, using the application dose concentration of 1250 μg L-1). We also assessed whether fungicide effects on invertebrates, AHs and decomposition varied among litter types (i.e., different plant species), and whether plant diversity mitigated any of those effects. Invertebrate survival and AH sporulation rate and taxon richness were strongly reduced by most combinations of fungicide exposure modes; however, invertebrates were not affected by the low waterborne concentration, whereas AHs suffered the highest reduction at this concentration. Total decomposition was slowed down by both exposure modes, and microbial decomposition was reduced by litter pre-treatment, while the waterborne fungicide had different effects depending on plant species. In general, with the exception of microbial decomposition, responses varied little among litter types. Moreover, and contrary to our expectation, plant diversity did not modulate the fungicide effects. Our results highlight the severity of fungicide inputs to streams through effects on invertebrate and microbial communities and ecosystem functioning, even in streams with well-preserved, diverse riparian vegetation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aydeé Cornejo
- Freshwater Macroinvertebrate Laboratory. Zoological Collection Dr. Eustorgio Mendez, Gorgas Memorial Institute for Health Studies (COZEM-ICGES), Ave. Justo Arosemena and Calle 35, 0816-02593, Panama City, Panama; Doctoral Program in Natural Sciences with emphasis in Entomology, University of Panama, Panama City, Panama.
| | - Javier Pérez
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain
| | - Alberto Alonso
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain
| | - Naiara López-Rojo
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain
| | - Silvia Monroy
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain
| | - Luz Boyero
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain; IKERBASQUE, Bilbao, Spain
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Pott A, Bundschuh M, Bundschuh R, Otto M, Schulz R. Effect of Bt toxin Cry1Ab on two freshwater caddisfly shredders - an attempt to establish dose-effect relationships through food-spiking. Sci Rep 2020; 10:5262. [PMID: 32210265 PMCID: PMC7093423 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-62055-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2019] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which produce Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxins, are widely used in agriculture in some parts of the world. Despite this, ecotoxicological methods, tailored to GMOs, are lacking to assess effects on aquatic environments. With the objective to investigate a food-related exposure pathway for aquatic shredders, we used a new food-spiking method while caddisfly larvae (Chaetopteryx spec., Sericostoma spec.) served as test species. Pure Cry1Ab toxins were spiked on black alder leaf discs and subsequently used in a feeding experiment. The toxin did not influence larval mortality compared to the control. The results, however, showed significant effects on larval lipid content (Chaetopteryx spec.) and development (Sericostoma spec.) at concentrations of 17.2 and 132.4 ng Cry1Ab/mg leaf, respectively. These changes are indicative for impacts on the fitness of the specimen and thus relevant in a risk assessment context. Ultimately, the food-spiking method allowed applying different Bt toxin concentrations leading to the establishment of dose-response relationships for various response variables. The use of long test durations and sublethal endpoints (consumption, lipid content, growth, larval instars) is, moreover, advisable when testing GMO effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Pott
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany. .,Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Konstantinstrasse 110, 53179, Bonn, Germany.
| | - Mirco Bundschuh
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany.,Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 7050, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Rebecca Bundschuh
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany
| | - Mathias Otto
- Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Konstantinstrasse 110, 53179, Bonn, Germany
| | - Ralf Schulz
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany
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