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de Souza Dias da Silva MF, Zanardi-Lamardo E, Valcarcel Rojas LA, de Oliveira Alves MD, Chimendes da Silva Neves V, de Araújo ME. Traces of oil in sea turtle feces. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 200:116088. [PMID: 38309176 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116088] [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: 10/20/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 01/27/2024] [Indexed: 02/05/2024]
Abstract
In 2019, an oil spill hit the Brazilian Northeast coast causing impact to several ecosystems, including sea turtles' breeding and feeding areas. This study aimed to investigate whether sea turtles were impacted by this oil disaster, correlating the oil found inside feces with a sandy-oiled sample collected on the beach some days after the accident. The fecal samples were collected in the upper mid-littoral reef areas during three consecutive days in February 2020. The results suggested that sea turtles consumed algae contaminated by petroleum. Hydrocarbons composition of oil inside feces was similar to the sandy-oiled sample, suggesting they were the same. Lighter aliphatic and polycyclic aromatic compounds were missing, indicating both sandy-oiled and oil inside the feces had experienced significant evaporation prior to collection. Although the long-term damage is still unknown, the data are novel and relevant to support future research and alert authorities about the risks to sea turtles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matheus Felipe de Souza Dias da Silva
- Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife 50740-550, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | - Eliete Zanardi-Lamardo
- Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife 50740-550, Pernambuco, Brazil.
| | - Lino Angel Valcarcel Rojas
- Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife 50740-550, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | - Maria Danise de Oliveira Alves
- Faculdade Frassinetti do Recife, Av. Conde da Boa Vista, 921, Recife 50060-002, Pernambuco, Brazil; Associação de Pesquisa e Preservação de Ecossistemas Aquáticos - AQUASIS, Av. Pintor João Figueiredo - SESC - Iparana, Caucaia, 61627-250, Ceará, Brazil
| | | | - Maria Elisabeth de Araújo
- Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife 50740-550, Pernambuco, Brazil
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2
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Choueri RB, de Souza Abessa DM, de Carvalho MU, Pazini B, Zanardi-Lamardo E, Rojas LAV, de Carvalho PSM, de Andrade NVM, de Souza Santos LP, Ferraz MA, Alves AV, Castro ÍB. PAH residues and toxicity levels two years after an extensive oil spill on the northeast Brazilian coast. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 200:116063. [PMID: 38278019 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116063] [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: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 01/28/2024]
Abstract
The most extensive oil spill ever recorded in tropical oceans occurred between August 2019 and March 2020, affecting approximately 3000 km of the Brazilian coast. This study assessed the chemical contamination and toxicity of sediments collected from affected reef areas during two sampling surveys conducted 17 and 24 months after the peak of oil slick inputs. Our results indicated that neither PAH levels nor measured toxicity showed a significant contribution from the spilled oil, with concentrations and biological effects indistinguishable from those in unaffected areas. Similarly, no differences were observed between seasons. Furthermore, there was no discernible relationship between sediment toxicity results and the measured PAH concentrations. Therefore, while biological responses indicated toxicity in most assessed areas, these responses are likely related to other local sources. This evidence suggests a natural oil attenuation process contributing to local environmental recovery. Nonetheless, further investigation is needed for other areas affected by oil spills.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Denis Moledo de Souza Abessa
- Campus do Litoral Paulista, Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho - Unesp, São Vicente, SP, Brazil
| | - Maysa Ueda de Carvalho
- Campus do Litoral Paulista, Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho - Unesp, São Vicente, SP, Brazil
| | - Bianca Pazini
- Instituto do Mar, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (IMAR-UNIFESP), Santos, SP, Brazil
| | - Eliete Zanardi-Lamardo
- Laboratório de Compostos Orgânicos em Ecossistemas Costeiros e Marinhos (OrganoMAR) - Departamento de Oceanografia, Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências (CTG), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, Brazil
| | - Lino Angel Valcárcel Rojas
- Laboratório de Compostos Orgânicos em Ecossistemas Costeiros e Marinhos (OrganoMAR) - Departamento de Oceanografia, Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências (CTG), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, Brazil
| | - Paulo Sérgio Martins de Carvalho
- Laboratório de Compostos Orgânicos em Ecossistemas Costeiros e Marinhos (OrganoMAR) - Departamento de Oceanografia, Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências (CTG), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, Brazil
| | - Nycolle Virgínia Maux de Andrade
- Laboratório de Cultivo e Ecotoxicologia (LACE) - Departamento de Oceanografia, Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências (CTG), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil
| | - Lília Pereira de Souza Santos
- Laboratório de Cultivo e Ecotoxicologia (LACE) - Departamento de Oceanografia, Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências (CTG), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil
| | | | - Aline Vecchio Alves
- Instituto do Mar, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (IMAR-UNIFESP), Santos, SP, Brazil
| | - Ítalo Braga Castro
- Instituto do Mar, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (IMAR-UNIFESP), Santos, SP, Brazil.
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Rosa Filho JS, Alves RVA, Santos IT, Oliveira MA, Frédou FL, Craveiro N. The role of habitat heterogeneity and timescales on the recovery of reef epifaunal communities affected by a massive oil spill in the tropics. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 199:116001. [PMID: 38199040 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.116001] [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: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 12/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
From August 2019 to January 2020 the Brazilian Coast was impacted by the largest oil spill in the Tropical oceans ever since. Paiva Beach, one of the most preserved sandy beaches in the northeast tropical Brazilian coast, was among the most affected regions by the oil spill in October 2019. This area has important reef systems that harbor abundant macroalgal assemblages with very diverse epifaunal communities. The present study aims to evaluate the impacts of the 2019 oil spill on epifauna associated with the seaweed species Jania capillacea and Penicillus capitatus collected in Paiva Beach from July 2019 to October 2022, and use the interaction macroalgae/epifauna/timescale as a proxy to quantify the effects of oil spills on communities structure and recovery. The epifauna of both algae did not suffer severe changes in abundance immediately after the spill, however, the abundance of taxa like echinoderms, sea spiders (Pycnogonida) and peracarid crustaceans dropped during or soon after the event, whereas others, like sabellid worms, had strong increase in abundance, possibly related to the spill. Both phytal assemblages also had distinct temporal patterns in species diversity and abundance, the last being strongly correlated to amphipod abundance for some taxa. The epifauna of J. capillacea had a short-term tendency of decrease in taxonomic diversity, whereas the epifaunal communities of P. capitatus gained a few taxa in the months immediately after the disaster. The diversity profiles of both communities returned to pre-spill conditions a few months later, with a slower abundance recovery in J. capillacea. Local environmental characteristics like landscape heterogeneity, connectivity with other environments, and critical-species (mainly amphipods) were possibly the main buffering factors for the phytal communities after the oil spill.
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Affiliation(s)
- José S Rosa Filho
- Laboratório de Bentos, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, 50740-550 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.
| | - Rodrigo V A Alves
- Laboratório de Bentos, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, 50740-550 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | - Ingrid T Santos
- Laboratório de Bentos, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, 50740-550 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | - Matheus A Oliveira
- Laboratório de Zooplâncton, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, 50740-550 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | - Flávia L Frédou
- Laboratório de Estudos de Impactos Antrópicos na Biodiversidade marinha e Estuarina, Departamento de Pesca e Aquicultura, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Rua Manuel de Medeiros, s/n, 52171-900 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | - Nykon Craveiro
- Laboratório de Bentos, Departamento de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, 50740-550 Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
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Freitas JF, Silva DFL, Silva BS, Castro JNF, Felipe MBMC, Silva-Portela RCB, Minnicelli CF, Agnez-Lima LF. Genomic and phenotypic features of Acinetobacter baumannii isolated from oil reservoirs reveal a novel subspecies specialized in degrading hazardous hydrocarbons. Microbiol Res 2023; 273:127420. [PMID: 37270893 DOI: 10.1016/j.micres.2023.127420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Revised: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
The genus Acinetobacter encompasses biotechnologically relevant species and nosocomial pathogens. In this study, nine isolates recovered from different oil reservoir samples showed the ability to grow with petroleum as the only carbon source and possessed the ability to emulsify kerosene. The whole genomes of the nine strains were sequenced and analyzed. The average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) values of all strains were compared to the reference strains, and the results were below the reference values (<97.88 and 82, respectively), suggesting that the isolates belong to a new subspecies of Acinetobacter baumannii. The name Acinetobacter baumannii oleum ficedula is proposed. A comparison of the whole genome repertoire of 290 Acinetobacter species indicated that the strains in this study resemble non-pathogenic Acinetobacter strains. However, the new isolates resemble A. baumannii when comparing virulence factors. The isolates in this study carry many genes involved in hydrocarbon degradation, indicating the potential to degrade most toxic compounds listed by environmental regulatory agencies such as ATSDR, EPA, and CONAMA. In addition, despite the absence of known biosurfactant or bioemulsifier genes, the strains showed emulsifying activity, suggesting the presence of new pathways or genes related to this process. This study investigated the genomic, phenotypic, and biochemical features of the novel environmental subspecies A. baumannii oleum ficedula, revealing their potential to degrade hydrocarbons and to produce biosurfactants or bioemulsifiers. Applying these environmental subspecies in bioaugmentation strategies sheds light on future approaches to bioremediation. The study shows the importance of genomic analysis of environmental strains and their inclusion in metabolic pathways databases, highlighting unique enzymes/alternative pathways for consuming hazardous hydrocarbons.
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Affiliation(s)
- J F Freitas
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - D F L Silva
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - B S Silva
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - J N F Castro
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - M B M C Felipe
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - R C B Silva-Portela
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - C F Minnicelli
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
| | - L F Agnez-Lima
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
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Soares MO, Rabelo EF. Severe ecological impacts caused by one of the worst orphan oil spills worldwide. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023; 187:105936. [PMID: 36958200 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2023.105936] [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: 01/05/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Orphan oil spills pose a severe risk to ocean sustainability; however, they are understudied. We provide the first synthetic assessment of short-term ecological impacts of the most extensive oil spill in tropical oceans, which affected 2900 km of Brazil's coastline in 2019. Oil ingestion, changes in sex ratio and size of animals, morphological abnormalities of larvae and eggs, mutagenic, behavioral, and morphological alterations, contamination by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and mortality were detected. A decrease in species richness and abundance of oil-sensitive animals, an increase in opportunistic and oil-tolerant organisms, and simplification of communities was observed. The impacts were observed in sponges, corals, mollusks, crustaceans, polychaetes, echinoderms, turtles, birds, fish, and mammals. The majority of studies were conducted on bioindicator substrate-associated organisms, with 68.4% of the studies examining the benthos, 21.2% the nekton, and 10.4% the plankton. Moreover, most of the current short-term impacts assessment studies were focused on the species level (66.7%), with fewer studies on the community level (19%), and even fewer on oil-affected ecosystems (14.3%). Oil-related impacts were detected in five sensitive habitats, including blue-carbon ecosystems (e.g., mangroves and seagrass beds) and coastal reefs. These results call for the development of new ocean-basin observation systems for orphan spills. Finally, we discuss how these mysterious oil spills from unknown sources pose a risk to sustainable development goals and ocean-based actions to tackle global climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcelo O Soares
- Instituto de Ciências do Mar (LABOMAR), Universidade Federal do Ceará (UFC), Fortaleza, Brazil; Reef Systems Group, Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT), Bremen, Germany; Center for Marine and Environmental Studies (CMES), University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.
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