Oxidative and genotoxic effects of bisphenol A on primary gill cell culture of Lake Van Fish (Alburnus tarichi Güldenstädt, 1814)

Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey. The lake limits lifespan due to its high pH and brackish water. For this reason, only a single species of fish (Van Fish) is living in the lake that has been adapted to these conditions. In the present study, we investigated the total oxidant status (TOS), total antioxidant status (TAS), malondialdehyde (MDA) level and DNA damage effect of bisphenol A (BPA) (10^?7, 10^?6 and 10^?5?M) on primary gill cell culture of Van Fish for 24 and 48?h of incubation periods. TAS levels were not changed when compared to those of the control group, but TOS levels were decreased in both 24 and 48?h. The MDA level increased only at the highest concentration (10^?5) at the end of 12 and 24?h (p?.05). DNA damage increased only at the 10^?5?M concentration after 48?h. At the end of the experiment, BPA exposure caused lipid peroxidation and genotoxic effect. These results indicate that high levels of BPA exposure induced oxidative stress and DNA damage by time- and concentration-dependent fashion in the gill cell culture of Van Fish. Gill cell culture is a useful model for the rapid identification of the harmful effects of chemicals in the aquatic environment.     

全氟辛烷磺酸盐(PFOS)对半滑舌鳎(Cynoglossus semilaevis)免疫相关基因表达的影响

为了解全氟辛烷磺酸盐(perfluorooctane sulfonate, PFOS)暴露对半滑舌鳎(Cynoglossus semilaevis)免疫功能的影响,在实验室条件下,运用RT-PCR方法分析了PFOS暴露对半滑舌鳎热休克蛋白hsp70、hsp90、C型凝集素(c-type lectin)和细胞色素c氧化酶(cytochrome c oxidase, cox)等4种免疫相关基因表达水平的影响。实验测定了上述4种基因在半滑舌鳎肝、鳃、肠及肌肉4种不同组织中随时间(0、24 h、48 h、96 h和7 d)的表达变化情况。结果表明,在4种组织中,hsp70基因的表达与对照相比为上调,其中,肝组织hsp70基因的表达量显著高于其他各组织,且表达高峰值的出现也早于其他各组织;hsp90基因在肝和鳃组织中表达量随时间不同而波动,在肠组织中表达上调,在肌肉中表达显著下调;c-type lectin基因表达量与对照组相比表达显著下调或无明显差异;cox基因在肝组织和肠组织中表达下调,在鳃和肌肉中表达上调。上述研究结果表明,PFOS能引起免疫相关基因的表达变化,对半滑舌鳎具有潜在的免疫毒性。肝组织中各免疫基因对PFOS胁迫的响应高于其他组织。本研究可为阐明全氟辛烷磺酸盐对半滑舌鳎的免疫毒性提供基础数据。     

悬浮物对褐牙鲆抗氧化酶活性及相关基因表达的影响

为探究褐牙鲆(Paralichthys olivaceus)幼鱼抗氧化系统酶活力及相关基因表达在悬浮物胁迫下的变化情况,设计了浓度为5 000、10 000 mg·L-1悬浮物水体对褐牙鲆(14.53 cm±1.58 cm)肌肉、肝脏、鳃及血液总超氧化物歧化酶(T-SOD)、谷胱甘肽转移酶(GST)、过氧化氢酶(CAT)酶活力及SOD2、GST、CAT的mRNA转录水平表达变化情况。结果显示:在悬浮物胁迫24 h或者48 h时,4种组织3种酶活力具有升高的趋势(P0.05);4种组织的T-SOD酶活力在96 h均高于对照组(P0.05),肌肉、鳃丝及血液中SOD2基因相对表达量96 h实验组低于对照组(P0.05);肌肉中CAT酶活力呈现先升高再降低趋势,鳃中CAT基因相对表达量呈现先降低、再升高、再降低的趋势;肝脏、鳃、血液中GST酶活力在悬浮物胁迫下呈现升高趋势,4种组织GST基因相对表达量在12~24 h时呈现升高趋势。研究表明:悬浮物对褐牙鲆抗氧化酶活力及相关基因的表达具有一定的影响,血液中3种酶活力变化幅度最大,鳃中3种基因相对表达水平变化幅度最大,这与血液及鳃参与呼吸作用过程有关;抗氧化酶活性及基因相对表达变化趋势并不完全一致。本研究可为揭示褐牙鲆应对悬浮物胁迫的耐受机制及褐牙鲆耐悬浮物品种选育提供基础数据。     

Tidal height,rather than habitat selection for conspecifics,controls settlement in mussels

Settlement is a major determinant of intertidal populations. However, the energy costs of lost larvae are very high. Accordingly, arrival and attachment on suitable substrata are essential requirements for species’ survival. On the intertidal, the presence of cues left by adult or juvenile conspecifics could be vital for the successful establishment of larvae arriving on the shore. Two mussel species, the indigenous Perna perna and the invasive Mytilus galloprovincialis, co-occur on the lower eulittoral zone on the south coast of South Africa. P. perna dominates the low and M. galloprovincialis the high mussel zones, with co-existence in the mid mussel zone. This study tested the hypothesis of settlement selectivity for conspecifics in these two mussel species, to understand whether the final adult distribution of mussels on the shores is determined by active behavioural and chemical mechanisms. Preferential selection by larvae for conspecifics was tested in the field during the peak settlement period in 2004 in natural mussel beds across zones and through manipulative experiments in the mid-zone where the species co-exist. On natural beds, settlement was determined by counts of settlers attached over 48 h onto artificial collectors. Collectors were placed on beds of P. perna and M. galloprovincialis present at both high- and low-adult densities, as well as in mixed beds. On such natural beds, settlers of both species consistently favored low-zone P. perna beds. Settlement patterns over 24 h onto experimentally created mussel patches consisting of P. perna, M. galloprovincialis or the two species combined beds, set in the mixed zone, did not conform with the results of the natural beds study: settlers of both species settled with no discrimination among different patches. The results indicate that mussels, which are sedentary, lack attraction to conspecifics at settlement. This highlights the importance of tidal height in setting settlement rates, and of post-settlement events in shaping populations of these broadcast spawners.     

Changes of plasma osmolality,chloride concentration and gill Na−K-ATPase activity in tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus during seawater acclimation

Changes of plasma osmolality, chloride concentration and gill Na–K-ATPase activity in tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus (obtained from Tainan Fish Culture Station of Taiwan Fisheries Research Institute, 1987) during seawater acclimation were examined. Three experiments were performed. (1) Freshwater (FW) to 30 salinity seawater (SW): plasma osmolality and chloride rose violently immediately post-transfer. At 6 h, gill Na–K-ATPase activity began to increase but most fish died from excessive plasma osmolality and Cl. (2) FW to 20 salinity SW: plasma osmolality and chloride increased immediately post-transfer, but more slowly than in (1), and began to decrease at 24 h. However it was not until 12 h post-transfer that gill Na–K-ATPase activity rose slowly. (3) FW to 20 salinity SW for 24 h, then to 30 salinity SW: after transfer to 30 salinity, plasma osmolality and chloride showed only a small increase initially then declined, while gill Na–K-ATPase activity started to rise rapidly within 3 h. The present results coincided with our previous morphological data concerning the ultrastructural responses of gill chloride cells. These are discussed to elucidate the osmoregulation mechanisms in tilapia during seawater acclimation.     

Banding pattern of mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis) chromosomes induced by 2 × SSC/Giemsa-stain treatment

Mytilus galloprovincialis were collected from an intertidal population in NW Spain in 1988, and chromosomes from the gill tissue of 37 individuals were studied. The present paper describes the banding pattern of aM. galloprovincialis population which enabled us to identify all pairs of chromosomes. Banding was induced by means of a 2 × SSC (0.3M sodium chloride:0.03M sodium citrate)/Giemsa-staining technique, and a diagrammatic representation was constructed based on mean number of bands. The application of this banding technique may prove useful in future research related to the cytogenetics and cytotaxonomy of mussels and other molluscs.     

Differential sensitivities to hypoxia by two anoxia-tolerant marine molluscs: A biochemical analysis

The metabolic responses to a series of low oxygen tensions were compared for two species of Mediterranaean bivalves,Mytilus galloprovincialis andScapharca inaequivalvis. Whereas both species have well-developed and similar tolerances of anoxia, the metabolic responses ofS. inaequivalvis to low oxygen tensions indicate a substantially greater tolerance of hypoxia. Compared withM. galloprovincialis, the responses ofS. inaequivalvis included the ability to maintain a constant oxygen consumption down to a much lower pO₂ value (ca. 1.7 vs 3.4 ppm), and a lower critical pO₂ for the recruitment of fermentative pathways of ATP production (ca. 1 vs 3 ppm). Furthermore, a graded increase in the output of anaerobic products (succinate, alanine) occured at oxygen tensions below 3 ppm inM. galloprovincialis and reached a maximum at 1.6 ppm whereas inS. inaequivalvis the net accumulation of anaerobic products at the lowest oxygen tension tested (0.5 ppm) was still substantially less than the level of production output in complete anoxia. This suggests that fermentative pathways are maximally activated at all oxygen tensions below 1.6 ppm inM. galloprovincialis whereas rates of anaerobic pathways are still less than maximum at 0.5 ppm inS. inaequivalvis. These results indicate that in situations of declining oxygen tensions, such as occur due to eutrophication,M. galloprovincialis would not only begin to experience metabolic stress at higher oxygen tensions thanS. inaequivalvis but would experience greater stress at any given pO₂. Such differences in hypoxia tolerances may explain the success of the recently introducedS. inaequivalvis in out-competing the nativeM. galloprovincialis in the Adriatic Sea.This research was conducted at the Consorzio di Studi, Richerche ed Interventi sulle Risorse Marine, Viale Amerigo Vespucci 2, I-47042 Cesenatico (FO), Italy. Delta Institute for Hydrobiological Research, Yerseke, The Netherlands. Publication no. 554     

Mechanisms of habitat segregation between an invasive and an indigenous mussel: settlement,post-settlement mortality and recruitment

The mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis is highly invasive worldwide, but displays varying degrees of local and regional coexistence with indigenous mussels through spatial habitat segregation. We investigated the roles of settlement, post-settlement mortality, juvenile growth and recruitment in partial habitat segregation between the invasive M. galloprovincialis and the indigenous mussel Perna perna on the south coast of South Africa. We used two study locations, Plettenberg Bay and Tsitsikamma, 70 km apart, with two sites (separated by 300–400 m) per location, each divided into three vertical zones. There were no significant effects in Tsitsikamma, where daily settlement and monthly recruitment were significantly lower than in Plettenberg Bay. In Plettenberg Bay, settlement (primary and secondary) and recruitment of both species decreased upshore. Post-settlement mortality was measured over two consecutive 6-day periods during a spring tide and a neap tide. For both species mortality was low on the low-shore. High-shore mortality was consistently low for M. galloprovincialis, but increased dramatically for P. perna during spring tide. No data were obtained for growth of P. perna, but juvenile M. galloprovincialis grew more slowly farther upshore. P. perna recruited mainly in spring and summer, with a peak in summer far greater than for M. galloprovincialis. Recruitment of M. galloprovincialis was more protracted, continuing through autumn and winter. Thus local coexistence is due to a combination of pre- and post-recruitment factors differing in importance for each species. P. perna is excluded from the high-shore by recruitment failure (low settlement, high mortality). High survival and slow growth in juveniles may allow large densities of M. galloprovincialis to accumulate there, despite low settlement rates. With no differences between species in settlement or mortality on the low-shore, exclusion of M. galloprovincialis from that zone is likely to be by post-recruitment processes, possibly strengthened by periodic heavy recruitments of P. perna. At larger scales, larval retention and protracted recruitment contribute to the success of M. galloprovincialis at Plettenberg Bay, while recruitment limitation may explain why M. galloprovincialis is less successful at other sites.     

Biochemical genetic variation at a leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) locus in blue (Mytilus galloprovincialis) and greenshell (Perna canaliculus) mussel populations along a salinity gradient

In several marine bivalve species, biochemical genetic variation at a leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) locus is associated with environmental variability, primarily salinity fluctuation. Population genetic variation at a LAP locus was investigated here in two sympatric mussel species (Mytilus galloprovincialis and Perna canaliculus) from three locations along a salinity gradient in Wellington Harbour, New Zealand. The data for M. galloprovincialis and P. canaliculus do not support the hypothesis that the LAP polymorphism in either species is associated with salinity variation among adult mussels. Due to the absence of small mussels among the samples it is not possible to discount the hypothesis that selection acts primarily against juveniles, as it does for M. edulis in Long Island Sound, USA. Wellington Harbour populations of M. galloprovincialis exhibited large and often highly significant heterozygote excesses at the LAP locus, whereas populations of P. canaliculus from the same locations exhibited large and highly significant heterozygote deficiencies. The reason for this inter-specific difference in population structure is unknown. If it is the result of selection, this suggests that selection acts differentially upon the two species, because demographic attributes and reproductive biology are very similar in the two species. For both M. galloprovincialis and P. canaliculus, significant levels of population genetic heterogeneity were recorded among three locations separated by only 8 to 12 km. Neither species exhibited shell length-dependent genetic variation at the LAP locus, suggesting that for these two species the LAP polymorphism is not associated with variation in shell length. Received: 30 December 1996 / Accepted: 6 January 1997     

Experimental prey species preferences of Hexaplex trunculus (Gastropoda: Muricidae) and predator–prey interactions with the Black mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis (Bivalvia: Mytilidae)

Hexaplex trunculus is one of the most widespread Mediterranean species of muricid gastropod and lives on rocky, sandy-mud and mud substrata. Although common in the Adriatic Sea, relatively little is known about its ecology especially feeding behaviour. The aim of this study was to explore the aspects of the feeding behaviour of H. trunculus using Arca noae, Modiolus barbatus and Mytilus galloprovincialis as experimental prey. Prey species preference, predator size, prey size choice, feeding rates, handling times and mode and place of attack were analysed. Typically, only M. galloprovincialis was attacked: A. noae rarely at the byssal gape and M. barbatus never. Small (40 mm) H. trunculus could not easily attack large M. galloprovincialis (65 mm) and preferred small (20 mm) and medium (35 mm) sized prey. Conversely, medium (55 mm) and large (70 mm) H. trunculus fed randomly on M. galloprovincialis of all three sizes. The feeding strategy adopted by H. trunculus individuals varied with respect to size. A tendency to drill the prey shell was recorded for small predators, whereas marginal chipping was adopted more frequently by large individuals. On average small, medium and large H. trunculus consumed 2.4±1.6 (range 0–4), 1.2±1.6 (range 0–4) and 2.0±2.1 (range 0–6) M. galloprovincialis, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in prey-handling time with respect to the method of access adopted, predator and prey sizes. The time required to access a M. galloprovincialis individual by marginal chipping was considerably less than that required for drilling. H. trunculus consumed an average of 0.60±0.80 g M. galloprovincialis tissue dry weight over a 5-week period, that is, ~40% of its own tissue body weight. This translates to an average-sized (55 mm shell height) H. trunculus consuming ~18 M. galloprovincialis of 50 mm shell length (minimum marketable size) per year. H. trunculus showed no preference to drill either the left or right valves of M. galloprovincialis but generally attacked the posterior shell margin.     

Comparative sensitivity of three life stages of the tropical mysid,Metamysidopsis insularis to six toxicants

Test protocols citing mysids as a standard test species often recommend juveniles (48 h) as the most appropriate life stage for testing. Acute toxicity tests were conducted with six standard toxicants, with three life stages of Metamysidopsis insularis; juveniles (48 h), late juveniles (7–12 days) and adults (>13 days), to determine whether there were significant differences in the sensitivity between life stages. Three of the compounds tested (sodium dodecyl sulphate, potassium dichromate, and potassium chloride) showed a significantly higher 96 h-LC₅₀ for the adults when compared to the juveniles and late juveniles. Four of the compounds tested showed significantly higher 24 h- and 48h-LC₅₀ for the adults when compared to both the late juveniles and juveniles. Twenty-four hour-LC₅₀ values for juveniles were also significantly higher than the 48 and 96 h values. However, for the late juveniles and adults this was only true of a few compounds. Further, the 48 and 96 h values were statistically similar. Therefore, for M. insularis it may be appropriate to conduct acute toxicity test with juvenile for a 48 h period.     

Effect of high temperatures on the ultrastructure of Leydig cells in Mytilus galloprovincialis

Individuals of the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis (L), collected from the Black Sea, were subjected to relatively high temperatures (25°, 28° and 30°C) for 60 h Ultrastructural studies on Leydig cells of the mantle indicated progressive modifications in their structure. Mainly, we established that a continuous decrease of glycogen quantity in the cells took place as the temperature raised, while the lipid content increased, up to 28°C. Between 28° and 30°C the lipid content decreased as a result of a pronounced degradation process. An increase of membrane permeability and the disturbance in the synthesis of mucoproteic secretory granules were observed. It is concluded that for Mytilus galloprovincialis the thermal adaptation zone ranges between 25° and 28°C. 28°C is the upper tolerable limit temperature, while 30°C acts as a lethal temperature.     

敌百虫对中国林蛙蝌蚪生长发育的毒性效应

为评价水域环境中敌百虫(trichlorfon)污染对两栖类幼体的急性毒性,将中国林蛙(Rana chensinensis)28～29期(Gos-ner)蝌蚪分别暴露于10～30 mg· L-1敌百虫5个不同浓度的水体中,分别在24、48、72和96 h统计蝌蚪的死亡率,计算半致死浓度(LC50).结果显示,暴露24、48、72和96 h,敌百虫对蝌蚪的LC50分别为14250±3.23、49.19±128、25.68±2.04、1555±1.93 mg·L-1,安全浓度(SC)为156±0.19 mg· L-1.蝌蚪中毒后尾部多呈弯曲状,仰翻,外观浮肿.对死亡蝌蚪的解剖表明,其鳃腔内充水,内鳃萎缩,肝脏、肠管和肾脏呈灰白色.另外,将28～29期蝌蚪分别暴露于0.2 ～ 2.0 mg·L-1敌百虫4个不同浓度的水体中进行慢性暴露实验,检测蝌蚪暴露28和42 d时的体重和体长以及75％个体变态所需的时间.结果表明,蝌蚪在低剂量敌百虫水体中持续暴露,其生长发育受到明显抑制,并可导致蝌蚪身体扭曲、尾部强直性弯曲等畸型发生,蝌蚪的死亡率显著增高,作用强度呈现剂量和时间的累积效应.慢性暴露实验证明SC以下的敌百虫水体仍威胁着蝌蚪的生存.     

Wave action and competitive interaction between the invasive mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis and the indigenous Perna perna in South Africa

On the south coast of South Africa, the invasive alien mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis shows partial habitat segregation with the indigenous mussel Perna perna. P. perna predominates in the lower mussel zone and M. galloprovincialis in the upper zone, with mixed beds where the two overlap. We examined competitive interactions between these species by translocating mussels into small plots at high densities. Treatments involved different combinations of species and densities placed in each zone. Mortality was monitored regularly and at the end of each experiment, growth and condition index were measured. The experiment was attempted three times. The first two attempts were disrupted by wave action, especially winter storms, but provided information on species-specific effects of wave action. In experiment one, wave induced mortality decreased from a mean for both species of approximately 90% on the low shore to ca. 50% on the high shore, and was 15–30% lower for P. perna than M. galloprovincialis in each zone. In experiment two, M. galloprovincialis mortality was not affected by zone (Kruskal–Wallis test, P > 0.05), but was higher than P. perna mortality in the low zone (P < 0.05). P. perna survival was significantly (P < 0.05) lower on the high than mid and low zones, apparently due to the effects of greater emersion. Condition index showed a similar pattern, being lowest in the low zone for M. galloprovincialis and in the high zone for P. perna (3-way ANOVA, P < 0.05). Growth rates were fastest for both species in the low zone (Kruskal–Wallis, P < 0.05 in both cases). The third experiment was run for 12 months in the low zone only and provided evidence of intraspecific competition for P. perna and of interspecific competition. Condition was significantly greater for P. perna in all treatments (2-way ANOVA), as was growth (Kruskal–Wallis P < 0.05). Significant treatment effects indicated that P. perna had a negative effect on M. galloprovincialis survival (Kruskal–Wallis, P < 0.05). Again wave action was important; by the end of the experiment all mussels had been removed from plots stocked only with M. galloprovincialis. Thus P. perna improves survival of M. galloprovincialis on the low shore in the short term, by providing protection against wave action, but excludes it competitively in the longer term. The results show that partial habitat segregation is likely to be a permanent feature on the south coast, with M. galloprovincialis unable to dominate the low shore due to the effects of waves and competitive exclusion by P. perna. This study is the first attempt to examine the mechanisms of interaction between invasive and indigenous marine mussel species and provides evidence of the importance of environmental conditions in the mediation of this interaction.     

Genotype-dependent fecundity and temporal variation of spawning in hybrid mussel (Mytilus) populations

Mussel samples were collected at 4 to 6 wk intervals throughout 1987 from two hybridMytilus edulis/M. galloprovincialis populations, at Croyde Bay and Whitsand Bay, in southwest England. These were analyzed at two polymorphic loci which are diagnostic for allozyme differences which typifyM. edulis andM. galloprovincialis. Dry mantle weight as a function of shell length was determined for all individuals of each sample. Size-frequency data for the two populations was obtained in September 1987 and March 1988. For all genotypes at both sites, fecundity was a function of shell length, and in both populations the frequency ofM. galloprovincialis alleles was positively correlated with shell length. At both sites, allozyme genotype explained a significant amount of variation in mantle weight either when assessed as a main effect or when assessed as an interaction with shell length or time of collection. At Croyde,M. galloprovincialis mussels had greater estimated fecundity per unit length than theM. edulis mussels. Differences in the timing of spawning activity between theM. edulis and theM. galloprovincialis mussels were inferred, and these differences might act to reduce the amount of interbreeding at Croyde. At Whitsand, a reduced level of variability in the timing of spawning activity and fecundity between the genotypes was observed and explained by a higher degree of genetic mixing. Because theM. galloprovincialis mussels had (1) a greater estimated fecundity at any length, and (2) a greater mean length than theM. edulis mussels, the mean genotypic annual fecundity perM. galloprovincialis mussel was 2.8 times greater than an individualM. edulis mussel at Croyde, and 2.2 times greater than an individualM. edulis mussel at Whitsand. This evidence thatM. galloprovincialis mussels have an advantage in fecundity, and thus perhaps in fertility, taken together with the evidence thatM. galloprovincialis also has a higher viability, indicates directional selection in favour of theM. galloprovincialis phenotype. Because of the observed temporal stability of the population it seems likely that this selection is counterbalanced by a massive imigration ofM. edulis spat from neighbouring populations.     

Depuration of twelve trace metals in tissues of the oysters Crassostrea gigas and C. virginica

The depuration of 12 trace metals in the mantle, gill, digestive gland, and kidney of Crassostrea gigas and C. virginica was investigated under natural field conditions; oysters from a relatively contaminated environment (Redwood Creek in south San Francisco Bay) were transplanted to a relatively clean environment (Tomales Bay). In the transplanted oysters, the digestive gland and kidney depurated Cd, Cu, Hg, Ag, and Zn more readily than the mantle and gill. Other trace metals As, Fe, Mn, Ni and Se showed varying depuration patterns. The results for Cr and Pb were inconclusive, since initial concentrations were too low to follow any losses. Interspecific differences in trace metal depuration were observed. Biological half-lives for most trace metals were on the order of 23 to 60 d for C. gigas and on the order of 70 to 180 d for C. virginica.     

Bioconcentration of Cd and Ni in various tissues of two marine bivalves living in different habitats and exposed to heavily polluted seawater

Two marine bivalves, Mytilus galloprovincialis and Callista chione, were exposed to various concentrations of cadmium and nickel (0.5, 1.0, 2.5 and 20 ppm), for 20 days, plus 10 days’ depuration period, in a laboratory experiment. Animals from each experimental condition were dissected and the bioaccumulation and distribution of Cd and Ni were determined in their gills, mantles and remaining bodies. The concentrations of Fe and Zn were also measured. Heavy metal tolerance, bioconcentration and distribution of heavy metals in tissues were considerably different in M. galloprovincialis and C. chione: (i) both animals were tolerant to Ni pollution, even at the highest concentration used; (ii) C. chione was more tolerant to Cd; (iii) M. galloprovincialis was a better Cd and Ni accumulator, with the exception of the highest Cd concentration tested, where C. chione accumulated more Cd; (iv) Fe and Zn levels were much more affected in M. galloprovincialis; (v) in general, accumulation and distribution of Ni and Cd in the tissues were metal-, species- and time of exposure- dependent; (vi) significant amounts of heavy metals remained in the tissues after 10 days’ depuration. Our results support a hypothesis for a two competing processes mechanism for metal accumulation and detoxification.     

The gill symbiont of the hydrothermal vent mussel Bathymodiolus thermophilus is a psychrophilic,chemoautotrophic, sulfur bacterium

Certain hydrothermal vent invertebrates, e.g. Riftia pachyptila and Calyptogena magnifica, are clearly established as harboring dense populations of chemoautotrophic sulfur bacteria in specialized tissues. By contrast, the physiological characteristics of the abundant intracellular gill symbiont of the vent mussel Bathymodiolus thermophilus have been questioned. The low activities of enzymes diagnostic for CO₂ fixation (Calvin cycle) and for sulfur-driven energy generation, as measured by other investigators, have been attributed to bacterial contamination of the gill surface. Based on research at the Galápagos Rift hydrothermal vents in 1988 and subsequent laboratory experiments, the current study confirms that the B. thermophilus symbiont is a psychrophile for which thiosulfate and sulfide stimulate CO₂ fixation. It strongly indicates that the symbiont is a chemoautotroph by establishing the following: (1) Sulfide and thiosulfate can stimulate CO₂ fixation by partially purified symbionts by up to 43-fold and 120-fold, respectively; (2) the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase activity of the symbiont is sufficient to account for its sulfide- or thiosulfate-stimulated CO₂ incorporation; (3) the symbiont's molar growth yield on thiosulfate, as judged by CO₂ incorporation, is indistinguishable from that of free-living chemoautotrophs. Due to the high protein-degrading activity of B. thermophilus gill lysate, it is also suggested that host lysis of symbionts plays a more important role in the nutrition of the vent mussel than in R. pachyptila or C. magnifica, for which no comparable protein-degrading activity was found.     

Genetic population structure of a species' complex of blue mussels (Mytilus spp.)

Blue mussels representing two nominal species (Mytilus trossulus Gould, 1850 and Mytilus galloprovincialis Lamarck, 1819 were collected from 28 intertidal locations along the Pacific coast of the USA in 1990–1991 (total N=1255) and examined for variation at 15 allozyme loci. Twelve samples, mostly from a region of suspected hybridization, were analyzed for variation in seven shell characters. Principal-components analysis of allozyme data revealed three groups based on first principal-component scores, which were identified as M. trossulus, M. galloprovincialis, and hybrids. Canonical discriminant analysis of shell characters was less successful in separating mussels into discrete groups. Each location was characterized for four environmental variables: (1) temperature, (2) salinity, (3) tidal height and (4) degree of exposure to wave action, which were then used as independent variables in a series of multiple-regression analyses, with the proportions of the two species as dependent variables. Temperature and salinity had significant (P<0.05) effects on the macrogeographic distribution of the two species, whereas the effects of height in the tidal zone and degree of wave exposure were not statistically significant. Salinity was found to have a greater influence than temperature on the microgeographic distribution of the two species. M. trossulus was more abundant at locations with lower temperatures and greater salinity variation than M. galloprovincialis. The two species appear to be ecologically distinct, and their genetic integrity is at least partly the result of environmental heterogeneity.     

The effect of copper and zinc on the metabolism of the mussel Mytilus edulis

The effects of copper and zinc on the metabolism of the mussel Mytilus edulis (L.) and its component tissues were studied. 500 ppm copper sodium citrate inhibited oxygen consumption of the whole animal and gill tissue, but no similar effect was observed on digestive gland tissue. 500 ppm zinc sodium citrate exerted no effect upon gill or digestive gland respiration, and neither metal salt affected the respiration of homogenates of gill, digestive gland or gonad. Direct observation of gill tissues during exposure to the metals revealed that 500 ppm copper sodium citrate caused inhibition of ciliary activity; exposure of tissues to 2 ppm Cu for 24 h resulted in only partial inhibition of the cilía. It is suggested that metabolic suppression noted in whole animals and gill tissues is due to the inhibition of an energy-consuming process such as ciliary activity rather than interference with respiratory enzyme systems.