Physiological and transcriptional responses of Dictyosphaerium sp. under co-exposure of a typical microplastic and nonylphenol.

Zhuo Jin, Linna Du, Qilu Cheng, Ying Jiang, Cai Hui, Ligen Xu, Yuhua Zhao, Hui Jiang

Environmental research 2022 Mar

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Microplastics (MPs) and nonylphenol (NP) are typical pollutants that are frequently detected in aquatic environments and can pose a risk to aquatic organisms. However, the responses of algae, the producers in aquatic ecosystems, to MP and NP co-exposure have not been extensively investigated. In this study, polystyrene (PS, 50 mg/L) was selected as a representative MP to evaluate its short-term effects on algae treated with NP (4 mg/L). The results showed that PS mitigated the toxicity of NP to algae after 96 h of exposure, as illustrated by the higher cell densities and pigment concentrations, as well as lower extracellular protein contents and better integrity of intracellular structures, in algae subjected to PS + NP treatment compared with those subjected to NP treatment. Moreover, the upregulated expression of genes involved in photosynthesis and downregulated expression of ribosomal genes as well as genes encoding ATPase and antioxidase, analyzed through RNA-sequencing analysis, further indicated the potential repair and defense mechanisms of PS in NP-treated algae. Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Citation

Zhuo Jin, Linna Du, Qilu Cheng, Ying Jiang, Cai Hui, Ligen Xu, Yuhua Zhao, Hui Jiang. Physiological and transcriptional responses of Dictyosphaerium sp. under co-exposure of a typical microplastic and nonylphenol. Environmental research. 2022 Mar;204(Pt C):112287