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Venâncio C, Melnic I, Tamayo-Belda M, Oliveira M, Martins MA, Lopes I. Polymethylmethacrylate nanoplastics can cause developmental malformations in early life stages of Xenopus laevis. Sci Total Environ 2022; 806:150491. [PMID: 34844312 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2021] [Revised: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) production has increased almost 20% over the last years. With its release into the aquatic environment, its breakdown or degradation to nano dimensions (nanoplastics-NPLs) due to biological and physical/mechanical action is, theoretically, anticipated. The occurrence of PMMA-NPLs in aquatic ecosystems may thus cause adverse effects particularly to early life stages of amphibians, which may be in contact with PMMA-NPLs suspended in the water column or deposited in upper layers of the sediments. Accordingly, this work aimed at assessing the effects of PMMA-NPLs to aquatic early life stages of the model anuran species Xenopus laevis. To attain this objective, two types of toxicity assays were carried out by exposing embryos [Nieuwkoop and Faber (NF) stage 8-11] or tadpoles (NF 45) to three concentrations of PMMA-NPLs (1, 100 and 1000 μg/L): i) 96-h embryo teratogenicity assay, where survival, malformation, and total body length (BL) of embryos were assessed; and ii) 48-h feeding rate assay, where survival, feeding (FR), malformations and growth rates (body weight-BW and BL) of tadpoles were evaluated. PMMA-NPLs exposure had no significant effects on mortality, malformations of X. laevis embryos but BL was lower at 1000 μg PMMA-NPLs/L. In tadpoles, no effects on survival or FR were observed after exposure to PMMA-NPLs, but significant changes occured in BW and BL. Moreover, anatomical changes in the abdominal region (externalization of the gut) were observed in 62.5% of the tadpoles exposed to 1000 μg PMMA-NPLs/L. Despite the lack of knowledge regarding the environmental levels of NPLs, it is expected that sediments constitute a sink for these contaminants, where they can become available for organisms that, like tadpoles, feed on the organic matter at the surface of sediments. Considering the continuous release and subsequent accumulation of PMMA, the malformations obtained in the feeding assays suggest that, in the future, these nano-polymers may constitute a risk for aquatic life stages of amphibians.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Centre for Functional Ecology (CFE), Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - I Melnic
- Faculty of Biology Alexandru Ioan Cuza, University of Iași, Romania
| | - M Tamayo-Belda
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - M Oliveira
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - M A Martins
- CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, Department of Materials and Ceramic Engineering, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
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2
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Venâncio C, Ciubotariu A, Lopes I, Martins MA, Oliveira M. Is the toxicity of nanosized polymethylmethacrylate particles dependent on the exposure route and food items? J Hazard Mater 2021; 413:125443. [PMID: 33930964 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.125443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2020] [Revised: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The environmental effects of nanoplastics-NPLs have been addressed mainly through short-term exposures to a few types of polymers, neglecting other NPLs that are economically relevant like polymethylmethacrylate - PMMA. This work aimed to assess long-term effects of PMMA-NPLs on the marine primary consumer Brachionus plicatilis, evaluating the influence of different exposure routes (waterborne, foodborne and both) and food items (Nannochloropsis gaditana and Tetraselmis chuii). Rotifers were 21 days exposed to: a) control, with clean medium and food-CTR; b) contaminated medium (8.1 mg PMMA-NPLs/L) and clean algae-MC; c) clean medium and contaminated algae (pre-incubated for 96 h on 8.1 mg PMMA-NPLs/L)-AC; and, d) contaminated medium and algae-MC/AC. Mortality (lx), total number of organisms (TN), fecundity (mx), populational growth rate (r), generational time (gt), and feeding rates were assessed. Effects on r and mx were found after 21 days. Organisms from AC had higher r than MC. MC/AC organisms performed better than control in all endpoints. Overall organisms fed with N. gaditana had higher TN, mx and r than those fed with T. chuii. In the AC treatments, rotifers fed with N. gaditana had higher mx. Results highlight that exposure route and food type may modulate NPLs' effects, supporting the need for standardization of assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Centre for Functional Ecology (CFE), Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - A Ciubotariu
- Faculty of Biology Alexandru Ioan Cuza, University of Iași, Romania
| | - I Lopes
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - M A Martins
- CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, Department of Materials and Ceramic Engineering, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - M Oliveira
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
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3
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Simões AM, Venâncio C, Alves L, Antunes FE, Lopes I. Hydrophobic modifications of hydroxyethyl cellulose polymers: Their influence on the acute toxicity to aquatic biota. J Hazard Mater 2021; 409:124966. [PMID: 33418294 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.124966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2020] [Revised: 12/18/2020] [Accepted: 12/23/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The hydrophobic substitution (HS) of cationic cellulose derivatives may be tuned, promoting their efficiency. This work studied the influence of HS on the acute ecotoxicity of quaternized hydroxyethyl cellulose polymers (SL) to aquatic biota. The ecotoxicity of four SL with different HS (SL-5, SL-30, SL-60, SL-100) was assessed for seven species: Vibrio fischeri, Raphidocelis subcapitata, Chlorella vulgaris, Daphnia magna, Brachionus calyciflorus, Heterocypris incongruens, and Danio rerio. The computed median effective concentrations were used to derive hazard concentrations, by using species sensitive distribution curves. All SL suspensions were characterized for particle size, zeta potential and rheological properties. Results indicated instability of the SL in suspension due to their relatively low zeta potential. Raphidocelis subcapitata, C. vulgaris and B. calyciflorus were the most sensitive to the four SL, suggesting that exposure to these compounds may imbalance the lowest trophic levels. Also, HS influenced the toxicity of SL, with the lowest HS (SL-5) revealing lower ecotoxicity. The maximum acceptable concentrations were 14.0, 2.9, 3.9 and 1.4 mg L-1 for SL-5, SL-30, SL-60, and SL-100, respectively. Accordingly, SL-5 is suggested as the eco-friendliest and is recommended to be used in the production of care products, in detriment of the other three tested variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anabela M Simões
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; CQC, Department of Chemistry, University of Coimbra, Rua Larga, 3004-535 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - C Venâncio
- University of Coimbra, Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Luís Alves
- University of Coimbra, CIEPQPF, Department of Chemical Engineering, Rua Sílvio Lima, Pólo II, PT, 3030-790 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Filipe E Antunes
- CQC, Department of Chemistry, University of Coimbra, Rua Larga, 3004-535 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Isabel Lopes
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
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Nascimento-Gonçalves E, Seixas F, Silva M, Fardilha M, Ferreira R, Neuparth MJ, Faustino-Rocha AI, Colaço B, Venâncio C, Barros L, Ferreira ICFR, Oliveira MM, Peixoto F, Rosa E, Oliveira PA. The influence of Castanea sativa Mill. flower extract on hormonally and chemically induced prostate cancer in a rat model. Food Funct 2021; 12:2631-2643. [PMID: 33645604 DOI: 10.1039/d1fo00029b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men, with a huge impact on their health. The use of Castanea sativa Mill. flowers (CFs) in beverages has been reported, through ancestral claims, as having health benefits. In vitro research has evidenced the properties of CFs, such as antitumor and antioxidant activities. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of CF extract in an animal model of PCa. Forty male Wistar Unilever rats were randomly assigned to four groups: control, induced, control + CF, and induced + CF groups. Animals from the induced groups were exposed to a multistep protocol for PCa induction. The CF extract, rich in trigalloyl-HHDP-glucoside and obtained via decoction, was administered to the CF groups in drinking water (3 mg per animal per day) for 49 weeks. Animals were sacrificed at 61 weeks of age. Regarding the effects of CFs on dorsolateral prostate tumorigenesis, no significant differences were observed between the induced and induced + CF groups. However, animals exposed to the CF extract showed fewer inflammation areas on the dorsolateral prostate lobe than those not exposed to CF. Moreover, the CF extract alleviated the hepatic oxidative stress associated with the multistep protocol, resulting in lower levels of lipid peroxidation. These results suggest that CF extract has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Nascimento-Gonçalves
- Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences (CITAB), University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal.
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Venâncio C, Ribeiro R, Soares AMVM, Lopes I. Survival recovery rates by six clonal lineages of Daphnia longispina after intermittent exposures to copper. Chemosphere 2021; 264:128403. [PMID: 33007568 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.128403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2020] [Revised: 09/17/2020] [Accepted: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Natural populations are commonly exposed to sequential pulses of contaminants. Accordingly, this study aimed at testing the existence of an association between the tolerance to lethal levels of copper (Cu) and the survival recovery ability from pulsed partially lethal copper exposures in six clonal lineages of Daphnia longispina. It was hypothesized that the most tolerant genotypes would be the ones exhibiting a faster survival recovery from a pulsed contaminant exposure. For each clonal lineage, the intensity of pulses corresponded to the respective concentration of Cu causing 30% of mortality after 24h of exposure (LC30,24h). The initial hypothesis was not corroborated: obtained results showed no association between survival recovery and lethal tolerance to Cu. Nevertheless, some patterns could be detected. Firstly, the most sensitive lineages to lethal levels of copper revealed a faster survival recovery from a first Cu pulse comparatively to the most tolerant ones, though they were the most sensitive to a second pulse exposure. Secondly, the most tolerant lineages, though being more tolerant to a second exposure, exhibited the lowest survival recovery capacity after exposure to a first pulse of Cu. However, differences in the survival recovery capacity of the six clonal lineages after the exposure to the two pulses of Cu were not observed. Increasing the duration of the recovery period from 24h to 72h did not significantly alter mortality rates, except for the most sensitive and most tolerant clonal lineages. The results here obtained suggests that standard lethality assays may sub-estimate the toxicity of chemicals under realistic exposure scenarios, since sequential pulses are not infrequent in natural conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- University of Coimbra, Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - R Ribeiro
- University of Coimbra, Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - A M V M Soares
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal.
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Venâncio C, Savuca A, Oliveira M, Martins MA, Lopes I. Polymethylmethacrylate nanoplastics effects on the freshwater cnidarian Hydra viridissima. J Hazard Mater 2021; 402:123773. [PMID: 33254784 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2020] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The current understanding of nanoplastics (NPLs) toxicity to freshwater biota, especially the potential toxic effects of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), remains limited. Thus, the present work intended to add knowledge about the ecotoxicity of ∼40 nm PMMA-NPLs focusing on lethality, morphology, feeding and regeneration capacity of the freshwater cnidarian Hydra viridissima, after an exposure period of 96 h. Results showed that high concentrations of PMMA-NPLs can impair the survival of H. viridissima, with an estimated 96 h-LC50 of 84.0 mg PMMA-NPLs/L. Several morphological alterations were detected at concentrations below 40 PMMA-NPLs mg/L, namely partial or total loss of tentacles, which, however, did not induce significant alterations on the feeding rates. Morphological alterations not previously reported in the literature were also found after the 96 h exposure, such as double or elbow-like tentacles. Exposure to 40 mg PMMA-NPLs/L significantly impacted hydra regeneration, with organisms exposed to PMMA-NPLs presenting significant slower regeneration rates comparatively to controls, but with no impacts on the feeding rates. Overall, this work highlights the need to assess the effects of NPLs in freshwater biota. Hydra viridissima species was sensitive in a wide range of endpoints showing its value as a biological model to study the effects of small plastic particles.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Centre for Functional Ecology (CFE), Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - A Savuca
- Faculty of Biology Alexandru Ioan Cuza, University of Iași, Romania
| | - M Oliveira
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - M A Martins
- CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, Department of Materials and Ceramic Engineering, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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Venâncio C, Ribeiro R, Lopes I. Active emigration from climate change-caused seawater intrusion into freshwater habitats. Environ Pollut 2020; 258:113805. [PMID: 31883492 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Ecological risk assessment associated with seawater intrusions has been supported on the determination of lethal/sublethal effects following standard protocols that force exposure neglecting the ability of mobile organisms to spatially avoid salinized environments. Thus, this work aimed at assessing active emigration from climate change-caused seawater intrusion into freshwater habitats. To specific objectives were delineated: first, to compute median 12-h avoidance conductivities (AC50,12h) for freshwater species, and second, to compare it with literature data (LC50,48 or 96h, EC50,6 or 21d) to assess the relevance of the inclusion of stressor-driven emigration into risk assessment frameworks. Four standard test species, representing a broad range of ecological niches - Daphnia magna, Heterocypris incongruens, Danio rerio and Xenopus laevis - were selected. The salt NaCl was used as a surrogate of natural seawater to create the saline gradient, which was established in a 7-compartment system. At each specific LC50, 48 or 96h, the proportion of avoiders were well above 50%, ranging from 71 to 94%. At each LC50, considering also avoiders, populations would decline by 85-97%. Furthermore, for D. magna and X. laevis it was noticed that at the lowest conductivities eliciting mortality, the avoidance already exceeded 50%. The results showed that the emigration from salinity-disturbed habitats exists and that can even be more sensitive than standard endpoints. Looking solely to standard endpoints involving forced exposure may greatly underestimate the risk of local population extinction, because habitat function can be severely disrupted, with subsequent stressor-driven emigration, before any adverse physiological effects at the organism level. Thus, the present study highlights the need to include non-forced exposure testing into ecological risk assessment, namely of salinity-menaced costal freshwaters.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- CFE-Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - R Ribeiro
- CFE-Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Department of Biology & CESAM, University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
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Venâncio C, Castro BB, Ribeiro R, Antunes SC, Lopes I. Sensitivity to salinization and acclimation potential of amphibian (Pelophylax perezi) and fish (Lepomis gibbosus) models. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 2019; 172:348-355. [PMID: 30731265 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2019.01.099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2018] [Revised: 01/25/2019] [Accepted: 01/29/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Predictions of the International Panel for Climate Changes on sea level rise foresee that the number of coastal regions impacted with salinization will increase in a near future. The present work intended to evaluate the sensitivity to salinization of two freshwater vertebrate species (the frog Pelophylax perezi and the fish Lepomis gibbosus) and their ability to acclimate to this stressor. For this, three specific objectives were targeted: (i) to assess if NaCl may be used as a safe surrogate for risk assessment of seawater (SW) intrusion for freshwater vertebrates; (ii) to evaluate the sensitivity of two freshwater vertebrate models to increased salinity (both due to NaCl or SW); (iii) to determine the capacity of the studied species to acclimate to low levels of salinization. To assess specific objectives (i) and (ii), organisms were exposed to serial concentrations of NaCl or SW dilutions. To assess the capacity of acclimation of both species to salinization, organisms were exposed to low serial concentrations of NaCl during the embryonic development or for a period of two months, respectively, and their sensitivity to NaCl was re-evaluated after this period. Results showed that fish juveniles were more tolerant (96-h LC50 of 21.3 mS cm-1 for NaCl and 23.6 mS cm-1 for SW) than frog embryos (96-h LC50 of 10.7 mS cm-1 for NaCl and 10.7 mS cm-1 for SW) and tadpoles (96-h LC50 of 19.4 mS cm-1 for NaCl and 8.72 mS cm-1 for SW). The fish was able to cope with conductivities of almost one third of SW conductivity, while effect conductivities computed for the amphibian were much lower than SW conductivity (≈ 52 mS cm-1). The two-fold difference between the sensitivity of the two tested species reinforces the idea that ecological risk assessment for amphibians based on fish toxicity data may underestimate the risk to the former. Acclimation to low levels of salinity caused an increase in tolerance to salinization in P. perezi tadpoles but not in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Department of Biology & CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - B B Castro
- Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology (CBMA), Department of Biology, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
| | - R Ribeiro
- CFE - Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - S C Antunes
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences & CIIMAR-Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Department of Biology & CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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Medeiros-Fonseca B, Mestre VF, Colaço B, Pires MJ, Martins T, Gil da Costa RM, Neuparth MJ, Medeiros R, Moutinho MSS, Dias MI, Barros L, Bastos MMSM, Félix L, Venâncio C, Ferreira ICFR, Antunes LM, Oliveira PA. Laurus nobilis (laurel) aqueous leaf extract's toxicological and anti-tumor activities in HPV16-transgenic mice. Food Funct 2018; 9:4419-4428. [PMID: 30066000 DOI: 10.1039/c8fo00783g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Cancers induced by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection remain a significant public health threat, fueling the study of new therapies. Laurel (Laurus nobilis) compounds and extracts recently showed in vitro activity against HPV-transformed cell lines. This work aims to evaluate the in vivo efficacy and hepatic toxicity of a laurel extract in a transgenic mouse model of HPV16-induced cancer. The extract was administered in drinking water (20 mg per animal per day) for three consecutive weeks, using four experimental groups (n = 10) (group I: HPV16-/- without treatment, group II: treated HPV16-/-, group III: HPV16+/- without treatment and group IV: treated HPV16+/-). Following the treatment period, animals were sacrificed and skin samples were used to classify skin lesions histologically. Toxicological parameters included hematological and biochemical blood markers, splenic and hepatic histology and hepatic oxidative stress. The extract did not prevent the progression of HPV16-induced cutaneous lesions in this model. The treated wild-type animals showed mild hepatitis, while transgenic animals suffered weight loss. However, there were no changes concerning hematological, biochemical and hepatic oxidative stress markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Medeiros-Fonseca
- Center for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences (CITAB), University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), Vila Real, Portugal.
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Venâncio C, Castro BB, Ribeiro R, Antunes SC, Abrantes N, Soares AMVM, Lopes I. Sensitivity of freshwater species under single and multigenerational exposure to seawater intrusion. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 374:20180252. [PMID: 30509925 PMCID: PMC6283950 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2018.0252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Salinization of coastal freshwater ecosystems is already occurring in some regions of the world. This phenomenon raises serious concerns on the protection of coastal freshwater ecosystems, since many of them support and shelter a large number of species and are considered hotspots of biodiversity. This work intended to assess the adverse effects that salinization, caused by the intrusion of seawater (SW), may pose to freshwater organisms. In this study, three specific goals were addressed: (i) to assess if sodium chloride (NaCl) may be used as a surrogate of natural SW at early-stages of risk assessment; (ii) to identify the most sensitive freshwater species to salinity NaCl; and (iii) to determine if increased tolerance to salinity may be acquired after multigenerational exposure to low levels of salinization (induced with NaCl). A total of 12 standard monospecific bioassays were carried out by exposing organisms from different taxonomic groups (Cyanobacteria: one species, Tracheophyta: two species, Rotifera: one species, Arthropoda: two species and Mollusca: one species) to a series of concentrations of NaCl (ranging from 0.95 to 22.8 mS cm-1) or dilutions of SW (ranging from 1.70 to 52.3 mS cm-1). In general, NaCl exerted similar or higher toxicity than SW, both at lethal and sublethal levels, suggesting that it may be proposed as a protective surrogate of SW for first tiers of salinization risk assessment. Among all tested species, the cyanobacterium Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii, the daphnid Daphnia longispina and the rotifer Brachionus plicatilis were the most sensitive taxa to salinization (EC50 ≤ 4.38 mS cm-1). Given their position at the basis of the food web, it is suggested that small increments of salinity may be enough to induce structural changes in freshwater communities or induce changes in trophic relations. No clear evidences of increased tolerance after multigenerational exposure to low levels of salinity were found.This article is part of the theme issue 'Salt in freshwaters: causes, ecological consequences and future prospects'.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - B B Castro
- Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology (CBMA), Department of Biology, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
| | - R Ribeiro
- CFE-Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - S C Antunes
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences and CIIMAR-Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - N Abrantes
- Department of Environment and Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - A M V M Soares
- Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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Venâncio C, Ribeiro R, Soares AMVM, Lopes I. Multigenerational effects of salinity in six clonal lineages of Daphnia longispina. Sci Total Environ 2018; 619-620:194-202. [PMID: 29149743 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.11.094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2017] [Revised: 11/07/2017] [Accepted: 11/08/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Sea level rise, as a consequence of climate changes, is already causing seawater intrusion in some freshwater coastal ecosystems worldwide. The increase in salinity at these freshwater coastal ecosystems may occur gradually (through groundwater) or abruptly (through extreme weather events). Moreover, many of them are also being altered and threatened by anthropogenic activities. Accordingly, the present study aimed at assessing the multigenerational lethal and sublethal effects caused by increased salinity in six clonal lineages of the freshwater cladoceran Daphnia longispina differing in their sensitivity to lethal levels of copper. Three specific objectives were delineated: i) to compare the lethal and sublethal toxicity of sodium chloride (NaCl) and natural seawater (SW); ii) to evaluate possible multigenerational effects after exposure to low levels of salinity, and iii) to evaluate if an association exists between tolerance to lethal and sublethal levels of salinity and tolerance to metals. Overall, NaCl was found to elicit sublethal effects at lower or similar concentrations than SW, suggesting its use as a protective surrogate of SW in early phases of ecological risk assessment schemes. Multigenerational exposure to conductivities of 0.73±0.015mScm-1 led to dissimilar responses by the six clonal lineages. Significant associations were found neither between lethal and sublethal endpoints nor between salinity and metals, possibly indicating the absence of common mechanisms responsible to confer metal tolerance and salt stress. However, some clonal lineages presented an inverse sensitivity to lethal levels of NaCl and of copper. These results suggest that natural populations of D. longispina, by exhibiting clonal lineages with differential tolerance to increased salinity, may cope with long-term exposure to small increases of this stressor. However, over time those populations may face the occurrence of genetic erosion due to the loss of the most sensitive genotypes before or after a multigenerational exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Department of Biology & CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - R Ribeiro
- CFE - Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - A M V M Soares
- Department of Biology & CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Department of Biology & CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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Venâncio C, Pereira R, Freitas AC, Rocha-Santos TAP, da Costa JP, Duarte AC, Lopes I. Salinity induced effects on the growth rates and mycelia composition of basidiomycete and zygomycete fungi. Environ Pollut 2017; 231:1633-1641. [PMID: 28964607 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2017.09.075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2017] [Revised: 08/08/2017] [Accepted: 09/22/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Soil salinization, as the combination of primary and secondary events, can adversely affect organisms inhabiting this compartment. In the present study, the effects of increased salinity were assessed in four species of terrestrial fungi: Lentinus sajor caju, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Rhizopus oryzae and Trametes versicolor. The mycelial growth and biochemical composition of the four fungi were determined under three exposure scenarios: 1) exposure to serial dilutions of natural seawater (SW), 2) exposure to serial concentrations of NaCl (potential surrogate of SW); and 3) exposure to serial concentrations of NaCl after a period of pre-exposure to low levels of NaCl. The toxicity of NaCl was slightly higher than that of SW, for all fungi species: the conductivities causing 50% of growth inhibition (EC50) were within 14.9 and 22.0 mScm-1 for NaCl and within 20.2 and 34.1 mScm-1 for SW. Phanerochaete chrysosporium showed to be the less sensitive species, both for NaCl and SW. Exposure to NaCl caused changes in the biochemical composition of fungi, mainly increasing the production of polysaccharides. When fungi were exposed to SW this pattern of biochemical response was not observed. Fungi pre-exposed to low levels of salinity presented higher EC50 than fungi non-pre-exposed, though 95% confidence limits overlapped, with the exception of P. chrysosporium. Pre-exposure to low levels of NaCl also induced changes in the biochemical composition of the mycelia of L. sajor caju and R. oryzae, relatively to the respective control. These results suggest that some terrestrial fungi may acquire an increased tolerance to NaCl after being pre-exposed to low levels of this salt, thus, suggesting their capacity to persist in environments that will undergo salinization. Furthermore, NaCl could be used as a protective surrogate of SW to derive safe salinity levels for soils, since it induced toxicity similar or higher than that of SW.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Department of Biology & CESAM, Campus de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - R Pereira
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre s/n, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
| | - A C Freitas
- Universidade Católica Portuguesa, CBQF - Centro de Biotecnologia e Química Fina, Rua Arquiteto Lobão Vital, Apartado 2511, 45202-401 Porto, Portugal
| | - T A P Rocha-Santos
- Department of Chemistry & CESAM, Campus de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - J P da Costa
- Department of Chemistry & CESAM, Campus de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - A C Duarte
- Department of Chemistry & CESAM, Campus de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Department of Biology & CESAM, Campus de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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Venâncio C, Anselmo E, Soares A, Lopes I. Does increased salinity influence the competitive outcome of two producer species? Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 2017; 24:5888-5897. [PMID: 28064393 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-8346-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2016] [Accepted: 12/28/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Within the context of global climate changes, it is expected that low-lying coastal freshwater ecosystems will face seawater intrusion with concomitant increase in salinity levels. Increased salinity may provoke disruption of competitive relationships among freshwater species. However, species may be capable of acclimating to salinity, which, in turn, may influence the resilience of ecosystems. Accordingly, this work aimed at assessing the effects of multigenerational exposure to low levels of salinity in the competitive outcome of two species of green microalgae: Raphidocelis subcapitata and Chlorella vulgaris. To attain this, three specific objectives were delineated: (1) compare the toxicity of natural seawater (SW) and NaCl (as a surrogate of SW) to the two microalgae, (2) determine the capacity of the two microalgae species to acclimate to low salinity levels, and (3) assess the influence of exposure to low salinity levels in the competitive outcome of the two microalgae. Results revealed SW to be slightly less toxic than NaCl for the two microalgae. The EC25,72 h for growth rate was 4.63 and 10.3 mS cm-1 for R. subcapitata and 6.94 and 15.4 mS cm-1 for C. vulgaris, respectively for NaCl and SW. Both algae were capable of acclimating to low levels of salinity, but C. vulgaris seemed to acclimate faster than R. subcapitata. When exposed in competition, under control conditions, the growth rates of C. vulgaris were lower than those of R. subcapitata. However, C. vulgaris was capable of acquiring competitive advantage equaling or surpassing the growth rate of R. subcapitata with the addition of NaCl or SW, respectively. The multigenerational exposure to low levels of salinity influenced the competitive outcome of the two algae both under control and salinity exposure. These results suggest that long-term exposure to low salinity stress can cause shifts in structure of algae communities and, therefore, should not be neglected since algae are at the basis of food web constituting important energetic resources to higher trophic levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal.
- CESAM-Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar, University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - E Anselmo
- Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - A Soares
- Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
- CESAM-Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar, University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - I Lopes
- Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
- CESAM-Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar, University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
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Venâncio C, Pereira R, Freitas A, Costa S, Lopes I. Evidences of salt stress on terrestrial fungi: The use of NaCl as a surrogate to predicted toxicity effects within scenarios of climate change. Toxicol Lett 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.toxlet.2015.08.381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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Cabral M, Ortiz A, Venâncio C, Mesquita J, Nóbrega C, Silva A, Vala H, Ferreira D. Histological Evaluation of the Spleen after Acute Bleeding Followed by Volume Replacement with Two Different Physiological Solutions. J Comp Pathol 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpa.2013.11.182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Cruz R, Vala H, Machado A, Venâncio C, Mesquita J, Silva A, Ortiz A, Ferreira D. Renal Apoptosis Signalling in a Pig Haemorrhagic Model after Volume Replacement with HES 130/0.4 or Ringer's Solution. J Comp Pathol 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpa.2013.11.181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Ortiz A, Vala H, Silva A, Venâncio C, Garcia C, Ferreira D. Evaluation and Characterization of Intestinal Oedema in Pigs. J Comp Pathol 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpa.2012.11.228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Venâncio C, Magalhães A, Antunes L, Summavielle T. Impaired spatial memory after ketamine administration in chronic low doses. Curr Neuropharmacol 2011; 9:251-5. [PMID: 21886600 PMCID: PMC3137193 DOI: 10.2174/157015911795016912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2009] [Revised: 04/17/2010] [Accepted: 05/26/2010] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Ketamine is a noncompetitive antagonist of the NMDA-receptors, used as a dissociative anesthetic, presently included in the category of the psychoactive substances known as "club drugs". Ketamine administration was associated with impaired working memory and increased psychopathological symptoms, but there is a lack of information regarding the effects of chronic sub-anesthetic doses. Adult Wistar rats were administered ketamine, 5 and 10 mg/kg twice daily, subcutaneously for 14 days. One week later, rats were tested in an object recognition/object location task and in the open field arena. There was altered performance in both the object recognition/location and in the open field tests by the group chronically exposed to the lower dose of ketamine. These animals displayed a decreased discrimination index (p<0.05) in the object recognition task, were unable to recognize the displacement of a familiar object and displayed decreased activity across open filed sessions. Importantly, these alterations were not observed in animals administered a higher dose of ketamine. Collectively, these results consistently show that chronic administration of ketamine in sub-anesthetic doses may lead to decreased habituation and inability to update spatial representations.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Venâncio
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular (IBMC), Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
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Silva A, Ferreira D, Venâncio C, Souza A, Antunes L. Performance of electroencephalogram-derived parameters in prediction of depth of anaesthesia in a rabbit model. Br J Anaesth 2011; 106:540-7. [DOI: 10.1093/bja/aeq407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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