Interpopulational variability of molecular responses to ionizing radiation in freshwater bivalves Anodonta anatina (Unionidae)

Freshwater ecosystems are exposed to multiple anthropogenic stressors including chemical pollution and warming that can affect health of the resident organisms and their responses to novel challenges. We investigated the of in situ exposure history on molecular responses to a novel stressor, ionizing radiation, in unionid mollusks Anodonta anatina. Males from pristine (F-), agricultural (A-) sites and a cooling reservoir of a nuclear power plant (N-site) were exposed to acute low dose (2mGy) X-ray radiation followed by 14days of recovery (R-groups) or to control conditions (C-groups). Biomarkers of oxidative stress, geno-, cyto- and neurotoxicity were used to assess cellular injury and stress. Control group from the cooling reservoir (CN) had higher background levels of caspase-3 activity, metallothionein concentrations and nuclear lesions and lower levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione in the gills compared to other control groups (CF and CA). Irradiation induced cellular damage in mussels from all three sites including increased levels of nuclear lesions in hemocytes, depletion of caspase-3, suppression of superoxide dismutase and catalase activities, an increase of the lipid peroxidation and oxidized glutathione levels, as well as down-regulation of cholinesterase indicating neurotoxicity. The up-regulation of ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase activity in the digestive gland and vitellogenin-like protein level in gonads were also found in radiation-exposed groups indicating feminization of males and disturbances of xenobiotic metabolism. The RA-group showed the greatest magnitude of radiation-induced stress responses compared to the other two groups. Overall, unionid mollusks, particularly those from a chronically polluted agricultural site, were highly sensitive to low-dose radiation (2mGy) indicating limitations of stress protection mechanisms to deal with multiple stressors.

Proteomic profiling of cytosolic glutathione transferases from three bivalve species: Corbicula fluminea, Mytilus galloprovincialis and Anodonta cygnea

Suspension-feeding bivalves are considered efficient toxin vectors with a relative insensitivity to toxicants compared to other aquatic organisms. This fact highlights the potential role of detoxification enzymes, such as glutathione transferases (GSTs), in this bivalve resistance. Nevertheless, the GST system has not been extensively described in these organisms. In the present study, cytosolic GSTs isoforms (cGST) were surveyed in three bivalves with different habitats and life strategies: Corbicula fluminea, Anodonta cygnea and Mytilus galloprovincialis. GSTs were purified by glutathione-agarose affinity chromatography, and the collection of expressed cGST classes of each bivalve were identified using a proteomic approach. All the purified extracts were also characterized kinetically. Results reveal variations in cGST subunits collection (diversity and properties) between the three tested bivalves. Using proteomics, four pi-class and two sigma-class GST subunits were identified in M. galloprovincialis. C. fluminea also yielded four pi-class and one sigma-class GST subunits. For A. cygnea, two mu-class and one pi-class GST subunits were identified, these being the first record of GSTs from these freshwater mussels. The affinity purified extracts also show differences regarding enzymatic behavior among species. The variations found in cGST collection and kinetics might justify diverse selective advantages for each bivalve organism.

In situ exposure history modulates the molecular responses to carbamate fungicide Tattoo in bivalve mollusk

The aim of the present study was the investigation of the effect of in situ exposure history on the responses of freshwater mussels to thiocarbamate fungicide. Male bivalve mollusks Anodonta anatina (Unionidae) from polluted (A) and unpolluted (F) sites were subjected to 14 days of exposure to fungicide Tattoo (mixture of propamocarb and mancozeb, 91 μg L(-1)). When unexposed mussels were compared, chronic effect of toxic environment in site A was confirmed by oxidative stress indices (high levels of superoxide dismutase and catalase activities, lipid peroxidation, protein carbonyls and oxyradical production, low level of total glutathione (GSH)), genotoxicity (high levels of DNA-strand breaks and caspase-3 activity in digestive gland), and cytotoxicity (low lysosomal membrane stability in hemocytes), elevated vitellogenin-like proteins (Vtg-LP) concentration in gonads, high levels of Cu, Zn, Cd, metallothionein (MT)-bound metals (MT-Me) and MT-related thiol (MT-SH), and low ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity in digestive gland. The major differences in the responses of the two exposed groups were related to antioxidant defense and MT: in the group A, prominent oxidative stress response with the participation of MT-SH and GSH in the gills, EROD activation, but decrease of MT-Me level was shown, whereas in group F exposure provoked the elevation of MT-Me, caspase-3 and Vtg-LP values. Carbamate did not cause cholinesterase depletion and cytotoxicity. However, genotoxic and pro-oxidant effects (increased levels of hemocytes with micronuclei and nuclear abnormalities, DNA-strand breaks and oxyradical in digestive gland), were common responses for both the exposed groups.

[Regulation of adenylyl cyclase signaling system by insulin, biogenic amines, and glucagon at their separate and combined action in the muscle membranes of the mollusc Anodonta cygnea]

In smooth muscles of mollusc Anodonta cygnea, hormones produce regulatory effects on the adenylyl cyclase (AC) signaling system via receptors of the serpentine (biogenic amine, isoproterenol, glucagon) and of tyrosine kinase (insulin) types. Intracellular mechanisms of their action are interconnected. Use of hormones, their antagonists, and pertussis toxin at the combined action of insulin and biogenic amines or of glucagon on the AC activity allows revealing possible intersection points in mechanisms of their action. The combined effect of insulin and serotonin or of glucagon leads to a decrease of stimulation of AC by these hormones, whereas at action of insulin and isoproterenol the AC-stimulatory effect of insulin is blocked, while the AC-inhibitory effect of isoproterenol is preserved both in the presence and in the absence of the non-hydrolyzed GTP analog - guanylylimidodiphosphate (GppNHp). Specific blocking of the AC-stimulatory serotonin effect by cyproheptadine - an antagonist of serotonin receptors - did not affect stimulation of AC by insulin. Beta-adrenoblockers (propranolol and alprenolol) interfered with inhibition of the AC activity by isoproterenol, but did not change the AC stimulation by insulin. Pertussis toxin blocked the AC-inhibitory effect of isoproterenol and attenuated the AC-stimulatory effect of insulin. Thus, in muscles of the mollusc Anodonta cygnea there have been revealed negative interrelations between the AC system, which are realized at the combined effect of insulin and serotonin or of glucagon, probably at the level of receptor of the serpentine type (serotonin, glucagon), while at action of insulin and isoproterenol - at the level of interaction of G1 protein and AC.

Studies on a PMCA-like protein in the outer mantle epithelium of Anodonta cygnea: insights on calcium transcellular dynamics

Early studies on the outer mantle epithelium (OME) cells of the freshwater bivalve Anodonta cygnea (Linnaeus, 1758) revealed high ionic calcium concentrations by electrophysiological methods and subsequently a high tendency to reach an intracellular toxic condition. This toxicity could be neutralized by specific mechanisms in the cytosol of OME cells of A. cygnea. The present immunocytochemistry studies of OME cells by light and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) clearly showed a positive reaction of an antibody directed against the human plasma membrane Ca(2+)-ATPase 1 (PMCA-1) in the cytoplasm of OME cells. Also, western blot analysis of different fractions of OME cells with anti human PMCA-1 and C28R2 antibodies confirmed the presence of a PMCA-like protein with an unusual topographical localization and a molecular weight of only 70-80 kDa. These results lead us to speculate that this PMCA-like protein is distributed either in the plasma membrane or in the entire cytosol, where it eventually regulates intracellular calcium levels. Interestingly, the antibody reactions showed seasonal variations, being highest in OME samples prepared during summer when A. cygnea live under natural acidosis and absent in samples taken in winter conditions, which is in accordance with the seasonal variation of shell calcification rates. During winter, PMCA-1 antibody reaction was also detected in OME cells of animals kept only under experimentally induced acidosis conditions. Therefore, we assume that a functional role for this PMCA-like protein in the intracellular calcium regulation of OME cells during the mineralization of the shells of A. cygnea can be speculated.

Potential role of cholinesterases in the invasive capacity of the freshwater bivalve, Anodonta woodiana (Bivalvia: Unionacea): a comparative study with the indigenous species of the genus, Anodonta sp

To address the potential role of cholinesterase enzymes in the invasive capacity of species, the present study investigated ChE activity in the invasive freshwater bivalve Anodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) comparing it with that of the indigenous species, Anodonta sp. (Linnaeus, 1758). The invasive capacity of pests has often been linked to their ecological plasticity and high intrinsic genetic variability; however the role played by molecular and cellular mechanisms, generally known as an organism's response to pollution, is unclear. Different substrates and selective ChE enzyme inhibitors were investigated in digestive gland, foot, gonad, adductor muscle and gill tissues while sensitivity to four organophosphate (OP) insecticides was investigated in vitro only in adductor muscle. The invasive species (A. woodiana) showed significantly greater (at least one order of magnitude) ChE activity than the endemic species (Anodonta sp.) (p<0.05) using acetylthiocholine (ASCh) as substrate and the activity was more widely distributed in tissues involved in movement (adductor muscle and foot), respiration, feeding (gills) and reproduction (gonads). Moreover, only the invasive species, A. woodiana, showed detectable ChE (vs. ASCh) activity in gill tissue. No substrate specificity was observed in any tissue of either species as already described for other bivalve species. ChE activity was not inhibited by Iso-OMPA but showed high sensitivity to BW248c51 and eserine. Both species showed moderate to low sensitivities in vitro to OP insecticides in the range 10(-7)-10(-2) M. Calculated IC(50) for fenitrothion and chlorpyrifos was in the range 10(-6)-10(-3) M in muscle of A. woodiana while a higher inhibition was observed for fenitrothion (10(-7) M) and lower for chlorpyrifos (10(-2) M) in the indigenous species Anodonta sp. Similar IC(50) of 10(-5)-10(-6) M were observed for DFP and azamethiphos in both species. The hypotheses of other authors that acetylcholinesterase (AChE) is involved in the control of many essential functions, such as frontal ciliary activity of gill epithelium, temperature resistance, ciliary activity for transport of suspended particulate, valve opening and embryo development, suggest that the high catalytic efficiency of the invasive species may endow it with a competitive advantage over the endemic species. In view of the peculiar reproductive strategy of these mussels, higher ChE vs. ASCh activity in gonads of the invasive species could also favour glochidium production and embryo development under a wider range of environmental conditions.

Sensitivity of Adenylyl Cyclase Signaling System of the MolluskAnodonta cygneaGanglions to Serotonin and Adrenergic Agonists

For the first time, the adenylyl cyclase system (ACS) sensitive to biogenic amines in the mollusk Anodonta cygnea ganglions was revealed and characterized. Serotonin and isoproterenol stimulated AC activity and GTP-binding activity of heterotrimeric G-proteins. The AC-stimulating action of serotonin and isoproterenol was blocked by cyproheptadine and adrenergic antagonists, respectively. Using synthetic C-terminal peptides of G-protein alpha-subunit, it was shown that the biogenic amines realized their action on the ACS through different G-protein types: serotonin and isoproterenol activate G(s)-protein, while adrenaline preferably activates G(i)-protein.

The concentration-specific response of metallothioneins in copper-loading freshwater bivalve Anodonta cygnea

Metallothioneins (MTs) from digestive gland of freshwater bivalve mollusc Anodonta cygnea, exposed to 10 or to 200 microg x l(-1) copper ions during 14 days, were resolved using subsequent gel-permeation and ion-exchange chromatography on MT-1 and MT-2. In both groups of treated molluscs the content of copper in MT-2 was elevated twice. The significant elevation of this isoform, which is minor in control animals, and the increasing of the zinc level in it were also observed after treatment with 10 microg copper x l(-1). It was accompanied with Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) activation. Under the treatment with the 200 microg copper x l(-1) the zinc in MT-2 was at the control level, the inhibition of Cu,Zn-SOD but activation of Mn-SOD was revealed. The properties of MT-1 in all cases were similar.