Effects of salinity on naphthalene adsorption and toxicity of polyethylene microparticles on Artemia salina

• Published in: Chemosphere (Oxford) 2024-08, Vol.362, p.142718, Article 142718
• Main Authors: Vianna de Pinho, Julia, Celano, Michael Ribas, Andrade, Jelmir, Castro Cardoso De Almeida, Antonio Eugênio, Hauser-Davis, Rachel Ann, Conte-Junior, Carlos Adam, Xing, Baoshan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adsorption; Animals; Artemia - drug effects; Contaminant transport; Ecotoxicology; Microplastics; Microplastics - toxicity; Naphthalenes - chemistry; Naphthalenes - toxicity; Polyaromatic compounds; Polyethylene - chemistry; Polyethylene - toxicity; Salinity; Water Pollutants, Chemical - toxicity
• ISSN: 0045-6535; 1879-1298; 1879-1298
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142718

Plastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems is increasing and plastic particles may adsorb and transport a diverse array of contaminants, thereby increasing their bioavailability to biota. This investigation aimed to evaluate the effects of varying polyethylene microplastics (PE MPs) and naphthalene (NAPH) concentrations on the survival and feeding rates of the model organism, Artemia salina, as well as NAPH adsorption to microplastics at different salinity levels (17, 75, 35.5 and 52.75 g L−1) under selected climate change scenarios. Survival (48 h) and feeding rates (6 h) of A. salina were also monitored, revealing that the presence of higher PE and NAPH concentrations lead to decreased survival rates while also increasing the number and size of microplastic particles in the saline solutions. Higher PE concentrations negatively affected A. salina feeding rates and NAPH concentrations were positively correlated with particle number and size, as well as with NAPH and PE adsorption rates in solution. Our findings demonstrate that the co-occurrence of microplastics and NAPH in aquatic environments can result in detrimental zooplankton survival and feeding rate effects. Furthermore, this interaction may contribute to the accumulation of these contaminants in the environment, highlighting the need to simultaneously monitor and mitigate the presence of microplastics and organic pollutants, like NAPH, in aquatic environments. •Polyethylene (PE) and naphthalene (NAPH) effects on Artemia salina were investigated.•NAPH adsorption to PE microplastic increased with higher salinity.•Higher PE/NAPH concentrations lead to lower A. salina survival and particle number/size.•A. salina occurrence led to particle fragmentation across all salinity and NAPH concentrations.