Abstract
Uptake and depuration kinetics of dissolved silver were determined in the brown alga Lobophora variegata, using radiotracer techniques. Results indicate that this widely distributed alga could be a useful bioindicator species for surveying silver contamination in tropical environments. Indeed, results showed that the alga readily concentrates silver (algal concentration of silver was 7,000 times higher than in water after a 28-day exposure) and retains it efficiently within its tissues (biological half-life: 72 ± 4 days).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Boisson F, Hutchins DA, Fowler SW, Fisher NS, Teyssié J-L (1997) Influence of temperature on the accumulation and retention of 11 radionuclides by the marine alga Fucus vesiculosus (L.). Mar Pollut Bull 35:313–321. doi:10.1016/S0025-326X(97)00092-1
Cobbett C (2000) Phytochelatins and their roles in heavy metal detoxification. Plant Physiol 123:825–832. doi:10.1104/pp.123.3.825
Coen LD, Tanner CE (1989) Morphological variation and differential susceptibility to herbivory in the tropical brown alga Lobophora variegata. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 54:287–298. doi:10.3354/meps054287
Eisler R (1996) Silver hazards to fish, wildlife and invertebrates: a synoptic review. U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington DC, USA
Gorsuch JW, Kramer JR, La Point TW (eds) (2003) Environmental transport, fate, and models: papers from environmental toxicology and chemistry, 1983–2002. SETAC Press, Pensacola, p 544
Hédouin L, Bustamante P, Fichez R, Warnau M (2008) The tropical brown alga Lobophora variegata as a bioindicator of mining contamination in the New Caledonian lagoon: a field transplantation study. Mar Environ Res. doi:10.1016/j.marenvres.2008.07.005
Langston WJ, Burt GR (1994) Bioindicators of Ag availability in UK estuaries In: Andren AW, Bober TW (eds) Proceedings, 2nd Argentum international conference on the transport, fate and effects of silver in the environment, University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI, USA, pp 125–130
Metian M, Bustamante P, Hédouin L, Warnau M (2008) Accumulation of trace elements in the tropical scallop Comptopallium radula from coral reefs in New Caledonia. Environ Pollut 152:543–552. doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2007.07.009
Morris CA, Nicolaus B, Sampson V, Harwood JL, Kille P (1999) Identification and characterization of a recombinant metallothionein protein from a marine alga, Fucus vesiculosus. Biochem J 338:553–560. doi:10.1042/0264-6021:3380553
Rainbow PS, Phillips DJH (1993) Cosmopolitan biomonitors of trace metals. Mar Pollut Bull 26:593–601. doi:10.1016/0025-326X(93)90497-8
Ratte HT (1999) Bioaccumulation and toxicity of silver compounds: a review. Environ Toxicol Chem 18:89–108. doi 10.1897/1551-5028(1999)018<0089:BATOSC>2.3.CO;2
Rodriguez y Baena AM, Metian M, Teyssié JL, De Broyer C, Warnau M (2006) Experimental evidence for 234Th bioaccumulation in three Antarctic crustaceans: potential implications in particle flux studies. Mar Chem 100:354–365. doi:10.1016/j.marchem.2005.10.022
Sañudo-Wilhelmy SA, Flegal R (1992) Anthropogenic silver in the southern California bight: a new tracer of sewage in coastal waters. Environ Sci Technol 26:2147–2151. doi:10.1021/es00035a012
Schiewer S, Wong MH (2000) Ionic strength effects in biosorption of metals by marine algae. Chemosphere 41:271–282. doi:10.1016/S0045-6535(99)00421-X
Silver Institute (2003) World silver survey. The Silver Institute, Washington DC, USA
Smith GJ, Flegal AR (1993) Silver in San Francisco Bay estuarine waters. Estuaries 16:547–558. doi:10.2307/1352602
Targett NM, Coen LC, Boettcher AA, Tanner CE (1992) Biogeographic comparisons of marine algal polyphenolics: evidence against a latitudinal trend. Oecologia 89:464–470
Warnau M, Fowler SW, Teyssié J-L (1996a) Biokinetics of selected heavy metals and radionuclides in two marine macrophytes: the seagrass Posidonia oceanica and the alga Caulerpa taxifolia. Mar Environ Res 41:343–362. doi:10.1016/0141-1136(95)00025-9
Warnau M, Iaccarino M, De Biase A, Temara A, Jangoux M, Dubois P, Pagano G (1996b) Spermiotoxicity and embryotoxicity of heavy metals in the echinoid Paracentrotus lividus. Environ Toxicol Chem 15:1931–1936. doi 10.1897/1551-5028(1996)015<1931:SAEOHM>2.3.CO;2
Acknowledgments
The IAEA is grateful for the support provided to its Marine Environment Laboratories by the Government of the Principality of Monaco. Authors thank P. Bustamante (LIENSs) for constructive comments on the ms and J.L. Teyssié (IAEA-MEL) for technical assistance. MW is an Honorary Senior Research Associate of the National Fund for Scientific Research (NFSR, Belgium) and holds a 2008 Invited Expert position at LIENSs, supported by the Conseil Régional de Poitou-Charentes. This work was supported by the IAEA and the French PNEC Programme (Chantier Nouvelle-Calédonie).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Metian, M., Warnau, M. The Tropical Brown Alga Lobophora variegata (Lamouroux) Womersley: A Prospective Bioindicator for Ag Contamination in Tropical Coastal Waters. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 81, 455–458 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-008-9513-7
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-008-9513-7