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Cell membrane damage induced by continuous stress of artemisinin sustained-release microspheres (ASMs) on Microcystis aeruginosa at different physiological stages

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Abstract

Artemisinin sustained-release microspheres (ASMs) with long-term inhibition effects (> 40 days) on harmful freshwater bloom-forming cyanobacteria have been found in previous studies, but the inhibition mechanism is not completely clear. In the present study, we examined the growth effect of ASMs on Microcystis aeruginosa (M. aeruginosa) cells at different physiological stages. Growth experiments indicated that M. aeruginosa of different initial densities could be inhibited immediately and chlorophyll-a content both showed significant decreases following exposure of cyanobacteria to optimal dosage of ASMs for 20 days. The algicidal mechanism of ASMs was tested through a suite of physiological parameters (membrane permeability, antioxidant enzymes activity, and lipid peroxidation). The rise of cell membrane permeability indices (intracellular protein, nucleic acid contents, and conductivity) showed that the cellular membrane structure of M. aeruginosa was attacked by ASMs directly causing the leakage of cytoplasm. Antioxidant enzyme activity was a sensitive indicator of the impacts of ASMs which showed a significant downtrend after a few days. ASMs caused a great increase in •O2− and malondialdehyde (MDA) level of the algal cells which indicated the increase in lipid peroxidation of M. aeruginosa. Irreversible membrane damage induced by ASMs via the oxidation of ROS may be an important factor responsible for the algicidal mechanism of ASMs on M. aeruginosa cells. The application of ASMs might provide a new direction to control M. aeruginosa, especially before the exponential phase according to the optimal economy and inhibition effect.

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Funding

This work was supported jointly by the Key Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 91647206), the National Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 51779079, 51579073, 51979137), the National Science Fund for Creative Research Groups of China (No. 51421006), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. BK20181313), the Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team at Hohai University (No. IRT13061), the Project Funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD), Jiangsu Water Conservancy Science and Technology Project (2018037), and the Top-notch Academic Programs Project of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (TAPP).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Integrated Regulation and Resource Development on Shallow Lakes, MOE; School of Environment, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210098, China

    Lixiao Ni, Feifei Yue, Shiyi Rong, Xuanyu Liu, Yifei Wang, Peifang Wang, Na Wang & Hanqi Wu

  2. Jiangsu Provincial Water Conservancy Department, Nanjing, 210029, China

    Jianhua Zhang

  3. School of Environment, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210097, China

    Danye Li & Shiyin Li

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  1. Lixiao Ni
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  2. Feifei Yue
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Correspondence to Shiyin Li.

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Ni, L., Yue, F., Zhang, J. et al. Cell membrane damage induced by continuous stress of artemisinin sustained-release microspheres (ASMs) on Microcystis aeruginosa at different physiological stages. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 12624–12634 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-07813-5

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