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Contribution of trace metallic elements to weakly contaminated lacustrine sediments: effects on benthic and pelagic organisms through multi-species laboratory bioassays

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Abstract

Surficial sediments exhibit higher levels of contamination than overlying water, especially from persistent contaminants such as trace metallic elements (TMEs). While sediments could in turn act as sources of contamination for the water column, their ecotoxicology is yet rarely assessed in a multi-compartments perspective. This study aims at assessing the response of benthic and pelagic organisms exposed to weakly contaminated sediments using a multi-species laboratory assay by focusing on TMEs (Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) contamination. Chironomus riparius larvae, Daphnia magna, and Lemna minor were simultaneously exposed for 10 days to six sediments sampled from the littoral of a large French lake (Lake Bourget). The endpoints consisted in the survival and growth rates and the bioconcentration factor (BCF). Significant negative relationships between sediment TME concentrations and survival rates of C. riparius and growth rates of C. riparius and D. magna suggested that both benthic and pelagic macro-invertebrates were impacted by sediment contamination, which was not observed in L. minor. Significant relationships of the sediment with the internal TME concentrations were positive while negative with the BCFs, suggesting an increase in biological regulation processes in all organisms with the increase of sediment TME concentrations. These results underline the importance of including both benthic and pelagic organisms in ecotoxicological assessment of low contaminated sediments and the relevance of the relationship BCFs/sediment contamination as prior biomarkers than higher life history traits.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Myriam HAMMADA (ENTPE, LEHNA) for the trace metals analyses.

Funding

This work was funded by the French Ministry of Environment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, ENTPE, UMR5023 LEHNA, Vaulx-en-Velin, F-69518, Lyon, France

    Nathalie Lécrivain & Bernard Clément

  2. Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, UMR 42 CARRTEL, Le Bourget du Lac, 73376, Chambéry, France

    Victor Frossard

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  1. Nathalie Lécrivain
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  2. Victor Frossard
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Correspondence to Nathalie Lécrivain.

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Lécrivain, N., Frossard, V. & Clément, B. Contribution of trace metallic elements to weakly contaminated lacustrine sediments: effects on benthic and pelagic organisms through multi-species laboratory bioassays. Ecotoxicology 28, 154–166 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-018-2008-3

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