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Identifying physiological traits of species resilience against environmental stress in freshwater mussels

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Abstract

The advent of global warming events on already stressed organisms by pollution and loss of habitats raised concerns on the sustainability of local mussel populations. The purpose of this study was to study the physiology 6 commonly found species of freshwater mussels in the attempt to identify species at risk from global warming and pollution. The following species were examined for mass/length, energy metabolism, air survival and lipid peroxidation (LPO): Elliptio complanata (EC), Eurynia dilatata (ED), Pyganodon cataracta (PC), Pyganodon species (Psp), Lasmigona costata (LC) and Dreissena bugenis (DB). The data revealed that the estimated longevity of each species was associated with mussel mass, mitochondria electron transport (MET), temperature-dependent MET but negatively related with mitochondria levels in LPO and the colonization potential. The colonization potential was derived from the scaling of MET activity and mass, which confirmed that DB mussels are more invasive than the other species followed by Psp. Resistance to air emersion was significantly associated with longevity, mass and length and mitochondria LPO. Hence, organisms with low lifetimes, mass or length with high LPO are less able to survive for longer periods in air. In conclusion, longevity and air survival was positively associated with mass and energy metabolism but negatively with oxidative damage. This study proposes key markers in identifying species more at risk to contaminant stress, decreased water levels and global warming.

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The data presented in this study are available upon demand to the corresponding author.

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Acknowledgements

The authors recognize the technical assistance of Joanna Kowalczyk for mussel preparation and biomarker analyses. The authors thank Patricia Gillis and Jimm Bennett for mussel collection in Ontario. This study was funded by the Saint-Lawrence Action plan of Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Author contributions

CA worked on the air time survival, biomarkers and data analyses; JFB contributed to the preparation and interpretation of the manuscript; FG is the lead author which organized the project, data analysis and interpretation for this study.

Funding

The work was funded by the Saint-Lawrence Action Plan of Environment and Climate Change Canda.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Aquatic Contaminants Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 105 McGill, Montréal, QC, Canada

    C. André, J. F. Bibeault & F. Gagné

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  1. C. André
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  2. J. F. Bibeault
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  3. F. Gagné
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Correspondence to F. Gagné.

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André, C., Bibeault, J.F. & Gagné, F. Identifying physiological traits of species resilience against environmental stress in freshwater mussels. Ecotoxicology 30, 1862–1871 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-021-02457-8

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