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The bulk fluorescein diacetate assay (FDA) as a technique for evaluating biotic impacts of crude oil to coastal sediments

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Abstract

This study adapted the bulk fluorescein diacetate (FDA) assay to evaluate the impact of crude oil on biological activity levels in marine sediments. Sediment cores from the Elkhorn Slough, California were incubated with different levels of sweet crude oil (Deepwater Horizon, Macondo Prospect) in the Moss landing Marine Laboratories aquarium facility over a 30-day period. During this period, the amount of fluorescein released, concentration of oxygen in overlying waters, and flux of oxygen into the sediments were monitored. For all treatments a strong negative correlation between added oil and FDA production was observed (p < 0.05). The concentration of oxygen in the first 2 mm of sediment cores decreased linearly with the addition of crude oil and correlated positively with fluorescein released (p < 0.05). A linear increase in sediment oxygen flux was also observed upon crude oil addition. The miniaturized bulk FDA assay could be powerful in evaluating oil spill impacts in coastal systems.

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Acknowledgements

The primary author (EM) would like to thank the International Students Exchange Program (ISEP), California State University-Council on Ocean Affairs Science and Technology (COAST Award) and San Jose State University (H. Thomas Harvey Fellowship) for providing financial support for this work. Special thanks go to Julie Kuo of Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, CA for her technical support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, Moss Landing, CA, USA

    Edem Mahu, Brian Maurer, Nick Welschmeyer & Kenneth H. Coale

  2. Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana

    Edem Mahu

  3. University of California, Santa Cruz, USA

    Jessica Moore-Hanaway

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  1. Edem Mahu
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  2. Jessica Moore-Hanaway
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  3. Brian Maurer
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Correspondence to Edem Mahu.

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Mahu, E., Moore-Hanaway, J., Maurer, B. et al. The bulk fluorescein diacetate assay (FDA) as a technique for evaluating biotic impacts of crude oil to coastal sediments. Environ Earth Sci 77, 751 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-018-7945-x

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