Metabolomic investigation of Mytilus galloprovincialis (Lamarck 1819) caged in aquatic environments

• Published in: Ecotoxicology and environmental safety Vol. 84; pp. 139 - 146
• Main Authors: Fasulo, Salvatore, Iacono, Francesco, Cappello, Tiziana, Corsaro, Carmelo, Maisano, Maria, D'Agata, Alessia, Giannetto, Alessia, De Domenico, Elena, Parrino, Vincenzo, Lo Paro, Giuseppe, Mauceri, Angela
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: San Diego, CA Elsevier Inc 01-10-2012; Elsevier
• Subjects: 1H NMR; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Animals; Applied ecology; aquatic environment; aquatic organisms; Biological and medical sciences; Caged mussels; chemical analysis; coasts; Digestive gland; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; environmental factors; Environmental Monitoring; fermentation; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects; health status; Invertebrates; lipid metabolism; metabolites; Metabolomics; Mollusca; mussels; Mytilus - chemistry; Mytilus - drug effects; Mytilus - metabolism; Mytilus galloprovincialis; nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy; PAHs; pollution; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - analysis; Sicily; statistics; Water Pollutants, Chemical - toxicity; Metabolomics; PAHs; 1H NMR; Digestive gland; Mytilus galloprovincialis; Caged mussels; Ecotoxicology; Hydrocarbon; Toxicity; Polycyclic aromatic compound; Persistent organic pollutant; Aquatic environment; Bivalvia; Environment; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Invertebrata; Mollusca; H NMR; Organic compounds
• ISSN: 0147-6513; 1090-2414
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2012.07.001

Environmental metabolomics was applied to assess the metabolic responses in transplanted mussels to environmental pollution. Specimens of Mytilus galloprovincialis, sedentary filter-feeders, were caged in anthropogenic-impacted and reference sites along the Augusta coastline (Sicily, Italy). Chemical analysis revealed increased levels of PAHs in the digestive gland of mussels from the industrial area compared with control, and marked morphological changes were also observed. Digestive gland metabolic profiles, obtained by 1H NMR spectroscopy and analyzed by multivariate statistics, showed changes in metabolites involved in energy metabolism. Specifically, changes in lactate and acetoacetate could indicate increased anaerobic fermentation and alteration in lipid metabolism, respectively, suggesting that the mussels transplanted to the contaminated field site were suffering from adverse environmental condition. The NMR-based environmental metabolomics applied in this study results thus in it being a useful and effective tool for assessing environmental influences on the health status of aquatic organisms.
► Mussels were caged in natural polluted and reference sites. ► Chemical analysis revealed increased levels of PAHs in the digestive gland tissue. ► Marked morphological changes were observed in mussels from polluted area. ► 1H NMR metabolic profiles showed changes in energy metabolites. ► Metabolomics is an effective tool to assess environmental health status.