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      Acute and chronic toxicity of mercury to early life stages of the rainbow mussel, Villosa iris (Bivalvia: Unionidae).

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          Abstract

          Mercury (Hg) contamination is receiving increased attention globally because of human health and environmental concerns. Few laboratory studies have examined the toxicity of Hg on early life stages of freshwater mussels, despite evidence that glochidia and juvenile life stages are more sensitive to contaminants than adults. Three bioassays (72-h acute glochidia, 96-h acute juvenile, and 21-d chronic juvenile toxicity tests) were conducted by exposing Villosa iris to mercuric chloride salt (HgCl2). Glochidia were more sensitive to acute exposure than were juvenile mussels, as 24-, 48-, and 72-h median lethal concentration values (LC50) for glochidia were >107, 39, and 14 microg Hg/L, respectively. The 24-, 48-, 72-, and 96-h values for juveniles were 162, 135, 114, and 99 microg Hg/L, respectively. In the chronic test, juveniles exposed to Hg treatments > or = 8 microg/L grew significantly less than did control organisms. The substantial difference in juvenile test endpoints emphasizes the importance of assessing chronic exposure and sublethal effects. Overall, our study supports the use of glochidia as a surrogate life stage for juveniles in acute toxicity tests. However, as glochidia may be used only in short-term tests, it is imperative that an integrated approach be taken when assessing risk to freshwater mussels, as their unique life history is atypical of standard test organisms. Therefore, we strongly advocate the use of both glochidia and juvenile life stages for risk assessment.

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          Author and article information

          Journal
          Environ. Toxicol. Chem.
          Environmental toxicology and chemistry
          0730-7268
          0730-7268
          May 2005
          : 24
          : 5
          Affiliations
          [1 ] Department of Biology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061-0406, USA. tvalenti@vt.edu
          Article
          16111006
          ed1e2741-a258-4f0b-b69d-4beea401a3f6
          History

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