Cadmium Accumulation and Metallothionein Response

Authors: Nan Geng Chao Wang Peifang Wang Ning Qi Lingxiao Ren

Publish Date: 2015/02/17

Volume: 165, Issue: 2, Pages: 222-232

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Abstract

Freshwater bivalves such as Corbicula fluminea Müller are useful biomonitors for cadmium pollution because they absorb heavy metals and accumulate them in their tissues We exposed C fluminea in the laboratory to natural and cadmium Cdspiked sediments below flowing water in order to evaluate the organisms’ Cd accumulation and metallothionein MT response under hydrodynamic conditions The accumulation of Cd and the induction of MT in C fluminea were determined at 0 1 3 6 10 16 and 23 days Hydrodynamic conditions represented by a water flow rate of 14 or 32 cm/s increased Cd accumulation in the visceral mass gill foot and mantle of C fluminea in the first 3 or 6 days in the natural sediment Cd concentrations in the C fluminea tissues kept increasing over time in the three treatments and significant differences were observed in Cd accumulation after 6 visceral mass 10 foot and 16 gill and mantle days among the three groups The MT concentrations were barely affected by hydrodynamic conditions and were significantly linearly related to the Cd concentration in the visceral mass in the natural sediment and binomially related to it in the Cdspiked sediment Hydrodynamic conditions enhanced the accumulation of Cd in the soft tissues of C fluminea especially in the Cdspiked sediment but stronger hydrodynamic forces did not increase Cd accumulation MT may be considered an indicator for Cd accumulation in C fluminea under hydrodynamic conditions but only when the Cd concentrations in the tissue remain below the toxic threshold valuesWe are grateful for grants from National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars No 51225901 the Outstanding Youth Fund of Jiangsu Province No BK2012037 National Science Funds for Creative Research Groups of China No 51421006 Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University No IRT13061 Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China No 41430751 the National Natural Science Foundation of China No 51479065 and a Project Funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions PAPD

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