Effects of AgNPs on the Snail Biomphalaria glabrata: Survival, Reproduction and Silver Accumulation

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are used intensively in medical and industrial applications. Environmental concerns have arisen from the potential release of this material into aquatic ecosystems. The aims of this research were to evaluate the potential accumulation of silver in the whole body of organisms and analyze the effects of AgNPs on the survival and reproduction of the snail Biomphalaria glabrata. Results show slow acute toxicity with a 10-day LC50 of 18.57 mg/L and an effective decrease in the eggs and egg clutches per organism exposed to tested concentrations. Based on these data, the No Observed Effect Concentration (NOEC) observed was <1 mg/L for snail reproduction. For silver accumulation, we observed that uptake was faster than elimination, which was very slow and still incomplete 35 days after the end of the experiment. However, the observed accumulation was not connected with a concentration/response relationship, since the amount of silver was not equivalent to a higher reproductive effect. The data observed show that AgNPs are toxic to B. glabrata, and suggest that the snail has internal mechanisms to combat the presence of Ag in its body, ensuring survival and reduced reproduction and showing that the species seems to be a potential indicator for Ag presence in contaminated aquatic ecosystems.

New Insights into the Gametogenesis of Biomphalaria glabrata (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Pulmonata): Implications for Histopathological Assessment

“…The freshwater snails Biomphalaria spp. have been one of the widely used invertebrate model system in laboratories [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16], mainly due to their short life cycle, ease of maintenance and reproduction [9,10]. A lot of research has used the snail as a biomonitor in ecotoxicological risk assessments due to its high sensibility to several aquatic pollutants [8,[11][12][13][14][15].…”

“…A lot of research has used the snail as a biomonitor in ecotoxicological risk assessments due to its high sensibility to several aquatic pollutants [8,[11][12][13][14][15]. Also, invertebrates make up most of the fauna in aquatic environments [17] and may be used to assess the mode of action (MoA) and ecotoxicity of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) [10,[18][19][20]. The EDCs can decrease the reproduction, fertility, fecundity, hatching ratio, alter the synthesis and metabolism of hormones or their receptors, change the behavior and development, or induce histopathological alterations in the snail gonads [21][22][23][24][25].…”

Building the Bridge From Aquatic Nanotoxicology to Safety by Design Silver Nanoparticles

“…In addition, non-Ag was detected in faeces, probably indicating that AgNPs had a long gut retention time in this bivalve species. Similarly, Lymnaea stagnalis and Biomphalaria glabrata snails efficiently accumulated Ag from ionic and nanosized forms after either aqueous or dietary exposure, but the metal elimination was very slow ( Croteau et al, 2011 ; Oliveira-Filho et al, 2019 ).…”

“…For instance, low concentrations of AgNPs (<1 μg L −1 ) resulted in decline in size at the first reproduction and egg production of P. acuta (Bernot and Brandenburg, 2013). A significant reduction in the number of eggs and embryo per individual was also observed in G. glabrata and Potamopyrgus antipodarum exposed chronically to AgNPs (Völker et al, 2013;Oliveira-Filho et al, 2019). Some authors compared the toxicity of AgNPs and Ag ions to P. acuta and B. glabrata (Gonçalves et al, 2017;Araújo et al, 2020).…”

Molluscicidal activity of Persea americana Mill. (Lauraceae) stem bark ethanolic extract against the snail Biomphalaria glabrata (Say, 1818): a novel plant-derived molluscicide?

“…However, certain compounds have higher toxicity in adult snails than in embryos and may even be inactive at embryonic developmental stages (Rapado et al 2013). Such differences can be identified in the same phase of the life cycle, which is related to several factors, such as tested concentrations and/or relationship between concentration and biometric data of snails, exposure time, size of molecules, shapes, and release time of compounds (Oliveira-Filho et al 2019).…”