A retrospective analysis of contamination and periphyton PICT patterns for the antifoulant irgarol 1051, around a small marina on the Swedish west coast
Journal article, 2009

Irgarol is a triazine photosystem II (PSII) inhibitor that has been used in Sweden as an antifouling ingredient since the 1990´s. Early microcosm studies indicated that periphyton was sensitive to irgarol at concentrations regularly found in harbours and marinas. However, field studies of irgarol effects on the Swedish west coast in 1994, using the Pollution-Induced Community Tolerance (PICT) approach, failed to detect any effects of the toxicant in the field. A PICT study involves sampling of replicate communities in a gradient of contamination, and a comparison of their community tolerance levels, with an increase being an indication that sensitive species have been eliminated and replaced by more tolerant ones. Typically, short-term assays are used to quantify the community tolerance levels. Later PICT studies in the same area over a 10 year period demonstrate that irgarol tolerance levels have increased, although the contamination pattern has been stable. Our results support the hypothesis that that the PICT potential was low initially, due to a small differential sensitivity between the community members, and that a persistent selection pressure was required to favour and enrich irgarol tolerant species or genotypes.

microalgae

Gullmar fjord mouth

microphytobenthos

pollution-induced community tolerance

photosynthesis

photosystem II inhibitor

Author

Hans Blanck

University of Gothenburg

Martin Eriksson

University of Gothenburg

Frederick Grönvall

University of Gothenburg

Björn Dahl

Karell Martinez

Göran Birgersson

Henrik Kylin

Marine Pollution Bulletin

0025-326X (ISSN) 1879-3363 (eISSN)

Vol. 58 2 230-237

Subject Categories

Ecology

Pharmacology and Toxicology

Microbiology

DOI

10.1016/j.marpolbul.2008.09.021

More information

Created

10/10/2017