Previous studies suggested the suitability of the brackish-water serpulid (Ficopomatus enigmaticus) to be used as model organism for both marine and brackish waters monitoring, by the performance of sperm toxicity and larval development assays. The present study focused on larval development after the exposure of two F. enigmaticus populations (Mediterranean and Atlantic, collected in Italy and Portugal, respectively) to different trace elements (copper, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, and lead) at different concentrations. Results of larval development assays were presented as the percentage of abnormal developed larvae. The effect, measured in terms of EC50 for all toxicants tested, showed that mercury was the most toxic metal for larvae of both populations. Specifically, the tested trace elements may be racked in the following order from the highest to the lowest toxicity: Mediterranean: mercury > copper > lead > arsenic > cadmium; Atlantic: mercury > copper > cadmium > arsenic > lead. Responses of both populations were similar for arsenic. Lead was the least toxic element for the Atlantic population, while cadmium showed the least toxicity for the Mediterranean population. These preliminary results demonstrate the sensitivity and suitability of the organisms to be used in ecotoxicological bioassays and monitoring protocols. Moreover, chemical analyses on soft tissues and calcareous tubes of collected test organisms and their sampling site water were performed, to identify and quantify the concentration of the tested trace elements in these 3 matrices. Populations exhibited less sensitivity to a certain element together with a relevantly higher concentration of the same element in soft tissues. This may indicate a certain resistance to particular contaminant toxic effects by organisms that tend to accumulate the same toxicant. This highlights the potential correlation between wild-caught test organisms' responses and a deep characterization of the sampling site to identify putative abnormalities or differences in model organism response during bioassay execution.
Relationship between wild-caught organisms for bioassays and sampling areas: Widespread serpulid early-development comparison between two distinct populations after trace element exposure.