Iron reproductive toxicity of marine rotifer sibling species: Adaptation to temperate and tropical habitats.

Iron (Fe), a trace metal in coastal waters has increased significantly due to anthropogenic activities, however, few studies have examined its toxicity to marine organism reproduction and associated mechanisms. We employed two marine rotifers, the temperate Brachionus plicatilis, and tropical B. rotundiformis to investigate the toxicity of iron (FeSO•7HO) and its deleterious effects on reproductive features in females (sexual fecundity, abnormal resting eggs, and swimming speed) and males (lifespan, swimming speed, and spermatozoa quality) under lethal and sub-lethal exposure.

Species-specific effects of iron on temperate and tropical marine rotifers in reproduction, lipid and ROS metabolisms.

Two euryhaline rotifers, the temperate species Brachionus plicatilis and tropical species Brachionus rotundiformis, were used to investigate the effects of iron (FeSO·7HO), an essential trace metal, on reproductive patterns and lifetables, including the metabolism of lipid and reactive oxygen species (ROS). B. plicatilis was more sensitive to iron with regard to sexual reproduction.