Metabolomics comparison of metabolites and functional pathways in the gills of Chlamys farreri under cadmium exposure.

The biological processes of Chlamys farreri (C. farreri), an economically important shellfish, are affected when exposed to Cd. In this study, changes to biological processes and metabolite levels in C. farreri were examined when exposed to Cd. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem TOF mass spectrometry (UPLC-TOF/MS)-based untargeted metabolomics was used to examine changes in the metabolism of C. farreri gill tissue exposed to 0.050 mg/L Cd for 96 h in a natural environment. Sixty-eight metabolites with significant differences were screened by multivariate statistical analysis. Eleven enriched functional pathways displayed significant changes in inactivity. Differential metabolites, mainly C00157 and C00350, have a significant impact on functional pathways and can be used as potential major biomarkers. Lipid phosphorylation, disruption of signal transduction, and autophagy activation were observed to change in C. farreri when exposed to Cd. The metabolome information supplements research on C. farreri exposure to heavy metals and provides a platform for further multi-omics analysis.