Preliminary Study on Microplastic Contamination in Black Sea Cetaceans: Gastrointestinal Analysis of and .

Plastic pollution is a global concern that has a significant impact on marine life. Plastic is widely used and has become a pervasive pollutant in marine environments. Plastic contamination has been documented both in marine environments and biota.

Deficiencies in monitoring practices of marine protected areas in southern European seas.

Worldwide, states are gazetting new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to meet the international commitment of protecting 30% of the seas by 2030. Yet, protection benefits only come into effect when an MPA is implemented with activated regulations and actively managed through continuous monitoring and adaptive management. To assess if actively managed MPAs are the rule or the exception, we used the Mediterranean and Black Seas as a case study, and retrieved information on monitoring activities for 878 designated MPAs in ten European Union (EU) countries.

Multiple Assays on Non-Target Organisms to Determine the Risk of Acute Environmental Toxicity in Tebuconazole-Based Fungicides Widely Used in the Black Sea Coastal Area.

The widespread use of Tebuconazole-based fungicides in phytosanitary treatments on a wide range of crops, on the one hand, and the lack of official reports on the amount of fungicide residues in nearby water basins, on the other hand, may lead to uncontrolled and hazardous contamination of water sources used by the resident population, and to serious effects on the environment and public health. Our study explores the acute toxicological risk of this fungicide on various organisms, from bacteria and yeast to fish, using a battery of tests (standardized Toxkit microbiotests and acute semi-static tests). By investigating the interaction between Tebuconazole and bacteria and yeast organisms, we observed that Gram-negative bacteria displayed a strong tolerance for Tebuconazole, while Gram-positive bacteria and yeasts proved to be very sensitive.

Correlation Between Toxic Elements and Pesticide Residues in Medicinal Herbs Available in Pharmaceutical Market.

The use of medicinal plants for self-medication of minor health conditions has become a widespread practice in contemporary society. Few consumes, however, question the contamination of these products with toxic factors resulting from the planet's increasingly polluted environment. This paper presents the levels of five toxic elements (As, Cr, Pb, Cd, and Hg) and nine organochlorine pesticides (hexachlorobenzene (HCB), lindane, heptachor, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, p,p'DDE, p,p'DDD, and p,p'DDT) in 14 brands of regularly consumed medicinal products in Romania.

Quantitative monitoring of diverse fish communities on a large scale combining eDNA metabarcoding and qPCR.

Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding is an effective method for studying fish communities but allows only an estimation of relative species abundance (density/biomass). Here, we combine metabarcoding with an estimation of the total abundance of eDNA amplified by our universal marker (teleo) using a quantitative (q)PCR approach to infer the absolute abundance of fish species. We carried out a 2850-km eDNA survey within the Danube catchment using a spatial integrative sampling protocol coupled with traditional electrofishing for fish biomass and density estimation.

Suitability and Sensitivity of Golden Grey Mullet (Risso, 1810) as a Reference Fish Species for Ecotoxicity Tests in the Black Sea.

In recent years, hydrocarbon exploration and production operations have intensified in the Black Sea. Alongside growth in exploration and production activities, the influence of chemical usage across multiple industrial sectors within the Black Sea environment has become increasingly interesting. The aim of this research was to define a protocol for determining the acute toxicity of chemicals using the golden grey mullet, (Risso, 1810), a native pelagic fish species of the Black Sea.

Bacterial communities of the Black Sea exhibit activity against persistent organic pollutants in the water column and sediments.

The ability of bacteria to degrade organic pollutants influences their fate in the environment, impact on the other biota and accumulation in the food web. The aim of this study was to evaluate abundance and expression activity of the catabolic genes targeting widespread pollutants, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and hexachloro-cyclohexane (HCH) in the Black Sea water column and sediments. Concentrations of PAHs, PCBs and HCH were determined by gas chromatography (GC) coupled to mass spectrometry (MS) and electron capture (ECD) detectors.

Niche partitioning of bacterial communities along the stratified water column in the Black Sea.

The Black Sea is the largest semi-closed permanently anoxic basin on our planet with long-term stratification. The study aimed at describing the Black Sea microbial community taxonomic and functional composition within the range of depths spanning across oxic/anoxic interface, and to uncover the factors behind both their vertical and regional differentiation. 16S rRNA gene MiSeq sequencing was applied to get the data on microbial community taxonomy, and the PICRUSt pipeline was used to infer their functional profile.

Holistic pelagic biodiversity monitoring of the Black Sea via eDNA metabarcoding approach: From bacteria to marine mammals.

As the largest semi-closed marine ecosystem in the world, the Black Sea has been heavily affected by human activities for a long time. Describing the biodiversity of multi-trophic biota in pelagic zone of the Black Sea and identifying the dominant environmental factors are prerequisites for protecting the sustainability of ecosystems. However, up to now, the taxonomic and distributional information about the Black Sea biota is not clear.

Connectivity Among Populations of the Top Shell in the Adriatic Sea.

Genetic connectivity studies are essential to understand species diversity and genetic structure and to assess the role of potential factors affecting connectivity, thus enabling sound management and conservation strategies. Here, we analyzed the patterns of genetic variability in the marine snail from five coastal locations in the central-south Adriatic Sea (central Mediterranean) and one in the adjacent northern Ionian Sea, using 21 described polymorphic microsatellite loci. Observed and expected heterozygosity varied from 0.

Toxic metals biomonitoring based on prey-predator interactions and environmental forensics techniques: A study at the Romanian-Ukraine cross border of the Black Sea.

Marine cross-border areas are ideal for monitoring pollutants so as to increase ecosystems protection. This study was conducted at the Romanian-Ukraine border of the Black Sea to reveal evidence of contamination with toxic metals based on biomonitoring of: cadmium, lead, total chromium, nickel and copper at different water depths and prey-predator interactions, combined with environmental forensics techniques of biological sampling and separation in witnesses size groups. The species used were Mytilus galloprovincialis L.

Toxic metals in tissues of fishes from the Black Sea and associated human health risk exposure.

The anthropogenic activities in the Black Sea area are responsible for toxic metal contamination of sea food products. In this study, several toxic metals: cadmium, lead, nickel, chromium, and copper were quantified in different tissues (digestive tract, muscle, skeleton, skin) of nine fish species (Neogobius melanostomus, Belone belone, Solea solea, Trachurus mediterraneus ponticus, Sardina pilchardus, Engraulis encrasicolus, Pomatomus saltatrix, Sprattus sprattus, Scorpaena porcus) by using atomic absorption spectrometer with a high-resolution continuum source and graphite furnace technique (HR-CS GF-AAS), and the risk of fish meat consumption by the young human population was evaluated. These metals are used in high amounts in industries located near the coastline such as shipyard construction and industrial plants.

Architecture of collapse: regime shift and recovery in an hierarchically structured marine ecosystem.

By the late 20th century, a series of events or 'natural experiments', for example the depletion of apex predators, extreme eutrophication and blooms of invasive species, had suggested that the Black Sea could be considered as a large ecosystem 'laboratory'. The events resulted in regime shifts cascading through all trophic levels, disturbing ecosystem functioning and damaging the water environment. Causal pathways by which the external (hydroclimate, overfishing) and internal (food web interactions) drivers provoke regime shifts are investigated.

Assessment of the environmental quality of coastal sediments by using a combination of in vitro bioassays.

The environmental quality of marine sediments collected in the area of influence of the Po and Danube Rivers was assessed by using a battery of bioassays based on the use of PLHC-1 cells, zebrafish-Pxr-transfected COS-7 cells, and sea bass ovarian subcellular fractions. This allowed the determination of multiple endpoints, namely, cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, induction of CYP1A, activation of zebrafish Pxr and inhibition of ovarian aromatase. Organic extracts of sediments influenced by the Danube River and collected near harbors and urban discharges showed significant cytotoxicity, CYP1A induction and inhibition of aromatase activity.

Patterns and mechanisms of dispersal in a keystone seagrass species.

Mechanisms and vectors of long-distance dispersal remain unknown for many coastal benthic species, including plants. Indications for the possibility for long-distance dispersal come from dispersal modelling and from genetic assessments, but have rarely been assessed with both methods. To this end, we assessed dispersal of the seagrass Zostera noltei, an important foundation species of the coastal zone.

Biochemical biomarker responses to pollution in selected sentinel organisms across the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

Pollution effects were assessed by means of biochemical biomarkers (catalase, glutathione S-transferase and acetylcholinesterase activities, and metallothioneins content) in five species at selected coastal sites across the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis, a well-established sentinel species, was investigated in the Adriatic Sea, Aegean Sea, and Black Sea. The mussel Brachidontes pharaonis and the striped red mullet Mullus surmuletus were used in the Levantine Sea where M.

Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in marine organisms from the Romanian sector of the Black Sea.

The aim of this research was to study the accumulation of heavy metals (cadmium - Cd, lead - Pb, chromium - Cr, nickel - Ni, and copper - Cu) from water and sediments into living tissues of relevant marine species from different trophic levels of a food web, representative for shallow waters of the Romanian Black Sea Coast where the main anthropogenic impacts exist. The heavy metals concentrations were analysed by using an Atomic Absorption Spectrometer with graphite furnace, the results being further used to calculate the bioconcentration factors for a few key taxa like green and red algae, molluscs and fishes. Seven sampling sites influenced by anthropogenic pollution sources (municipal wastewater treatment plants and diffuse sources) were considered and a total of 300 samples were analysed for the period 2011-2012, this being the first unitary study for the Romanian Black Sea marine ecosystem.

A comparative study of marine litter on the seafloor of coastal areas in the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Seas.

In the present work, abundance, spatial distribution and qualitative composition, of benthic marine litter, were investigated in five study areas from the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Seas (Saronikos, Patras and Echinades Gulfs; Limassol Gulf; Constanta Bay). Surveys were performed using the monitoring protocol proposed by the Technical Group for Marine Litter. Densities ranged from 24items/km(2) to 1211items/km(2), with the Saronikos Gulf being the most affected area.

Eutrophication of Lake Tasaul, Romania-proposals for rehabilitation.

Lake Tasaul on the Black Sea coast is highly eutrophic, but not strongly contaminated (heavy metals, PAHs, and organochlorine pesticides). Cyanophytes dominate phytoplankton by 67-94% and form frequent algal blooms. High primary production (up to 270 mg C(ass)/m(2).

Disseminated neoplasia in blue mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis, from the Black Sea, Romania.

Disseminated neoplasia, also called leukemia or hemic neoplasia, has been detected in 15 species of marine bivalve mollusks worldwide. The disease is characterized by the presence of single anaplastic cells with enlarged nuclei and sometimes frequent mitosis, in hemolymph vessels and sinuses. The neoplastic cells gradually replace normal hemocytes leading to the increased mortality of animals.