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- Title
ARSENIC BIOTRANSFORMATION BY THE BROWN MACROALGA FUCUS SERRATUS.
- Authors
Geiszinger, Anita; Goessler, Walter; Pedersen, Søren N.; Francesconi, Kevin A.
- Abstract
The brown alga Fucus serratus was maintained in aquaria with added arsenate (0, 20, 50, and 100 µg As/L, four individuals per treatment) for up to 19 weeks. Biotransformation of arsenic by Fucus was monitored by high-performance liquid chromatography/inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography/electrospray mass spectrometry analysis of aqueous extracts of algal frond tips removed periodically throughout the experiment. Major arsenic species monitored were arsenate, arsenite, methylarsonate, dimethylarsinate, and the four arsenosugars 1 to 4 found naturally in Fucus. Algae accumulated arsenate readily and transformed it into several arsenic compounds depending on the exposure concentration. At 100 mg µs/L, the major metabolite was arsenite with smaller quantities of methylarsonate and dimethylarsinate, but only traces of arsenosugars were formed. In contrast, the 20-µg-As/L group accumulated only small quantities of arsenite and methylarsonate, while dimethylarsinate and arsenosugars were major arsenic metabolites. At 50 µg As/L exposure, algae had significant quantities of all arsenic metabolites monitored. Arsenate was toxic to the algae at 100 mg As/L but had no obvious detrimental effect at 20 µg As/L. The data are consistent with a process of arsenate detoxification by reduction and alkylation; at higher exposures, however, the alkylation processes become saturated, leading to an accumulation of arsenite and subsequent toxicity.
- Subjects
BROWN algae; ALGAE; FUCUS; AQUARIUMS; ARSENATES; BIOTRANSFORMATION (Metabolism)
- Publication
Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry, 2001, Vol 20, Issue 10, p2255
- ISSN
0730-7268
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1897/1551-5028(2001)020<2255:ABBTBM>2.0.CO;2