Response to metals treatment of Fra1, a member of the AP-1 transcription factor family, in P. lividus sea urchin embryos

Abstract Lithium (Li), Nickel (Ni), and Zinc (Zn) are metals normally present in the seawater, although they can have adverse effects on the marine ecosystem at high concentrations by interfering with many biological processes. These metals are toxic for sea urchin embryos, affecting their morphology and developmental pathways. In particular, they perturb differently the correct organization of the embryonic axes (animal-vegetal, dorso-ventral): Li is a vegetalizing agent and Ni disrupts the dorso-ventral axis, while Zn has an animalizing effect. To deeply address the response of Paracentrotus lividus embryos to these metals, we studied the expression profiling of Pl-Fra transcription facto…

Effects of exposure to gadolinium on the development of geographically and phylogenetically distant sea urchins species.

Gadolinium (Gd), a metal of the lanthanide series used as contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging, is released into the aquatic environment. We investigated the effects of Gd on the development of four sea urchin species: two from Europe, Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula, and two from Australia, Heliocidaris tuberculata and Centrostephanus rodgersii. Exposure to Gd from fertilization resulted in inhibition or alteration of skeleton growth in the plutei. The similar morphological response to Gd in the four species indicates a similar mechanism underlying abnormal skeletogenesis. Sensitivity to Gd greatly varied, with the EC50 ranging from 56 nM to 132 μM across the four species…

Nickel toxicity in P. lividus embryos: Dose dependent effects and gene expression analysis.

Abstract Many industrial activities release Nickel (Ni) in the environment with harmful effects for terrestrial and marine organisms. Despite many studies on the mechanisms of Ni toxicity are available, the understanding about its toxic effects on marine organisms is more limited. We used Paracentrotus lividus as a model to analyze the effects on the stress pathways in embryos continuously exposed to different Ni doses, ranging from 0.03 to 0.5 mM. We deeply examined the altered embryonic morphologies at 24 and 48 h after Ni exposure. Some different phenotypes have been classified, showing alterations at the expenses of the dorso-ventral axis as well as the skeleton and/or the pigment cells…

Induction of apoptosis by cadmium in Paracentrotus lividus embryos and larvae

DNA Damage and Developmental Defects After Exposure to UV and Heavy Metals in Sea Urchin Cells and Embryos Compared to Other Invertebrates

The depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer and the resulting increase in hazardous ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation reaching the Earth are of major concern not only for terrestrial but also for aquatic organisms. UV-B is able to penetrate clear water to ecologically significant depths. This chapter deals with the effects of UV radiation on DNA integrity in marine benthic organisms, in particular sea urchins in comparison to other marine invertebrates (sponges and corals). These animals cannot escape the damaging effects of UV-B radiation and may be additionally exposed to pollution from natural or anthropogenic sources. Besides eggs and larvae that lack a protective epidermal layer and ar…

Monitoring chemical and physical stress using sea urchin immune cells.

Coelomocytes are the cells freely circulating in the body fluid contained in echinoderm coelom and constitute the defence system, which, in response to injuries, host invasion, and adverse conditions, is capable of chemotaxis, phagocytosis, and production of cytotoxic metabolites. Red and colourless amoebocytes, petaloid and philopodial phagocytes, and vibratile cells are the cell types that, in different proportions, constitute the mixed coelomocyte cell population found in sea urchins. Advances in cellular and molecular biology have made it possible to identify a number of specific proteins expressed in coelomocytes under resting conditions or when activated by experimentally induced stre…

Welfare status of cage farmed European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax): A comparison between submerged and surface cages

Abstract Submersible sea-cages represent an alternative method to standard surface-based cages, and could help solve several production problems that exist in surface-based farming, such as heavy storms, algal and jellyfish blooms and attacks by predators. In this study, we investigated growth, haematological, biochemical and immunological parameters of European sea bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ) farmed in surface and submersible cages, to compare the physiological status under different rearing conditions. In addition, we evaluated the use of erythrocyte HSP70 levels as a biomarker of fish welfare. The study was conducted in two submerged and two surface cages filled with D. labrax . No sig…

Sea urchin coelomocytes as a novel cellular biosensor of environmental stress: a field study in the Tremiti Island Marine Protected Area, Southern Adriatic Sea, Italy

The aim of the present study was to investigate on the suitability of the sea urchin as a sentinel organism for the assessment of the macro-zoobenthos health state in bio-monitoring programmes. A field study was carried out during two oceanographic campaigns using immuno-competent cells, the coelomocytes, from sea urchins living in a marine protected area. In particular, coelomocytes subpopulations ratio and heat shock protein 70 (HSC70) levels were measured in specimens of Paracentrotus lividus (Lamark, 1816) collected in two sampling sites, namely Pianosa and Caprara Islands, both belonging to the Tremiti Island Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the Southern Adriatic Sea, Italy. By density g…

Cadmium induces the expression of specific stress proteins in sea urchin embryos.

Abstract Marine organisms are highly sensitive to many environmental stresses, and consequently, the analysis of their bio-molecular responses to different stress agents is very important for the understanding of putative repair mechanisms. Sea urchin embryos represent a simple though significant model system to test how specific stress can simultaneously affect development and protein expression. Here, we used Paracentrotus lividus sea urchin embryos to study the effects of time-dependent continuous exposure to subacute/sublethal cadmium concentrations. We found that, between 15 and 24 h of exposure, the synthesis of a specific set of stress proteins (90, 72–70, 56, 28, and 25 kDa) was ind…