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Inappropriate disposal, management, treatment of litter are the main sources of plastic accumulation. People, animals, wind, storms, and currents spread continuously the plastic in different sites in the world. Diverse animal groups have been ingesting small particles of plastic, the microplastics (MPs), resulting in negative effects in behaviour, consumption, and nutritional rates. Here, we reported the ingestion of MP by two benthic groups, Ascidiacea and Amphipoda from sites around llha Grande Bay, a Natural Heritage of Humanity site in the Southwest of Brazil.

Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous in marine environment, and a growing body of evidence suggests that they pose a threat to marine ecosystems. The ingestion of MPs causes a false sense of satiation and decline in nutritional status. After animal ingestion, MPs fragment into nanoplastics, returning to the environment through egestion and thereby becoming vectors of contaminant exposure (organic and inorganic) into marine food webs. Crustacea is one invertebrate group frequently investigated in studies of MP ingestion. Through a critical review of the current literature, we provide an overview of techniques utilized in research on the contamination of MPs on members of the Crustacea subphylum and thereby identify methodological limitations and future research needs.

This study indicates the use of Phallusia nigra as a potential biomonitor of mercury contamination. In this way, Hg levels were measured in seawater and different parts of ascidians (tunic, hepatopancreas, and branchial basket) from eight different sites in the Todos os Santos Bay, Salvador-Bahia. The ascidians were lyophilized, weighed, and taken to the DMA-80 (direct mercury analyzer); the method accuracy was confirmed by analyzing the certified material DORM- 4 muscle tissue and MEES-3 marine sediment with a confidence level of 95%. The results were evaluated through the Tukey’s test and it was possible to observe a higher concentration of Hg (82.00-312.7 ng g-1) in the branchial basket, followed by the hepatopancreas (69.67‑130.7 ng g-1) and tunic (21.63-33.27 ng g-1). Thus, the branchial basket was the only tissue capable of identifying spatial differences in pollution between the points.

Submitted by Jorge Silva (jorgelmsilva@ufrrj.br) on 2022-06-02T20:33:32Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2021 - Rayane Sorrentino Ribeiro.pdf: 3454434 bytes, checksum: 88267f8f9bd8e3c93b11965d295a3a0c (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2022-06-02T20:33:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2021 - Rayane Sorrentino Ribeiro.pdf: 3454434 bytes, checksum: 88267f8f9bd8e3c93b11965d295a3a0c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2021-10-27 CAPES - Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior The inadequate solid waste management, demographic, industrial and tourist growth, inadequate public sanitation policies, are factors that generate favourable scenarios for environmental contamination, especially in marine environments. Coastal areas have dense population density, marinas, ports, sewage channels and intense tourist activity, which aggravates contamination by macro, micro litter, and chemical compounds. Currently, there are diverse methodologies applied to macro litter and microplastics (MPs) studies. Regarding litter, many methodologies used in studies are biased, consequently the analyses and results are imprecise. As a result, this thesis brings two chapters of methodologies applied to macro litter and microplastics studies, followed by the third chapter about microplastic contamination in benthic organisms. The Chapter I approaches methodological concepts usually used to ecological works, in the analysis of litter collected in Sydney Harbour. Simulations of different sizes and numbers of sampling units (transects or quadracts) were performed and the impact of these units on sample precision was calculated. It is noticed that the choice and definition of sampling design directly reflects on the precision of the litter sampling. This is a baseline for future studies on the subject and the consequent production of more precise studies and analyses, not only applicable to litter. Still on methods, Chapter II reviews and describes methodologies applied to the study of microplastics in crustaceans. This review included all papers about MP in crustaceans published up to March 2021. In addition to description of methods, this work supports studies involving MPs in invertebrates, since it presents criticisms and limitations about methods used so far. Finally, as a case study, Chapter III analyses the contamination of MPs in different benthic organisms of the coast of Rio de Janeiro. Contamination was analysed in natural substrate, algae, sponges, and sea squirts, concomitantly related to MP ingestion by epibiont amphipods. Macroalgae are more contaminated by MP, as well as their associated organisms. Sponges and ascidians have different filtering process that influence the accumulation of MP in tissue, as well as its availability to associated organisms. MPs are considered ecosystem compounds and these results report the transference of this contamination in different benthic ecological levels and in sites not previously analysed. O inadequado manejo de res?duos s?lidos, ineficientes pol?ticas p?blicas de saneamento, alto crescimento demogr?fico, industrial e tur?stico s?o fatores que geram cen?rios favor?veis para contamina??o ambiental, em especial nos ambientes marinhos. ?reas costeiras possuem alto ?ndice populacional, al?m de marinas, portos, canais de esgoto e intensa atividade tur?stica, que agrava ainda mais a contamina??o por macro, micro res?duos e compostos qu?micos que interagem e impactam a biota marinha. Atualmente existe uma diversidade de metodologias aplicadas ao estudo da contamina??o e polui??o por macro-res?duos e micropl?sticos (MPs). A respeito dos res?duos, muitas metodologias utilizadas atualmente s?o enviesadas e as an?lises e resultados s?o consequentemente, imprecisos. Desse modo, esta tese traz dois cap?tulos voltados para metodologias utilizadas no estudo de macro res?duos e micropl?sticos, seguido do terceiro cap?tulo sobre a contamina??o de micropl?sticos em organismos bent?nicos. O Cap?tulo I aborda conceitos metodol?gicos usualmente aplicados a ecologia, na an?lise de res?duos coletados no porto de Sydney. Simula??es de diferentes tamanhos e n?meros de unidades amostrais (transectos ou quadracts) foram realizadas e o impacto dessas unidades na precis?o da amostragem foi calculada. Percebe-se que a escolha e defini??o do delineamento amostral reflete diretamente na precis?o da amostragem de res?duos. Este estudo poder? auxiliar futuros estudos do tema e a consequente gera??o de trabalhos e an?lises mais precisas, n?o somente aplic?veis para res?duos. O Cap?tulo II revisa e descreve metodologias aplicadas ao estudo de micropl?sticos em crust?ceos. Nesta revis?o foram inclu?dos todos os artigos sobre MPs em crust?ceos publicados at? mar?o de 2021. Al?m da descri??o de m?todos, o trabalho ? um suporte para estudos que envolvem MPs em invertebrados, pois apresenta cr?ticas e limita??es dos m?todos utilizados at? o momento. Por fim, como um estudo de caso, o Cap?tulo III analisa a contamina??o dos micropl?sticos em diferentes organismos bent?nicos da costa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro. A contamina??o foi analisada em substratos naturais, algas, esponjas e asc?dias, concomitantemente relacionada com a ingest?o de MPs por seus anf?podes epibiontes. Macroalgas est?o mais expostas a micropl?sticos, como tamb?m seus organismos associados. Esponjas e asc?dias possuem diferentes processos de filtragem que influenciam no ac?mulo de MP nos tecidos, bem como na disposi??o dessas part?culas para os organismos associados. MPs j? s?o considerados componentes do ecossistema e esses resultados reportam o ac?mulo dessa contamina??o em diferentes grupos bent?nicos e em localidades anteriormente n?o relatadas para a ci?ncia.

The lysianassoid species Eurythenes thurstoni Stoddart & Lowry, 2004 is recorded for the first time to the Southern Atlantic Ocean, with material collected from the South Mid-Atlantic Ridge during the MAR-ECO Project expeditions. The examined material presents some important variations when compared with the original description discussed in the text.

A new species of the family Melitidae Bousfield, 1973, Melita petronioi sp. nov., is described with material collected from Patos Lagoon, coast of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. The new species is the unique species of Melita Leach, 1814 in Brazilian waters with urosomites 1 and 2 lacking spines, but urosomite 2 bearing two sets of dorsal stout setae, and the uropod 3 with the outer ramus 2-articulate. It is the first Melita species recorded to the southern region of the country.