Search

Pharmaceutically active compounds are common and increasing in the aquatic environment. Evidence suggests they have adverse effects on non-target organisms, and they are classified as emerging pollutants for a variety of aquatic organisms. To determine the effects of environmentally relevant levels of psychoactive compounds on non-target organisms, we analyzed cardiac and locomotory activity in early developmental stages of marbled crayfish Procambarus virginalis. Responses to sertraline, methamphetamine, and a mixture of citalopram, oxazepam, sertraline, tramadol, venlafaxine, and methamphetamine at a concentration of 1 µg L -1 of each compound were assessed. On day four of exposure, cardiac activity was recorded for 5 min, and on day eight, locomotory activity was recorded for 15 min. There was a significant increase (p < 0.01) in heart rate in methamphetamine-exposed and Mix-exposed juveniles compared to the unexposed control and there was significant difference (p < 0.01) in proportion of time (activity %) was observed with sertraline-exposed, whereas velocity, and distance moved did not significantly differ (p > 0.05) in exposed and control animals. These findings revealed that low concentrations of chemicals and their mixtures can modify the physiological state of aquatic animals without outward manifestations (activity, distance moved, and velocity). Aquatic animals can be impacted earlier than is visible, but effects can potentially lead to substantial changes in populations and in ecosystem processes. Additional research to investigate chemical combinations, exposure systems, and organism physiological and molecular responses may provide evidence of broad impact of environmental pharmaceuticals., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors state that they have no known financial interests or personal relationships that could have influenced this research., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Personal care products, including organic UV filters, are considered emerging contaminants, with their toxic effects being a concern in recent decades. UV filters continually enter surface waters via wastewater and human activity. Despite the presence of organic UV filters in the freshwater environment, little is known of their impact on aquatic biota. In this study, we evaluated the cardiac and locomotor responses of signal crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations of either 2-Phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulfonic acid (PBSA, 3 µg/L) or 5-Benzoyl-4-hydroxy-2-methoxybenzenesulfonic acid (BP4, 2.5 µg/L). Specimens exposed to the tested compounds for 30 min exhibited significantly greater changes in distance moved and time active than did unexposed controls. Significant differences of mean heart rate change compared to control were detected in both PBSA and BP4 experimental groups. Such behavior and physiological alterations demonstrate ecological effects of personal care products with the tested sunscreen compounds even with a short exposure. Evidence of the consequences of organic UV filters on aquatic organisms is scarce and is an important topic for future research., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Although pesticides are often discharged into surface waters in pulses as opposed to a sustained release, the effect of episodic pollution events on freshwater crayfish is largely unknown. We monitored change in heart rate and distance moved to assess the response of signal crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus to short-term exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of metazachlor (MTZ), terbuthylazine (TER), and thiacloprid (TCL). Crayfish exposed to 20 µg/L of MTZ exhibited a significant increase in mean heart rate and distance moved. Increased heart rate was detected at 118 ± 74 s post-exposure to MTZ. There were no significant differences in mean heart rate and distance moved in crayfish exposed to 6 µg/L of TCL and 4 µg/L of TER. A significant correlation between heart rate and distance moved was found in all exposed groups. These results suggest that pulse exposure to MTZ impact crayfish physiology and behavior during short-term period. With pulse exposure to TCL and TER, crayfish not exhibiting a locomotor response may continue to be exposed to lower, but potentially harmful, levels of pollutants. Evidence of the impacts of pesticide pulse at environmentally relevant concentrations on crayfish is scarce. Further study is required to determine the ecological effects of such events on freshwater crayfish., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Phenotypic plastic responses to temperature can modulate the kinetic effects of temperature on biological rates and traits and thus play an important role for species adaptation to climate change. However, there is little information on how these plastic responses to temperature can influence trophic interactions. Here, we conducted an experiment using marbled crayfish and their water louse prey to investigate how short-term thermal acclimation at two temperatures (16 and 24°C) modulates the predator functional response. We found that both functional response parameters (search rate and handling time) differed between the two experimental temperatures. However, the sign and magnitudes of these differences strongly depended on acclimation time. Acclimation to 16°C increased handling time and search rate whereas acclimation to 24°C leads to the opposite effects with shorter handling time and lower search rate for acclimated predators. Moreover, the strength of these effects increased with acclimation time so that the differences in search rate and handing time between the two temperatures were reversed between the treatment without acclimation and after 24 h of acclimation. Overall, we found that the magnitude of the acclimation effects can be as strong as the direct kinetic effects of temperature. Our study highlights the importance of taking into account short-term thermal plasticity to improve our understanding of the potential consequences of global warming on species interactions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The Chievitz juxtaparotid organ represents a macroscopic longitudinal formation, which is developed from oral cavity ectoderm in its lateral wall. As to its function, the organ probably represents a mechanosensor with different qualities of perception. The information coming from its sensors takes part in different activities of the lateral wall of oral cavity during sucking, swallowing, mastication, speech, protecting reflexes and wall tonus. The Chievitz juxtaparotid organ is not only a morphologically interesting structure, but is of great importance also for clinic and surgical pathology of the oral cavity.

Venous drainage patterns of the stomach were studied in 30 golden hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) and in 30 guinea pigs (Cavia aperea f. porcellus). In golden hamsters the most frequent group had a v. gastroepiploica dextra (85.6% of cases). The v. gastroepiploica sinistra was found in 63.3% of cases. In the second group, the venous drainage pattern was without a v. gastroepiploica dextra (13.3% of cases). The only constant venous channel from the stomach was the v. gastrica sinistra. Other veins draining the stomach were vv. gastricae (tributaries of the v. lienalis) and interorgan venous anastomoses with neighbouring organs. A venous arch along the curvatura ventriculi major was not observed in any of the cases. In the guinea pig, the first group with a v. gastroepiploica dextra accounted for 90.0% of cases while the second group without this vein represented 10.0% of cases. The only constant venous channel was, once again, the v. gastrica sinistra. Other veins of the stomach were similar to those in the golden hamster. A venous arch along the curvatura ventriculi major was found in 76.6% of cases. Some differences in the venous pattern between the two animal species can be explained by zoological differences in these mammals. The results obtained also stimulate interest in the study of possible variations in venous patterns of the stomach in man.

The authors report a clinical and ultrastructural study on a group of patients with angiomegaly, a vascular disorder characterized by elongated and distended blood vessels affecting the arterial (arteriomegaly) and/or venous system (venomegaly). The arterial group, drawn from a large arteriographic series, focuses on a comparison between atherosclerotic arteriopathy and arteriomegaly. The venous group, drawn from a large ultrasound series of vein disorders, is made up of patients with venomegaly. Venomegaly gives rise to few or no symptoms and it appears to be less frequent than arteriomegaly but as the latter proved to be associated in the majority of cases studied. Based on ultrastructural findings, the chief abnormality of angiomegaly seems to lie in a specific alteration of the elastic component of the vessel wall. We found slightly osmiophil amorphous elastic material neighbouring the basement membrane of the myocytes of the vessel walls. In the superficial parts of these myocytes occurred a great number of pinocytotic vesicles indicating for a rich creation of the new elastic material. Middle or highly osmiophil thick elastic fibers with irregular side protrusions were also found among myocytes remembering the moth-eaten picture. Results from a large ultrasonographic study on patients' relatives suggest an inheritability of this vascular disorder.

The authors studied the venous drainage pattern of the stomach in 30 adult laboratory mice (Mus musculus v. alba) and in 31 adult laboratory rats (Rattus norvegicus v. alba) of both sexes. In mice, two basic patterns of the venous drainage of the stomach have been found, the first one (50.0% of cases) with a vena gastroepiploica dextra, while in the second pattern (50.0% of cases) the vena gastroepiploica dextra is absent and the venous blood from the curvatura major ventriculi and fundus ventriculi is drained only via the v. lienalis. In rats, three basic patterns of venous drainage of the stomach were found, the first group (35.2%) with the v. gastroepiploica dextra, the second group (38.4%) with prevalence of the v. gastrica sinistra and the third group with various tributaries of the v. lienalis from the stomach (25.6%). The vena gastrica sinistra is the only constant venous channel in both animals examined. Between interorganic venous anastomoses in the mouse and the rat no great differences exist. In spite of the great variability of veins the results indicate that it is possible to differentiate some basic patterns of the venous drainage of the stomach in the animals studied.