14 research outputs found
A survey of the land snails of the Karaburun peninsula, Turkey
Thirty-three species of land snails were collected during a survey of the calcareous areas of
the Karaburun Peninsula in western Turkey. The first record of
Pagodulina hauseri
for Turkey is given. Also
given is the first record outside of Chios of a specimen identified tentatively as
Vitrea
storchi
. Anatomies of
Microxeromagna lowei
,
Monacha ocellata
and
M. syriaca
are discussed. A comparison of the shell dimensions
of the
Helix
species of western Turkey, including those from the Karaburun Peninsula, is presented. An
unexpected result of the survey was the failure to find
Albinaria
on the peninsula
Residence time determines invasiveness and performance of garlic mustard ( Alliaria petiolata
ACRYLAMIDE QUENCHING OF THE FLUORESCENCE OF GLYCERALDEHYDE-3-PHOSPHATE DEHYDROGENASE: REVERSIBLE AND IRREVERSIBLE EFFECTS
Measuring Binding Affinity of Protein−Ligand Interaction Using Spectrophotometry: Binding of Neutral Red to Riboflavin-Binding Protein
Spatial gradients in species diversity of microscopic animals: the case of bdelloid rotifers at high altitude
Bioaccumulative and conchological assessment of heavy metal transfer in a soil-plant-snail food chain
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), and lead (Pb) can pose serious threats to environmental health because they tend to bioaccumulate in terrestrial ecosystems. We investigated under field conditions the transfer of these heavy metals in a soil-plant-snail food chain in Banat area, Romania. The main goal of this paper was to assess the Roman snail (<it>Helix pomatia</it>) usefulness in environmental monitoring as bioindicator of heavy metal accumulation. Eight sampling sites, selected by different history of heavy metal (HM) exposure, were chosen to be sampled for soil, nettle leaves, and newly matured snails. This study also aimed to identify the putative effects of HM accumulation in the environment on phenotypic variability in selected shell features, which included shell height (SH), relative shell height (RSH), and whorl number (WN).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Significantly higher amounts of HMs were accumulated in snail hepatopancreas and not in foot. Cu, Zn, and Cd have biomagnified in the snail body, particularly in the hepatopancreas. In contrast, Pb decreased when going up into the food chain. Zn, Cd, and Pb correlated highly with each other at all levels of the investigated food chain. Zn and Pb exhibited an effective soil–plant transfer, whereas in the snail body only foot Cu concentration was correlated with that in soil. There were significant differences among sampling sites for WN, SH, and RSH when compared with reference snails. WN was strongly correlated with Cd and Pb concentrations in nettle leaves but not with Cu and Zn. SH was independent of HM concentrations in soil, snail hepatopancreas, and foot. However, SH correlated negatively with nettle leaves concentrations for each HM except Cu. In contrast, RSH correlated significantly only with Pb concentration in hepatopancreas.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The snail hepatopancreas accumulates high amounts of HMs, and therefore, this organ can function as a reliable biomarker for tracking HM bioavailability in soil. Long-term exposure to HMs via contaminated food might influence the variability of shell traits in snail populations. Therefore, our results highlight the Roman snail (<it>Helix pomatia</it>) potential to be used in environmental monitoring studies as bioindicator of HM pollution.</p