Monitoring of Physicochemical and Microbiological Quality of Taghazout Seawater (Southwest of Morocco): Impact of the New Tourist Resort "Taghazout Bay"

The marine environment plays a major socio-economic role in the Agadir region (south-west Morocco). This area, which hosts important fishery resources, is currently not spared from the pollutants produced in the course of agricultural, domestic, industrial and tourist development. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of the Taghazout bay tourist resort on the bacteriological and physicochemical quality of the coastal waters of Taghazout. The seawater samples were collected between March 2016 and March 2018 at three sampling sites (S1, S2 and S3) in order to monitor the concentrations of fecal coliforms (FC), fecal streptococci (FS) and total germs (TG). The results of physicochemical parameters show seasonal fluctuations influenced by climatic factors. The spatio-temporal monitoring of the bacteriological parameters shows that the average total germ count is 127.05 CFU/100 ml, 39.61 CFU/100 ml for fecal coliforms and 15.21 CFU/100 ml for fecal streptococci. The values of FC80, FC95 and FS90 do not exceed the guide values of the Moroccan standards. This classifies the Taghazout beach in category A (good quality of bathing water). The monitoring analysis recorded by the Pearson correlation test between the environmental parameters and the level of fecal bacteria showed that there was a significant positive correlation between the FC concentrations and rainfall; the FS concentrations showed significant positive correlations with all the environmental parameters while the TG concentrations indicate no correlation with them. The fecal contamination parameters should be routinely monitored for improving the environmental conditions of coastal cities. This must be the case for the Taghazout coastline where a regular monitoring program must be established to evaluate the impact of the new tourist resort “Taghazout bay” on the environmental quality of this ecosystem

Assessment of Trace Metal Concentrations in Three Seafood Deep-Sea Fished Caught in the Moroccan Atlantic

The investigation within the framework of this study was carried out on three marine species fished off in Moroccan coasts, namely: a fish, the sole (Solea Vulgaris), a cephalopod, the cuttlefish (Sepia Officinalis) and a crustacean, the pink shrimp (Parapenaeus Longirostris). The aims of this study were assessing the level of concentration in these three marine species, of three metallic trace elements: lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd) and mercury (Hg) and giving a reflection on the way in which Moroccan deep-sea fishing professionals can join a food safety management system to ensure the safety of their product and promote their competitiveness. Sampling was carried out at the port of Agadir city after landing of the deep-sea fishing boats which operate beyond 10 nautical miles, offshoring the seabed of Agadir for pink shrimp (Parapenaeus Longirostris), and in Dakhla city offshore for sole (Solea Vulgaris) and cuttlefish (Sepia Officinalis). Trace metal analysis was performed on individual muscles belonging to the three species. The results of the conducted investigations show that the Pb content varies between 0.01 ppm and 0.27 ppm in Solea Vulgaris; between 0.015 ppm and 0.16 ppm in Sepia Officinalis and between 0.022 ppm and 0.38 ppm for Parapenaeus Longirostris. For Cd, the concentrations vary between 0.0047 ppm and 0.050 ppm in Solea Vulgaris; between 0.0025 ppm and 0.254 ppm in Sepia Officinalis and between 0.0065 ppm and 0.11 ppm in Parapenaeus Longirostris. Concerning Hg, the contents vary between 0.0006 ppm and 0.075 ppm in Solea Vulgaris; between 0.0008 ppm and 0.05 ppm in Sepia Officinalis and between 0.0016 ppm and 0.09 ppm in Parapenaeus Longirostris. It appears from this study that the metal contents detected at the level of the three species of seafood investigated are below the regulatory thresholds. These results can be considered as the first basis for validating the control measure linked to the absence of metallic contamination of the three species in the sites studied

Study of Physicochemical and Bacteriological Quality of Treated Wastewater by the New Aourir Plant (Southwestern of Morocco) Using Activated Sludge Technology in a Semi-Arid Region

In order to use the purified wastewater for the irrigation of a golf course in the Taghazout area (Southwestern of Morocco), this study was conducted to evaluate the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of the treated wastewater in the new Aourir plant (Activated Sludge technology). In order to achieve these objectives, three types of water were analyzed: raw water (RW), biologically treated water (BTW) and water treated by ultraviolet radiation (UV-TW). The physicochemical parameters analyzed were Temperature, pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), five-day Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD5), Total Suspended Solids (SS), Nitrate (NO3), and Orthophosphates (PO4). Otherwise, the analyzed biological parameters are Total Coliforms (TC), Fecal Coliforms (FC), Escherichia coli (E. coli), and Fecal Streptococci (FS). The physicochemical parameters showed that temperature is always lower than 30°C, the pH is close to neutrality and a strong fluctuation of the high electrical conductivity (2700 μS/cm) occurs in UV-TW. At all stages of wastewater treatment, COD, BOD5, SS, NO3 and PO4 were below the limit values recommended by Moroccan standards. The bacteriological results showed a high level of bacterial contamination in RW and BTW, but in UV-TW the loads did not exceed 3 log10. The average loads of TC, FC, E. coli and FC in UV-TW were 2.13, 1.67, 1.77, and 2 (log10 CFU/100ml) respectively. Activated sludge treatment combined with UV has demonstrated sufficient quality to reuse treated water in irrigation; however, the UV treatment requires control to avoid any effect on the microbiological and physicochemical quality of green spaces and groundwater

State Diagnosis of Macrozoobenthic Biodiversity in the Intertidal Zone of the Sandy Coast of Taghazout (Southwestern of Morocco)

The present work is a part of the impact study of the tourist resort "Taghazout Bay" installation on the coast of Taghazout (North of the Agadir bay). The purpose of this study was to assess the initial state of the macrozoobenthic structure present in the intertidal sands at the three study stations over the 2016 and 2017 seasons. The biological approach was accompanied by the study of some physico-chemical parameters of the seawater (temperature, pH, salinity and dissolved oxygen) and the study of the sediment (grading structure, classification, and contents in organic matter). PCA analysis identified a perfect correlation between the physico-chemical parameters. The sediment contains three grading classes only (medium sand, fine sand, and very fine sand), very well classified with normal proportions of organic matter. The study of intertidal benthic macrofauna of the sandy substrate shows ten species and spatiotemporal variations with a clear dominance of the Donax trunculus bivalve species. The authors noticed – from the DIMO model – that the variation profile of the spring and summer (2016 and 2017) shows a community dynamics called "Diversity type". In winter and in autumn, they are known as the "Evenness type". The rank-frequency diagram explains that the benthic community of Taghazout sandy coast exists in the stage "Pioneer 1". The ascending hierarchical clustering gave three logical gatherings of seasons. The faunistic structure of this benthic community revealed the M>C>P shape. The authors also noticed that there is diversity in regimes in this ecosystem

Isolation and characterization of bacteria producing hydrolase enzymes from two moroccan hypersaline environments

Halophilic bacteria are a group of microorganisms living in saline environments and in some cases need the salinity to survive. Furthermore,these bacteria species have the potential for interesting and promising applications. In fact, this is due not only to their ability to adapt to extreme physico-chemical conditions but also because many of them they produce interesting substances for the industry such as extracellular hydrolytic enzymes.The present study aims to isolate and characterize halophilic bacteria producing hydrolase enzymes from twosalinesin Sidi Moussa-Oualidia complex (Morocco) and to screen their potential to produce hydrolase enzymes. In this study, 15 halophilic bacteria were identified and analyzed for their ability to produce extracellular enzymes. The phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rDNA sequencing indicated that the 15 isolated strains belong to the genera Bacillus, Oceanobacillus and Virgibacillus. The study of enzymatic activity revealed that all isolates studied were capable of producing at least one extracellular hydrolytic enzyme of which 9 produced amylase, 6 cellulase, 13 DNase, 11 lipase, and 8 protease. In addition to their ability to produce extracellular hydrolytic enzymes, our isolates have demonstrated their potential adaption to extreme Physico-chemical conditions. These properties could allow them to be used for many industrial applications

Unveiling the impact of environmental microplastics on mussel spermatozoa: First evidence of prothymosin-α detection in invertebrate's male gametes

Mytilus galloprovincialis mussels, like many other marine invertebrates, employ external fertilization as a mating strategy, exposing their gametes to various contaminants upon release into seawater. Environmental microplastics (EMP) are prevalent marine pollutants that pose a significant threat to aquatic biota. In this regard, our study aimed to investigate the potential effects of exposing mussels' male gametes to increasing concentrations of EMP (1, 10, 50, and 100 μg/l) collected from a Mediterranean sandy beach. We focused on assessing gamete quality by analysing physiological parameters such as viability, mitochondrial membrane potential, oxidative status, and motility. Additionally, we evaluated DNA integrity and activation of apoptosis. Furthermore, our study aimed to detect the presence of the prothymosin-α (PTMA) protein, which has never been previously investigated in invertebrate spermatozoa. Our data revealed that exposure of mussel spermatozoa to EMPs altered their oxidative status and mitochondrial membrane potential, induced a decrease in motility, DNA integrity, and an increased apoptotic occurrence, leading to a decline in overall viability. The localization of PTMA into the head and flagellum of spermatozoa further supported its presence and susceptibility to the effects of microplastics. These findings raise concerns about the reproductive capacity of mussels under environmental microplastic pollution and highlight potential long-term threats to population sustainability