Limited effects of chronic exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of microplastics across biological levels in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis)

Limited effects of chronic exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of microplastics across biological levels in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Limited effects of chronic exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of microplastics across biological levels in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) David Leistenschneider, Franck Lartaud, Isabelle Calves, Loïc Tettling, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9545112/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Plastic pollution has emerged as a critical environmental issue, with its increasing presence in marine ecosystems posing significant threats to marine organisms. Consequently, plastic exposure in farmed mollusks may adversely affect aquaculture yields. Three main types of physical effects have been identified: smothering, entanglement and ingestion. This study focuses specifically on the ingestion of microplastics by mussels. These filter-feeding organisms were selected due to their high filtration capacity and, therefore, their substantial exposure to microplastics in the environment. A chronic experiment was conducted over 100 days using two polyethylene-based plastics. Most studies evaluating plastic physical toxicity utilize microplastic of regular shape which are not representative of the environment. In this study, plastics were cryogrinded to obtain irregular shapes within the size range 3 to 25 µm after cascade filtrations. The size range matches mussel food to ensure ingestion. Three environmentally relevant concentrations (2.5, 25 and 250 particles/L) were chosen to enable a more accurate extrapolation to natural conditions. Additionally, a particle control (diatomite) was included to determine whether any observed toxic impact was linked to the material or to the presence of particles. Toxicological parameters were evaluated at three levels: individual (survival rate, condition index and growth), tissue (glycogen) and molecular (stress proteins). Overall, no toxic effects were observed for either of these toxic endpoints. Under the experimental conditions and at environmentally relevant concentrations, no adverse effects on mussel farming were detected. Microplastic Mussel Chronic toxicity health status Particle control polyethylene Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Supplementarydata1.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9545112","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":631123552,"identity":"87ec99c9-673f-48c1-ac01-f55f8e68184d","order_by":0,"name":"David 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