This viewpoint paper explores the potential of genomics technology to provide accurate, rapid, and cost efficient observations of the marine environment. The use of such approaches in next generation marine monitoring programs will help achieve the goals of marine legislation implemented world-wide. Genomic methods can yield faster results from monitoring, easier and more reliable taxonomic identification, as well as quicker and better assessment of the environmental status of marine waters.

Due to technical limitations, there have been minimal studies performed on thermal preferences and thermotactic behaviors of aquatic ectotherm species commonly used in ecotoxicity testing. In this work, we demonstrate an innovative, purpose-built and miniaturized electrothermal array for rapid thermal preference behavioral tests. We applied the novel platform to define thermal preferences in multiple invertebrate and vertebrate species. Specifically, Dugesia notogaea (freshwater planarians), Chironomus tepperi (nonbiting midge larvae), Ostracoda (seed shrimp), Artemia franciscana (brine shrimp), Daphnia carinata (water flea), Austrochiltonia subtenuis (freshwater amphipod), Physa acuta (freshwater snail), Potamopyrgus antipodarum (New Zealand mud snail) and larval stage of Danio rerio (zebrafish) were tested. The Australian freshwater water fleas, amphipods, snail Physa acuta as well as zebrafish exhibited the most consistent preference to cool zones and clear avoidance of zones >27 °C out of nine species tested. Our results indicate the larval stage of zebrafish as the most responsive species highly suitable for prospective development of multidimensional behavioral test batteries. We also showcase preliminary data that environmentally relevant concentrations of pharmaceutical pollutants such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) ibuprofen (9800 ng/L) and insecticide imidacloprid (4600 ng/L) but not anti-depressant venlafaxine (2200 ng/L) and (iv) anticonvulsant medications gabapentin (400 ng/L) can perturb thermal preference behavior of larval zebrafish. Collectively our results demonstrate the utility of simple and inexpensive thermoelectric technology in rapid exploration of thermal preference in diverse species of aquatic animals. We postulate that more broadly such technologies can also have added value in ecotoxicity testing of emerging contaminants.

Increasing terrestrial run-off from melting glaciers and thawing permafrost to Arctic coastal areas is expected to facilitate re-mobilization of stored legacy persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and mercury (Hg), potentially increasing exposure to these contaminants for coastal benthic organisms. We quantified chlorinated POPs and Hg concentrations, lipid content and multiple dietary markers, in a littoral deposit-feeding amphipod Gammarus setosus and sediments during the melting period from April to August in Adventelva river estuary in Svalbard, a Norwegian Arctic Aarchipelago. There was an overall decrease in concentrations of ∑POPs from April to August (from 58 ± 23 to 13 ± 4 ng/g lipid weight; lw), Hg (from 5.6 ± 0.7 to 4.1 ± 0.5 ng/g dry weight; dw) and Methyl Hg (MeHg) (from 5 ± 1 to 0.8 ± 0.7 ng/g dw) in G. setosus. However, we observed a seasonal peak in penta- and hexachlorobenzene (PeCB and HCB) in May (2.44 ± 0.3 and 23.6 ± 1.7 ng/g lw). Sediment concentrations of POPs and Hg (dw) only partly correlated with the contaminant concentrations in G. setosus. Dietary markers, including fatty acids and carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes, indicated a diet of settled phytoplankton in May–July and a broader range of carbon sources after the spring bloom. Phytoplankton utilization and chlorobenzene concentrations in G. setosus exhibited similar seasonal patterns, suggesting a dietary uptake of chlorobenzenes that is delivered to the aquatic environment during spring snowmelt. The seasonal decrease in contaminant concentrations in G. setosus could be related to seasonal changes in dietary contaminant exposure and amphipod ecology. Furthermore, this decrease implies that terrestrial run-off is not a significant source of re-mobilized Hg and legacy POPs to littoral amphipods in the Adventelva river estuary during the melt season.

Airborne bacteria may absorb the substance from the atmospheric particles and play a role in biogeochemical cycling. However, these studies focused on a few culturable bacteria and the samples were usually collected from one site. The metabolic potential of a majority of airborne bacteria on a regional scale and their driving factors remain unknown. In this study, we collected particulates with aerodynamic diameter ≤2.5 μm (PM₂.₅) from 8 cities that represent different regions across China and analyzed the samples via high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA genes, quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysis, and functional database prediction. Based on the FAPROTAX database, 326 (80.69%), 191 (47.28%) and 45 (11.14%) bacterial genera are possible to conduct the pathways of carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur cycles, respectively. The pathway analysis indicated that airborne bacteria may lead to the decrease in organic carbon while the increase in ammonium and sulfate in PM₂.₅ samples, all of which are the important components of PM₂.₅. Among the 19 environmental factors studied including air pollutants, meteorological factors, and geographical conditions, PM₂.₅ concentration manifested the strongest correlations with the functional genes for the transformation of ammonium and sulfate. Moreover, the PM₂.₅ concentration rather than the sampling site will drive the distribution of functional genera. Thus, a bi-directional relationship between PM₂.₅ and bacterial metabolism is suggested. Our findings shed light on the potential bacterial pathway for the biogeochemical cycling in the atmosphere and the important role of PM₂.₅, offering a new perspective for atmospheric ecology and pollution control.

With the high production and consumption of antibiotics in recent years due to increasing economic development and improving population health, China is facing serious antibiotic pollution in the environment, and it is becoming a significant threat to ecology and human health. This study explores the spatial distribution patterns of 65 antibiotics in soil, surface water and coastal water based on a systematic review. Potential emission sources of antibiotics are also analyzed using data extracted from the reviewed literature. The results suggest that China has very high antibiotic detection rates of 100%, 98.0% and 96.4% for soil, surface water and coastal water, respectively. Regions with high antibiotic levels are mainly located in Bohai Bay, including the Beijing‒Tianjin‒Hebei region, Liaoning and Shandong Provinces, and Yangtze River. Tetracyclines (TCs) and quinolones (QNs) are the dominant antibiotics observed in soil and are mainly attributed to the use of manure as fertilizer and the reuse of domestic wastewater. Sulfonamides (SAs), macrolides (MLs), TCs and QNs are the dominant antibiotics observed in surface water and are mainly attributed to aquaculture and the emission of domestic sewage. QNs are the dominant antibiotics observed in coastal water and are mainly attributed to marine cultivation. The detection frequencies and concentrations of TCs, QNs, SAs and MLs in both soil and water are much higher than those in other developed countries. Suggestions including restricting antibiotic usages in livestock farming and aquaculture, innovation of wastewater treatment technology to improve antibiotic removal rate, and establishing guidelines on antibiotic concentration for wastewater discharge and organic fertilizer are provided.

Release of fluoride from Quaternary sediments produces F-contaminated groundwater which threatens the health of millions of people worldwide. Despite the mechanisms of fluoride release from sediments are documented by numerous studies, it remains poorly understood that whether indigenous microbes participate in or not for the formation of F-rich groundwater by releasing fluoride from aquifer sediments. A microcosm-based approach, geochemistry and techniques of microbiology and molecular ecology were conducted together to investigate these mechanisms. Results show that microbes are abundant in high [F] groundwater containing at least 1129 operational taxonomic units (OTUs), and indigenous microbes can have an essential role in the mobilization of fluoride in sediments collected from aquifers in a typical fluorosis area in China. It also shows that for the sediments in this study, fluoride release (ca. 2 mg/L) is coupled with elevated concentrations of Ca (△ = 75 mg/L), Mg (△ = 33 mg/L), Al (△ = 0.2 mg/L) and Mn (△ = 1.4 mg/L). This suggests that the fluoride may source from the dissolution of F-bearing carbonate minerals and/or Al-Mn hydroxides in a local acidic environment. The findings provide additional insights into the biogeochemical circulation of fluoride in natural environment, especially in groundwater system and the development of effective strategies for the management of F-contaminated groundwater worldwide.

In recent decades, rapid development of industrialization and urbanization caused adverse impact on the aqueous ecology and environment of the Huaihe River basin, China. In this work, three ²¹⁰Pb-dated sediment cores extracted from the middle reach of Huaihe River in Anhui Province, China were analyzed to elucidate the temporal trends and sources of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Source diagnostics indicated that commercial Deca-BDE, Penta-BDE and Octa-BDE products and debromination of higher brominated BDE compounds were likely the PBDE sources in the Huaihe River. The prevalence of BDE-47 in the sediment cores was attributed to the extensive use of commercial Bromkal 70-5DE and Bromkal DE-71 in the region. BDE-28 was another congener that was prevalent in all sediment samples, suggesting that reductive debromination occurred in the sediments. Dramatic increase of PBDE concentrations in both three cores since the post-1980s could be attributed to the rapid expansion of production of electronic and telecommunication equipment and household usage in China. PBDE temporal trends in core S1 located at rural area mainly reflected the regional and national inputs deriving from long distance atmospheric transport, and the positive correlations between PBDE concentration in core S1 and gross domestic product (GDP) and household appliances production volumes (HPVs) were observed. PBDE inputs at site S3 mainly include the transport of contaminated water and re-suspended fine sediment particles from the upstream site S2, which was located in the industrial area and adjacent to e-waste recycling area. The government efforts to protect the environment and improve the e-waste management resulted in the progressive decrease trends in PBDE concentrations in cores S2 and S3.

Several aspects of the life cycle of the critically endangered European eel (Anguilla anguilla) remain poorly understood. One such aspect is the broad-versus narrow-head dimorphism, and how this impacts their overall performance at different stages of their life cycle. At the yellow eel stage, the phenotypes show a trophic divergence. We investigated whether pollutant accumulation is affected by this disparity. We show that broad-headed eels contained higher concentrations of mercury and several lipophilic organic pollutants, compared to narrow-headed ones, irrespective of their fat content. The hereby confirmed link between the phenotypic disparity, its associated feeding ecology and its impact on pollutant accumulation thus raises further concerns about their migratory and reproductive success. Considering that pollution is an important contributor to the European eel's decline, our results demonstrate that broad-headed eels are more vulnerable to detrimental pollutant accumulation. This compromises their successful contribution to their population's reproduction and its restoration.