Microplastic ingestion by quagga mussels, Dreissena bugensis, and its effects on physiological processes

The impacts of microplastic particulates in benthic freshwater organisms have been largely unexplored despite abundant plastic accumulation in the sediments of these systems. We investigated the uptake of plastic particles by benthic filter feeding quagga mussels (Dreissena bugensis) and associated toxicity exhibited through impacts on mortality, filtration rate, reproduction and oxygen consumption. Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-IMS) technology was used to assess the microplastic inclusion. For this purpose, quagga mussels were exposed to four treatments ranging from 0.0 to 0.8 g/L of a high density fluorescent red polyethylene powder in the size range of 10–45 μm for 24-h, and the targeted endpoints were quantified. Identification of several micrograms of microplastics in the digestive tract suggests rapid clearance from the water column by filtering. At the higher concentrations, about 95% of the microplastics ingested remained in the mussels after 24-h. Microplastics were found in the gills which correlated with decreasing filtration rate at higher microplastic concentrations. Despite large-scale ingestion, plastic exposure did not affect survivorship, reproduction rates, or oxygen consumption in the period examined. MALDI-IMS identified unique mass spectra that correlated with microplastic inclusion. This research suggests that microplastics can impair feeding through decreased filtration rates of filter feeding organisms, potentially resulting in a reduction of overall fitness over time and that MALDI-IMS may have the potential to identify microplastics and changes in tissue at the borders of plastic inclusion.