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Copper-induced sublethal effects in Bufo gargarizans tadpoles: growth, intestinal histology and microbial alternations

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Abstract

Copper (Cu) is one of the environmental contaminations which can pose significant risks for organisms. The current study explores the effects of Cu exposure on the growth, intestinal histology and microbial ecology in Bufo gargarizans. The results revealed that 0.5–1 μM Cu exposure induced growth retardation (including reduction of total body length and wet weight) and intestinal histological injury (including disordered enterocyte, changes in the villi and vacuoles) of tadpoles. Also, high-throughput sequencing analysis showed that Cu exposure caused changes in richness, diversity and structure of intestinal microbiota. Moreover, the composition of intestinal microbiota was altered in tadpoles exposed to different concentrations of Cu. At the phylum level, we observed the abundance of proteobacteria was increased, while the abundance of fusobacteria was decreased in the intestinal microbiota of tadpoles exposed to 1 μM Cu. At the genus level, a reduced abundance of kluyvera and aeromonas was observed in the intestinal microbiota of tadpoles under the exposure of 0–0.5 μM Cu. Finally, functional predictions revealed that tadpoles exposed to copper may be at a higher risk of developing metabolic disorders or diseases. Above all, our results will develop a comprehensive view of the Cu exposure in amphibians and will yield a new consideration for sublethal effects of Cu on aquatic organisms.

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Data availability

The data used to support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon request.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Angela Dong from University of Western Ontario (Canada) for critical reading, revisions and suggestions that improved the manuscript.

Funding

This research was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 42077370) and Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province, China (No. 2020JM232).

Author contributions

RZ: roles/writing (original draft) and data curation. MW, HW: data curation and validation. LC, JP: conceptualization, visualization, supervision, project administration and funding acquisition.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Life Science, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an, 710119, People’s Republic of China

    Rui Zheng, Minyao Wu, Hongyuan Wang & Jufang Peng

  2. School of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710054, People’s Republic of China

    Lihong Chai

  3. Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Xi’an, 710062, People’s Republic of China

    Lihong Chai

  4. Basic Experimental Teaching Center, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an, 710119, People’s Republic of China

    Jufang Peng

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All applicable international, national and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. Animals used in this study were treated and maintained in accordance with the Animal Care Guidelines of Shaanxi Normal University and China Wildlife Conservation Association.

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Zheng, R., Wu, M., Wang, H. et al. Copper-induced sublethal effects in Bufo gargarizans tadpoles: growth, intestinal histology and microbial alternations. Ecotoxicology 30, 502–513 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-021-02356-y

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