Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems

The global usage of triclosan (TCS)-containing disinfectants posed toxicity threats to freshwater biodiversity; at the same time, the ecological risk assessments based on Species Sensitivity Distribution (SSD) models overestimated the Predicted No-Effect Concentration (PNEC) of the TCS due to neglec...

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Main Authors: Kexin Yu, Jing Tang, Yuting Zhao, Pan Zhou, Jing Luo, Benchao Jiang, Xinying Su, Duu-Jong Lee, Xuming Pan, Li Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-09-01
Series:Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651325009236
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author Kexin Yu
Jing Tang
Yuting Zhao
Pan Zhou
Jing Luo
Benchao Jiang
Xinying Su
Duu-Jong Lee
Xuming Pan
Li Wang
author_facet Kexin Yu
Jing Tang
Yuting Zhao
Pan Zhou
Jing Luo
Benchao Jiang
Xinying Su
Duu-Jong Lee
Xuming Pan
Li Wang
author_sort Kexin Yu
collection DOAJ
description The global usage of triclosan (TCS)-containing disinfectants posed toxicity threats to freshwater biodiversity; at the same time, the ecological risk assessments based on Species Sensitivity Distribution (SSD) models overestimated the Predicted No-Effect Concentration (PNEC) of the TCS due to neglecting toxicity data for the secondary trophic level protozoa. This study conducted acute and chronic toxicity tests to obtain the toxicity parameters of Paramecium sp. (96 h-EC50=149 μg/L, 7 d-EC10=41 μg/L), Colpoda sp. (96 h-EC50=277 μg/L, 7 d-EC10=125 μg/L), Blepharisma sp. (96 h-EC50=277 μg/L, 7 d-EC10=640 μg/L), and Tetrahymena sp. (7 d-EC10=253 μg/L). A comprehensive acute and chronic toxicity dataset of TCS was established, including 64 freshwater species and 35 freshwater species. The relative tolerance test revealed that Paramecium sp. has a much higher sensitivity than the other tested protozoa, with a sensitivity between R. subcapitata (EC50=0.97 μg/L, EC10=2.5 μg/L) and D. magna (EC50=208.8 μg/L, EC10=46.2 μg/L)/D. rerio (LC50=428.8 μg/L, EC10=200 μg/L). The validated use of protozoa as an intermediate trophic level indicator of a multi-trophic SSD model enhanced the ecological relevance of the PNEC. The Z-score analysis confirmed the differential sensitivity across the biological groups; prioritizing sensitive species data during SSD construction prevents dominance by tolerant species, ensuring the derivation of conservative yet scientifically sound biodiversity-safeguarding thresholds. Incorporating protozoa toxicity data, the SSD model concludes TCS's short-term PNEC at 1 μg/L and long-term PNEC at 0.021 μg/L as freshwater biodiversity-safeguarding thresholds. This revised threshold supports the maintenance of species richness and ecological balance, providing robust scientific evidence for biodiversity conservation efforts.
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spelling doaj-art-80a1cce12b554bee9da9b5bbd7c92f392025-08-20T03:41:17ZengElsevierEcotoxicology and Environmental Safety0147-65132025-09-0130211857810.1016/j.ecoenv.2025.118578Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystemsKexin Yu0Jing Tang1Yuting Zhao2Pan Zhou3Jing Luo4Benchao Jiang5Xinying Su6Duu-Jong Lee7Xuming Pan8Li Wang9Laboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, ChinaLaboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, ChinaLaboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, ChinaLaboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, ChinaLaboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, ChinaEcological Environmental Monitoring Central Station of Heilongjiang Province, Harbin 150090, ChinaKey Laboratory of Food Science and Engineering of Heilongjiang Province, College of Food Engineering, Harbin University of Commerce, Harbin 150076, ChinaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tang 999077, Hong KongLaboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Corresponding authors at: Laboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China.Laboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Key Laboratory of Biodiversity of Aquatic Organisms, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China; Corresponding authors at: Laboratory of Protozoa, College of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China.The global usage of triclosan (TCS)-containing disinfectants posed toxicity threats to freshwater biodiversity; at the same time, the ecological risk assessments based on Species Sensitivity Distribution (SSD) models overestimated the Predicted No-Effect Concentration (PNEC) of the TCS due to neglecting toxicity data for the secondary trophic level protozoa. This study conducted acute and chronic toxicity tests to obtain the toxicity parameters of Paramecium sp. (96 h-EC50=149 μg/L, 7 d-EC10=41 μg/L), Colpoda sp. (96 h-EC50=277 μg/L, 7 d-EC10=125 μg/L), Blepharisma sp. (96 h-EC50=277 μg/L, 7 d-EC10=640 μg/L), and Tetrahymena sp. (7 d-EC10=253 μg/L). A comprehensive acute and chronic toxicity dataset of TCS was established, including 64 freshwater species and 35 freshwater species. The relative tolerance test revealed that Paramecium sp. has a much higher sensitivity than the other tested protozoa, with a sensitivity between R. subcapitata (EC50=0.97 μg/L, EC10=2.5 μg/L) and D. magna (EC50=208.8 μg/L, EC10=46.2 μg/L)/D. rerio (LC50=428.8 μg/L, EC10=200 μg/L). The validated use of protozoa as an intermediate trophic level indicator of a multi-trophic SSD model enhanced the ecological relevance of the PNEC. The Z-score analysis confirmed the differential sensitivity across the biological groups; prioritizing sensitive species data during SSD construction prevents dominance by tolerant species, ensuring the derivation of conservative yet scientifically sound biodiversity-safeguarding thresholds. Incorporating protozoa toxicity data, the SSD model concludes TCS's short-term PNEC at 1 μg/L and long-term PNEC at 0.021 μg/L as freshwater biodiversity-safeguarding thresholds. This revised threshold supports the maintenance of species richness and ecological balance, providing robust scientific evidence for biodiversity conservation efforts.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651325009236TriclosanProtozoaFreshwater organismsSafety threshold
spellingShingle Kexin Yu
Jing Tang
Yuting Zhao
Pan Zhou
Jing Luo
Benchao Jiang
Xinying Su
Duu-Jong Lee
Xuming Pan
Li Wang
Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
Triclosan
Protozoa
Freshwater organisms
Safety threshold
title Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
title_full Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
title_fullStr Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
title_full_unstemmed Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
title_short Protozoan-based biodiversity-safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
title_sort protozoan based biodiversity safeguarding benchmark for triclosan in freshwater ecosystems
topic Triclosan
Protozoa
Freshwater organisms
Safety threshold
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651325009236
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