Impact of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Accumulation on Oyster Health

In the past decade, Deepwater Horizon oil spill triggered a spike in investigatory effort on effects of crude chemicals, most notably polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), marine organisms and ecosystems. Oysters, susceptible to both waterborne sediment-bound contaminants due their filter-feeding sessile nature, have become great interest among scientists as bioindicator model organism for research environmental stressors. It has been shown many parts world that PAHs readily bioaccumulate soft tissues oysters. Subsequent experiments highlighted negative associated with exposure including upregulation antioxidant detoxifying gene transcripts enzyme activities such Superoxide dismutase, Cytochrome P450 enzymes, Glutathione S-transferase, reduction DNA integrity, increased infection prevalence, reduced abnormal larval growth. Much these could be attributed either oxidative damage, or reallocation energy away from critical biological processes reproduction calcification toward health maintenance. Additional abiotic stressors temperature, salinity, pH may change how oyster responds compound PAH exposure. The acidification longer-term salinity changes appear add onto toxicity, while shorter-term induce mechanisms reduce Elevated temperatures, other hand, cause large physiological own additional fails any significant little discernable pattern. this review, is recognized study anthropogenic impacts environment, various are compared, synergistic considered. Lastly, understudied photo-toxicity oysters reveals drastic increases toxicity via photooxidation formation quinones. consequences interaction between local global thus provide glimpse into differential response across regions world.