Nutrient potentiate the responses of plankton community structure and metabolites to cadmium: A microcosm study

Metal pollution is a worldwide concern and may pose risks to aquatic organisms, communities, and ecosystems. The toxic effects of metals at the organism level are relatively clear. However, their impacts at the community level are still poorly understood, especially with concurred eutrophication in surface water. In the present study, the effects of Cd on the plankton community structure and function under varying nutrient conditions were evaluated using a microcosm study. The employed concentrations of Cd and nutrient were based on the values currently measured in the freshwater ecosystem. For the plankton structure, our results showed that the Chl a concentration, the abundances of total phytoplankton, Cyanophyta, and Chlomphyta, and the abundance of Copepoda decreased by Cd consistently. The Cyanophyta Oscinatoria tenths and Copepoda nauplius were the most sensitive species to Cd in the phytoplankton and zooplankton community, respectively. For the community effects, we found the inhibitory effects of Cd on the photosystem II (PSII) activity of phytoplankton community because of the consistent decrease in the chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (F-v/F-m, Y(II), and ETR). Furthermore, the reductions of DOC and pH by Cd were only found in the high nutrient condition, which indicated that the toxic effects of Cd on the community structure and community metabolites were aggravated by the increased nutrient. This study emphasizes the importance of considering nutrient conditions when assessing the metal ecotoxicological effects at environmentally relevant concentrations.

Automated summary

This study found that Cd had significant effects on the plankton community structure and function, especially under high nutrient conditions. In terms of plankton structure, Cd consistently decreased Chl a concentration, total phytoplankton, Cyanophyta, and Chlomphyta abundances, as well as Copepoda abundance. In terms of community effects, Cd inhibited the photosystem II activity of phytoplankton community and led to reductions in DOC and pH, especially under high nutrient conditions.