Ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in the sediments and their impacts on bacterial community structure: A case study of Bamen Bay in China

Qipei Li; Lixin Pei; Zanhui Huang; Wei Shu; Qiuli Li; Yanwei Song; Hongwei Zhao; Marvin Schäfer; Inga Nordhaus

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114482

Ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in the sediments and their impacts on bacterial community structure: A case study of Bamen Bay in China

Mar Pollut Bull. 2023 Jan:186:114482. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114482. Epub 2022 Dec 22.

Authors

Qipei Li¹, Lixin Pei², Zanhui Huang², Wei Shu³, Qiuli Li⁴, Yanwei Song⁵, Hongwei Zhao⁶, Marvin Schäfer⁷, Inga Nordhaus⁷

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Marine Resources Utilization in South China Sea, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; Key Laboratory of Agro-Forestry Environmental Processes and Ecological Regulation of Hainan Province, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; Center for Eco-Environment Restoration of Hainan Province, School of Ecology and Environment, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China.
² Haikou Marine Geological Survey Center, China Geological Survey, Haikou 571127, China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Marine Resources Utilization in South China Sea, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; Center for Eco-Environment Restoration of Hainan Province, School of Ecology and Environment, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Marine Resources Utilization in South China Sea, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China.
⁵ Haikou Marine Geological Survey Center, China Geological Survey, Haikou 571127, China. Electronic address: songyanwei@mail.cgs.gov.cn.
⁶ State Key Laboratory of Marine Resources Utilization in South China Sea, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; Center for Eco-Environment Restoration of Hainan Province, School of Ecology and Environment, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China. Electronic address: hwzhao@hainanu.edu.cn.
⁷ Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT), Bremen 28359, Germany.

PMID: 36565579
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114482

Abstract

Heavy metal pollution associated with human activity is of big concern in tropical bays. Microorganisms may be highly sensitive to heavy metals. Nonetheless, little is known about effects of heavy metals on microbial structure in tropical bay sediments. In this study, 16S rRNA gene sequencing and potential ecological risk index analysis were used to analyze the relationships between nine metals (arsenic, lead, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, zinc, manganese, and nickel) and bacterial communities in the sediments of Bamen Bay, China. Our results showed that Bamen Bay was under a considerable ecological risk and cadmium had the highest monomial potential ecological risk. In addition, individual metal contamination correlated with bacterial community composition but not with bacterial α-diversity. Arsenic was the metal influencing bacterial community structure the most. Our findings provide a novel insight into the monitoring and remediation of heavy metal pollution in tropical bays.

Keywords: 16S rRNA sequencing; Heavy metals; Microbial community structure; Sediments; Tropical bays.

MeSH terms

Arsenic* / analysis
Bacteria
Bays / chemistry
Cadmium / analysis
China
Environmental Monitoring / methods
Geologic Sediments / chemistry
Humans
Metals, Heavy* / analysis
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Risk Assessment
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / toxicity

Substances

Cadmium
Arsenic
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Metals, Heavy
Water Pollutants, Chemical