| The bioavailability of Cd, Cu and Zn from a metal-contaminated sediment was studied using Mytilus galloprovincialis embryos and larvae exposed to sediment elutriates, The elutriate concentrations tested were always lower than the threshold at which abnormal larval development appears. The Cd, Cu and Zn contents of the sediment, of the elutriate and of the larvae, as well as the larval growth, the condition index (CI), and the induction of metallothionein (NIT) in the larvae were measured. The Cl was only affected after 96 h of exposure, principally at the highest elutriate concentration (25%, corresponding to 0.1435 mug Cd l(-1) and 14 mug Zn l(-1)). Cd, Cu and Zn bioaccumulation was observed (48 and 96 h), in whole larvae as well as in the cytosolic... |
