Abstract:
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are environmental contaminants of growing concern due to their potential negative effects on wildlife and human health. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have been shown to alter immune function in various taxa, which could influence the outcomes of host-parasite interactions. To date, studies have focused on the effects of PFAS on host susceptibility to parasites, but no studies have addressed the effects of PFAS on parasites. To address this knowledge gap, we independently manipulated exposure of larval northern leopard frogs (Rana pipiens) and parasites (flatworms) via their snail intermediate host to environmentally relevant PFAS concentrations and then conducted trials to assess host susceptibility to infection, parasite infectivity, and parasite longevity after emergence from the host. We found that PFAS exposure to only the host led to no significant change in parasite load, whereas exposure of parasites to a 10-µg/L mixture of PFAS led to a significant reduction in parasite load in hosts that were not exposed to PFAS. We found that when both host and parasite were exposed to PFAS there was no difference in parasite load. In addition, we found significant differences in parasite longevity post emergence following exposure to PFAS. Although some PFAS-exposed parasites had greater longevity, this did not necessarily translate into increased infection success, possibly because of impaired movement of the parasite. Our results indicate that exposure to PFAS can potentially impact host-parasite interactions. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;43:1537-1546. © 2024 SETAC.
摘要:
全氟烷基和多氟烷基物质(PFAS)是环境污染物,由于它们对野生动植物和人类健康的潜在负面影响而受到越来越多的关注。全氟烷基和多氟烷基物质已被证明可以改变各种分类群的免疫功能,这可能会影响宿主-寄生虫相互作用的结果。迄今为止,研究集中在PFAS对宿主对寄生虫易感性的影响,但是没有研究解决PFAS对寄生虫的影响。为了解决这个知识差距,我们通过蜗牛中间宿主独立操纵幼体北豹蛙(Ranapipiens)和寄生虫(扁虫)暴露于环境相关的PFAS浓度,然后进行试验以评估宿主对感染的易感性,寄生虫感染性,和寄生虫从宿主中出现后的寿命。我们发现PFAS仅暴露于宿主不会导致寄生虫负荷的显着变化,而寄生虫暴露于10µg/L的PFAS混合物导致未暴露于PFAS的宿主中寄生虫负荷的显着减少。我们发现,当宿主和寄生虫都暴露于PFAS时,寄生虫负荷没有差异。此外,我们发现暴露于PFAS后出现后的寄生虫寿命存在显著差异.尽管一些暴露于PFAS的寄生虫寿命更长,这并不一定转化为增加感染成功率,可能是因为寄生虫的运动受损。我们的结果表明,暴露于PFAS可能会影响宿主-寄生虫的相互作用。环境毒物化学2024;00:1-10。©2024SETAC。