The use of biomarkers of oxidative stress in zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1771) for chronic anthropogenic pollution assessment of the Rybinsk Reservoir

Abstract

Biomarkers of oxidative stress such as catalase (CAT), glutathione S-transferase (GST), glutathione reductase (GR) activity, and malondialdehyde and reduced glutathione content, as well as heavy metal concentrations (HM: Pb, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Cd), were studied in Dreissena polymorpha tissues. Mussels were collected on three sites located on the Rybinskoe Reservoir different in levels of anthropogenic pressure: the most polluted sites were 1 and 2 and site 3 was relatively clean. Mussels from sites 1 and 2 had higher concentrations of HM (Pb, V, Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, and Mn) and their response to the pollutant action was manifested in increased processes of lipid peroxidation (LPO), the activation of CAT, and elevated level of GHS.