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Evaluation of the Effects of Electrical Stimulation: A Pilot Experiment on the Marine Benthic Foraminiferal Species <i>Amphistegina lessonii</i>
oleh: Federica Rebecchi, Davide Lattanzi, Sigal Abramovich, Patrizia Ambrogini, Caterina Ciacci, Michele Betti, Fabrizio Frontalini
Format: | Article |
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Diterbitkan: | MDPI AG 2023-03-01 |
Deskripsi
Environmental disturbances resulting from anthropogenic energy pollution are intensely growing and represent a concern for the marine environment. Benthic organisms are the significant fauna exposed to this kind of pollution; among them, foraminifera are largely used as pollution bioindicators in marine environments, but studies on the effects induced by electrical stimulation are not documented. In the present research, we evaluated the effects of short-term different electric current densities on the viability of benthic foraminiferal species <i>Amphistegina lessonii</i> by checking the pseudopodial activity and defined the threshold electrical density range. After 3 days of treatment, <i>A. lessonii</i> stimulated with a constant current showed pseudopodial activity at a lower electric current density (0.29, 0.86 μA/cm<sup>2</sup>) up to 24 h. With increasing stimulation time, the percentages of pseudopodial activity decreased. The pseudopodial activity was absent at high current densities (5.71, 8.57 μA/cm<sup>2</sup>). The viability of <i>A</i>. <i>lessonii</i> exposed to a pulsed current was higher at a low and middle electric current density (from 0.29 to 5.71 μA/cm<sup>2</sup>) than at a high electric current density (from 11.43 to 20 μA/cm<sup>2</sup>). Based on these preliminary results, the selected benthic foraminiferal species seems to better stand pulsed currents than constant ones. These first experiments might provide useful information for the definition of the appropriate electrical density threshold to avoid side effects on a part of the benthic community.