20.500.12556/DiRROS-29410 Polyethylene microplastics as a vector of tributyltin in Mytilus galloprovincialis and their consequences Microplastic pollution is an increasing environmental issue in the marine environment due to its ubiquitous presence and its role as a vector for organic pollutants such as tributyltin (TBT). Adsorption of TBT onto microplastics (MP) can increase its availability to filter-feeding organisms by prolonging its retention time in the water column. We investigated whether polyethylene (PE) MP spheres (10–63 μm) could act as vectors for TBT transfer in the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis by exposing it to PE MP (50 mg L− 1 ) and TBT (0.001 mg L− 1 ) separately and in co-exposure for 21 days. Efficient adsorption on PE MP was confirmed, and higher concentration of TBT was observed in the PE MP + TBT group compared to TBT only exposed group, indicating a vector effect. This led to higher toxicity in mussels, as the combined stress conditions in the PE MP + TBT group resulted in a significant decrease in the catalase activity after 14 days of the exposure. Higher ETS activity was observed in both exposed groups after seven days of exposure, followed by lower ETS activity at 14 and 21 days, indicating depletion of energy reserves. Pronounced responses in catalase and electron transport system (ETS) activity were observed in the hepatopancreas compared to the gill tissue. DNA damage was present in all exposed groups and increased over time. mytilus galloprovincialis tributyltin PE microplastics mitochondrial respiration genotoxicity oxidative stress sredozemska klapavica tributilkositer polietilenska mikroplastika mitohondrijsko dihanje genotoksičnost oksidativni stres true false true Elsevier Nizozemska Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik © 2026 The Authors. Neznano 2026-05-18 09:49:28 2026-05-18 09:49:28 2026-05-19 03:54:38 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 Nasl. z nasl. zaslona; Soavtorji: Tea Zuliani, Stoimir Kolarević, Margareta Kračun-Kolarević, Tatjana Simčič, Tatjana Mijošek Pavin, Andreja Ramšak; Opis vira z dne 11. 5. 2026; str. 1-11 Vol. 229, [article no.] 119767 Aug. 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 2026-01-23 2026-04-15 2026-04-22 502/504 1879-3363 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2026.119767 277693443 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X26005540?dgcid=coauthor 1 1ad88bfa-528e-11f1-8a5a-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=44087 RAZ_Kobal_Tanja_2026.pdf RAZ_Kobal_Tanja_2026.pdf 1 09B95E19270192B419881486134A2218 180c5faee437c54f6ffc04b4dbcc65765274ef2b8a518fac261b0a733365bf5b 7d2a0d23-528e-11f1-8a5a-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=44088 Institut Jožef Stefan 0 0 0