Occurrence and risk assessment of microcystin and its relationship with environmental factors in lakes of the eastern plain ecoregion, China
- 10 August 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Environmental Science and Pollution Research
- Vol. 27 (36), 45095-45107
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-10384-0
Abstract
The frequent occurrence of microcystins (MCs) in freshwater poses serious threats to the drinking water safety and health of human beings. Although MCs have been detected in individual fresh waters in China, little is known about their occurrence over a large geographic scale. An investigation of 30 subtropical lakes in eastern China was performed during summer 2018 to determine the MCs concentrations in water and their possible risk via direct water consumption to humans, and to assess the associated environmental factors. MCs were detected in 28 of 30 lakes, and the highest mean MCs concentrations occurred in Lake Chaohu (26.7 μg/L), followed by Lake Taihu (3.11 μg/L). MC-LR was the primary variant observed in our study, and MCs were mainly produced by Microcystis, Anabaena (Dolicospermum), and Oscillatoria in these lakes. Replete nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, irradiance, and stable water column conditions were critical for dominance of MC-producing cyanobacteria and high MCs production in our study. Hazard quotients indicated that human health risk of MCs in most lakes was at moderate or low levels except Lakes Chaohu and Taihu. Nutrient control management is recommended to decrease the likelihood of high MCs production. Finally, we recommend the regional scale thresholds of total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations of 1.19 mg/L and 7.14 × 10−2 mg/L, respectively, based on the drinking water guideline of MC-LR (1 μg/L) recommended by World Health Organization. These targets for nutrient control will aid water quality managers to reduce human health risks created by exposure to MCs.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (41877486)
- China National Critical Project for Science and Technology on Water Pollution Prevention and Control (2018ZX07208008)
- Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College (XDA23040201)
This publication has 58 references indexed in Scilit:
- Microcystin production by Microcystis aeruginosa: Direct regulation by multiple environmental factorsHarmful Algae, 2011
- The Cyanobacterial Hepatotoxin Microcystin Binds to Proteins and Increases the Fitness of Microcystis under Oxidative Stress ConditionsPLOS ONE, 2011
- Cyanotoxin Mixtures and Taste-and-Odor Compounds in Cyanobacterial Blooms from the Midwestern United StatesEnvironmental Science & Technology, 2010
- Temperature-dependent dominance of Microcystis (Cyanophyceae) species: M. aeruginosa and M. wesenbergiiJournal of Plankton Research, 2008
- Relationships between microcystins and environmental parameters in 30 subtropical shallow lakes along the Yangtze River, ChinaFreshwater Biology, 2006
- Detection of Microcystin-Producing Cyanobacteria in FinnishLakes with Genus-Specific Microcystin Synthetase Gene E (mcyE) PCR and Associations withEnvironmental FactorsApplied and Environmental Microbiology, 2006
- Diversity in the influence of temperature on the growth rates of freshwater algae, and its ecological relevanceFreshwater Biology, 2004
- Environmental factors influencing microcystin distribution and concentration in the Midwestern United StatesWater Research, 2004
- Role of chemical and physical variables in regulating microcystin-LR concentration in phytoplankton of eutrophic lakesCanadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 2000
- The selective advantage of buoyancy provided by gas vesicles for planktonic cyanobacteria in the Baltic SeaNew Phytologist, 1997