Trace metal effects on gross primary productivity and its associative environmental risk assessment in a subtropical lake, China.

The transport of trace metals in river-lake systems can potentially increase or decrease primary productivity in some basins and subsequently affect the carbon cycle of watersheds. In this study, we investigated a variety of trace metal concentrations and transport flux in the Poyang Lake basin during four seasons. Results show that the Gan River transports 78% of selenium (Se) and 42% of lead (Pb) into Poyang Lake each year, resulting in heavy metal pollution dominated by Pb and Se in 30%-75% of its water. Although toxic heavy metals, such as Pb, chromium (Cr), and copper (Cu), inhibit phytoplankton growth and decrease its gross primary productivity (GPP), excessive Se could effectually promote productivity. However, the negative effect of Pb on GPP is more significant than the positive effect of Se on GPP; hence, their interaction effectuates a decrease in total primary productivity. Additionally, under high nutrients level, the synergistic effect of heavy metals and nutrients will reduce GPP. Agricultural fertilizer is likely the source of both Pb, Cu, Se and N. Gan River contributes 35%-80% of the heavy metal inputs to Poyang Lake. It is therefore necessary to improve the ecological environment of phytoplankton and promote productivity in the Poyang Lake basin by reducing the application of agricultural chemical fertilizers to control pollution. Our results indicate that the role of certain, less studied trace elements (e.g., Pb, Cr, Cu, and Se) in regulating primary productivity of watershed ecosystems is more important than previously thought. This study also discusses potential impacting mechanisms associated with these metals on phytoplankton, whose biological functions need to be verified in future experiments.

Assessment of impact of α-Fe2 O3 and γ-Fe2 O3 nanoparticles on phytoplankton species Selenastrum capricornutum and Nannochloropsis oculata.

In this study, the impact of alpha-iron oxide (α-Fe2 O3 , 20-40 nm) and gamma iron oxide (γ-Fe2 O3 , 20-40 nm) nanoparticles (NPs) on phytoplankton species Selenastrum capricornutum and Nannochloropsis oculata was investigated Characterizations of the NPs were systematically carried out by TEM, dynamic light scattering, zeta potential, X-ray diffraction, SEM, and Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy. Acute toxicity was tested between 0.2 and 50 mg/L for each NP for a period of 72 hours exposure. γ-Fe2 O3 NP inhibited development of N oculata at the rate of 54% in 0.2 mg/L group with a high mortality rate of up to 82%. α-Fe2 O3 NPs were less toxic that induced 97% mortality on N oculata at 10 mg/L suspensions. In contrast, α-Fe2 O3 NP inhibited growth of S capricornutum strongly (73%) in 0.2 mg/L group. γ-Fe2 O3 NPs showed similar growth inhibition (72%) on S capricornutum in 10 mg/L suspensions. Despite the differential effects, the results indicated acute toxicity of α-Fe2 O3 and γ-Fe2 O3 NPs on N oculata and S capricornutum.

Environmental risk assessment of triazine herbicides in the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea and their toxicity to phytoplankton at environmental concentrations.

Herbicides have been increasingly used worldwide and a large amount of herbicide residue eventually enters the ocean via groundwater or surface run-off every year. However, the global coastal pollution status of herbicides and their negative impact on marine life (especially phytoplankton) in natural environmental concentrations are poorly understood except for few special environments (e.g. the Great Barrier Reef, Australia). Our field investigation of the distribution of ten triazine herbicides in the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea of China revealed that the concentrations of triazine herbicides exceeded the "No Observed Effect Concentrations" for phytoplankton. Their total concentrations could be as high as 6.61 nmol L-1. Based on the concentration addition model, the toxicity of herbicide homologues is usually cumulative, and the combined toxicity of these ten triazine herbicides could cause 13.2% inhibition on the chlorophyll a fluorescence intensity of a representative diatom species Phaeodactylum tricornutum Pt-1, which corresponds roughly to the toxicity of atrazine in an equivalent concentration of 14.08 nmol L-1. Atrazine in this equivalent-effect concentration could greatly inhibit the growth of cells, the maximum quantum efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm), and nutrient absorption of Phaeodactylum tricornutum Pt-1. Transcriptome analysis revealed that multiple metabolic pathways (Calvin cycle, tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, etc.) related with photosynthesis and carbon metabolism were greatly disturbed, which might ultimately influence the primary productivity of coastal waters. Moreover, with the values of its bioaccumulation factor ranging from 69.6 to 118.9, atrazine was found to be accumulated in algal cells, which indicates that herbicide pollution might eventually affect the marine food web and even threaten the seafood safety of human beings.

Efficient degradation of diclofenac by LaFeO3-Catalyzed peroxymonosulfate oxidation---kinetics and toxicity assessment.

Diclofenac was frequently found in various waters, indicating conventional wastewater treatment methods ineffective in its removal. In this study, LaFeO3 (LFO) was synthesized and its catalytic activity of LFO as the activator of different oxidants such as persulfate (PS), hydrogen peroxide and peroxylmonosulfate (PMS) was evaluated in terms of DCF degradation. The influence of calcination temperature was examined on the catalytic activity of LFO. The effects of various parameters including pH levels, PMS concentration, LFO dose and initial DCF concentration were investigated on DCF degradation rate. The marginal effects of PMS concentration and LFO dose were compared. Langmuir-Hinshelwood (LH) model was used to quantitatively describe DCF degradation reaction in LFO/PMS system. The two constants, k (Limiting reaction rate at maximum coverage) and K (Equilibrium adsorption constant), were determined on the basis of LH model. The performance of LFO/PMS process was also estimated in the presence of various inorganic anions. The potential toxicity of LFO and PMS were evaluated using phytoplankton and the toxicity evolution during DCF degradation was also investigated using luminescent bacteria. This contribution provides a basic study regarding the potential application of heterogeneous PMS activation by perovskite LFO for both DCF removal and toxicity elimination.

Assessment of atrazine toxicity to the estuarine phytoplankter, Dunaliella tertiolecta (Chlorophyta), under varying nutrient conditions.

Anthropogenic inputs of chemical environmental contaminants are frequently associated with developing harmful algal blooms, but little is known about how estuarine phytoplankton assemblages respond to multiple, co-occurring chemical stressors in chronically disturbed habitats. The goals of this research were to establish a robust protocol for testing the effects of atrazine on estuarine phytoplankton, and then to use that protocol to compare the effects of atrazine exposure with and without nutrient enrichment on a cosmopolitan estuarine/marine alga, Dunaliella tertiolecta (Chlorophyta). Atrazine sensitivity in nutrient-replete media (96-h growth inhibition [Formula: see text]) was 159.16 µg l-1, but sensitivity was influenced by exposure duration, and inhibitory effects of herbicide on algal growth decreased under imbalanced nutrient regimes and low nitrogen and phosphorus supplies. These findings advance knowledge about how nutrient regimes and herbicides interact to control estuarine phytoplankton population dynamics.

An assessment of direct and indirect effects of two herbicides on aquatic communities.

Herbicides are often detected in watersheds at concentrations that are toxic to phytoplankton, potentially causing indirect effects on higher trophic organisms. The long-term effects of 5 applications over 30 d of binary mixtures of the herbicides diuron and hexazinone were assessed at "low" and "high" concentrations typically found in the environment, using mesocosms. Sixteen of 95 phytoplankton taxa, 3 of 18 zooplankton taxa, and 6 of 14 macroinvertebrate taxa responded negatively to contaminant exposures. Herbicide applications altered the phytoplankton community structure. Relative abundance of Cyanophyceae decreased following 5 applications from 52.1% in the control to 37.3% in the low treatment and to 25.9% in the high treatment, while Chlorophyceae increased to 50.6% in the low treatment and to 61.7% in the high treatment compared with the control (39.7%). Chlorophyceae had the greatest number of affected species (8), whereas 1 species within the Cyanophyceae was negatively affected on more than 1 sampling day. Further, chlorophyll a was reduced on 4 and 5 d out of the 8 total sampling days in the low and high treatments, respectively, compared with the control. These results highlight that integrating multiple taxa and contaminants with long-term exposures in ecological risk assessments of herbicides can facilitate the ability to make predictive and mechanistic generalizations about the role of herbicides in shaping patterns of species abundance in natural systems. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;36:2234-2244. © 2017 SETAC.

Energy cost of intracellular metal and metalloid detoxification in wild-type eukaryotic phytoplankton.

Microalgae use various cellular mechanisms to detoxify both non-essential and excess essential metals or metalloids. There exists however, a threshold in intracellular metal(loid) concentrations beyond which detoxification mechanisms are no longer effective and inhibition of cell division inevitably occurs. It is therefore important to determine whether the availability of energy in the cell could constrain metal(loid) detoxification capacity and to better define the thresholds beyond which a metal(loid) becomes toxic. To do this we performed the first extensive bioenergetics analysis of intracellular metal(loid) detoxification mechanisms (e.g., metal-binding peptides, polyphosphate granules, metal efflux, metal and metalloid reduction, metalloid methylation, enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants) in wild-type eukaryotic phytoplankton based on the biochemical mechanisms of each detoxification strategy and on experimental measurements of detoxifying biomolecules in the literature. The results show that at the onset of metal(loid) toxicity to growth, all the detoxification strategies considered required only a small fraction of the total cellular energy available for growth indicating that intracellular detoxification ability in wild-type eukaryotic phytoplankton species is not constrained by the availability of cellular energy. The present study brings new insights into metal(loid) toxicity mechanisms and detoxification strategies in wild-type eukaryotic phytoplankton.

Energy cost and putative benefits of cellular mechanisms modulating buoyancy in aflagellate marine phytoplankton.

Little information is available on the energetics of buoyancy modulation in aflagellate phytoplankton, which comprises the majority of autotrophic cells found in the ocean. Here, we computed for three aflagellate species of marine phytoplankton (Emiliania huxleyi, Thalassiosira pseudonana, and Ethmodiscus rex) the theoretical minimum energy cost as photons absorbed and nitrogen resource required of the key physiological mechanisms (i.e., replacement of quaternary ammonium by dimethyl-sulfoniopropionate, storage of polysaccharides, and cell wall biosynthesis) affecting the cell's vertical movement as a function of nitrogen (N) availability. These energy costs were also normalized to the capacity of each buoyancy mechanism to modulate sinking or rising rates based on Stokes' law. The three physiological mechanisms could act as ballast in the three species tested in conditions of low N availability at a low fraction (<12%) of the total photon energy cost for growth. Cell wall formation in E. huxleyi was the least costly ballast strategy, whereas in T. pseudonana, the photon energy cost of the three ballast strategies was similar. In E. rex, carbohydrate storage and mobilization appear to be energetically cheaper than modulations in organic solute synthesis to achieve vertical migration. This supports the carbohydrate-ballast strategy for vertical migration for this species, but argues against the theory of replacement of low- or high-density organic solutes. This study brings new insights into the energy cost and potential selective advantages of several strategies modulating the buoyancy of aflagellate marine phytoplankton.

Aquatic risk assessment of a novel strobilurin fungicide: A microcosm study compared with the species sensitivity distribution approach.

The ecotoxicological effects of pyraoxystrobin, a novel strobilurin fungicide, were studied using outdoor freshwater microcosms and the species sensitivity distribution approach. The microcosms were treated with pyraoxystrobin at concentrations of 0, 1.0, 3.0, 10, 30 and 100µg/L. Species sensitivity distribution (SSD) curves were constructed by means of acute toxicity data using the BurrliOZ model for fourteen representatives of sensitive invertebrates, algae and fish and eleven taxa of invertebrates and algae, respectively. The responses of zooplankton, phytoplankton and physical and chemical endpoints in microcosms were studied. Zooplankton, especially Sinodiaptomus sarsi was the most sensitive to pyraoxystrobin exposure in the microcosms. Short-term toxic effects (<8 weeks) on zooplankton occurred in 1µg/L treatment group. The duration of toxic effects on S. sarsi could not be evaluated within the initial 56 days. Significant long-term toxic effects were observed at 10, 30 and 100µg/L (>281 days) for S. sarsi and the zooplankton community. Based on the results obtained from the organisms in the microcosm system, 1µg/L was recommended as the NOEAEC (no observed ecologically adverse effect concentration). Also, 0.33µg/L was derived as the Regulatory Acceptable Concentration based on the ecological recovery option (ERO-RAC) of pyraoxystrobin. For all fourteen tested species, the median HC5 (hazardous concentration affecting 5% of species) was 0.86µg/L, and the lower limit HC5 (LL-HC5) was 0.39µg/L. For the eleven taxa of invertebrates and algae tested, the median HC5 was 1.1µg/L, and the LL-HC5 was 0.26µg/L. The present study positively contributes to the suggestion of adequately using acute L(E)C50-based HC5/ LL-HC5 for deriving protective concentrations for strobilurin fungicides, and it should be valuable for full comprehension of the potential toxicity of pyraoxystrobin in aquatic ecosystems.

Chronic aquatic effect assessment for the fungicide azoxystrobin.

The present study examined the ecological effects of a range of chronic exposure concentrations of the fungicide azoxystrobin in freshwater experimental systems (1270-L outdoor microcosms). Intended and environmentally relevant test concentrations of azoxystrobin were 0 µg active ingredient (a.i.)/L, 0.33 µg a.i./L, 1 µg a.i./L, 3.3 µg a.i./L, 10 µg a.i./L, and 33 µg a.i./L, kept at constant values. Responses of freshwater populations and community parameters were studied. During the 42-d experimental period, the time-weighted average concentrations of azoxystrobin ranged from 93.5% to 99.3% of intended values. Zooplankton, especially copepods and the Daphnia longispina group, were the most sensitive groups. At the population level, a consistent no-observed-effect concentration (NOEC) of 1 µg a.i./L was calculated for Copepoda. The NOEC at the zooplankton community level was 10 µg azoxystrobin/L. The principle of the European Union pesticide directive is that lower-tier regulatory acceptable concentrations (RACs) are protective of higher-tier RACs. This was tested for chronic risks from azoxystrobin. With the exception of the microcosm community chronic RAC (highest tier), all other chronic RAC values were similar to each other (0.5-1 µg a.i./L). The new and stricter first-tier species requirements of the European Union pesticide regulation (1107/2009/EC) are not protective for the most sensitive populations in the microcosm study, when based on the higher tier population RAC. In comparison, the Water Framework Directive generates environmental quality standards that are 5 to 10 times lower than the derived chronic RACs.

Risk assessment of nitrate and petroleum-derived hydrocarbon addition on Contricriba weissflogii biomass, lifetime, and nutritional value.

Coastal diatoms are often exposed to both petroleum-derived hydrocarbon pollution and eutrophication. How these exposures influence on algal biomass, lifetime, and nutritional value are unknown. To examine a more accurate risk assessment of the pollutants on the role of diatoms in coastal ecosystem functions, Conticribra weissflogii was maintained at different concentrations of nitrate (N) and/or water-soluble fractions of No.0 diesel oil (WSF). Algal density, cell growth cycle, protein, chlorophyll a, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, and malonaldehyde (MDA) were determined for the assessment of algal biomass, lifetime, nutritional value, photosynthesis and respiration, antioxidant capacity, and lipid peroxidation, respectively.When N addition was combined with WSF pollution, the cell growth cycles were shortened by 27-44%; SOD activities were decreased by 1-64%; algal density, the concentrations of chlorophyll a, protein, and MDA were varied between 38 and 310%, 62 and 712%, 4 and 124%, and 19 and 233% of the values observed in N addition experiments, respectively. Coastal ecosystem functions were severely weakened by N and WSF additions, and the influence was increased in the order: N

Toxicity of five antibiotics and their mixtures towards photosynthetic aquatic organisms: implications for environmental risk assessment.

The individual and combined toxicities of amoxicillin, erythromycin, levofloxacin, norfloxacin and tetracycline have been examined in two organisms representative of the aquatic environment, the cyanobacterium Anabaena CPB4337 as a target organism and the green alga Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata as a non-target organism. The cyanobacterium was more sensitive than the green alga to the toxic effect of antibiotics. Erythromycin was highly toxic for both organisms; tetracycline was more toxic to the green algae whereas the quinolones levofloxacin and norfloxacin were more toxic to the cyanobacterium than to the green alga. Amoxicillin also displayed toxicity to the cyanobacterium but showed no toxicity to the green alga. The toxicological interactions of antibiotics in the whole range of effect levels either in binary or multicomponent mixtures were analyzed using the Combination Index (CI) method. In most cases, synergism clearly predominated both for the green alga and the cyanobacterium. The CI method was compared with the classical models of additivity Concentration Addition (CA) and Independent Action (IA) finding that CI could accurately predict deviations from additivity. Risk assessment was performed by calculating the ratio between Measured Environmental Concentration (MEC) and the Predicted No Effect Concentration (PNEC). A MEC/PNEC ratio higher than 1 was found for the binary erythromycin and tetracycline mixture in wastewater effluents, a combination which showed a strong synergism at low effect levels in both organisms. From the tested antibiotic mixtures, it can be concluded that certain specific combinations may pose a potential ecological risk for aquatic ecosystems with the present environmentally measured concentrations.

Evaluation of the partial renewal of in situ phytoplankton microcosms and application to the impact assessment of bentazon and dimethenamid.

Microcosms, each consisting of 2L natural surface seawater maintained in 2.3-L glass bottles, were immersed at a depth of 6m. The renewal of 10% of microcosm volumes was carried out every other day. Phytoplankton-containing seawater was used for renewal (previously filtered through 25-, 50- or 200-µm cut-off). Phytoplankton community pigment analysis (by HPLC) and flow cytometry analysis were performed. After 13 days, data exhibited phytoplankton characteristics in microcosms in the same range as that of the natural surrounding sea water over the same period. Furthermore, in these microcosms, a negative correlation was observed between the filtration cut-off used for renewal water, and the total cell count. Herbicides were tested as commercial mixtures at 1, 10 and 100 µgL(-1) active substance. Both Frontier® (dimethenamid) and Basamais® (bentazon) induced significant modifications of the phytoplankton populations at every concentration tested. Such results suggest a possible disturbance in polluted coastal areas.

Comparative study of three analysis methods (TTGE, flow cytometry and HPLC) for xenobiotic impact assessment on phytoplankton communities.

The impacts of the fungicide Opus (epoxiconazole) on marine phytoplankton communities were assessed in a 12-day field experiment using in situ microcosms maintained underwater at 6 m depth. Three community analysis methods were compared for their sensitivity threshold in fungicide impact detection. When phytoplankton communities were exposed to 1 microg l(-1) of epoxiconazole, no effects could be demonstrated using TTGE (Temporal Temperature Gradient gel Electrophoresis), flow cytometry or HPLC. When exposed to 10 microg l(-1), TTGE fingerprints from PCR amplified 18S rDNA of communities exhibited significant differences compared with controls (ANOSIM, P = 0.028). Neither flow cytometry counts, nor HPLC pigment profiles allowed to show significant differences in microcosms exposed to 10 microg l(-1) of epoxiconazole. When exposed to 100 microg l(-1), all three methods allowed to detect significant differences in treated microcosms, as compared to controls. The TTGE analysis appears in this study as the most sensitive method for fungicide impact assessment on eukaryote microbial communities.

Do we have to incorporate ecological interactions in the sensitivity assessment of ecosystems? An examination of a theoretical assumption underlying species sensitivity distribution models.

Species sensitivity distributions (SSDs) are statistical distributions which extrapolate single-species toxicity test results to ecosystem effects. This SSD approach assumes that ecological interactions between populations, such as grazing and competition, do not influence the sensitivity of ecosystems. The validity of this assumption in a simple freshwater pelagic ecosystem was tested using ecosystem modelling. For each of a 1000 hypothetical toxicants, a lognormal SSD was fitted to chronic single-species EC10s of the species present. As such, these distributions did not account for ecological interactions and were therefore termed 'conventional SSDs' (cSSDs). Next, sensitivity distributions that did take into account ecological interactions were constructed (eco-SSD) for the same 1000 toxicants, using an ecosystem model. For 254 of the 1000 hypothetical toxicants, mean and/or variance of the cSSD were significantly higher than mean and/or variance of the eco-SSD, as such rejecting the general validity of the tested assumption. A classification tree approach indicated that especially toxicants which directly affect phytoplankton (i.e. herbicides) may have a higher mean for cSSD than for eco-SSD. Conversely, means of eco-SSD and cSSD tend to be equal for toxicants directly affecting zooplankton and fish, e.g. insecticides. For the 254 hypothetical toxicants for which the tested assumption was false, a predicted no effect concentration (PNEC) calculated as the lowest single-species EC10 divided by an application factor of 10 was on average a factor 10 lower than the corresponding ecosystem-NOEC calculated by the ecosystem model.

Aquatic risk assessment of the new rice herbicide profoxydim.

A tiered protocol for assessing ecological risks has been applied to the rice pesticide profoxydim. The initial assessment (Tier I) was based on toxicity exposure ratio (TER) calculations based on laboratory data using a worst-case rice scenario. The first refinement (Tier II) was based on direct toxicity assessment (DTA) of water samples collected during a field-mesocosm study. Finally, a higher-tier assessment on the in situ assessment of paddy community responses (field-mesocosm-Tier III) was performed. A successive application of three pesticides, the herbicides azimsulfuron, propanil and the insecticide malathion, was used as reference controls. The refined assessments indicated a lower risk than that predicted from TER estimations. DTA-based Tier II showed toxicity effects only for concentrations above the recommended dose of profoxydim. Effects for reference controls were observed in DTA which were not expected from Tier I. The field-mesocosm study confirmed these effects but also showed that they were transient and of low relevance.

A probabilistic model for silver bioaccumulation in aquatic systems and assessment of human health risks.

Silver (Ag) is discharged in wastewater effluents and is also a component in a proposed secondary water disinfectant. A steady-state model was developed to simulate bioaccumulation in aquatic biota and assess ecological and human health risks. Trophic levels included phytoplankton, invertebrates, brown trout, and common carp. Uptake routes included water, food, or sediment. Based on an extensive review of the literature, distributions were derived for most inputs for use in Monte Carlo simulations. Three scenarios represented ranges of dilution and turbidity. Compared with the limited field data available, median estimates of Ag in carp (0.07-2.1 micrograms/g dry weight) were 0.5 to 9 times measured values, and all measurements were within the predicted interquartile range. Median Ag concentrations in biota were ranked invertebrates > phytoplankton > trout > carp. Biotic concentrations were highest for conditions of low dilution and low turbidity. Critical variables included Ag assimilation efficiency, specific feeding rate, and the phytoplankton bioconcentration factor. Bioaccumulation of Ag seems unlikely to result in toxicity to aquatic biota and humans consuming fish. Although the highest predicted Ag concentrations in water (> 200 ng/L) may pose chronic risks to early survival and development of salmonids and risks of argyria to subsistence fishers, these results occur under highly conservative conditions.

Analysis of pesticide runoff from mid-Texas estuaries and risk assessment implications for marine phytoplankton.

During 1993, estuarine surface water samples were collected from the mid-Texas coast (Corpus Christi to Port Lavaca, TX). Agricultural watershed areas as well as tidal creeks immediately downstream were chosen as sampling sites along with adjoining bay sampling stations. Collections were made throughout the growing season (February to October 1993) before and after periods of significant (> 1.25 cm) rainfall. All samples were initially screened for the presence of pesticides using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test kits (EnviroGard) for triazine herbicides and carbamate insecticides. All samples were extracted and then analyzed using gas chromatography (GC) for quantification of atrazine. Only samples testing positive for carbamate insecticides via ELISA were further extracted for GC analysis to quantify aldicarb and carbofuran. Additionally, laboratory toxicity tests using phytoplankton were examined from published, peer-reviewed literature and compared with the atrazine field levels found in Texas. Results of ELISA screening indicated the presence of triazine herbicides in nearly all samples (>93%). GC analysis further confirmed the presence of atrazine concentrations ranging from <0.01-62.5 microg/L. Screening tests also found detectable levels of carbamate insecticides (aldicarb and carbofuran) that were also confirmed and quantified by GC. Comparison of measured concentrations of atrazine compared with published toxicity tests results indicated that there was a potential environmental risk for marine/estuarine phytoplankton in surface waters of Texas estuaries, particularly when the chronic nature of atrazine exposure is considered.

Use of in situ structural and functional variables of phytoplankton of the river Ganga for assessment of heavy metal toxicity.

Toxicity of Cd and Zn on autotrophic index, pigment diversity. 14C uptake, and in situ nitrogenase activity of phytoplankton of the river Ganga has been studied for the first time in India using CEPEX enclosures. Maximum reduction in algal population was noted at 8.0 micrograms ml-1 Cd followed by 8.0 micrograms ml-1 Zn. Complete elimination of two and four species was observed respectively at 4.0 and 8.0 micrograms ml-1 Cd and Zn. The filamentous forms showed greater tolerance against Cd and Zn, whereas unicellular forms were more sensitive to test metals used. Bacillariophytes in general depicted greater sensitivity for both the metals. A concentration-dependent metal-specific increase in autotrophic index and pigment diversity of phytoplankton was noted for Cd and Zn. Inhibition of carbon and nitrogen fixation was, however, concentration dependent and metal specific. Looking at the sensitivity of 14CO2 uptake rather than other variables, we recommend the employment of this parameter for assessment of heavy metal toxicity in an aquatic ecosystem.