Nocturnal seston: A key to explain the cadmium transfer from seawater to mussels (Mytilus chilensis).

The objective of this work was to discover a biochemical pathway to explain the transfer of cadmium, a toxic element, from seawater to cultured mussels. Understanding the intricacies of this transfer is crucial for global mussel crops, as it has the potential to mitigate risks to human health and prevent economic losses in the industry. We focused our investigation on Yal Bay, a typical area with intense mussel aquaculture activity (16,000 t y-1) in the inland sea of southern Chile. Seasonal samples of blue mussels (Mytilus chilensis) were collected and analyzed from September 2014 to December 2015 at two integrated depths (0-5 m and 5-10 m). Diurnal and nocturnal seston, seawater, benthic sediments and decanted suspensions from the water column were recorded. Our findings indicate that nocturnal seston satisfactorily explains the presence of cadmium in Mytilus chilensis aquaculture throughout its annual temporal distribution (Spearman rs = 0.63, p = 0.002).

Cadmium determination in Chilean blue mussels Mytilus chilensis: Implications for environmental and agronomic interest.

Cadmium is present in agricultural soil composition and is assimilated by plants. The mussel industry generates large volumes of calcareous valves as a byproduct of processing in factories. This solid waste is ground, stored and disposed of in the form of agricultural supplies near production areas in almost all regions of the world. Cd content was recorded in these calcareous substrate by-products of industrial processes. In this study, mussel shells were investigated in three areas in the sea of Chile; two areas with high aquaculture activity and one in a non-production area. Mass Spectrometry was used for [Cd] readings. There are no significant differences (p=0.92) in [Cd] between the studied areas. Additionally, the [Cd] observed in valves was also similar relative to different depths. The low [Cd] observed in valves (~0.014±0.0049mgCdkg-1 dry) suggests the potential use of this industrial byproduct in agricultural applications.