Multi-Level Responses of Yellow Perch (Perca flavescens) to a Whole-Lake Nanosilver Addition Study

Silver nanoparticles (AgNP) are widely used as antibacterial agents in both commercial products and for industrial applications. As such, AgNP has a high potential for release into freshwater environments. As part of a whole-lake ecosystem experiment to examine the impacts of AgNP exposure at low µg/L concentrations over multiple years, we evaluated biological responses in Yellow Perch (Perca flavescens) before, during, and after AgNP additions to a freshwater lake. Yellow Perch were monitored for responses to in situ AgNP additions at the cellular (suite of biomarkers), individual (growth, prey consumption, and metabolism), and population (abundance and gross prey consumption) scales. At the cellular level, several biomarkers of oxidative stress in liver tissues revealed down-regulation, including decreased mRNA levels of catalase and glutathione peroxidase in Yellow Perch collected during AgNP exposure, and elevated ratios of reduced to oxidized glutathione. At the individual level, Yellow Perch bioenergetic models revealed that prey consumption and total metabolism significantly declined during AgNP additions and remained depressed one year after AgNP addition. At the population level, Yellow Perch densities and gross prey consumption declined after AgNP was added to the lake. Together, these results reveal a holistic assessment of the negative impacts of chronic exposure to environmentally relevant AgNP concentrations (i.e., µg/L) on Yellow Perch at cellular, individual, and population levels.