Comparison of Toxicity of Heavy Metals and Rare Earth Elements in Zebrafish Larvae and Daphnia magna Neonates Using a Phenomics Approach with Multiple Locomotor Activity Endpoints.
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University, Taoyuan 320314, Taiwan.
- 2Department of Bioscience Technology, Chung Yuan Christian University, Taoyuan 320314, Taiwan.
- 3Department of Chemistry, Chung Yuan Christian University, Taoyuan 320314, Taiwan.
- 4Research Center for Aquatic Toxicology and Pharmacology, Chung Yuan Christian University, Taoyuan 320314, Taiwan.
Abstract
Heavy metals (HMs) and rare earth elements (REEs) persist as environmental contaminants that accumulate in aquatic ecosystems and pose risks to aquatic organisms. Although the toxicity of HMs is well-established, the ecological and biological impacts of REEs remain comparatively underexplored, despite their expanding industrial use. In this study, zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae and Daphnia magna neonates were employed as complementary aquatic models to comparatively assess the toxicological effects of multiple metal groups, leveraging their rapid development and suitability for high-throughput behavioral analysis. Both species were exposed to 17 HMs and 16 REEs across concentration ranges defined by species-specific guidelines to determine LC₅₀ values, followed by 24 h behavioral assessments at sublethal concentrations, and employing optimized, high-throughput protocols. Thirteen behavioral endpoints were analyzed to comprehensively characterize locomotor activity, spatial exploration, and movement complexity. Multivariate behavioral patterns were evaluated using principal component analysis and heatmap clustering. The results revealed pronounced species- and metal-specific toxicity profiles, with several REEs inducing behavioral effects comparable to or exceeding those of certain HMs. Notably, behavioral responses differed between zebrafish larvae and Daphnia magna for the same compounds, highlighting species-specific sensitivity and underscoring the value of multi-species assessment for environmental risk evaluation.
Related
- Lighting and circadian cues shape locomotor strategies for balance and navigation in larval zebrafish.
- Developmental Toxicity of Tetrabromobisphenol A Bis(allyl ether) in Zebrafish: Redox Disturbance and Osteoclast-Associated Skeletal Responses.
- Endocrine and systemic toxicity of pyriproxyfen in adult female zebrafish: disruption of the HPT axis and peripheral organ impairments
- Comparison of intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) and intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for oropharyngeal cancer: efficacy and toxicity differ by outcome measure
- Scalable Computational Phenomics of Nuclear Morphology
BibTeX
@article{khan2026comparison,
title = {{Comparison of Toxicity of Heavy Metals and Rare Earth Elements in Zebrafish Larvae and Daphnia magna Neonates Using a Phenomics Approach with Multiple Locomotor Activity Endpoints.}},
author = {Basit Ali Khan and Minh-Quan Tran and Muhammad Baqir Khan and Chung-Der Hsiao},
journal = {Toxics},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/toxics14100862},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42931649},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Comparison of Toxicity of Heavy Metals and Rare Earth Elements in Zebrafish Larvae and Daphnia magna Neonates Using a Phenomics Approach with Multiple Locomotor Activity Endpoints.
AU - Basit Ali Khan
AU - Minh-Quan Tran
AU - Muhammad Baqir Khan
AU - Chung-Der Hsiao
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/28
JO - Toxics
DO - 10.3390/toxics14100862
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42931649
AB - Heavy metals (HMs) and rare earth elements (REEs) persist as environmental contaminants that accumulate in aquatic ecosystems and pose risks to aquatic organisms. Although the toxicity of HMs is well-established, the ecological and biological impacts of REEs remain comparatively underexplored, despite their expanding industrial use. In this study, zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae and Daphnia magna neonates were employed as complementary aquatic models to comparatively assess the toxicological effects of multiple metal groups, leveraging their rapid development and suitability for high-throughput behavioral analysis. Both species were exposed to 17 HMs and 16 REEs across concentration ranges defined by species-specific guidelines to determine LC₅₀ values, followed by 24 h behavioral assessments at sublethal concentrations, and employing optimized, high-throughput protocols. Thirteen behavioral endpoints were analyzed to comprehensively characterize locomotor activity, spatial exploration, and movement complexity. Multivariate behavioral patterns were evaluated using principal component analysis and heatmap clustering. The results revealed pronounced species- and metal-specific toxicity profiles, with several REEs inducing behavioral effects comparable to or exceeding those of certain HMs. Notably, behavioral responses differed between zebrafish larvae and Daphnia magna for the same compounds, highlighting species-specific sensitivity and underscoring the value of multi-species assessment for environmental risk evaluation.
SN - 2305-6304
ER -