Cigarette butts have become one of the most common and persistent forms of debris in marine coastal areas, where they pose significant toxicity risks. This study investigated cigarette butt pollution along beaches of the Yellow Sea and used laboratory experiments to assess the toxicity of their leachate and fibers on the euryhaline rotifer . A pollution index confirmed pollution by this debris across all eight beaches surveyed, where the density of cigarette butts averaged 0.23 butts/m. In controlled laboratory experiments, both the fibers and leachates from cigarette butts exhibited negative impacts on the development, reproduction, and population growth of rotifers. Unique abnormalities observed under different exposure treatments indicated toxicity specific to certain chemicals and particles. Continuous exposure to cigarette butts initially reduced rotifer fecundity, but this effect diminished over successive generations. However, the exposure induced transgenerational reproductive toxicity in the rotifers. Adaptive responses in rotifers after repeated exposure led to relative reduction in reproductive inhibition in the F3 and F4 generations. Furthermore, rotifers were capable of ingesting and accumulating cigarette butts, and maternal transfer emerged as an alternative pathway for uptake of this material in the offspring. These results increase our understanding of the ecological risks posed by cigarette butts in aquatic environments.

中文翻译：

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海洋微塑料的新威胁：黄海海滩的烟蒂污染以及对轮虫生长和繁殖的潜在毒性风险


烟头已成为沿海地区最常见和最持久的碎片形式之一，造成严重的毒性风险。这项研究调查了黄海海滩上的烟头污染，并利用实验室实验评估了其渗滤液和纤维对广盐轮虫的毒性。污染指数证实了所有接受调查的八个海滩均受到这些碎片的污染，其中烟头的平均密度为 0.23 烟头/平方米。在受控实验室实验中，烟蒂的纤维和渗滤液对轮虫的发育、繁殖和种群增长均表现出负面影响。在不同暴露处理下观察到的独特异常表明某些化学品和颗粒具有特定的毒性。持续接触烟头最初会降低轮虫的繁殖力，但这种影响在连续几代中逐渐减弱。然而，这种暴露会引起轮虫的跨代生殖毒性。轮虫反复接触后的适应性反应导致 F3 和 F4 代的生殖抑制相对减少。此外，轮虫能够摄入和积累烟头，母体转移成为后代吸收这种物质的另一种途径。这些结果增加了我们对烟头在水生环境中造成的生态风险的理解。