Format: ORAL

Silvia Del Vecchio1,2, Marco Picone2, Samira Gurbanli2, Anna Volpi2, Gabriella Buffa2

1 Università Degli Studi Roma Tre, viale Marconi 446, 00146 Roma 2 Università Ca’ Foscari, via Torino 155, 30170 Venezia Mestre

Salt marshes are habitats of high ecological value and conservation concern worldwide. Recently, pharmaceutical pollution has become a further human-induced risk for these already-threatened environments. While the effects of pharmaceutical pollution were investigated on some fishes and invertebrates, they are largely unexplored for wild plants. This research investigated the effect of ibuprofen, one of the most commonly detected pharmaceuticals in surface waters, on seed germination of salt marshes plants. Adverse effects of this emergent contaminant can affect species population dynamics and, consequently, the integrity of salt marsh plant communities. We explored the germination requirements of Juncus acutus, Limonium vulgare, Sarcocornia fruticosa, Tripolium pannonicum. Then, seeds of the best germinating species (Juncus acutus and Limonium vulgare) were exposed to increasing concentrations of ibuprofen (0, 2, 20, 200, and 2000 gL-1), both alone and under saline conditions (NaCl 513 mM). Recovery tests were performed to investigate seeds ability to recover after salinity and Ibuprofen stress. In J. acutus, ibuprofen slightly decreased the germination percentage and increased the standard deviation around the mean values. Ibuprofen also increased the germination time and synchrony, although not significantly. L. vulgare showed a less linear trend and non-significant effects. Recovery tests showed that, although with fluctuating patterns, seeds of both species can recover from salinity, also when exposed in combination with Ibuprofen. This research for the first time empirically tested the effect of ibuprofen on the germination of wild species. Furthermore, it provides relevant insight to understand plant dynamics and their responses to emerging human-induced threats, such as pharmaceutical contamination.