Responses of Unio tumidus to mixed chemical preparations and the hazard of synecological summation of anthropogenic effects. - Doklady Biological Sciences, 2001, Volume 380, Numbers 1-6, p. 492-495. ISSN 0012-4966 (Print) 1608-3105 (Online). DOI 10.1023/A:1012344026176. The author introduced a new concept and term, “the synecological summation of the effects of anthropogenic factors on organisms”. In the new author’s experiments, the effects of commercial detergents, which are chemical mixtures, on bivalves (detergent OMO, freshwater mussels Unio tumidus) were studied. Detergents exert two types of hazardous effects on organisms and ecosystems: the phosphorus-induced stimulation of phytoplankton growth and surfactant-induced inhibition of filter-feeders. Because filter-feeders are an effective natural factor of control of unicellular plankton populations, the two types of the detergent-induced effects on ecosystem facilitate the growth of phytoplankton populations. Therefore, these effects sum together, thereby increasing the hazard of the man-made impact on the ecosystem. The results contribute to a better understanding of the potential ecological danger of pollutants for integral functions of ecosystems. It is the synecological summation of the effects of anthropogenic factors on plankton populations and filter-feeders that is of particular concern. The interaction between populations of plankton organisms and filter-feeders that feed on plankton should be taken into consideration in the studies on the ecological effects of synthetic detergents on these populations. Situations of man-made impact should be analyzed with using the synecological approach to the problem. http://sites.google.com/site/2001dbs380p492unio/; www.springerlink.com/index/L33309208H28L87R.pdf; DOI 10.1023/A:1012344026176; Translated from the original Russian paper: Responses of Unio tumidus to a mixture of chemicals and the hazard of synecological summation of anthropogenic effects (Reagirovanie Unio tumidus pri vozdeistvii smesevogo himicheskogo preparata i opasnost sinekologicheskogo summirovaniya antropogennyh vozdeistviy). — DAN. 2001. Vol. 380. No. 5. P. 714-717. (in Rus.). Key words: bivalves, freshwater mussels, Unio tumidus, detergents, mixed chemical preparations, hazards, synecological summation of anthropogenic effects, new concept, pollution, filter-feeders, water self-purification, water quality, aquatic ecosystem, bioassay

Water self-purification [1-7] is an important example of ecosystem services. This function of aquatic ecosystems is necessary for sustainable development, and for sustainable use of aquatic resources (water resources), as well for environmental safety. The analysis made by the author in a published paper (Ostroumov, 2008) [8] showed that aquatic ecosystem (both marine and freshwater one) features a multi-component molecular-ecological mechanism for upgrading water quality. In other words, it is a multi-component, multi-process biomachinery for water quality formation and self-purification. The biomachinery includes the following items: (1) sources of energy for self-purification mechanisms, (2) the major taxa of living organisms as components of the biomachinery; (3) the biomachinery contains the functional blocks that perform functions of filters, mills, and pumps. A set of six principles was formulated. Experiments that the author carried out demonstrated how several types of chemical pollutants may produce damage to this delicate and very useful biomachinery which makes water clean. The experiments demonstrated that some chemical pollutants decreased important and useful functions of aquatic invertebrate animals which contribute to purification of water. We have found that the chemical pollutant as diverse as synthetic surfactants, detergents, salts of Cd, Cu, Pb, Hg, Co, Ti, V (Na3VO4 •12 H2O), and oil hydrocarbons inhibited water filtration by bivalve molluscs, the marine mussels (the Latin name of the mussels: Mytilus galloprovincialis). One of the practical conclusions is that we now see another aspect of important hazard from the low, sublethal concentrations of the chemicals that pollute the aquatic environment. Not only death of aquatic organisms, but also even a decrease of their functional activity in polluted aquatic ecosystems poses some danger and risk to the water system. The potential hazard of those low levels of the chemical pollutants is that the potential of the ecosystem to purify water will be decreased. As a final result, in future we may have water of worse quality. This theory presented in [8-12] may be of interest to scientists and specialists in the following fields: aquatic ecology, water science, environmental toxicology and chemistry, ecotoxicology, and water resource management. References. 1. L. M. Sushchenya, Quantitative Parameters of Crustacean Nutrition (Nauka i Tekhnika, Minsk, 1975). 2. A. F. Alimov, Principles of the Theory of Aquatic Ecosystem Functioning (Nauka, St. Petersburg, 2000). 3. R. G. Wetzel, Limnology: Lake and River Ecosystems (Academic Press, San Diego, 2001). 4. Yu. A. Izrael and A. V. Tsyban’, Anthropogenic Ecology of the Ocean (Gidrometeoizdat, Leningrad, 1989). 5. T. I. Moiseenko, Izv. Akad. Nauk. Ser. Geogr. 6, 68 (1999). 6. D. G. Matishov and G. G. Matishov, Radiational Ecological Oceanology (Kola Research Center, Apatity, 2001) . 7. Abakumov V. A., Ecological Studies, Hazards, Solutions, No. 11, 34 (2006). 8. Ostroumov S. A. Basics of the molecular-ecological mechanism of water quality formation and water self-purification. - Contemporary Problems of Ecology, 2008 (Feb), Vol. 1, No. 1, p. 147-152. [ISSN 1995-4255 (Print) 1995-4263 (Online); DOI 10.1134/S1995425508010177; http://www.springerlink.com/content/e380263154u73045/; http://www.researchgate.net/file.FileLoader.html?key=e533be77c87735c6dcc5cfdb9db96cec; 9. Ostroumov S. A. Doklady Biological Sciences, 2000. Vol. 374, P. 514-516; 10.Ostroumov S. A. DAN 2004, 396: 136-141; 11. Ostroumov S. A. On the Multifunctional Role of the Biota in the Self-Purification of Aquatic Ecosystems // Russian Journal of Ecology, Vol. 36, No. 6, 2005, pp. 414–420 (in English); Publisher: MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica co-published with Springer Science + Business Media, Inc. ISSN: 1067-4136 (Paper) 1608-3334 (Online); Ekologiya, No. 6, 2005, pp. 452–459 (in Russian); 12. Ostroumov S. A. Biotic self-purification of aquatic ecosystems: from the theory to ecotechnologies. - Ecologica International, 2007. 15(50), p.15-23;

Contemporary Problems of Ecology, 2008, Vol. 1, No. 1, p. 147-152. http://scipeople.com/publication/99105/; Water self-purification is an important example of ecosystem services. This function of aquatic ecosystems is necessary for sustainable development, and for sustainable use of aquatic resources (water resources), as well for environmental safety. The analysis made by the author in a published paper (Ostroumov, 2008) showed that aquatic ecosystem (both marine and freshwater one) features a multi-component molecular-ecological mechanism for upgrading water quality. In other words, it is a multi-component, multi-process biomachinery for water quality formation and self-purification. The biomachinery includes the following items: (1) sources of energy for self-purification mechanisms, (2) the major taxa of living organisms as components of the biomachinery; (3) the biomachinery contains the functional blocks that perform functions of filters, mills, and pumps. The experiments that the author carried out demonstrated how several types of chemical pollutants may produce damage to this delicate and very useful biomachinery which makes water clean. The experiments demonstrated that some chemical pollutants decreased important and useful functions of aquatic invertebrate animals which contribute to purification of water. We have found that the chemical pollutant as diverse as synthetic surfactants, detergents, salts of Cd, Cu, Pb, Hg, Co, Ti, V (Na3VO4 •12 H2O), and oil hydrocarbons inhibited water filtration by bivalve molluscs, the marine mussels (the Latin name of the mussels: Mytilus galloprovincialis). One of the practical conclusions is that we now see another additional aspect of important hazard from the low, sublethal concentrations of the chemicals that pollute the aquatic environment. Not only death of aquatic organisms, but also even a decrease of their functional activity in polluted aquatic ecosystems poses some danger and risk to the water system. The potential hazard of those low levels of the chemical pollutants is that the potential of the ecosystem to purify water will be decreased. As a final result, in future we may have water of worse quality. This may be of interest to the scientists and specialists in the following fields: aquatic ecology, water science, environmental toxicology and chemistry, ecotoxicology, and water resource management. The reference to the paper where this analysis was published: Ostroumov S. A. Basics of the molecular-ecological mechanism of water quality formation and water self-purification. - Contemporary Problems of Ecology, 2008 (Feb), Vol. 1, No. 1, p. 147-152. [ISSN 1995-4255 (Print) 1995-4263 (Online); DOI 10.1134/S1995425508010177; http://www.springerlink.com/content/e380263154u73045/; http://www.researchgate.net/file.FileLoader.html?key=e533be77c87735c6dcc5cfdb9db96cec;

Biological filtering and ecological machinery for self-purification and bioremediation in aquatic ecosystems: towards a holistic view // Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 1998. V. 91(2). P.221-232. http://scipeople.ru/publication/69542/ табл. Резюме на англ. и итальянск. (с.232) языках. Библ. 24 назв. Из содерж.: Обобщенные концепции фильтрации воды гидробионтами, роли и функций гидробионтов, участвующих в фильтрации воды в экосистемах. Додецилсульфат натрия (ДСН, SDS) 1 мг/л ингибировал фильтрацию (35-95 мин, 16°С) M. edulis и удаление клеток Isochrysis galbana из воды. В присутствии SDS количество клеток, оставшихся в воде неотфильтрованными через 95 мин, втрое превышало количество клеток в контроле без ДСН. Назв. на итальянск. яз.: Il filtraggio biologico e i procedimenti ecologici per l'auto-purificazione degli ecosistemi acquatici. According to one of the approaches to the definition of criteria for the phenomenon of life, the key attribute is the ability of the system for some self-regulating and self-supporting. Part of such holistic functions of aquatic ecosystems as self-regulating and self-supporting is their cleaning the water via a multitude of various mechanisms. The goal of this paper is to present some fundamental elements of the theory of ecosystem self-purification which emphasizes the importance of the four functional biological filters that are instrumental in purification and upgrading the quality of water in aquatic ecosystems. These functional filters are: (1) direct water filtering by aquatic organisms that are filter-feeders; (2) the filter (represented mainly by communities of aquatic plants/periphyton) which prevents input of pollutants and biogenic elements (N, P) from land into water bodies; (3) the filter (represented by benthic organisms) which prevents re-entry of pollutants and biogenic elements from the bottom sediments into the water; (4) the filter (represented by microorganisms attached to particles which are suspended in the water) that provides microbiological treatment of water column. New experimental data by the author reveal the role of man-made effects on the ecological machinery which purifies water. The analysis and discussion lead to the holistic theory of the natural process of bioremediation of aquatic ecosystems. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9857844?dopt=Abstract; PMID: 9857844 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE];
Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 1998. V. 91(2). P.221-232, табл. Резюме на англ. и итальянск. (с.232) языках. Библ. 24 назв.

Filter-feeders as part of ecological biomachinery to purify water // Verh. Internat. Verein. Limnol. 2005. Vol. 29/2 (Verhandlungen Internationale Vereinigung für theoretische und angewandte Limnologie; Stuttgart, E.Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung), p.1072-1075. Bibliogr. 16 refs. [Proceedings, SIL Congress 2004; in the text: "We predict that new examples of xenobiotics that inhibit the filtration activity of aquatic organisms will be found in future"]. [SIL XXIX Congress Lahti Finland, 8 - 14 August 2004; Edited for the Association by: Jones, J. 2005. VIII , 548 pages, 25x17cm (Verhandlungen IVL, Volume 29 Part 2); ISBN 3-510-54066-2; ISBN 978-3-510-54066-2, paperback] http://www.schweizerbart.de/pubs/books/es/verhandlun-167002902-desc.html; http://www.borntraeger-cramer.de/publications/detail/isbn/9783510540662/XXIX-Congress-Lahti-Finland-8---14-August-2004;
Verh. Internat. Verein. Limnol. 2005. Vol. 29/2 (Verhandlungen Internationale Vereinigung für theoretische und angewandte Limnologie; Stuttgart, E.Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung), p.1072-1075. Bibliogr. 16 refs. [Proceedings, SIL Congress 2004]. [SIL XXIX Congress Lahti Finland, 8 - 14 August 2004; Edited for the Association by Jones, J. 2005.

Effects of sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate and sodium dodecyl sulfate on the Mytilus galloprovincialis biomarker system. Liu B., Z. Yu, X. Song, F. Yang - Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 2009. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2009.12.011 | How to Cite or Link Using DOI Crown copyright © 2009 Published by Elsevier Inc. Bo Liu a, b, Corresponding Author Contact Information, E-mail The Corresponding Author, Zhiming Yu a, Xiuxian Song a and Fei Yang b a Key Laboratory of Marine Ecology & Environmental Sciences, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China b Key Laboratory of Marine Bio-resources Sustainable Utilization in Liaoning Province’s University, Dalian Fisheries University, Dalian 116023, China Received 3 August 2009; revised 3 December 2009; accepted 6 December 2009. Available online 31 December 2009. Abstract: The effects of in vivo exposure of Mytilus galloprovincialis to two anionic surfactants (SDBS and SDS) on the molecular biomarker system were studied. After continuous exposure for 72 days, activities/levels of GST, GPx and GSH were significantly higher than in corresponding control groups following exposure to 3.000 mg/L SDS and SDBS. Activities of SOD and CAT were significantly inhibited by experimental SDBS (except CAT in 0.100 mg/L group), but not by SDS. Statistical analysis of enzyme activities/levels suggested that there were significant positive relationships between GST and GPx, and negative relationships were found between GSH and CAT, GSH and SOD. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) results showed that a greater genotoxic effect was observed for SDBS than for SDS. Based on the above results, the biomarker system of mussels can be affected by the two anionic surfactants (≥3.000 mg/L); it was more easily affected by SDBS than by SDS. Fragment of the text: With large discharges of anionic surfactants every year, the effects of anionic surfactants on antioxidant enzymes of bivalve/fish have attracted more and more recent attention (Guilhermino et al., 2000; Ostroumov, 2003; da Silva and Meirelles, 2004; Romanelli et al., 2004; Wu et Keywords: Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS); Sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS); Mytilus galloprovincialis; Biomarker; Antioxidant enzymes; Genotoxicity; Metabolism Article Outline: 1. Introduction 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Site description 2.2. Experimental organisms and chemicals 2.3. Experimental setup 2.3.1. Exposure experiment protocol 2.3.2. Biochemical indices analysis 2.3.2.1. Supernatant preparation 2.3.2.2. Measurement of the indices 2.3.2.3. Statistical analysis 2.3.3. DNA extraction and AFLP analysis 3. Results 3.1. Biochemical responses of mussels subjected to various treatments and pearson correlation coefficients between the indices detected in M. galloprovincialis 3.2. AFLP analysis 4. Discussion 4.1. Biochemical indices analysis 4.1.1. Phase II enzymes and cofactors 4.1.2. Oxidative stress parameters 4.1.3. Immunological parameters 4.2. Genotoxic parameter 5. Conclusion Acknowledgements References Thumbnail image Fig. 1. Map of the Jiaozhou Bay with locations of sampling stations. View Within Article Thumbnail image Fig. 2. Examples of AFLP pattern obtained comparing DNA from control (2) and treated (1) SDS 3.0 or (3) SDBS 3.0, using E35-M62. View Within Article Thumbnail image Fig. 3. Dendrogram, computed with SM index, defining genetic differences due to DNA sequences, between SDS 3.0 (1), SDBS 3.0 (3) and control (2). View Within Article Table 1. Sequences of primers used for AFLP analysis. View table in article View Within Article Table 2. Biochemical response (mean with standard deviation in parenthesis) of mussels subjected to various treatments and analysis. C, control; SDS, sodium dodecyl sulfate; SDBS, sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate. View table in article GSH is reported as nmol/mg protein; GST is reported as nmol GSH consumed/mg protein/min; GPx is reported as μmol NADPH oxidized/mg protein/min; SOD is reported as U/mg protein/min; CAT is reported as ln(A1/A2)/(t2−t1)/mg protein; AKP is reported as mg phenol/mg protein/15 min; iNOS is reported as nmol NO/mg protein/min. *p<0.05, denotes statistically significantly different from the control group. View Within Article Table 3. Pearson correlation coefficients between the indices detected in Mytilus galloprovincialis (effect of SDS-above diagonal; effect of SDBS-below diagonal). View table in article (**p<0.01, *p<0.05) View Within Article Corresponding author at: Key Laboratory of Marine Bio-resources Sustainable Utilization in Liaoning Province’s University, Dalian Fisheries University, Dalian 116023, China. ...
Effects of sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate and sodium dodecyl sulfate on the Mytilus galloprovincialis biomarker system. Liu B., Z. Yu, X. Song, F. Yang - Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 2009. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2009.12.011

Ostroumov S. A. Aquatic ecosystem as a bioreactor: water purification and some other functions. - Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 2004. vol. 97. p. 39-50. Abstract (short). A fundamental concept is proposed of aquatic ecosystem as a bioreactor that carries out the function of water purification in natural water bodies and streams. The ecosystem as a bioreactor has the following characteristic attributes: (1) it is a large-scale (large-volume) bioreactor; (2) it is a diversified (in terms of the number of taxa and the scope of functional activities) bioreactor; (3) it possesses a broad range of biocatalytic (chemical-transforming and degrading) capabilities. New experimental data on xenobiotics -induced inhibition of the water filtration performed by the molluscs Unio tumidus, U. pictorum, M. galloprovincialis and inhibition of feeding by Limnaea stagnalis emphasized the potential ecological hazard from sublethal concentrations of pollutants (including those exemplified by synthetic surfactants and detergents). Keywords: environmental hazards, man-made impacts, anthropogenic effects, pollutants, xenobiotics, aquatic ecosystems, water purification, water filtration, bivalves, surfactants, detergents, biosphere, water quality; SDS, sodium dodecylsulfate; TX100, Triton X-100; TDTMA, tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide; ABSTRACT (EXTENDED, with fragments of the text of the paper): Ostroumov S. A. Aquatic ecosystem as a bioreactor: water purification and some other functions. Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 2004. vol. 97. p. 39-50. 1 Introduction 2 Methods 3 Role of the main groups of organisms in the biological processes of water purification 4 Aquatic ecosystem as a bioreactor with some features 5. Man-made effects and the effects of some xenobiotics 6. Aquatic ecosystems as part of the apparatus of the biosphere 7. Conclusions. Abbreviations: SDS, sodium dodecylsulfate; TX100, Triton X-100; TDTMA, tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide; 1. INTRODUCTION Priorities of ecological research include the further studies of ecosystem functioning (Ostroumov et al., [2003]) that include functioning towards water purification (the self-purification of water) in natural water bodies and streams. The self-purification of water in natural ecosystems is a complex group of processes which includes physical, chemical, and biological components (Sushchenya, [1975]; Alimov [ 1981], [2000]; Skurlatov, [1988]; Uhlmann, [1988]; Izrael, and Tsyban, [1989]; Ostroumov [1998], [2001], [2002b]; Wetzel [2001]). Although biological aspects of water self-purification are generally attributed to heterotrophic microorganisms, the other groups of organisms are also known to play a significant role in this process (Sushchenya, [1975]; Konstantinov [1979], Alimov [ 1981], [2000], Wallace, and Starkweather, [1985]; Vymazal, [1988]; Walz, [1995]; Monakov[1998]; Wetzel [2001]; also, Vinberg, [1973]; Bul'on, Nikulina, [1976]; Ivanova,[1976]; Khlebovich, [1976]; - cit. in Ostroumov, [2001]). The goal of this work was to analyze some data from the literature and our own experimental data on water self-purification under natural conditions and to formulate a fundamental concept of the aquatic ecosystem as an analog of a bioreactor (in a broad sense) that contributes to water self-purification mediated by main groups of aquatic organisms. This paper is based on some previous publications of the author (Ostroumov [2000c], [2001], [2002a]). 2. METHODS. The rate of water purification by macrozoobenthic filter feeders was measured experimentally as described earlier (Ostroumov [2001]). After the water sample had been kept with filter feeders for a certain time, the water filtration efficiency was monitored by the measuring the optical density of the suspension of unfiltered single - cell organisms that remained in the water column. The control samples of water were subjected to the same procedure of filtration, but without the contaminant (chemical) tested. Some other methods of the studies of the effects of contaminants on aquatic organisms are described in (Waterbury & Ostroumov [1994] , Ostroumov et al. [1997]). 3. ROLE OF THE MAIN GROUPS OF ORGANISMS IN THE BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES OF WATER PURIFICATION. Self-purification of water includes the following biological processes: (1) biodegradation of contaminants; (2) accumulation and sequestration of toxicants in aquatic organisms and the resultant removal of the toxicants from the water column (e.g. Vymazal, [1988]); (3) generation and emission of oxygen required for oxidative degradation of contaminants; (4) uptake of biogenic substances (including N and P) and organic substances from the aquatic environment; (5) production of exometabolites; (6) water filtration (Sushchenya, [1975]; Alimov [1981]; Wallace, and Starkweather, [1985]; Monakov [1998]); and (7) formation of pellet and detritus particles (e.g., Wotton et al. [1998]); and their sedimentation to the bottom (for review, see e.g., Konstantinov,[ 1979]; Ostroumov [1986], [1998], [2001], [2002b]; Skurlatov, [ 1988]). This list is far from complete, and some other biological phenomena simultaneously contribute to several processes listed above. Analysis of the relative contributions of individual groups of aquatic organisms to water self-purification as an integral function of an ecosystem (Table 1) shows that the main groups of organisms simultaneously contribute to several processes of the system of water self-purification. None of the main groups of aquatic organisms can be regarded as being insignificant in terms of water purification. The role of each group of aquatic organisms in these processes can be summarized as an integral ecological rating, which is calculated as the sum of the number of pluses in the corresponding row of Table 1. It is seen from Table 1 that this rating is sufficiently high in all groups of organisms. Thus, the whole range of biological diversity of aquatic organisms is an important factor in water self-purification (Sushchenya, [1975]; Alimov [1981, 2000], Wallace, and Starkweather, [1985]; Wotton et al. [1998]; Ostroumov [2001], Wetzel [2001]). The biota representatives of the water column, the entire ecosystem volume, the boundary regions of the ecosystem, and zones of contact between the ecosystem and its environment are involved in water purification. Activities of unicellular organisms (including those freely suspended in water, immobilized, and attached to various particles, surfaces, and substrates) (e.g., Inkina, [1988]) as well as of other aquatic organisms (e.g., Ostroumov [2001], Wetzel [2001]) suggest that an aquatic ecosystem may be regarded as a bioreactor (in a metaphorically broad sense; i.e., including biological, physical, and chemical aspects). However, unlike industrial bioreactors, such a broad-sense bioreactor has the following important features. 4. AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM AS A BIOREACTOR WITH SOME FEATURES. The first feature is a fundamental difference in the bioreactor size. The volume of technological bioreactors does not exceed a few hundred cubic meters, whereas the volume of natural ecosystems is significantly larger. For example, the volumes of lake and estuary ecosystems reach thousands of cubic kilometers: Lake Baikal, 22995 km 3 ; Lake Superior, 12221 km 3 ; Lake Michigan, 4871 km 3 ; Lake Issyk-Kul, 1730 km 3 ; Lake Ladoga, 908 km 3 ; Lake Onega, 280 km 3 ; Lake Balkhash, 112 km 3 ; and Lake Sevan, 38 km 3 ; (1 km 3 = 10 9 m 3 ). This increases the biospheric role of ecological, biochemical, and biofiltration processes in these systems. Therefore, the physical size and volume of the system within which water self-purification take place should be taken into consideration. Thus, natural ecosystems can be regarded as large-size (large-scale) analogues of bioreactors. The second feature is the differences (in terms of size and diversity) between the gene-pool of organisms inhabiting natural ecosystems and the genetic pool of organizms grown in technological bioreactors. This difference leads to a significantly larger diversity of functional activities of organisms in natural ecosystems. Technological bioreactors are usually inoculated with monocultures or, less frequently, mixed cultures with a small number of constituting species. In contrast to technological bioreactors, the biological diversity of natural ecosystems is substantially broader. According to some incomplete estimates, the number of species in natural ecosystems is as many as several hundred to several thousand (e.g., Konstantinov, [1979]). These estimates were obtained without regard to the number of strains of individual microbial species. If the prokaryote strains are taken into account, the quantitative estimates of the biological diversity of taxa in natural ecosystems may increase by several orders of magnitude. Third, an aquatic ecosystem is characterized by a higher degree of autonomy (including energy autonomy) than technological bioreactors. This autonomy is based on the presence of autotrophic organisms. Thus we suggest that natural ecosystems should be regarded as multispecies and diversified (i.e., based on the diversity of organisms and their functions) analogs of bioreactors, implementing a broad spectrum of catalytic functions (including transformation and degradation of contaminants). 5. MAN-MADE EFFECTS AND THE EFFECTS OF SOME XENOBIOTICS. Anthropogenic sublethal effects (including the inhibition of physiological activities) and behavioral changes in virtually any group or taxon of aquatic organisms may decrease the bioreactor efficiency. Some sublethal effects should be regarded as a potential hazard to the purification function (Ostroumov [1998], [2000a ], [2000b], [2002a]; Ostroumov et al. [1997], [1999 ] ). Because the main groups of macroorganisms and microorganisms play a substantial role in self-purification of ecosystems, it is very important to compare the sensitivities of the organisms to various contaminants. In some cases, macroorganisms are at least as sensitive (or even more sensitive) to contaminants as microorganisms (Table 2). According to the presently adopted regulation of ecological monitoring and bioassaying, the ability of chemical compounds to damage the self-purification potential of ecosystems is being tested using heterotrophic bacteria alone. However, it follows from Table 2 that this approach may result in an underestimation of the effects of contaminants on more sensitive biological components of self-purified ecosystems (e.g., some macroorganisms). We obtained new data on the ability of xenobiotics to inhibit water filtration by marine and freshwater organisms and on the hygienic function of pulmonary mollusks associated with elimination of organic matter (the removal of phytomass) from the water column in aquatic ecosystems (Table 3). Some sublethal concentrations of contaminants may inhibit vital activities of other organisms involved in the functioning of the ecosystem as an analog of a bioreactor (e.g., Ostroumov [2001], [2002a], Ostroumov et al. [1999]). 6. AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS AS PART OF THE APPARATUS OF THE BIOSPHERE. V.I. Vernadsky considered the biota as the apparatus of the biosphere (Vernadsky, [2001]). To continue and develop his thought, we could consider aquatic ecosystems and aquatic biota as a key part of that apparatus. In that capacity, aquatic ecosystem carries a number of functions, not only the one function discussed above (water purification). Among those biospherically important functions are the following: (1) production of organic matter; (2) removing the excess organic matter; ( 3 ) mediating, catalyzing, and regulating biogeochemical flows and cycles; ( 4) harboring biodiversity and by doing so harboring the genetic pool of biodiversity; (5) providing links among various parts of the biosphere; ( 6) contributing to stability of the biosphere. 7. CONCLUSIONS. The fundamental concept put forward in this work emphasizes that both the biological diversity of aquatic organisms and their normal level of physiological activities are required to provide the effective functioning of an ecosystem as an analog of a bioreactor. That bioreactor carries a number of biospherically important functions and processes (we call them 'microbiospheric processes') including those of water purification (environmental remediation, ecological repair). This may lead to a deeper insight into the mechanisms of aquatic ecosystems and to better understanding of hazards of the anthropogenic impact on the biosphere (Yablokov, Ostroumov [1983], [1985], [1991]; Ostroumov [1986]; [Wetzel, 2001]). REFERENCES Alimov, A. F., [1981], Functional ecology of bivalves. - Nauka Press, Leningrad. 248 pp. Alimov A.F. [2000], Elements of aquatic ecosystem function theory. Nauka Press, St.Peterburg. Inkina, G.A. [1988]. Bacteria as a component of the suspended matter in water ecosystems. - Microbiology (Mikrobiologijja, in Russ.) 57: 140-145. Izrael, Yu. A. and A. V. Tsyban, [1989]: Anthropogenic ecology of the ocean. - Gidrometizdat., Leningrad, 528 pp. Konstantinov, A.S., [1979]. Obshchaya gidrobiologiya (General Hydrobiology), Vysshaya Shkola, Moscow. Monakov, A.V.1998: Feeding of freshwater invertebrates.– Institute of Ecological and Evolutionary Problems of Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 322 p. Ostroumov, S.A., [1986], Vvedenie v biokhimicheskuyu ekologiyu (Introduction to Biochemical Ecology), Moscow University Press, Moscow. –176 p. Ostroumov S.A. [1998], Biological filtering and ecological machinery for self-purification and bioremediation in aquatic ecosystems: towards a holistic view. Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 91: 247-258.13. Ostroumov, S.A., [2000a], Biological effects of surfactants in connection with the anthropogenic impact on the biosphere. MAX Press, Moscow. 116 p. Ostroumov S. A. [2000b], Criteria of Ecological Hazards Due to Anthropogenic Effects on the Biota: Searching for a System. Doklady Biological Sciences, 371: 204–206. (Translated from the Russian edition: Ostroumov, S.A., [2000] Doklady Akademii Nauk, 371 ( 6): 844–846). Ostroumov S.A. [2000 c] Aquatic ecosystem: a large-scale, diversified bioreactor with the function of water self-purification. Doklady Akademii Nauk, 374, (3) : 427–429. Ostroumov, S.A., [ 2001], Biological effects of surfactants on organisms. MAX Press, Moscow. 334 p. Ostroumov S.A. [2002a]. Inhibitory analysis of top-down control: new keys to studying eutrophication, algal blooms, and water self-purification. Hydrobiologia. 469: 117-129 p. Ostroumov S.A. [2002b]. Polyfunctional role of biodiversity in processes leading to water purification: current conceptualizations and concluding remarks. Hydrobiologia. 469 (1-3): -203-204 p. Ostroumov S. A. [2003]. Studying effects of some surfactants and detergents on filter-feeding bivalves. Hydrobiologia. 500: 341-344. Ostroumov S.A., Dodson S., Hamilton D., Peterson S., and Wetzel R.G. [2003] Medium-term and long-term priorities in ecological studies. Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 96: 327-332. Ostroumov, S.A., Donkin, P., and Staff, F., [1997], Effects of surfactants on mussels Mytilus edulis. Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Serija Biologiya (Bulletin of Moscow University. Series Biology.) 3 : 30 - 36. (in Russian with English abstract). Ostroumov, S.A., Kolotilova, N.N., Piskunkova, N.F., Kartasheva N.V., Lyamin M.Ya., and Kraevsky V.M. [1999] Effects of surfactants representing quaternary ammonium compounds on unicellular cyanobacteria, green algae, and rotifers. Vodnye ekosistemy i organizmy (Aquatic Ecosystems and Organisms), Dialog –Moscow University Press, Moscow, pp. 45–46. Skurlatov, Yu. I., [1988]: Fundamentals of the management of quality of water. - Ekologicheskaja Khimija Vodnoi Sredy (Ecological Chemistry of Aquatic Environment). 1: 230-255. Sushchenya, L. M., [1975]: Quantitative trends in the feeding of crustaceans. - Nauka I Tehnika Press, Minsk, 208 pp. (in Russ.) Uhlmann, D. [1988]: Hydrobiologie. Ein Grundriß für Ingenieure und Naturwissenschaftler. - G. Fischer, Jena, 3. Ed., 298 pp. Vernadsky, V.I. [2001]. Biosphere (Biosfera). Publishing House Noosphere, Moscow. 244 p. Vymazal, J. [1988], The use of periphyton communities for nutrient removal from polluted streams. - Hydrobiologia 166: 225–237. Wallace, R. L. and P. L. Starkweather, [1985], Clearance rates of sessile rotifers: In vitro determinations. - Hydrobiologia 121: 139-144. Walz, N. 1995: Rotifer populations in plankton communities: Energetics and life history strategies. - Experientia 51: 437-453. Waterbury J., Ostroumov S.A. [1994], Deistvie neionogennogo poverhnostno-aktivnogo veshchestva na tzianobakterii (Effects of a non-ionic surfactant on marine cyanobacteria). Mikrobiologiya (Microbiology), 63: 259-263. Wetzel R. [2001], Limnology. Academic Press, San-Diego et al. Wotton, R. S., B. Malmqvist, T. Muotka, and K. Larsson, [1998], Fecal pellets from a dense aggregation of suspension-feeders in a stream: An example of ecosystem engineering. - Limnol. Oceanogr. 43: 719-725. Yablokov, A.V. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1983], Okhrana prirody: problemy i perspektivy (Protection of Nature: Problems and Prospects), Lespromizdat Press, Moscow. Yablokov, A.V. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1985], Urovni okhrany zhivoi prirody (Levels of the Protection of Living Nature), Nauka Press, Moscow. Yablokov, A.V. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1991]. Conservation of Living Nature and Resources: Problems, Trends and Prospects. Springer Press, Berlin. LIST OF TABLES: Table 1. Contribution of aquatic organisms to some processes important for water self-purification in ecosystem (some examples; a simplified model). Table 2. Effect of Triton X-100 (TX) and tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TDTMA) on biological organisms. Table 3. Inhibition of some functions of molluscs important for water self-purification under exposure to sublethal concentrations of contaminants (new data). Note: SDS, sodium dodecylsulfate; TX100, Triton X-100; TDTMA, tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide; ADDENDUM (written in 2010): After preparing this paper for publication, a number of other articles and some books were published, which supported the main conclusions of this paper. Among those more recent publications were the following: Ostroumov S. A. Biological Effects of Surfactants. CRC Press. Taylor & Francis. Boca Raton, London, New York. 2006. 279 p. ISBN 0-8493-2526-9 [new facts and concepts on assessment of hazards from chemicals, new look on the factors important to water quality, to sustainability; new priorities in environmental safety]; and other publications.
Ostroumov S. A. Aquatic ecosystem as a bioreactor: water purification and some other functions. - Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 2004. vol. 97. p. 39-50.

Ostroumov S. A. Anthropogenic effects on the biota: towards a new system of principles and criteria for analysis of ecological hazards. Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 2003. 96: 159-170. [ISSN 0035-6050] http://scipeople.ru/publication/67657/; http://sites.google.com/site/ostroumovsergei/publications-1/rivista2003criteria; http://scipeople.com/uploads/materials/4389/3RB96p159Anth..Criteria.doc; www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12852181; http://www.tilgher.it/(ekdo002s40etdh55stgyltvf)/index.aspx?lang=eng&tpr=4&act=abs&id=650; The currently accepted system of criteria for evaluating environmental and ecological hazards of man-made chemicals (pollutants) is vulnerable to criticism. In this paper, a new concept of the system of approaches towards criteria for evaluating the ecological hazard from man-made impact is proposed. It is suggested to assess the man-made impacts (including effects of pollutants and xenobiotics) on the biota according to the following four levels of disturbance in biological and ecological systems: (1) the level of individual responses; (2) the level of aggregated responses of groups of organisms; (3) the level of stability and integrity of the ecosystem; (4) the level of contributions of the ecosystem to biospheric processes. On the basis of the author's experimental studies, an example is given of how to apply the proposed approach and the system of criteria to the analysis of concrete experimental data. To exemplify the efficiency of the proposed approach, it is shown how to use it to analyze new data on effects of a synthetic surfactant on water filtering by bivalves. It is concluded that the proposed approach will be helpful in better assessing environmental and ecological hazards from anthropogenic effects on biota, including effects of man-made chemicals polluting ecosystems. The following key issues were presented and analyzed in the paper: 1. The traditional approach to classification of chemicals according to their environmental hazards. 2. A new approach to the analysis of hazards of anthropogenic effects on the biota. 3. An example of applying the new approach to the analysis of environmental and ecological hazards. The paper was cited by international experts, e.g., in the paper: R. Grande ; S. Di Pietro; E. Di Campli; S. Di Bartolomeo; B. Filareto; L. Cellini. Bio-toxicological assays to test water and sediment quality. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A, Volume 42, Issue 1 2007 (January), pages 33 – 38 [Affiliation of the Authors: Rossella Grande a; Stefania Di Pietro ab; Emanuela Di Campli a; Soraya Di Bartolomeo a; Barbara Filareto b; Luigina Cellini a; a Department of Biomedical Sciences, University “G. d'Annunzio,”, Chieti, Italy; b Agency for the Protection of Environment, Pescara, Italy] DOI: 10.1080/10934520601015446; http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a768424372&db=all; Keywords: environmental hazards, chemical pollution, man-made effects, anthropogenic impact, self-purification of water, filter-feeders, surfactants, detergents, bivalves, aquatic ecosystems, algae, water quality, water filtration, biological effects of xenobiotics, pollutants, bioaccumulation, toxicity, ecosystem stability, biota, criteria, biospheric processes, marine mussels, Mytilus edulis, bioassay, environmental science, ecotoxicology, 1. INTRODUCTION One of the important tasks in preventing and mitigating changes in the biosphere is to perform an objective analysis of the hazards of a great many man-made impacts and disturbances on the state of the biota (the world-wide diversity of ecosystems, populations, and organisms). The multitude, diversity, and scale of anthropogenic effects has been described and analyzed in a number of publications (e.g., Yablokov & Ostroumov [1983], [1985], [1991]; Bezel’ et al [1994]; Krivolutskii [1994]). This paper is based on such papers as well as on our previous publications (Ostroumov [2000a], [2000b ], [2001]). Studying the multiplicity of characteristics of anthropogenic factors affecting organisms and ecosystems (Flerov [1989]; Yablokov & Ostroumov [1991]; Bezel’ et al [1994]; Alimov [2000]; Wetzel [2001]), researchers try to identify and analyze the most important parameters and criteria characterizing negative anthropogenic effects (Yablokov & Ostroumov [1991]; Krivolutskii [1994]), including the effects of chemicals (xenobiotics; pollutants) (Ostroumov [1986]; Filenko [1988]; Telitchenko & Ostroumov [1990]; Malakhov & Medvedeva, [1991]). Currently the development and systematization of these criteria are far from completion. The aim of this paper is to contribute to developing approaches to improvement of a system of criteria of ecological hazards of anthropogenic effects on the biota and to consider some new experimental data on the effects of surfactant xenobiotics on living organisms. 2. THE TRADITIONAL APPROACH TO CLASSIFICATION OF CHEMICALS ACCORDING TO THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS Approaches to establishing the criteria of ecological hazards of man-made chemicals have been developed in terms of the estimation of toxic contamination of ecosystems and assessment of effects of xenobiotics on organisms (e.g., Flerov [1989]; Yablokov & Ostroumov [1991]; Filenko [1988]; Telitchenko & Ostroumov [1990]; Malakhov & Medvedeva [1991]. The classification of chemicals according to their environmental and ecological hazards now accepted in the European Union is based on the following three criteria (e.g., de Bruijin & Struijs, [1997]). (1) Acute toxicity estimated from LC50 for the three groups of organisms: fish, algae, and daphnia. (2) Susceptibility of the substance to biological decomposition in water. This is determined with the use of laboratory tests under aerobic conditions. Substances are decomposed by microorganisms, and their decomposition is accompanied by oxygen consumption. If a substance is quickly decomposed (oxidized) by microorganisms, it is not considered to be hazardous to the environment. Exceptions are compounds with a high acute toxicity (with an LC50 less than 10 mg/l) and a high bioaccumulation potential (see the next criterion). (3) The substance’s capacity for bioaccumulation. This capacity is considered to be hazardously high if the bioaccumulation factor (BCF) is higher than 100, or the logarithm of the distribution coefficient of the substance in the octanol–water system (logPow) is higher than 3. A disadvantage of this set of criteria is an underestimation of other aspects of ecological hazards due to contamination of a water body with the given chemical, e.g., the hazard of a decrease in water O2 concentration due to oxygen consumption by microorganisms during oxidation of xenobiotics. Behavioral changes in living organisms because of interaction of the pollutant with their receptors (Flerov [1989]; Ostroumov [1991]) is also beyond the scope of this system of criteria. Behavioral changes may occur in the absence of bioaccumulation (i.e., when the substance is not hazardous according to criterion 3). Changes in behavior may result in migration of certain species from the ecosystem (emigration) and, hence, to a decrease in biodiversity. Therefore, more comprehensive sets of criteria should be developed. 3. A NEW APPROACH TO THE ANALYSIS OF HAZARDS OF ANTHROPOGENIC EFFECTS ON THE BIOTA In some studies, anthropogenic effects on the natural environment were classified on the basis of the approach of considering the levels of biological organization (Yablokov & Ostroumov [1983]; Yablokov & Ostroumov [1985]; Yablokov & Ostroumov [1991]) . We suggest a new approach to developing a set of principles for the analysis of man-made effects (Table 1), in which anthropogenic effects on the biota are systematized based on the basis of a similar, but not identical approach (Ostroumov [2000a], [2000b], [2001]). A characteristic feature of the system of principles and criteria shown in Table 1 is the division of the multiplicity of anthropogenic effects into orderly groups according to four levels of biota disturbance. Most of the traditionally studied toxic effects (an increased mortality, ontogenetic disturbances, organ pathology, etc.) fall in the group corresponding to the level of individual and population responses (level 1). Alterations in primary productivity, water concentration of chlorophyll, etc., correspond to the level of aggregated responses (level 2). Alterations at the level of ecosystem stability and integrity (level 3) are important but have not been sufficiently studied. These are, among others, disturbances in the self-purification capacity of water systems (Ostroumov et al. [1997]; Ostroumov, [1998]), i.e., their ability to sustain the parameters of the aquatic environment. The last group (level 4) comprises alterations in the contribution of ecosystems to biospheric processes, including biogeochemical flows of chemical elements (C, N, P, and S). This approach agrees with the views of some other authors (Filenko [1988]; Stroganov [1976]) and is useful for developing a new, more adequate system of estimation and classification of anthropogenic effects, including environmental pollutants, with respect to ecological hazards. An important constituent of the proposed system for analysis of ecological hazards is estimation of hazardous effects on the stability and integrity of an ecosystem, e.g., the hazard due to weakening the relationship between plankton and benthos. If an anthropogenic effect weakens this relationship in a given ecosystem, the consequences are expected to be unfavorable [13] (Ostroumov et al. [1997]). An example of such a situation is the decrease in the water filtration rate and elimination of seston by some filter-feeding organisms, such as bivalves, because their filtration activity is one of the important mechanisms for maintaining the plankton–benthos coupling. It would be important to estimate the possible effect of pollutants on the molluscan filtration activity. Filtration of water and absorption of phyto- and bacterioplankton and other suspended matter by molluscs, as well as formation and excretion of fecal and pseudofecal pellets are important for processes occurring in an aquatic ecosystem (Ostroumov et al. [1997]; Ostroumov [2001]). Inhibition of filtration by pollutants (xenobiotics) may, in turn, induce other disturbances at several organizational levels (see Table 1) of the ecosystem. Examples of such disturbances are a decrease in water filtration by other hydrobionts, decrease in water transparency and the resultant decrease in penetration of photosynthetically active radiation and ultraviolet light, deterioration of the conditions for phytobenthos, excessive growth of phyto- and bacterioplankton, disturbances in the regulation of the composition of the algal–bacterial community, increase in detritus formation and siltage of benthic habitats, imbalance of the food web of phytoplankton consumers, decrease in the population growth of filter feeding organisms, decrease in the number of planktophagous larvae and deformation of the food web, and decrease in organic carbon deposition and concentration in bottom sediments (Ostroumov et al. [1997]; Ostroumov [2001]). 4. EXAMPLE OF APPLYING THE NEW APPROACH TO THE ANALYSIS OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND ECOLOGICAL HAZARDS An important question is whether surfactants, which heavily contaminate environment and have not been sufficiently studied with respect to possible effects on organisms, may suppress filtration (Ostroumov [1986]); Telitchenko, Ostroumov [1990]; Ostroumov [1998]). Data obtained in experiments on Mytilus edulis, M. galloprovincialis and some other marine and freshwater molluscs indicate that synthetic surfactants may disturb the plankton–benthos coupling (Ostroumov [1998], [2000a], [2000b], [2001]). Some surfactants, such as a nonionic surfactant Triton X-100 (TX100; an alkylphenol derivative), decrease the rates of water filtration and elimination of algae from water by mussels Mytilus edulis (Table 2). In the presence of 0.5 mg/l TX100, the concentration of algal cells after 90 min of filtration was 1092 cells per 0.5 ml of water versus 532 cells per 0.5 ml of water in the control sample (Table 2). In other words, an excess of algae as a result of filtration suppression was more than twofold (205%). If the TX100 concentration was increased to 2 mg/l, the concentration of algae after filtration was 2635 cells per 0.5 ml versus 556 cells per 0.5 ml in the control sample, i.e., the excess was almost fivefold (474 %). Thus, the inhibition increased with an increase in the surfactant concentration. These results are in excellent agreement with the data on the effects of other chemical compounds [13], including various surfactants, detergents, and other pollutants (Ostroumov et al. [1997]; Ostroumov [2000a], [2000b], [2001]). Recently new similar results were discovered while studying effects of the cationic surfactant tetradecyltrimetyhylammonium bromide on marine mussels (Ostroumov, Widdows, in preparation). The system of criteria shown in Table 1 simplifies and systematizes the analysis of the ecological role and consequences of man-made disturbances of a given physiological function (in this case, disturbance of water filtration by molluscs). If we go sequentially from level to level, the suggested system will make it possible to follow the range of ecological consequences of a primary man-made disturbance at an individual level that manifests itself at higher levels of biological or ecological organization in an ecologically hazardous form. In the given example, the change in the organism’s physiological activity (water filtration) is the directly observable effect of the xenobiotic (surfactant). However, we can estimate the ecological hazards more accurately if we consider the processes occurring at level 3 (a decrease in the seston elimination from water and a decrease in the plankton–benthos coupling) and at level 4 (a decrease in the formation and excretion of the pellets formed from the algal cells that have been removed from water). Many other examples (Filenko [1988]; Flerov [1989]; Telitchenko & Ostroumov [1990]; Malakhov & Medvedeva [1991]; Yablokov & Ostroumov [1991]; Bezel’ et al [1994]) confirm the usefulness and effectiveness of the approach proposed (Table 1) for the analysis of ecological hazards of anthropogenic effects on the biota. More detail is given in our books recently published (Ostroumov [2000a], [2001]) as well as in the experimental article (Ostroumov [2002]). 5. CONCLUSION The proposed level–block approach to the analysis of ecological hazards of anthropogenic alterations in ecosystems allows the multiplicity of anthropogenic effects on the biota to be efficiently systematized. This approach may be used to develop new objective criteria for estimation and classification of ecological and environmental hazards produced by anthropogenic effects on the biota, including the hazards produced by man-made chemicals that pollute the biosphere. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am grateful to P. Donkin and N.N.Kolotilova for collaboration, V.I. Artyukhova, D.A. Krivolutskii, Yu.I. Chernov, V.A. Abakumov, and A.O. Kasumyan for fruitful discussion and comments on the material, to Prof. Peter Wangersky for helpful advice. This study was supported in part by the MacArthur Foundation. Collection of some data was supported by the EERO. REFERENCES Alimov A.F. [2000], Elements of Aquatic Ecosystem Function Theory. Nauka Press, St.Peterburg. Bezel’, V.S., Bol’shakov, V.N., and Vorobeichik, E.L., [1994], Populyatsionnaya ekotoksikologiya (Population Ecotoxicology), Nauka Press, Moscow. de Bruijn, J. and Struijs, J., [1997], Biodegradation in chemical substances policy. Biodegradation Kinetics, Brussels: SETAC-Europe, pp. 33–45. Filenko, O.F., [1988], Vodnaya toksikologiya (Water Toxicology), Moscow University Press, Chernogolovka. Flerov, B.A., [1989], Ekologo-fiziologicheskie aspekty toksikologi presnovodnykh zhivotnykh (Ecological and Physiological Aspects of Toxicology in Freshwater Animals), Nauka Press, Leningrad. Krivolutskii, D.A., [1994], Pochvennaya fauna v ekotoksikologicheskom kontrole (Soil Fauna in the Ecological Control), Nauka Press, Moscow. Malakhov, V.V. and Medvedeva, L.A., [1991], Embrional’noe razvitie dvustvorchatykh mollyuskov v norme i pri vozdeistvii tyazhelykh metallov (Embryonic Development of Bivalve Mollusks in the Norm and under Exposure to Heavy Metals), Nauka Press, Moscow. Ostroumov, S.A., [1986], Vvedenie v biokhimicheskuyu ekologiyu (Introduction to the Biochemical Ecology), Moscow University Press, Moscow. –176 p. Ostroumov, S.A., [1991], Responses of test-organisms to a quaternary ammonium compound. Vodnye Resursy (Water Resources). 2: 112-116. (in Russian, with English abstract) Ostroumov S.A. [1998], Biological filtering and ecological machinery for self-purification and bioremediation in aquatic ecosystems: towards a holistic view. Rivista di Biologia/ Biology Forum. 91: 247-258.13. Ostroumov, S.A., Donkin, P., and Staff, F., [1997], Effects of surfactants on mussels Mytilus edulis. Vestnik Moskovskogo Universitteta. Serija Biologiya (Bulletin of Moscow University. Series Biology.) 3 : 30 - 36. (in Russian with English abstract). Ostroumov S.A. [2002], Inhibitory analysis of top-down control: new keys to studying eutrophication, algal blooms, and water self-purification. Hydrobiologia. 469: 117-129. Ostroumov, S.A., [2000a], Biological effects of surfactants in connection with the anthropogenic impact on the biosphere. MAX Press, Moscow. 116 p. Ostroumov S. A. [2000b], Criteria of Ecological Hazards Due to Anthropogenic Effects on the Biota: Searching for a System. Doklady Biological Sciences, Vol. 371: 204–206. (Translated from the Russian edition: Ostroumov, S.A., [2000] Doklady Akademii Nauk, 371 ( No. 6): 844–846). Ostroumov, S.A., [2001], Biological effects of surfactants on organisms. MAX Press, Moscow. 334 p. Stroganov, N.S., [1976], Obshchaya ekologiya. Biotsenologiya. Gidrobiologiya (General Ecology. Biocenology. Hydrobiology), Vol. 3: Vodnaya toksikologiya (Water Toxicology), VINITI Press, Moscow, pp. 5–47. Telitchenko, M.M. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1990], Vvedenie v problemy biokhimicheskoi ekologii (Introduction to the Problem of Biochemical Ecology), Nauka Press, Moscow. Wetzel R. [2001], Limnology. Academic Press, San-Diego et al. Yablokov, A.V. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1983], Okhrana prirody: problemy i perspektivy (Protection of Nature: Problems and Prospects), Lespromizdat Press, Moscow. Yablokov, A.V. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1985], Urovni okhranyzhivoi prirody (Levels of the Protection of Living Nature), Nauka Press, Moscow. Yablokov, A.V. and Ostroumov, S.A., [1991]. Conservation of Living Nature and Resources: Problems, Trends and Prospects. Springer Press, Berlin. Table 1. The level–block approach to the analysis of ecological hazards of anthropogenic effects on the biota . (After Ostroumov [2000a], [2000b], [2001], with some modifications) Table 2. Amount of algae Isochrysis galbana in flasks containing mussels Mytilus edulis after 90 min of water filtration by the molluscs in the presence or absence of Triton X-100 (TX100, 0.5 mg/l). (After Ostroumov [2000b], with some changes).
Ostroumov S. A. Anthropogenic effects on the biota: towards a new system of principles and criteria for analysis of ecological hazards. Rivista di Biologia / Biology Forum. 2003. 96: 159-170. [ISSN 0035-6050] www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12852181; http://www.tilgher.it/(ekdo002s40etdh55stgyltvf)/index.aspx?lang=eng&tpr=4&act=abs&id=650;

Ostroumov S.A. Some aspects of water filtering activity of filter-feeders. - Hydrobiologia, 2005, 542: 275-286. DOI 10.1007/s10750-004-1875-1; www.springerlink.com/index/U21P83P0423J8714.pdf; http://scipeople.com/uploads/materials/4389/5Hydr542p275water.filt.doc ABSTRACT: On the basis of the previous publications, our new data and the existing scientific literature, we have formulated some fundamental principles that characterize the pivotal roles of the biodiversity of filter-feeders in ecosystems. Among those roles are: (1) the role of ecological repair of water quality, (2) the role of contributing to reliability and stability of the functioning of the ecosystem, (3) the role of contributing to creation of habitat heterogeneity, (4) the role of contributing to acceleration of migration of chemical elements. It is an important feature of the biomachinery of filter-feeders that it removes from water various particles of a very broad range of sizes. Another important principle is that the amount of the organic matter filtered out of water is larger than the amount assimilated so that a significant part of the removed material serves no useful function to the organism of the filter-feeder, but serves a beneficial function to some other species and to the ecosystem as a whole. The new experiments by the author additionally demonstrated a vulnerability of the filtration activity of filter feeders (e.g. bivalves and rotifers) to some xenobiotics (tetradecyltrymethylammonium bromide, heavy metals and some others). The inhibition of the filtration activity of filter-feeders may lead to the situation previously described as that of an ecological bomb of the second type. Author formulated a list of some key functions that filter-feeders perform and in this way provide services to ecosystem. Inter alia, filter-feeders: (a) participate in the large-scale repair of water quality; (b) contribute to the reliability of the mechanism and stability of ecosystem; (c) may potentially contribute to creating habitat heterogeneity; (d) remove seston and excrete pellets, by doing so they are involved in 'ecological taxation': filter-feeders pay some ecological tax to the ecosystem; (e) contribute to acceleration (biocatalysis) of migration of elements; (f) contribute to the regulation of the metabolism of ecosystem. The paper was cited by scientists working in Canada, Australia, Russia and other countries. The main conclusions were confirmed by the other publications of the same author, see the book ‘Biological Effects of Surfactants’ (CRC Press. Taylor & Francis. Boca Raton, London, New York. 2006. 279 p. ISBN 0-8493-2526-9) and sites: http://sites.google.com/site/9enecologica16p25theory/; http://sites.google.com/site/3surfactantsfiltrationmytilus/; http://scipeople.ru/uploads/materials/4389/_Hydrobiologia2006%20vol%20556%20No.1%20pages381-386.pdf; https://www.researchgate.net/file.FileLoader.html?key=60f338228d6f3c5114d223ab81e15d3b; https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sergei_Ostroumov/blog/348_Useful_theory_of_natural_mechanisms_of_improving_water_quality; References Achituv, Y. & M.L.Pedrotti, 1999. Costs and gains of porcelain crab suspension feeding in different flow conditions. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 184: 161-169. Alimov, A. F., 1981. Functional Ecology of Freshwater Bivalves (Funktzionalnaja Ekologija Presnovodnykh Dvustvorchatykh Molluskov). Nauka press, Leningrad. 248 pp. Asmus, R.M. & H. Asmus, 1991. Mussel beds: limiting or promoting phytoplankton? Journal Experimental Marine Biology Ecology. 148: 215-232 Bacher, C., 1989. Capacité trophique du bassin de Marennes-Oléron: couplage d'un modele de transport particulaire et d'un modele de croissance de l'huitre Crassosrea gigas. Aquatic Living Resources. 48:199-214. Ball, B., R.Raine & D.Douglas, 1997. Phytoplankton and particulate matter in Carlingford Lough, Ireland: an assessment of food availability and the impact of bivalve culture. Estuaries. 20: 430-440. Bern, L., 1987. Zooplankton grazing on [methyl-3H]thymidine-labelled natural particle assemblages: determination of filtering rates and food selectivity. Freshwater Biology. 17: 151-159. Cloern, J., 1982. Does the benthos control phytoplankton biomass in South San francisco Bay? Marine Ecology Progress Series. 9: 191-202. Dame, R., D. Bushek & T. Prins, 2001. Benthic suspension feeders as determinants of ecosystem structure and function in shallow coastal waters . Ecological Studies. 151: 11-37. Dame, R., N. Dankers, T. Prins, H. Jongsma & A. Smaal, 1991. 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Effect of some environmental factors on the water-clearing activity of bivalves. Summary of Ph.D. Thesis, Moscow. 22 pp. Monakov, A. V., 1998. Feeding of Freshwater Invertebrates (Pitanie Presnovodnykh Bespozonochnykh). Institute of Ecological and Evolutionary Problems, Moscow. 320 pp. Newell, R., 1988. Ecological changes in Chesapeake Bay: are they the result of overharvesting the American oyster, Crassostrea virginica? Understanding the estuary: Advances in Chesapeake Bay Research. Proceedings of a Conference. 29-31 March 1988. Baltimore, Maryland.- Chesapeake Research Consortium Publication 129: 536-546. Ogilvie, S. & S. Mitchell, 1995. A model of mussel filtration in a shallow New Zealand lake, with reference to eutrophication control. Archiv für Hydrobiologie. 133(4): 471-482. Ostroumov, S. A., 1998. Biological filtering and ecological machinery for self-purification and bioremediation in aquatic ecosystems: towards a holistic view. Rivista di Biologia/ Biology Forum. 91: 247-258. Ostroumov, S.A., 1999. Integrity-oriented approach to ecological biomachinery for self-purification and bioremediation in aquatic ecosystems: stopping an ecological time bomb. Limnology and Oceanography: Navigating into the Next Century. February 1-5, 1999, Santa Fe, New Mexico. ASLO, Waco, TX. Page 134. Ostroumov, S. A., 2000a. Criteria of ecological hazards due to anthropogenic effects on the biota: searching for a system (Kriterii ekologhicheskoj opastnosti antropoghennykh vozdejstvij na biotu: poiski sistemy). Doklady Biological Sciences 371: 204-206 (the Russian edition: Doklady Akademii Nauk 371: 844-846). Ostroumov, S. A., 2000b. The concept of aquatic biota as a labile and vulnerable component of the water self-purification system (Kontzeptzija vodnoi bioty kak labil'nogo i ujazvimogo zvena sistemy samoochishchenija vody). Doklady Biological Sciences 372: 286-289 (the Russian edition: Doklady Akademii Nauk 372: 279-282). Ostroumov, S. A., 2000c. Aquatic ecosystem: a large-scale diversified bioreactor with a water self-purification function (Vodnaja ekosistema: krupnorazmernyj diversifitzirovannyj bioreaktor s funktzijej samoochishchenija vody). Doklady Biological Sciences 374: 514-516 (the Russian edition: Doklady Akademii Nauk 374: 427-429). Ostroumov, S.A., 2001a . Responses of Unio tumidus to a mixture of chemicals and the hazard of synecological summation of anthropogenic effects (Reagirovanie Unio tumidus pri vozdeistvii smesevogo himicheskogo preparata i opasnost sinekologicheskogo summirovaniya antropogennyh vozdeistviy). Doklady Akademii Nauk. 380: 714-717. [Transl. into English and published: Responses of Unio tumidus to mixed chemical preparations and the hazard of synecological summation of anthropogenic effects. Dokl Biol Sci (Doklady Biological Sciences). 2001, 380: 492-495]. Ostroumov, S.A., 2001b. Synecological foundation for the solution of the problem of eutrophication (Sinekologicheskie osnovy resheniya problemy evtrofirovaniya). Doklady Akademii Nauk. 381:709-712. [Transl. into English and published: The synecological approach to the problem of eutrophication. Dokl Biol Sci (Doklady Biological Sciences). 2001 381: 559-562]. Ostroumov S.A. 2001c. Amphiphilic chemical inhibits the ability of molluscs to filter water and to remove the cells of phytoplankton. Izvestia RAN. Seriya Biology (Bulletin of Russian Academy of Sciences, Biology Series). No.1: 108-116. Ostroumov, S.A., 2002a. Inhibitory analysis of top-down control: new keys to studying eutrophication, algal blooms, and water self-purification. Hydrobiologia. 469: 117-129. Ostroumov, S.A., 2002b. Polyfunctional role of biodiversity in processes leading to water purification: current conceptualizations and concluding remarks. Hydrobiologia. 469 (1-3): 203-204. Ostroumov, S.A., 2002c. 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[Transl. into English and published: Dokl Biol Sci. (Doklady Biological Sciences) 2003, 390: 252-255]. Petersen, J. & H.U.Riisgård, 1992. Filtration capacity of the ascidian Ciona intestinalis and its grazing impact in a shallow fjord. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 88: 9-17. Pilson, M., 1985. On the residence time of water in Narragansett Bay. Estuaries. 8: 2-14. Rose, R., M. Warne & L. Lim, 2003. Exposure to chemicals exuded by fish reduces the filtration and ingestion rates of Ceriodaphnia cf. dubia. Hydrobiologia. 501: 215-217. Smaal, A.C., J.Verhagen, J.Coosen & H. Haas, 1986. Interactions between seston quantity and quality and benthic feeders in the Oosterschelde, The Netherlands. Ophelia. 26: 385-399. Sorokin, Yu.A., P.Yu.Sorokin, T.I. Mamaeva & O.V. Sorokina, 1997. The Sea of Okhotsk bacterioplankton and planktonic ciliates. In Sapozhnikov, V.V. (Ed.) Complex studies of ecosystem of the Sea of Okhotsk. VNIRO Press, Moscow: 210-216. Shulman, G.E. & G.A. Finenko, 1990. 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Page, 1993. Effects of tributyltin and dibutyltin on the physiological energetics of the mussel, Mytilus edulis. Marine Environmental Research. 35: 233-249. Widdows, J., M.Brinsley, P.Salkeld & M.Elliott, 1998. Use of annular flumes to determine the influence of current vedlocity and bivalves on material flux at the sediment-water interface. Estuaries. 21 (4A): 552-559. Witte, U., T.Brattegard, G.Graf & B.Springer, 1997. Particle capture and depostion by deep-sea sponges from the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 154: 241-252. Yablokov, A. V. & S. A. Ostroumov, 1991. Conservation of Living Nature and Resources: Problems, Trends, Prospect. Springer Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York. 271 pp. Zankai, N. , 1979. Jahreszeitliche Änderung der Filtrierrate der Copepoden Eudiaptomus gracilis (G.O.Sars) im Balaton-See. Verhandlungen Internationale Vereinigung für Theoretische und Angewandte Limnologie. 20: 2551-2555. Zezina, O.N. , 1997. Brachiopods in a natural bottom biofilter at the shelves and slopes in the Far-Eastern Seas of Russia. In: Kuznetzov, A.P. & O.N.Zezina (eds) Composition and distribution of bottom invertebrate animals in the seas of Russia and adjacent waters. Institute of Oceanology, Moscow: 52-60. TABLES: Table 1. Examples of the impact of fiter-feeders on the water column: clearance time. Table 2 . Some examples of diversity of taxons of benthic organisms involved in removing seston from water. Table 3. Effect of the increase in concentration of algae (Chlorella vulgaris) on the filtration rate and the amount consumed (C, % ) by rotifers Brachionus calyciflorus. Table 4. The ratio F: P in some groups of organisms. The ecosystem of the Sea of Okhotsk. Table 5. The ratio F : (P+R) in some filter feeders (calculated by the author per 1 unit of energy spent on the sum of productivity and respiration). Table 6. Results of the ecological tax. Biosediments formation. Table 7. Contribution of various aquatic organisms to oxidation of organic matter in the ecosystem of central part of the Sea of Okhotsk (the period of time: the summer minimum of phytoplankton, the end of July - beginning of August). Table 8. Some chemicals that have an adverse effect on the filtering activity of the filter-feeders. As a result, the amount of suspended matter removed from the water by the filter feeders decreased. Therefore the amount of suspended matter left in the water was more than that in control. Abbreviations: LD1 (E) liquid detergent E; LD2 (F) liquid detergent Fairy; SD1 (L) synthetic detergent Lanza; SD2 (I) synthetic detergent IXI; SD3 (D )synthetic detergent Deni; SD4 (OMO) synthetic detergent OMO. Table 9. Some features of water-filtering biomachinery. Table 10. The level–block approach to the analysis of ecological hazards of anthropogenic effects on the biota. KEY WORDS: filter-feeders, suspension feeders, water quality, water purification, bivalves, pollution, filtering activity, filtration rate, liquid detergent; synthetic detergent, sodium dodecyl sulphate SDS; tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide TDTMA, Triton-X100, biomachinery, xenobiotics, pellets, ecological taxation, particles, migration of elements, regulation, ecological hazards, anthropogenic impact, plankton–benthos connections (coupling), trophic, grazing, stability, biosphere, sedimentation, faeces, productivity, respiration, biomass, pseudofaeces, suspended matter, community, microzooplankton, zooplankton (non-predatory), zooplankton (predatory), zoobenthos, fish, mammals, birds, the level–block approach, Crassostrea gigas, Mytilus edulis, M.galloprovincialis, Unio tumidus, sponge, Thenea abyssorum, M. chilensis, Polichaeta, Sabellidae; Sabella spallanzanii, Serpulidae, Spongia, Porifera, Spongilla lacustris, Ascidia, Ascidiella aspersa, Bryozoa, Plumatella fungosa, Cirripedia, Balanus crenatus, Mollusca, Ostrea edulis, Decapoda, Porcellana longicornis, Echinodermata, Ophiuroidea, Ophiothrix fragilis; Corals, Alcyonium digitatum, Brachiopoda, Laqueus californianus, Diestothyris frontalis, Mytilus galloprovincialis, natural seston, Appendicularia, Doliolidae, Calanoida, Spongilla lacustris (sponge), Hyridella menziesi, Crassostrea virginica, Potamocorbula amurensis, Mercenaria mercenaria, Cerastoderma edule, Ciona intestinalis (ascidian), Lake Tuakitoto (New Zealand), North Inlet (South Carolina, USA), South San Francisco Bay, Narragansett Bay, Oosterschelde, Chesapeake Bay, Marina da Gama, Kertinge Nor, Denmark, Bay of Brest, France, AFDW - ash-free dry weight; LD - liquid detergent; SD - synthetic detergent (laundry detergent in the form of powder); ecosystem services, sustainability, man-made, freshwater, marine ecosystems, aquatic organisms, biota, habitat, surfactants, rotifers, role of organisms in the biosphere, functioning of ecosystems, benthos, ecology, limnology, oceanography, biosphere, hydrosphere, ecotoxicology, environmental toxicology
Ostroumov S. A. Some aspects of water filtering activity of filter-feeders. - Hydrobiologia 2005 (July), Volume 542, Number 1, p. 275-286

Ostroumov S.A. Biotic self-purification of aquatic ecosystems: From the theory to ecotechnologies. – Ecologica 2007, vol. 15, No. 50, p. 15-21. (Faculty of Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia) Basic elements of a new theory for the biological mechanism for water self-purification are presented. Hydrobionts (aquatic organisms) are actively involved in various processes leading to water purification. Not only microorganisms (bacteria, cyanobacteria and fungi), but also algae, plants, invertebrates, and many other groups of organisms are involved, which is discussed and analyzed in the paper. Results of the author's experiments that study the effects of various pollutants on aquatic organisms (freshwater and marine bivalves) are given. The theory is an innovative basis for developing ecological technologies to clean water and to upgrade its quality by using organisms and ecosystems. This paper generalizes and systematizes the basics of the author’s theory of the multifunctional role that the biota plays in the self-purification and ecological remediation of aquatic ecosystems using the results of previous analyses and the theory of the functioning of aquatic ecosystems. It is expected that on the basis of this theory some efficient ecotechnologies will emerge to remediate and restore polluted aquatic systems. The paper is based on the presentations that the author made at a scientific seminar in the V.I. Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry, at the conferences 'Aquatic Ecosystems and Organisms-6' (the 6th international conference that was run in Moscow in 2004) and 'Aquatic Ecosystems and Organisms-7' (the 7th international conference, Moscow, 2005), XXIX Congress of International Association of Theoretical and Applied Limnology, and other conferences. Key words: aquatic ecosystems; water bodies; water streams; aquatic pollution; bioremediation; phytoremediation; filter-feeders; bivalves; water self-purification, freshwater, marine, water quality, pollution, biota, ecotechnology References: Alimov, A.F. (1981) Functional ecology of freshwater bivalves. Leningrad: Nauka Press; Ostroumov, S.A. (2002) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 383, No. 5, 710-713; Ostroumov, S.A. (2002) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 385, No. 4, 571-573; Ostroumov, S.A. (1975) Vestnik Akademii Nauk, vol. 73, No. 3, 232-238; Ostroumov, S.A. (2002) Hydrobiologia, vol. 469, 117-129; Ostroumov, S.A. (2004) On the biotic self-purification of aquatic ecosystems. Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 396, No. 1, 136-141; Ostroumov, S.A. (2006) Biomachinery for maintaining water quality and natural water self-purification in marine and estuarine systems: Elements of a qualitative theory. International Journal of Oceans and Oceanography, vol. 1, No. 1, 111-118; Ostroumov, S.A. (2005) Some aspects of water filtering activity of filter-feeders. Hydrobiologia, vol. 542, No. 1, 275-286; Ostroumov, S.A., Walz, N., Rusche, R. (2003) Effect of a cationic amphiphilic compound on rotifers. Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 390, No. 3, 423-426; Alimov A.F. (2000) Elements of Aquatic Ecosystem Function Theory. St. Petersburg: Nauka. 148 p.; Ostroumov, S.A., Widdows, J. (2006) Inhibition of mussel suspension feeding by surfactants of three classes. Hydrobiologia, vol. 556, No. 1, 381-386; Ostroumov, S.A. (2006) Biological Effects of Surfactants. London-New York: CRC-Taylor & Francis; Ostroumov, S.A. (1986) Introduction to Biochemical Ecology. Moscow: Moscow State. Univ; Ostroumov, S.A. (2000) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 374, No. 3, 427-429; Ostroumov, S.A. (2000) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 375, No. 6, 847- 849; Ostroumov, S.A. (2000) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 372, No. 2, 279-282; Ostroumov, S.A. (2001) Biological effects of surfactants on organismy (Biologicheskie effekty pri vozdeistvii poverkhnostno-aktivnykh veshchestv na organizmy). Moscow: MAKS Press (in Russian); Ostroumov, S.A. (2001) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 381, No. 5, 709-712; Ostroumov, S.A. (2002) Dokl. Akad. Nauk, vol. 382, No. 1, 138-141; Sushchenya, L.M. (1975) Kolichestvennye zakonomernosti pitaniya rakoobraznykh. Minsk: Nauka i Tekhnika; Wetzel, R.G. (2001) Limnology: Lake and river ecosystems. San Diego: Academic Press.
Ecologica 2007, vol. 15, No. 50, p. 15-21. In English.