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Ant cuticular response to phthalate pollution

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Abstract

Phthalates are common atmospheric contaminants used in the plastic industry. Ants have been shown to constitute good bioindicators of phthalate pollution. Hence, phthalates remain trapped on ant cuticles which are mostly coated with long-chain hydrocarbons. In this study, we artificially contaminated Lasius niger ants with four phthalates: dibutyl phthalate (DBP), diisobutyl phthalate (DiBP), di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP). The first three have previously been found on ants in nature in Touraine (France), while the fourth has not. The four phthalates disappeared rapidly (less than 5 days) from the cuticles of live ants. In contrast, on the cuticles of dead ants, DEHP quantities remained unchanged over time. These results indicate that phthalates are actively absorbed by the cuticles of live ants. Cuticular absorption of phthalates is nonspecific because eicosane, a nonnatural hydrocarbon on L. niger cuticle, was similarly absorbed. Ants are important ecological engineers and may serve as bioindicators of ecosystem health. We also suggest that ants and more generally terrestrial arthropods may contribute to the removal of phthalates from the local environment.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Guy Bourdais, who helped with the rearing of the ants. Frédéric Montigny provided some of the phthalates and verified the absence of phthalates in polystyrene boxes. Jessica Pearce corrected the English. Thanks to a reviewer who helped to clarify and improve the text.

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Author notes

  1. Axel Touchard

    Present address: CNRS, UMR Écologie des Forêts de Guyane (EcoFoG), Campus Agronomique, BP 316, 97379, Kourou Cedex, France

Authors and Affiliations

  1. IRBI, Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’Insecte, UMR CNRS 7261, Université François Rabelais, 37200, Tours, France

    Alain Lenoir, Axel Touchard, Séverine Devers, Jean-Philippe Christidès & Raphaël Boulay

  2. GEPV Laboratoire Génétique Évolution Populations Végétales, CNRS UMR 8198, Université Lille 1, 59655, Villeneuve d’Ascq cedex, France

    Virginie Cuvillier-Hot

Authors
  1. Alain Lenoir
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  2. Axel Touchard
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  3. Séverine Devers
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  4. Jean-Philippe Christidès
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  5. Raphaël Boulay
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  6. Virginie Cuvillier-Hot
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Correspondence to Alain Lenoir.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Lenoir, A., Touchard, A., Devers, S. et al. Ant cuticular response to phthalate pollution. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 13446–13451 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3272-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3272-2

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