Tests show drug causes eels to
become hyperactive and damages their muscles, possibly hindering their ability
to migrate
Thu 21 Jun
2018 16.54 BSTLast modified on Thu 21 Jun 2018 19.30 BST
Tiny amounts of cocaine flushed
into rivers cause eels to become not only hyperactive but to suffer from muscle
wastage, impaired gills and hormonal changes, a study has found.
The impact of traces of cocaine
on the physiology of European eels could be hindering their epic migrations
through the oceans to reproduce, according to researchers who examined the
impact of the drug.
The tiny concentrations of
cocaine in the laboratory tests are equivalent to the trace levels found in
rivers and water systems from illegal drug use, particularly near major cities.
Eels were exposed to 20
billionths of a gram of cocaine per litre (20ng/l) of water for 50 days. The
cocaine-exposed eels appeared “hyperactive” and their skeletal muscle showed
evidence of serious injury, including muscle breakdown and swelling.
Even after going into “rehab” – clean
waters – for 10 days the eels were still found to have damaged muscles and
increased cortisol levels. This stress hormone can cause fat wastage, and
endangered European eels require fat reserves to make a successful migration to
the Sargasso Sea in the west Atlantic, where they breed.
“All the tissues affected by
cocaine play a key role in the fish survival,” said Anna Capaldo of the
University of Naples Federico II and the lead author of the study, published
in Science of the Total Environment.
“It is likely that the eels exposed to cocaine
have a reduced performance. For example, impaired gills could reduce the
breathing ability of the eels; a damaged muscle could reduce their swimming
ability.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
You only need to enter your comment once! Comments will appear once they have been moderated. This is so as to stop the would-be comedian who has been spamming the comments here with inane and often offensive remarks. You know who you are!