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Science 30 January 1981:
Vol. 211. no. 4481, pp. 482 - 483
DOI: 10.1126/science.7455685
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Articles

Science, Vol 211, Issue 4481, 482-483
Copyright © 1981 by American Association for the Advancement of Science

articles

Arsenic accumulation in Great Barrier Reef invertebrates

AA Benson and RE Summons

Arsenic concentrates in the kidneys of the giant clams of Australia's Great Barrier Reef. The highest concentrations measured were 1004 parts per million, of which most, 2066 parts per million, were in the water-soluble fraction containing trimethylarsoniumlactate and its derivatives. This accumulation is ascribed to a mechanism in which oceanic arsenate is assimilated by symbiotic zooxanthellae and subsequently deposited in host tissues. The gills are the major site of arsenic excretion by these animals. Gill membrane arsenolipids mediate exposure of their trimethylarsonium groups to the sea and its biological oxidative activities.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Arsenic Sensing and Resistance System in the Cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. Strain PCC 6803.
L. Lopez-Maury, F. J. Florencio, and J. C. Reyes (2003)
J. Bacteriol. 185, 5363-5371
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