BIOCHEMICAL BIOMARKERS IN FRESHWATER BIVALVES FOR EVALUATING PLANT-DERIVED TOXICANTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/JISSI.v2.i1.2026.85Keywords:
Freshwater Bivalves, Biochemical Biomarkers, Aquatic Toxicology, Lamellidens Marginalis, Phytochemicals, Environmental Monitoring, Plant-Derived ToxicantsAbstract
Freshwater ecosystems are increasingly threatened by natural and anthropogenic contaminants, including bioactive phytochemicals released from medicinal plants, invasive weeds and plant-derived pesticides. Freshwater bivalves have emerged as valuable bioindicator organisms because of their sedentary lifestyle, filter-feeding behavior and ability to accumulate environmental contaminants. Biochemical biomarkers provide sensitive and early indicators of physiological disturbances before visible ecological effects occur. This article synthesizes current knowledge regarding biochemical responses of freshwater bivalves exposed to plant-derived toxicants, emphasizing alterations in total protein, free amino acids, acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, protease, pyruvate, lactate, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and acetylcholinesterase (ACHE). Published evidence demonstrates that phytochemicals can disrupt protein metabolism, carbohydrate utilization, lysosomal function, oxidative balance and neural transmission, resulting in measurable biochemical alterations. Biomarker responses vary depending on toxicant composition, exposure duration, concentration, species sensitivity and environmental conditions. The integration of multiple biochemical biomarkers enhances environmental monitoring by providing comprehensive information on sublethal toxicity and ecosystem health. Current challenges include biomarker standardization, interspecies variability and limited field validation. Future research should integrate biochemical biomarkers with molecular, histopathological, metabolomic and ecological approaches to strengthen aquatic risk assessment and conservation strategies.
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