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Responses of Health- and Growth-Related Biomarkers in Corals Exposed to Iron

  • Juliana da Silva Fonseca 1,   
  • Letícia May Fukushima 1,   
  • João Vitor Langorte Bueno 2,   
  • Thales Jean Vidal 3,   
  • Kely Paula Salvi 4,   
  • Carlos Henrique Figueiredo Lacerda 4,   
  • Patrícia Gomes Costa 1,   
  • Miguel Mies 4,5,   
  • Adalto Bianchini 4,6,*

Received: 12 Oct 2025 | Revised: 09 Dec 2025 | Accepted: 15 Dec 2025 | Published: 24 Dec 2025

Abstract

Coral reefs biodiversity and productivity are currently in decline due to the impacts of human activities, especially those associated with chemical pollutants, including metals. In this context, iron (Fe) contamination of coastal waters associated with land runoff and disasters associated with mining activities has drawn attention around the globe, especially in the Southern Atlantic coast. Fe is an essential metal involved in photosynthesis, respiration, and oxidative metabolism, which can thus influence parameters associated with photosynthesis and the activity of ATPases. Therefore, we evaluated the acute and chronic effects of Fe on the maximum quantum yield of photosystem II and carbonic anhydrase and Ca2+-ATPase activities in three corals species: Mussismilia harttii, Siderastrea sp., and Millepora alcicornis. Corals were maintained in control condition (no Fe addition in seawater) and acutely (4 days—laboratory conditions) or chronically (up to 28 days—mesocosm conditions) exposed to different increments of Fe (0.1, 0.3, and 0.9 mg L−1) in seawater. The tested concentrations were selected based on the range of total and dissolved Fe concentrations observed in seawater in reef environments of the South Atlantic Ocean after the collapse of the Fundão mine dam occurred in Mariana (state of Minas Gerais, southeastern Brazil) in 2015. In the acute and chronic experiments, three and four replicates were performed for each experimental condition, respectively. In the acute exposure, all biological parameters were measured after 4 days of exposure. In the chronic exposure, the maximum quantum yield of photosystem II was measured at 5, 10, 17, and 24 days of exposure while enzyme activities were analyzed at 14 and 28 days of exposure. Results indicated that the maximum quantum yield of photosystem II was decreased by 20.5% (p < 0.05) in Mi. alcicornis exposed for 17 days to 0.1 mg L−1 Fe, when compared to the control condition at the same experimental time. Along the experimental time, it was decreased (p < 0.05) by 19.8% and 20.9% in Mu. harttii exposed for 24 days to 0.3 and 0.9 mg L−1 Fe, respectively. In Mu. harttii, carbonic anhydrase activity was reduced by 31.7% after acute exposure of corals to 0.3 mg L−1 Fe and increased by 102.4% when they were exposed to 0.9 mg L−1 Fe. Also, carbonic anhydrase activity was reduced (p < 0.05) by 62.1% and 54.5% in Mi. alcicornis exposed for 14 days to 0.3 and 0.9 mg L−1 Fe, respectively. After 28 days of Fe exposure, no significant change is CA activity was observed in the three species of corals. Furthermore, Ca2+-ATPase activity of the three coral species was not altered by the Fe increments in seawater, regardless of the exposure time. Overall, our findings indicates that exposure to increments of Fe in seawater influenced the health- (maximum quantum yield of photosystem II) and growth-related (carbonic anhydrase activity) biomarkers evaluated. The observed effects were specific to the three coral species tested and highlight the need to test the impacts of the seawater contamination with Fe over longer exposure periods than those tested in the present study. 

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10.53941/eesus.2025.100028
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Volume 1, Issue 2
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Fonseca, J. d. S.; Fukushima, L. M.; Bueno, J. V. L.; Vidal, T. J.; Salvi, K. P.; Lacerda, C. H. F.; Costa, P. G.; Mies, M.; Bianchini, A. Responses of Health- and Growth-Related Biomarkers in Corals Exposed to Iron. Earth: Environmental Sustainability 2025, 1 (2), 366–382. https://doi.org/10.53941/eesus.2025.100028.
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