Environmental assessment of Octocrylene and Octocrylene containing sunscreens using the sea anemone Anemonia sulcata as bioindicator species

Marine ecosystems and biodiversity are nowadays increasingly threatened by anthropogenic pressure. Among them, personal care products are cause of increasing concern. UV-filters have received attention regarding their potential impact on cnidarians, due to their capacity to induce bleaching and to affect several physiological parameters including growth and stress tolerance. In the present study, the effects of sunscreens containing the organic UV-filter Octocrylene (OC) and of Octocrylene pure filter were assessed applying a battery of biomarkers of exposure and effects in sea anemone Anemonia sulcata. Sea anemones were exposed for 7 days to OC pure filter (0.005 to 500 µg·L-1) and different dilutions (5 to 100 %) of a mixture of suncreams containing Octocrylene. Biomarkers of oxidative stress and genotoxicity (GST, GR, LPO and DNA damage) were evaluated in tentacle and column tissue, while bleaching was evaluated using Siebeck 2006 methodology. Biomarkers revealed a heightened induction of stress responses in tentacle tissue. Antioxidant responses displayed consistent activity across all concentrations indicated by activation of GST and GR enzymes, both in anemones tested with Octocrylene and sunscreens, with a rise of LPO in both tissues. Pearson analysis indicated dose-dependent effects. Genotoxicity was primarily detected in organisms exposed to OC as an active ingredient. Furthermore, 25 out of 60 anemones exhibited bleaching, underscoring the stressful conditions to which the organisms were subjected. In summary, biochemical responses indicated that Octocrylene impacts organisms more as an active ingredient than as suncream formulation. The study emphasizes that oxidative stress manifests after a seven day experiment. This suggests that prolonged exposure may lead to chronic damage and provides significant insights for further research to be conducted as long-term experiments to unravel the dynamics of these interactions and the consequences for the organisms