Sediment pore water toxicity identification in the lower Fox River and Green Bay, Wisconsin, using the Microtox assay

Abstract

Microtox assays with two different methods of osmotic adjustment were used to assess the toxicity of pore waters from 13 sediment samples collected from the Fox River watershed in Wisconsin. No toxicity was observed in Microtox assays osmotically adjusted with NaCl; however, 15-min EC50 values for assays osmotically adjusted with sucrose ranged from 52 to 63% pore water. Un-ionized ammonia accounted for a large part of the observed toxicity, but, based on a toxic units approach, did not account for all observed toxicity. Metals (Cu, Zn) and an unidentified compound(s) may potentially contribute to the observed effects in Microtox assays osmotically adjusted with sucrose. The use of alternative osmotic adjustment techniques in the Microtox assay is one potentially useful tool for elucidating several classes of compounds responsible for effects observed in toxicity assays.