Effects of the anxiolytic benzodiazepine oxazepam on freshwater gastropod reproduction: a prospective study

Abstract

Psychoactive drugs have emerged as contaminants over the last few decades. These drugs are frequently prescribed and poorly eliminated by wastewater treatment plants, and many are present at non-negligible concentrations in surface waters. Several studies have investigated the non-target organism toxicity of one such drug, oxazepam, a benzodiazepine anxiolytic frequently detected in rivers. However, very little is known about the impact of this drug on reproduction. We investigated the effects of environmentally relevant concentrations of oxazepam on Radix balthica, a freshwater gastropod widespread in Europe. We identified the reproductive organs of Radix balthica. We then exposed this gastropod to oxazepam for two months and assessed several reproductive parameters, from reproductive organ status to behavioral parameters. We found that adults exposed to 10\u2009µg/L oxazepam display an increase in the density of spermatozoa, and that adults exposed to 0.8\u2009µg/L oxazepam displayed a decrease in the number of eggs per egg mass over time. By contrast, oxazepam had no effect on shell length, the size of male reproductive organs or social interactions. Finally, a locomotor activity analysis showed the distance covered over time decreased in all conditions of exposure to oxazepam, potentially reflecting a disturbance of exploratory activity. These results shed light on the effects of oxazepam on the reproduction of a non-target freshwater mollusk.