Combined toxicities of methyl tert-butyl ether and its metabolite tert-butyl alcohol on earthworms via different exposure routes

• MTBE and TBA are among the major soil contaminants that threaten the soil health.
• The combined toxicities of MTBE and TBA were studied using two earthworm species.
• The combined toxicity showed weak antagonistic effects.
• Sensitivity toward same pollutants differed in the earthworm species and exposure routes.
• The results provide important information for future assessments of soil ecosystem risk.

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) are among the major soil contaminants that threaten the health of soil ecosystems. Many MTBE-contaminated sites accumulate TBA, because TBA is the intermediate of MTBE biodegradation. To access the risk of MTBE and TBA in soil, we investigated the combined toxicities of MTBE and TBA using two earthworm species, Perionyx excavatus and Eisenia andrei, as well as the toxic effects via different exposure routes. The combined toxicity showed weak antagonistic effects (LC50mix values were slightly greater than 1.0), and sensitivity toward same pollutants differed in the two earthworm species. Moreover, the toxicity of MTBE and TBA was also affected by the exposure route; both filter paper and artificial soil tests showed that dermal-only exposure to MTBE had an even greater toxic effect than combined dermal and oral exposure. Thus, we suggest that diverse environmental factors including organic materials, the physicochemical properties of the contact media, and the exposure routes of the organism, should be taken into consideration when assessing the effects of pollutants on organisms in diverse environmental systems.