Adult exposure to the synthetic hormone 17α-ethynylestradiol affects offspring of the gastropods Nassarius burchardi and Nassarius jonasii

• Exposure of adult N. burchardi and N. jonasii to EE2 affected embryos and veligers.
• There were differences between the responses of N. burchardi and N. jonasii.
• Adult exposure affected the percentage of unviable eggs and abnormalities.
• Adult exposure affected hatching rates, hatching success and survival of veligers.

The aim of this study was to determine whether adult exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds affects offspring using trans-generational testing. Adult estuarine dwelling gastropods Nassarius burchardi and Nassarius jonasii were exposed to the synthetic estrogen 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) to determine the effects on the development and survival of their offspring. Adults were maintained in synthetic seawater controls and EE2 treatments (0.005, 0.05, 0.5, 50 µg/L) over a sixteen week period. Egg capsules were collected from the adults following four, ten and sixteen weeks of adult exposure and transferred to different EE2 exposure scenarios. Treatment concentrations were selected to represent changes in EE2 exposure that could occur over different periods in an organism's lifecycle. Egg capsules laid by adults were therefore transferred to control or EE2 treatments (0.005, 0.05, 0.5, 5, 50, 500 µg/L) to develop until hatching. The percentage of egg capsules with unviable eggs and abnormalities, number of days for hatching to occur and hatching success were measured. The veliger larvae that hatched from egg capsules following two, eight and fourteen weeks of adult exposure to EE2 and controls were used in 96 h acute toxicity tests with controls and EE2 treatments at concentrations of 0.5, 5, 50, 500, 1250, 2500, 4000 µg/L. Exposure of adult N. burchardi and N. jonasii to EE2 affected the percentage of egg capsules with unviable eggs, the development and hatching success of embryos and survival of veligers. These toxicity tests produced a complex set of results with different responses in developing eggs and veliger larvae to the adult EE2 treatments and length of adult exposure. This study demonstrates the importance of trans-generational testing and adult exposure scenarios in toxicity investigations.