Cardiac function and survival are affected by crude oil in larval red drum, Sciaenops ocellatus

•Larval cardiac output is greatly impaired by oil exposure.•Larval red drum is sensitive at low ppb PAH50 concentrations.•Weathering does not influence survival sensitivity.

Following exposure to weathered and non-weathered oil, lethal and sub-lethal impacts on red drum larvae were assessed using survival, morphological, and cardiotoxicity assays. The LC50 for red drum ranged from 14.6 (10.3-20.9) to 21.3 (19.1-23.8) μg l− 1 ΣPAH with no effect of exposure timing during the pre-hatch window or oil weathering. Similarly, morphological deformities showed dose responses in the low ppb range. Cardiac output showed similar sensitivity resulting in a major 70% reduction after exposure to 2.6 μg l− 1 ΣPAH. This cardiac failure was driven by reduced stroke volume rather than bradycardia, meaning that in some species, cardiac function is more sensitive than previously thought. After the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, much of this type of work has primarily focused on pelagic species with little known about fast developing estuarine species. These results demonstrate similarity sensitivity of the red drum as their pelagic counter parts, and more importantly, that cardiac function is dramatically reduced in concert with pericardial edema.

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