Carbamazepine exposure inflicts functional alterations in tissues of Chlamys islandica

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Abstract
Human pharmaceuticals are considered ”emerging pollutants” within the Arctic environment. While their impacts have been studied extensively in other regions of the world, their effects on native Arctic organisms remain poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, we investigated the effects of the pharmaceutical pollution by carbamazepine, which has been detected in the Arctic marine ecosystem, on the Icelandic scallop Chlamys islandica. This research, as part of a series of studies, investigates the histopathological effects of carbamazepine on C. islandica following exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations (50 and 1000 ng L⁻¹). Histological assessments were conducted using haematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and Alcian Blue Periodic Acid–Schiff (AB-PAS) staining methods, followed by image analysis using image-processing techniques. These approaches provide quantitative measurements from traditionally semi-quantitative histopathological assessments and represent an underutilised approach within environmental toxicology. The results demonstrated that carbamazepine exposure induced tissue-level impairments in gonadal, gill, and digestive tissues of the scallop. Increased mucus production in gill and digestive tissues, atrophy of the digestive system, variations in sperm cell morphology, and a substantial reduction in vitellin envelope thickness within oocytes were observed. This study demonstrates that even short-term carbamazepine exposure can alter functional tissue characteristics in C. islandica, potentially affecting physiological performance and contributing to population-level consequences within Arctic marine ecosystems.