INVESTIGATING THE ACUTE CARDIAC EFFECTS ON AQUATIC ORGANISMS BY GASOLINE POLLUTION IN LAKE-SIMULATED BEAKERS USING Daphnia magna

Petroleum and its product are one of the most common water and soil pollutant sources and have caused marine and terrestrial spillages. The oil from these spills from polluted groundwater returns to the human population through numerous pathways by consuming fish and shellfish. Daphnia magna, also known as the water flea, is a small planktonic crustacean that lives in bodies of freshwater. They are an ideal model for testing the toxicity of substances due to their high sensitivity to environmental chemicals. Therefore, the data acquired with Daphnia can serve dual purposes: one for an indicator of environmental pollution and the other for estimating adverse effects on the human body, though not directly.

In this study, a lake-simulated model was created using organic materials, laboratory shakers, and temperature control systems in groups of beakers, and their variable dependency was investigated. It was concluded that Daphnia's heartbeat was significantly depressed by the existence of gasoline pollution. Moreover, the impact on the cardiac function was linearly correlated with the lake-simulated model's gasoline volume, organic material concentration, and temperature. However, there seemed to be complicated conditions that existed mutually depending on the variables. Further study may be necessary for any underlying mechanism within the organs in the body.