A Critical Review of Organic Ultraviolet Filter Exposure, Hazard, and Risk to Corals

Overview

Journal Environ Toxicol Chem

Publisher Oxford University Press

Date 2021 Feb 2

PMID 33528837

Citations 22

Authors

Carys L Mitchelmore

Emily E Burns

Annaleise Conway

Andrew Heyes

Iain A Davies

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

There has been a rapid increase in public, political, and scientific interest regarding the impact of organic ultraviolet (UV) filters to coral reefs. Such filters are found in sunscreens and other consumer products and enter the aquatic environment via direct (i.e., recreational activities, effluents) or indirect (i.e., land runoff) pathways. This review summarizes the current state of the science regarding the concentration of organic UV filters in seawater and sediment near coral reef ecosystems and in coral tissues, toxicological data from early and adult life stages of coral species, and preliminary environmental risk characterizations. Up to 14 different organic UV filters in seawater near coral reefs have been reported across 12 studies, with the majority of concentrations in the nanograms per liter range. Nine papers report toxicological findings from no response to a variety of biological effects occurring in the micrograms per liter to milligrams per liter range, in part given the wide variations in experimental design and coral species and/or life stage used. This review presents key findings; scientific data gaps; flaws in assumptions, practice, and inference; and a number of recommendations for future studies to assess the environmental risk of organic UV filters to coral reef ecosystems. Environ Toxicol Chem 2021;40:967-988. © 2021 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.

Citing Articles

Short-term and long-term effects of microplastics and organic UV-filters on the invertebrate model species Daphnia magna.

Svigruha R, Fodor I, Nemeth Z, Farkas A, Pirger Z, Acs A Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2025; 32(8):4841-4855.

PMID: 39891809 PMC: 11850500. DOI: 10.1007/s11356-025-36008-z.

A review of ultraviolet filters and their impact on aquatic environments.

Grant G, Lim H, Mohammad T Photochem Photobiol Sci. 2024; 24(2):343-356.

PMID: 39704908 DOI: 10.1007/s43630-024-00674-8.

Sunscreens: A narrative review.

Salih H, Psomadakis C, George S Skin Health Dis. 2024; 4(6):e432.

PMID: 39624735 PMC: 11608887. DOI: 10.1002/ski2.432.

Predicting the acute aquatic toxicity of organic UV filters used in cosmetic formulations.

Stergiopoulos C, Tsopelas F, Ochsenkuhn-Petropoulou M, Valko K ADMET DMPK. 2024; 12(5):781-796.

PMID: 39524218 PMC: 11542717. DOI: 10.5599/admet.2364.

What are the toxicity thresholds of chemical pollutants for tropical reef-building corals? A systematic review.

Ouedraogo D, Mell H, Perceval O, Burga K, Domart-Coulon I, Hedouin L Environ Evid. 2024; 12(1):4.

PMID: 39294817 PMC: 11378836. DOI: 10.1186/s13750-023-00298-y.

References

Goksoyr A, Tollefsen K, Grung M, Loken K, Lie E, Zenker A . Balsa raft crossing the Pacific finds low contaminant levels. Environ Sci Technol. 2009; 43(13):4783-90. DOI: 10.1021/es900154h. View

Kais B, Schneider K, Keiter S, Henn K, Ackermann C, Braunbeck T . DMSO modifies the permeability of the zebrafish (Danio rerio) chorion-implications for the fish embryo test (FET). Aquat Toxicol. 2013; 140-141:229-38. DOI: 10.1016/j.aquatox.2013.05.022. View

Schneider S, Lim H . Review of environmental effects of oxybenzone and other sunscreen active ingredients. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2018; 80(1):266-271. DOI: 10.1016/j.jaad.2018.06.033. View

Kim S, Choi K . Occurrences, toxicities, and ecological risks of benzophenone-3, a common component of organic sunscreen products: a mini-review. Environ Int. 2014; 70:143-57. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2014.05.015. View

He T, Tsui M, Tan C, Ma C, Yiu S, Wang L . Toxicological effects of two organic ultraviolet filters and a related commercial sunscreen product in adult corals. Environ Pollut. 2018; 245:462-471. DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2018.11.029. View

Fent K, Zenker A, Rapp M . Widespread occurrence of estrogenic UV-filters in aquatic ecosystems in Switzerland. Environ Pollut. 2009; 158(5):1817-24. DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2009.11.005. View

Tsui M, Lam J, Ng T, Ang P, Murphy M, Lam P . Occurrence, Distribution, and Fate of Organic UV Filters in Coral Communities. Environ Sci Technol. 2017; 51(8):4182-4190. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.6b05211. View

Owen R, Mitchelmore C, Woodley C, Trapido-Rosenthal H, Galloway T, Depledge M . A common sense approach for confronting coral reef decline associated with human activities. Mar Pollut Bull. 2005; 51(5-7):481-5. DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2005.08.011. View

Benede J, Chisvert A, Salvador A, Sanchez-Quiles D, Tovar-Sanchez A . Determination of UV filters in both soluble and particulate fractions of seawaters by dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Anal Chim Acta. 2014; 812:50-8. DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2013.12.033. View

10.

Pawlowski S, Lanzinger A, Dolich T, Fussl S, Salinas E, Zok S . Evaluation of the bioaccumulation of octocrylene after dietary and aqueous exposure. Sci Total Environ. 2019; 672:669-679. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.03.237. View

11.

Horricks R, Tabin S, Edwards J, Lumsden J, Marancik D . Organic ultraviolet filters in nearshore waters and in the invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans) in Grenada, West Indies. PLoS One. 2019; 14(7):e0220280. PMC: 6655699. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0220280. View

12.

Hughes T, Anderson K, Connolly S, Heron S, Kerry J, Lough J . Spatial and temporal patterns of mass bleaching of corals in the Anthropocene. Science. 2018; 359(6371):80-83. DOI: 10.1126/science.aan8048. View

13.

Moermond C, Kase R, Korkaric M, Agerstrand M . CRED: Criteria for reporting and evaluating ecotoxicity data. Environ Toxicol Chem. 2015; 35(5):1297-309. DOI: 10.1002/etc.3259. View

14.

Amid C, Olstedt M, Gunnarsson J, Le Lan H, Tran Thi Minh H, van den Brink P . Additive effects of the herbicide glyphosate and elevated temperature on the branched coral Acropora formosa in Nha Trang, Vietnam. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2017; 25(14):13360-13372. PMC: 5978828. DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-8320-7. View

15.

Spalding M, Brown B . Warm-water coral reefs and climate change. Science. 2015; 350(6262):769-71. DOI: 10.1126/science.aad0349. View

16.

Posthuma L, Dyer S, de Zwart D, Kapo K, Holmes C, Burton Jr G . Eco-epidemiology of aquatic ecosystems: Separating chemicals from multiple stressors. Sci Total Environ. 2016; 573:1303-1319. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.06.242. View

17.

Oppenheimer J, Eaton A, Badruzzaman M, Haghani A, Jacangelo J . Occurrence and suitability of sucralose as an indicator compound of wastewater loading to surface waters in urbanized regions. Water Res. 2011; 45(13):4019-27. DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2011.05.014. View

18.

Tashiro Y, Kameda Y . Concentration of organic sun-blocking agents in seawater of beaches and coral reefs of Okinawa Island, Japan. Mar Pollut Bull. 2013; 77(1-2):333-40. DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2013.09.013. View

19.

He T, Tsui M, Tan C, Ng K, Guo F, Wang L . Comparative toxicities of four benzophenone ultraviolet filters to two life stages of two coral species. Sci Total Environ. 2018; 651(Pt 2):2391-2399. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.148. View

20.

Harris C, Scott A, Johnson A, Panter G, Sheahan D, Roberts M . Principles of sound ecotoxicology. Environ Sci Technol. 2014; 48(6):3100-11. DOI: 10.1021/es4047507. View