Development and Validation of Toxkit Microbiotests with Invertebrates, in Particular Crustaceans

Abstract :The review first addresses the major bottleneck of conventional toxicity tests with invertebrates, namely the need for continuous culturing and/or maintenance of stocks of live test-organisms. Subsequently the history of the development and the validation of the first cyst-based microbiotests are outlined. Details are given of the large intercalibration exercises organized concurrently in Europe, the USA and Canada as well as of the extensive microbiotest validation study on 350 samples from various sites in Flanders (Belgium) from waste dumps, groundwaters, river sediments, sludges and industrial effluents. The gradual incorporation during the early nineties, of Toxkit microbiotests in monitoring studies of wastewaters, industrial effluents, landfills and river sediments is reported as well as the predictive potential of these small-scale assays in human toxicology. Finally the development and the first validation of the Daphtoxkit microbiotests with the waterfleasDaphnia magnaandDaphnia pulexare outlined in detail, and sensitivity comparisons and correlations with the conventional assays on Daphnids are given for inorganic and organic compounds and for effluents from the textile industry.