Imposex

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The term imposex describes a phenomenon that occurs in sea snails as a result of the accumulation of pollutants in the oceans. In the process, genital organs develop that are the opposite of their actual gender.

In contrast to intersex individuals, who cannot be clearly assigned to a gender because they have genitals of both sexes, imposex individuals look clearly male even though they are female. For example, penises were found in female sea ​​snails ( whelk , spiny snail ). The snails can therefore no longer lay eggs, so that the populations on the German and Dutch North Sea coasts have collapsed.

So far, tributyltin compounds (TBT) have been proven to be the cause of this phenomenon. Because of the interference of this environmental chemical in the hormonal balance , it is a so-called endocrine disruptor .

literature

  • PE Gibbs, GW Bryan: Reproductive failure in populations of the dog-whelk 'Nucella lapillus', caused by imposex induced by tributyltin from antifouling paints. In: J. Mar. Biol. Ass. UK 66, 1986, pp. 767-777.
  • Occurrence of Imposex. ( Memento of September 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Natural Resource Management. 2006. ( pdf ; 53 kB)
  • G. Wirzinger, C. Vogt, J. Bachmann, M. Hasenbank, C. Liers, C. Stark, S. Ziebard, J. Oehlmann: Imposex of the netted whelk 'Nassarius reticulatus' (Prosobranchia) in Brittany along a transect from a point source. In: Cah. Biol. Mar. 48 (1), 2007, pp. 85-94.