Effects of pesticides and other environmental chemicals on the behavior and gene expression of gammarids

In agricultural areas, a variety of different pesticides are found in streams and smaller rivers but the effects of these pesticide mixtures on aquatic life have not been widely investigated. To study direct effects of substance mixtures in polluted waters, gammarids are used to assess the expression of various genes due to substance exposure. At the same time, the behavior of the gammarids during exposure in the water body is assessed.

In addition to these field experiments, gammarids are exposed to defined substance mixtures in the laboratory to analyze gene expression after a certain exposure time. This enables correlation of a phenotypic endpoint (behavior) with a molecular biological endpoint (gene expression).