Keywords: 
• PFOS /
• Hyriopsis cumingii /
• hepatopancreas /
• enzyme activity /
• toxic mechanism

Abstract: Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is a typical persistent organic pollutant, which has high levels of bio-availability and can easily migrate in the environment or accumulate in biont. In addition, PFOS has a wide range of biological toxicity. However, few studies have focused on the toxicity mechanism of PFOS on aquatic benthic animals. In this study, we explored the toxic effects of different concentrations (0.1, 1.0 and 5.0 mg·L^-1) of PFOS to benthic organisms by testing the activity of glutathione S-transferase (GST), superoxide dismutase (SOD), alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), and the concentration of glutathione (GSH) in the hepatopancreas of PFOS treated Hyriopsis cumingii. In different intensities, we detected long-lasting inductions of GSH, GST and ALT activity in the lower concentration (0.1 mg·L^-1) group. In contrast, similar patterns for all biomarkers shifting from induction to inhibition were found in the 1.0 mg·L^-1 and 5.0 mg·L^-1 groups. As an indicator of oxidative stress, the activity of SOD was significantly inhibited in all the treated groups. Finally, a positive correlation (P<0.05) was found between GSH concentration and GST activity in the 5.0 mg·L^-1 group suggesting that the cellular detoxification system was highly motivated. In the restoration experiment, none of the biomarkers had restored to the normal range, and all of the biomarkers showed more instability than the control group, which indicated the dysfunction and suggested that a longer convalescence was needed to repair the damage. In summary, the rapid triggering of cellular detoxification and oxidative stress of the antioxidant system in hepatopancreas of Hyriopsis cumingii was detected during the PFOS treated process. The blocking of toxic metabolic pathways and accumulation of oxidant may be the origin of cellular damage.