Research and progress of biomarkers in marine environmental field

A large number of pollutants are being released into marine environment, giving a high stress on the marine ecosystem. How to monitor their toxicities and to evaluate their impacts has therefore become a hot issue in marine environmental science. As an important indicator for biological processes, biomarker can be used widely in environmental monitoring, and to some extent, ecological risk assessment. In this paper, we reviewed the progresses and applications of biomarkers in marine environmental monitoring during the past decade. Various types of biomarkers in different levels (molecular, cellular, individual, and ecosystem) as well as their properties and application characteristics were summarized. The existing challenges and the future prospects for the application of biomarkers in marine monitoring are also discussed. The purpose of this review is to understand the biomarkers comprehensively and provide a theoretical reference for their applications in marine environmental protection.