•Discrimination between contaminants and the organisms. •Detection of the presence contaminants. •Early detection of effects (signals for preventive action). •Integration of measure of bioavailable pollutants. •Attribution to exposure and risks to environmental pollutants •Detection of changes in ecosystems due to pollutants. •Prevention of irreversible environmental damage •Identification of main routes of exposure at trophic levels •Toxicity of chemicals and or effluents undetected (chemicals speciation, absorption and uptake effects). •Detection of toxic effects of parent compounds and  metabolisable metabolites including contaminants (PAHs and organophosphate). •Integration of toxicological interactions of mixtures of contaminants  (various congeners of PCBs, PAHs, metals) measurable t a particular molecular, cellular or tissue target. •Short-term predictors of long-term ecological effects at different levels of contamination Sarkar et al 2006 (Behrens and Segner, 2005). •Versatility of application (to both laboratory and field studies).

Table 2: Functional Roles of Biomarkers in Marine Environmental Applications [modified after [2].