Modelling effects of chemical exposure on birds wintering in agricultural landscapes: The western burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) as a case study

We describe an ecotoxicological model that simulates the sublethal and lethal effects of chronic, low-level, chemical exposure on birds wintering in agricultural landscapes. Previous models estimating the impact on wildlife of chemicals used in agro-ecosystems typically have not included the variety of pathways, including both dermal and oral, by which individuals are exposed. The present model contains four submodels simulating (1) foraging behavior of individual birds, (2) chemical applications to crops, (3) transfers of chemicals among soil, insects, and small mammals, and (4) transfers of chemicals to birds via ingestion and dermal exposure. We demonstrate use of the model by simulating the impacts of a variety of commonly used herbicides, insecticides, growth regulators, and defoliants on western burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) that winter in agricultural landscapes in southern Texas, United States. The model generated reasonable movement patterns for each chemical through soil, water, insects, and rodents, as well as into the owl via consumption and dermal absorption. Sensitivity analysis suggested model predictions were sensitive to uncertainty associated with estimates of chemical half-lives in birds, soil, and prey, sensitive to parameters associated with estimating dermal exposure, and relatively insensitive to uncertainty associated with details of chemical application procedures (timing of application, amount of drift). Nonetheless, the general trends in chemical accumulations and the relative impacts of the various chemicals were robust to these parameter changes. Simulation results suggested that insecticides posed a greater potential risk to owls of both sublethal and lethal effects than do herbicides, defoliants, and growth regulators under crop scenarios typical of southern Texas, and that use of multiple indicators, or endpoints provided a more accurate assessment of risk due to agricultural chemical exposure. The model should prove useful in helping prioritize the chemicals and transfer pathways targeted in future studies and also, as these new data become available, in assessing the relative danger to other birds of exposure to different types of agricultural chemicals.     

基于随机森林算法与农户视角的村落级农业面源污染风险分析

当前农业面源污染问题依然严峻,村落级尺度下各地块的污染风险状态精细识别有待进一步研究.本文针对三峡库区典型村落重庆市涪陵区南沱镇睦和村进行研究,结合无人机多光谱技术、农户行为调研、随机森林算法等进行地物识别及泛地块网格划分,通过测算总氮(total nitrogen,TN)、总磷(total phosphorus,TP...     

Comparative Toxicity of PCBs and PBDEs Using Human Cancer Cell Lines and Zebrafish Embryos

研究了6种多氯联苯(PCBs)3,3′,4,4′-四氯联苯(PCB77)、2,3,3′,4,4′-五氯联苯(PCB105)、2,3′,4,4′,5-五氯联苯(PCB118)、3,3′,4,4′,5-五氯联苯(PCB126)、2,3,3',4,4',5-六氯联苯(PCB156)和商业型混合多氯联苯Aroclor1254,两种多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)2,2′,4,4′-四溴二苯醚(PBDE47)、十溴二苯醚(PBDE209)对人类癌细胞生长和斑马鱼脱膜与不脱膜胚胎发育的影响.8种化合物均使用0.01、0.1、1.0、10μmol·L-14个浓度进行1~6d的暴露实验.结果表明,PBDE209在最高浓度10μmol·L-1下对结肠癌细胞HCT116(暴露3d后)和RKO(暴露5d后)具有显著的生长抑制作用,所有化合物均对乳腺癌细胞没有显著影响.相比之下,化合物对受精后5~6h(5~6hpf)的斑马鱼胚胎的毒性效应显得比较明显,而各化合物对胚胎的致畸和致死效应又不相同,其毒性强弱依次为PCB126≈PCB156>PCB1254(Aroclor1254)>PBDE47>PCB77>PCB105≈PCB118≈PBDE209.其中PBDE209在未脱膜暴毒后均无致畸与致死现象,脱膜暴毒后最高浓度才表现出显著意义的致畸作用,而PBDE47在最高浓度下可产生高达80%的致畸率,这说明胚胎绒毛膜具有有效阻挡大分子物质如PBDE209进入的作用.PCBs的毒性效应与其空间结构密切相关.如PCB126和PCB105具有相同的分子式,前者在1μmol·L-1下就引起了显著的致死和致畸效应,而后者即使在10μmol·L-1下也没有显著的效应.实验结果也说明不同类型的实验对象所展示的毒性效应并不相同,化合物对体外培养的细胞和发育中的胚胎具有不同的影响.     

天津污灌区苯并（a）芘、荧蒽和菲生态毒性的风险表征

运用概率风险评价方法表征和比较了天津污灌区3种多环芳烃对生物影响的风险性。根据各物质的环境暴露浓度和相应急性毒性值的累计概率分布曲线估计了各物质相对风险性的大小。采用联合概率曲线方式比较了不同暴露概率水平条件下3种多环芳烃的相对风险。结果表明，该地区目前菲的总体风险性高于另两种化合物，苯并（a)芘的总体风险性最低。而低暴露风险条件下（受威胁生物不超过20％），苯并（a)芘的风险较大，菲次之，荧蒽风险相对较低。     

空气氟化物污染对工人淋巴细胞微核的诱发

对某磷肥厂慢性接触空气氟化物污染的４０ 名工人外周血淋巴细胞的微核发生频率进行了分析研究．结果表明：接触氟化物污染工人的外周血淋巴细胞的微核发生率和微核细胞率均显著高于ＣＫ．人体对低浓度化学污染物的损害作用可产生适应机制,这种适应机制的形成需１０ ａ 左右．吸烟能加剧氟对微核的诱发作用．     

Effect of Widespread Agricultural Chemical Use on Butterfly Diversity across Turkish Provinces

Although agricultural intensification is thought to pose a significant threat to species, little is known about its role in driving biodiversity loss at regional scales. I assessed the effects of a major component of agricultural intensification, agricultural chemical use, and land‐cover and climatic variables on butterfly diversity across 81 provinces in Turkey, where agriculture is practiced extensively but with varying degrees of intensity. I determined butterfly species presence in each province from data on known butterfly distributions and calculated agricultural chemical use as the proportion of agricultural households that use chemical fertilizers and pesticides. I used constrained correspondence analyses and regression‐based multimodel inference to determine the effect of environmental variables on species composition and richness, respectively. The variation in butterfly species composition across the provinces was largely explained (78%) by the combination of agricultural chemical use, particularly pesticides, and climatic and land‐cover variables. Although overall butterfly richness was primarily explained by climatic and land‐cover variables, such as the area of natural vegetation cover, threatened butterfly richness and the relative number of threatened butterfly species decreased substantially as the proportion of agricultural households using pesticides increased. These findings suggest that widespread use of agricultural chemicals, or other components of agricultural intensification that may be collinear with pesticide use, pose an imminent threat to the biodiversity of Turkey. Accordingly, policies that mitigate agricultural intensification and promote low‐input farming practices are crucial for protecting threatened species from extinction in rapidly industrializing nations such as Turkey. Efectos del Uso Extensivo de Agroquímicos sobre la Diversidad de Mariposas en Provincias Turcas     

基于风险的Football组合法在筛选农用地优先控制酞酸酯类污染物的应用

为探索建立农用地优先管控酞酸酯类有毒有害化学物质的筛选方法,基于Football组合法开展了相关研究。结果表明,邻苯二甲酸二丁酯(DBP)、邻苯二甲酸二(2-乙基己基)酯(DEHP)、邻苯二甲酸二异丁酯(DIBP)、邻苯二甲酸丁基苄基酯(BBP)和邻苯二甲酸二乙酯(DEP)等5种酞酸酯类内源污染物潜在风险较高,将筛选结果与国内外管控化学物质名单进行比较分析,表明Football组合法可用于筛选农用地优先控制酞酸酯类有毒有害物质。     

Empirical analysis on the influence of the Shaanxi fruit industry on regional food security

As part of its development policy to relieve rural poverty in west China, the Chinese government has introduced measures such as agricultural tax exemptions, agricultural subsidies, and scientific, technological and restructuring improvements to agriculture. Following these actions, farmers’ incomes have increased greatly and the economy in poor areas of west China has seen rapid improvements. However, agricultural restructuring, infrastructure construction and ecological restoration projects have reduced the area of land under arable farming, restricting opportunities for increasing total grain yield. Regional food security is therefore threatened and an imbalance between economic development and food security is created. Shaanxi is a representative province in west China where agricultural restructuring has resulted in large areas of arable land being converted into orchards that produce higher economic returns. This study randomly surveyed 1430 farm households in three counties in the apple-producing region of Shaanxi Province (Luochuan, Changwu and Baishui). The standard of living and household income of farmers in the fruit production areas were higher than in grain-producing areas, thus discouraging grain production. Land under agriculture in the counties studied comprised 59% orchards and 39% arable, with 2% under other uses. Per capita, 204.3 kg of grain was produced, 51% of that required for self-sufficiency. Other staple foods produced amounted to only 13.9% of that needed for self-sufficiency. As a result, nearly half of the grain needed by the community was purchased from outside, resulting in very poor regional food security. Clearly, fruit production in this region seriously affects regional food security. Coordination of relationships between rural economic development and regional food security is key for sustainable development of the regional agriculture and economy of west China.     

农药类化合物对大型溞的毒性作用模式:与基线毒性化合物比较研究

农药在控制有害生物的同时,对水生生态系统产生较大的毒性效应。本文通过实验获得了25种基线化合物对大型溞的急性毒性数据,并与57种农药类化合物对大型溞的急性毒性数据进行比较研究,同时根据体外浓度LC_(50)、生物富集因子BCF和体内临界浓度CBR的关系,计算了这些化合物在大型溞体内的临界浓度,研究了农药类化合物对大型溞的毒性作用机理。结果表明,基线化合物在大型溞体内的临界浓度log1/CBR值在一个很窄的范围波动,而农药类化合物在大型溞体内的临界浓度log1/CBR值范围广且较高。这说明多数农药类化合物对大型溞为反应性毒性作用模式。其中,除草剂对大型溞的毒性显著低于杀菌剂和杀虫剂对大型溞的毒性。这可能是因为除草剂主要通过干扰植物光合作用、植物激素或植物分子合成发挥毒性效应,从而导致其对大型溞的生理系统难以发生反应性毒性效应。而杀虫剂和杀菌剂主要通过干扰生物神经系统、生殖系统、呼吸作用或大分子合成发挥毒性效应,因此易与大型溞生理系统发生生物化学反应,从而具有较高的毒性效应。本文分别建立了除草剂、杀菌剂和杀虫剂对大型溞的急性毒性QSAR模型。除草剂对大型溞的急性毒性机理较简单,其毒性与化合物疏水性程度和离子化程度有关;而杀菌剂对大型溞的急性毒性主要与化合物的标准生成热和极性表面积有关;杀虫剂对大型溞的急性毒性作用机理较复杂,它们对大型溞的毒性效应与其和生物分子之间的氢键和范德华力有关。     

农户参与三氯杀螨醇替代技术培训积极性的影响因素分析

病虫害综合防治（1PM）技术旨在结合生物、农学及物理防治方法,合理使用化学农药,降低农业生产成本,保护农业劳动者健康和生态环境.以联合国开发计划署（UNDP）、环境保护部对外合作中心和全国农业技术推广中心联合启动实施的“中国含滴滴涕三氯杀螨醇生产控制及IPM技术替代全额示范项目”为例,系统分析影响农户参与IPM培训积极性的主要因素.结果表明,农户种植规模对农户参与IPM培训的积极性影响显著,学员性别和年龄不是影响其参加培训积极性的显著因素;学员参加培训的次数越多,其对IPM技术的采纳率越高.农民田间学校应更多地吸收老人和妇女参加三氯杀螨醇替代技术及IPM培训     

密云县密云水库流域坡耕地养分流失特征

于2005年和2006年连续2 a对密云水库流域坡耕地进行水土流失小区试验,并完全按照当地农民习惯进行农事管理.试验结果表明:(1)降雨后坡耕地产生的地表径流量、泥沙量随坡度增大而增加,并与坡度正弦值呈一定的线性关系;(2)坡度对雨后地表径流和泥沙中养分含量影响不明显,但对泥沙养分流失量有明显影响;(3)养分流失以泥沙携带为主要途径,且通过泥沙携带途径流失的养分量占流失养分总量的比例随坡度增加而增加;(4)水库周边区域内坡耕地流失养分的主要来源为施用于坡耕地的化学肥料.(5)调整水库流域内坡耕地的种植结构、对坡耕地实施改造以截留或减少泥沙流失和控制化学肥料投入等措施对于治理流域内农业非点源污染、保护水源地水质显得尤为迫切.     

预测沉积物-水微宇宙系统中化学品浓度变化的多介质模型

沉积物-水微宇宙系统是经济合作发展组织(Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development,OECD)颁布的化学品测试准则中推荐的试验系统之一,可用来测试化学品对底栖生物的慢性毒性。为了在试验前对化学品的浓度变化进行预测,进而确定试验方法,以摇蚊慢性毒性试验系统为例,采用环境多介质模型的建模方法,构建了一种可通过化学品理化性质和试验系统参数,对化学品在沉积物-水试验系统中浓度变化进行预测的模型。结合试验数据和文献资料,给出了模型中试验系统参数的推荐取值,并使用Matlab软件中的Simulink工具对模型进行编程和求解。以此模型为基础,给出了模型在3个方面的应用,即预测蓄积时间、预测平衡时间以及拟合试验数据。对80种已有或假想化学品的蓄积时间和平衡时间进行了计算,得出的范围分别为1~204 d和1~73 d。此外,适当修改模型结构和模型参数,也可将其应用于其他暴露场景中。但使用模型对化学品浓度进行预测时发现,模型仅对沉积物中化学品浓度的预测结果较为准确,而对水中化学品浓度的预测结果与实测值相差1~2个数量级。模型对浓度的预测精度未来仍需进一步提高。上述研究结果完善了沉积物-水微宇宙系统试验方法。     

基于斑马鱼毒理基因组学的化学品测试技术研究进展

大量缺乏毒性信息的化学品最终进入环境水体,对人类及生态生物产生潜在的危害与风险。提高化学品生物毒性测试与评估技术的通量和效率,是实现毒害化学物质环境与生态健康风险防控的关键。作为一种可以实现高通量测试的脊椎动物模型,斑马鱼胚胎测试在化学品的毒性评估中应用广泛。随着组学技术的发展,毒理基因组学可有效提取毒害化学品致毒过程中干扰生物学通路的信息。这些机制信息可用于对单物质或复合污染物生物毒性的筛选和预测。本文综述了不同斑马鱼胚胎测试技术在化学品毒性筛选评估管理与水环境复合污染毒性监测中的发展和应用,详细介绍了一种新型斑马鱼胚胎简化转录组学技术的方法流程和优势,并探讨了综合斑马鱼胚胎毒性测试、行为分析和组学等不同测试技术在化学品毒性测试、环境监测与评价中的应用前景。     

Antibiotika (Ivermectin, Monensin) und endokrine Umweltchemikalien (nonylphenol, Ethinylöstradiol) im Boden

The influence of four synthetic chemicals (nonylphenol, ethynyl-estradiol, ivermectin, monesin) on the biomass and on the microbial activity was studied in a laboratory experiment using a typical luvisol derived from loess. The polyether antibiotic monensin, the antiparasitic agent ivermectin and the two environmental chemicals with endocrine effects nonylphenol and ethynylestradiol were chosen because of their toxicity to different organisms and known biological activity. These agents may enter the soil together with sewage sludge or manure. To date, however, the effects on soil have hardly been studied. Selected microbial methods revealed in part very significant effects on the microbial biomass and microbial activity during constant physical (15°C, 50% water holding capicity) and chemical conditions (pH, C_org) 1, 14 and 42 days after contamination.     

Insecticidal and antifungal chemicals produced by plants: a review

Leaf-cutting ants of the Attini tribe are a major pest of agricultural and forestry productions in the New World. Economic losses caused by these ants were estimated at several million dollars per year. These ants need to live in symbiosis with a basidiomycete fungus. Due to their mutualistic interaction with the symbiotic fungus, management of Attini ants can be done with insecticides or fungicides or both. So far, synthetic pesticides were the main control means, albeit with negative effects on the environment. Very few studies describe alternative methods for the control of leaf-cutting ants such as the use of insecticidal and fungicidal plant extracts. There is therefore a need of knowledge on phytochemicals and plants that could be used as insecticides and fungicides. Here, we review chemicals of plant origin and species with insecticidal and fungicidal activities. We establish a list of plants and phytochemicals that could manage leaf-cutting ants and also other insects, notably insects that use fungus-based agriculture. An exhaustive literature search of 1965 references from 1923 to 2010 was conducted using scientific databases, chemical databases, botanical databases, and books to identify published papers related to insecticidal and fungicidal chemical compounds stemmed from plant species. The major points are the following: (1) 119 and 284 chemicals have been cited in the literature for their insecticidal and fungicidal activities, respectively; (2) 656 and 1,064 plant species have significant insecticidal and fungicidal activities, respectively; (3) 3 main chemical classes were most cited for these activities: alkaloids, phenolics, and terpenoids; (4) 20 interesting chemicals with the both insecticidal and fungicidal activities were found; and (5) 305 plant species containing these chemicals were cited. To conclude, 20 chemicals: caryophyllene oxide, cinnamaldehyde, eugenol, helenalin, linalool, menthone, myristicin, pulegone, thymol, anethole, anisaldehyde, elemicin, isopimpinellin, plumbagin, podophyllotoxin, psoralen, xanthotoxin, anonaine, solamargine, and tomatine; two main plant families, Lamiaceae and Apiaceae; and 17 species of these families were particularly interesting for the management of leaf-cutting ants.     

Kombinationswirkungen von Umweltchemikalien in der Ökotoxikologie

Ecosystems and biocoenoses are exposed to multiple mixtures of environmental pollutants, but the usual risk assessment of chemical toxicities is focussed only on the judgement of single substance toxicity. With the two biometrical models concentration-addition and independent action known from pharmacology and toxicology, a pragmatic way for the analysis of combined effects is possible using the experimental knowledge of single substance toxicity. A short introduction to the models is given and an appropriate experimental design for mixture toxicity analysis is outlined. The principal suitability of the concepts was verifed in two different bioassays (green alga; luminescent bacterium) with the analysis of binary and multiple mixture toxicities of environmental chemicals. In this paper we present the results obtained with the green algae bioassay. Congruent results from the bioluminescence inhibition assay can be found in Grimme (1998). The results obtained indicate that the toxicities of mixtures of chemicals can be studied experimentally, even at low concentrations of the individual components. Mixture toxicities were detected at low, statistically non-significantly acting concentrations of the single compounds. These results force one to take mixture toxicities into account when environmental standards are established.     

Feasibility of using salivary biomarkers to assess human exposure to chlorpyrifos

The objective of this study was to determine the feasibility of using salivary biomarkers to assess chlorpyrifos exposure using data collected from laboratory controlled animal study, as well as from farmers in Thailand and Nicaragua who applied chlorpyrifos in the field. Time-matched saliva and arterial blood samples were collected from rats and adult agricultural workers, while spot saliva samples were collected from children. Specimen samples were analyzed for chlorpyrifos using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results from both animal and farmer studies show that chlorpyrifos is excreted into saliva. Nevertheless, salivary excretion of chlorpyrifos seems to differ from other pesticides, as evidenced by the lack of correspondence of chlorpyrifos levels between saliva and plasma samples. The lower chlorpyrifos concentrations in saliva collected from rats, and from farmers and their children, may have resulted from the rapid hydrolysis of chlorpyrifos during the intracellular passive diffusion in the salivary gland. In conclusion, chlorpyrifos is excreted into saliva; however, the majority of chlorpyrifos that is excreted in saliva may have been metabolized due to base-dependent hydrolysis. Because of this finding, it was hypothesized that it would be ideal to measure its metabolite, 3,5,6-trichloropyridinol, in saliva as the biomarker for chlorpyrifos exposure.     

Socioeconomic determinants of long-term cropland fallowing: smallholders in north-western Uganda

SUMMARY

Long-term cropland fallowing decisions of farmers in the West Nile Province of Uganda were studied. Tabular and regression methods are used to examine the relationship between farm and household factors and seasons of net fallowing. The results show that farmers plan to decrease the rate of fallowing in the immediate future. Serious (but undocumented) problems in maintaining cropland productivity could result. Population density had a large and negative effect on net fallowing (seasons of fallowing less seasons of crops), decreasing from the current average of ?0.6 seasons to ?2.21 seasons for a doubling of population. This 268% decrease in the use of fallowing could occur in as few as 13.5 years, assuming a 3% annual population growth rate. Farms larger in size, but with no increase in per capita cropland availability, had a higher rate of net fallowing. Cashcrop production was negatively associated with net fallowing, whilst farmer age had a positive association.

The results have implications for both agricultural policy and guidance for further research on cropland fallowing. Increased cash-cropping should not be recommended unless the full economic costs of using land resources are evaluated. Much of the increased area for cash-crop production would come from fallowed land, decreasing the rate of fallowing and thus increasing the potential for soil degradation. Fallowing has long been used in the area to maintain cropland productivity. Building upon farmers current practices and improving fallowing through the use of green manures and agroforestry could prove to be more economical than the use of mineral fertilizers. Investigating why farms larger in size and those with older head-of-households were able to use fallowing more effectively may provide key information for the development of more productive fallowing technologies.     

土壤中结合残留态农药的生态环境效应

土壤中农药结合残留态的形成，导致其活性暂时降低，但并未从土壤中消失，在特定的环境条件下又重新释放到环境中并表现出较高的生物有效性，从而威胁农产品质量安全与环境质量。文章论述了土壤中结合残留态农药的定义、形成过程及影响因素、老化和释放过程及机制。土壤中结合残留态农药主要通过吸附过程、化学反应及物理镶嵌等作用而形成，其形成过程受农药的结构和化学特性、土壤理化性质、环境条件和农艺措施的影响。老化是化合物和土壤组分紧密结合，减少被普通提取方法提取出来的数量，降低了化合物的生物有效性。同时老化的物质在土壤环境条件改变的情况下又重新释放到土壤溶液中或进行矿化，此过程可以通过物理一化学机制或生物化学作用而发生。重新释放到环境中的结合残留态农药又表现出较高的生物有效性，可能被植物、动物或微生物所吸收，并沿食物链富集和放大或进入水体污染水产品和造成水质恶化，从而威胁人体健康。文章还分析了土壤结合残留态农药可能带来的环境问题，提出了此问题今后研究的方向。     

Emergent conservation outcomes of shared risk perception in human-wildlife systems

Human perception of risks related to economic damages caused by nearby wildlife can be transmitted through social networks. Understanding how sharing risk information within a human community alters the spatial dynamics of human-wildlife interactions has important implications for the design and implementation of effective conservation actions. We developed an agent-based model that simulates farmer livelihood decisions and activities in an agricultural landscape shared with a population of a generic wildlife species (wildlife-human interactions in shared landscapes [WHISL]). In the model, based on risk perception and economic information, farmers decide how much labor to allocate to farming and whether and where to exclude wildlife from their farms (e.g., through fencing, trenches, or vegetation thinning). In scenarios where the risk perception of farmers was strongly influenced by other farmers, exclusion of wildlife was widespread, resulting in decreased quality of wildlife habitat and frequency of wildlife damages across the landscape. When economic losses from encounters with wildlife were high, perception of risk increased and led to highly synchronous behaviors by farmers in space and time. Interactions between wildlife and farmers sometimes led to a spillover effect of wildlife damage displaced from socially and spatially connected communities to less connected neighboring farms. The WHISL model is a useful conservation-planning tool because it provides a test bed for theories and predictions about human-wildlife dynamics across a range of different agricultural landscapes.