Increased levels of polychlorobiphenyls in Italian women with endometriosis

Endometriosis has been hypothesised to be linked to persistent and toxic organochlorinated chemicals. Dioxins and dioxin-like compounds have in particular been associated with the disease, mainly on the basis of experimental studies. Data in women are conflicting. A case-control study on 80 Italian nulliparous women of reproductive age was carried out to assess whether there is a correlation between the presence of endometriosis and blood levels of polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), a family of ubiquitary environmental pollutants which comprises congeners with dioxin-like activity. Higher levels of PCBs were found in women with endometriosis. A mean cumulative value of 410 ng g(-1), lipid base, was found in cases versus the value of 250 ng g(-1) observed in the control group (odds ratio for upper tertile 4.0, CI 95% 1.3-13; p = 0.0003). PCB increase involved both dioxin-like (PCBs 105, 118, 156, and 167) and non-dioxin-like congeners (PCBs 101, 138, 153, 170, 180).     

Treatment of cork boiling wastewater using chemical oxidation and biodegradation

Three cultures were enriched from cork boiling wastewater using tannic acid as the selective carbon substrate, at 25 degrees C and pH 7.2, 25 degrees C and pH 4.7 and 50 degrees C and pH 4.7. The enrichment culture obtained at neutral pH was composed of five culturable isolates, whereas from each acidic enrichment two bacterial strains were isolated. Mesophilic isolates were Gram negative bacteria belonging to the genera Klebsiella, Pseudomonas, Stenotrophomonas and Burkholderia. Thermophilic isolates were members of the genus Bacillus. Despite the capability of the enrichment cultures to use tannic acid as single carbon and energy source, those cultures were unable to reduce the total polyphenols or the total organic carbon content of cork boiling wastewater. In order to increase the bioavailability of the organic carbon in cork boiling wastewater, biodegradation was preceded by Fenton oxidation. It was demonstrated that the combined process, using small amounts of Fenton reagents and biodegradative inoculum added almost simultaneously to cork boiling wastewater, leads to TOC reductions of more than 90%.     

Metabolism of aromatic hydrocarbons by the filamentous fungus Cyclothyrium sp

The metabolism of biphenyl, naphthalene, anthracene, phenanthrene, pyrene and benzo[a]pyrene by Cyclothyrium sp. CBS 109850, a coelomycete isolated for the first time in Brazil from industrially polluted estuarine sediment, was studied. The metabolites were extracted and separated by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and characterized by UV spectral analyses and mass, and proton nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H NMR) spectrometry. Cyclothyrium sp. transformed biphenyl to 4-hydroxybiphenyl and anthracene to anthracene trans-1,2-dihydrodiol. This isolate metabolized 90% of [9-(14)C]phenanthrene, producing phenanthrene trans-9,10-dihydrodiol as a major metabolite, phenanthrene trans-3,4-dihydrodiol, 1-hydroxyphenanthrene, 3-hydroxyphenanthrene, 4-hydroxyphenanthrene, and a novel metabolite, 2-hydroxy-7-methoxyphenanthrene. Circular dichroism spectra analyses indicated that the major enantiomers of phenanthrene trans-9, 10-dihydrodiol, phenanthrene trans-3,4-dihydrodiol and pyrene trans-4,5-dihydrodiol, a pyrene metabolite produced previously by Cyclothyrium sp. CBS 109850, were predominantly in the (R,R) configuration, revealing a high stereoselectivity for initial monooxygenation and enzymatic hydration of phenanthrene and pyrene by Cyclothyrium sp. CBS109850. The results also show a high regioselectivity since the K-regions of phenanthrene and pyrene were the major sites of metabolism.     

The more I want,the less I have left to give: The moderating role of psychological entitlement on the relationship between psychological contract violation,depressive mood states,and citizenship behavior

Research has emphasized the negative effects of organizations' broken promises and failed obligations on employee attitudes and behaviors. However, not all employees respond in the same manner. This paper integrates research on psychological contracts and psychological entitlement to examine how individuals with exceedingly high demands and expectations react to a perceived letdown by the organization. Drawing on conservation of resources theory, we argue that a psychological contract violation is associated with employee depressive mood states, which, in turn, influence the amount of citizenship behavior displayed. We further posit that psychological entitlement moderates the link between contract violation and depressive mood states. Using Hayes' PROCESS macro to assess a moderated mediation model, findings from a multi‐source field study support our predictions. This research contributes to the work on psychological contracts and psychological entitlement on multiple fronts. Suggestions for future research and practical implications for managers are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Strategies in a metallophyte species to cope with manganese excess

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - The effect of exposure to high Mn concentration was studied in a metallophyte species, Erica andevalensis, using hydroponic cultures with a range of Mn...     

Solicitation displays reliably reflect oxidative damage in barn swallow nestlings

Reproduction entails parental decisions over allocation of limiting resources. ‘Begging’ solicitation displays by the offspring have been hypothesised to evolve as reliable indicators of quality, allowing parents to adopt optimal allocation strategies. To function as such, however, begging signals must covary with offspring traits that affect viability. Here we tested whether oxidative damage of nestling barn swallows predicts begging bout duration, call amplitude and intensity of postural displays both under normal food provisioning and under food shortage. Oxidative damage as determined by normal metabolism, pathological conditions and functioning of the immune system can serve as a comprehensive indicator of offspring condition because it can profoundly affect viability, senescence and reproduction. Begging bout duration was negatively predicted by oxidative damage but only after food deprivation. Postural begging negatively covaried with oxidative damage, at least when nestlings were confronted with related nest mates. Plasma antioxidant capacity did not predict begging behaviour. Thus, we show for the first time that behavioural begging covaries with a comprehensive index of chick condition, lending support to reliability of such begging traits also as signals of quality rather than need or hunger only. Future studies are candidate to decouple the effect of hunger state and individual condition on behavioural begging.     

Comparison of various sensitive and selective spectrophotometric assays of environmental cyanide

A simple approach was carried out to study the effects of various parameters on high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) performance of microcystin-LR (MC-LR) analysis in samples from some reservoirs and rivers in Taiwan under simulation conditions. Nature of column and its packing affected the instrument sensitivity. Varied column length indicated the longer column enhanced (C18, 5 μm, 4.6 × 150 mm) HPLC performance. Studies on mobile phase found that ratio and concentration of the mobile phase gradient greatly influenced the peak shape, retention time, and optimal conditions of mobile phase were set at acetonitrile and 0.01M ammonium acetate (30:70). Different compounds were added to mobile phase and their contribution to HPLC spectra was reported. Detection limits were carefully measured and reported. These investigations provide simple and important information that may be applied to HPLC performance for microcystin analysis from natural water systems.     

Within-clutch egg size asymmetry covaries with embryo sex in the yellow-legged gull Larus michahellis

Non-random sex allocation may occur whenever the expected reproductive value of sons and daughters differs, as is the case when the sexes differ in susceptibility to environmental conditions or maternal effects (e.g. egg size and hatch order). Under such circumstances, covariation between egg and clutch characteristics and egg sex may be expected, and this covariation should vary with maternal state or ecological conditions. In this 2-year study (2007–2008), we examined sex allocation in relation to egg and clutch traits in the yellow-legged gull Larus michahellis, a species where male chicks are larger and more susceptible to harsh rearing conditions than female ones. In 2008, eggs were more likely male early in the season in two- but not three-egg clutches, and large eggs were more likely males late in the season. No egg/clutch traits predicted egg sex in 2007. Within-clutch egg mass asymmetry (the difference in egg mass between the first- and last-laid eggs) predicted sex in both years. In 2007, clutches with smaller egg mass variation were more likely to contain males, while in 2008 this relationship held for the last-laid egg and was reversed for the preceding egg(s). Laying order and sex of the previous egg did not predict egg sex, providing no evidence of sex-specific oocyte clustering. Thus, the relationships between egg sex and egg/clutch traits differed among years, suggesting a phenotypically plastic response of females to extrinsic conditions, and involved within-clutch egg mass asymmetry, a trait likely reflecting variation in maternal quality and/or reproductive tactics, which has been largely neglected in previous studies of sex allocation.     

The use of multilevel sampling techniques for determining shallow aquifer nitrate profiles

Nitrate is a worldwide pollutant in aquifers. Shallow aquifer nitrate concentrations generally display vertical stratification, with a maximum concentration immediately below the water level. The concentration then gradually decreases with depth. Different techniques can be used to highlight this stratification. The paper aims at comparing the advantages and limitations of three open hole multilevel sampling techniques (packer system, dialysis membrane samplers and bailer), chosen on the base of a literary review, to highlight a nitrate vertical stratification under the assumption of (sub)horizontal flow in the aquifer. The sampling systems were employed at three different times of the year in a shallow aquifer piezometer in northern Italy. The optimal purge time, equilibration time and water volume losses during the time in the piezometer were evaluated. Multilevel techniques highlighted a similar vertical nitrate stratification, present throughout the year. Indeed, nitrate concentrations generally decreased with depth downwards, but with significantly different levels in the sampling campaigns. Moreover, the sampling techniques produced different degrees of accuracy. More specifically, the dialysis membrane samplers provided the most accurate hydrochemical profile of the shallow aquifer and they appear to be necessary when the objective is to detect the discontinuities in the nitrate profile. Bailer and packer system showed the same nitrate profile with little differences of concentration. However, the bailer resulted much more easier to use.

     

Gene expression changes in blood RNA after swimming in a chlorinated pool

Exposure to disinfection by-products(DBP) such as trihalomethanes(THM) in swimming pools has been linked to adverse health effects in humans, but their biological mechanisms are unclear. We evaluated short-term changes in blood gene expression of adult recreational swimmers after swimming in a chlorinated pool. Volunteers swam 40 min in an indoor chlorinated pool. Blood samples were drawn and four THM(chloroform,bromodichloromethane, dibromochloromethane and bromoform) were measured in exhaled breath before and after swimming. Intensity of physical activity was measured as metabolic equivalents(METs). Gene expression in whole blood m RNA was evaluated using Illumina Human HT-12v3 Expression-Bead Chip. Linear mixed models were used to evaluate the relationship between gene expression changes and THM exposure. Thirty-seven before-after pairs were analyzed. The median increase from baseline to after swimming were: 0.7 to 2.3 for MET, and 1.4 to 7.1 μg/m~3 for exhaled total THM(sum of the four THM).Exhaled THM increased on average 0.94 μg/m~3 per 1 MET. While 1643 probes were differentially expressed post-exposure. Of them, 189 were also associated with exhaled levels of individual/total THM or MET after False Discovery Rate. The observed associations with the exhaled THM were low to moderate(Log-fold change range:-0.17 to 0.15). In conclusion, we identified short-term gene expression changes associated with swimming in a pool that were minor in magnitude and their biological meaning was unspecific. The high collinearity between exhaled THM levels and intensity of physical activity precluded mutually adjusted models with both covariates. These exploratory results should be validated in future studies.