Expression of foreign genes in primary cultured cells of the blue shrimp Penaeus stylirostris

 The ability to introduce and express foreign genes can greatly facilitate in vitro studies of the molecular biology of an organism. We report here the first use of modified retroviral vectors to achieve foreign gene expression in primary cultured cells from the Oka organ and ovary of the blue shrimp Penaeus stylirostris (Litopenaeus) stylirostris (Holthuis 1980). Of the heterologous promoters tested, the Moloney murine leukemia virus and Rous sarcoma virus promoters mediated the highest levels of reporter gene expression. Firefly luciferase and Escherichia coliβ-galactosidase were successfully used as reporter genes in cultured cells from both Oka organ and ovary. These in vitro systems can be exploited for the study of shrimp cellular biology and regulation of gene expression. Received: 16 January 2000 / Accepted: 21 June 2000     

Concurrent and Complete Anaerobic Reduction and Microaerophilic Degradation of Mono‐, Di‐, and Trichlorobenzenes

Bio‐Trap^®–based in situ microcosm studies were conducted to evaluate EHC‐M^® stimulated degradation of mono‐, di‐, and trichlorobenzenes in anaerobic groundwater at a site in Michigan. The data show that the EHC‐M^® amendment stimulated an overall increase in microbial activity and a shift in the microbial community structure, indicating more reduced conditions. Stable isotope probing with ¹³C₆‐chlorobenzene demonstrated attenuation of chlorobenzene and subsequent separation and characterization of the ¹²C‐ and ¹³C‐deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) fractions were used to identify the attenuating microbes. These data clearly show the participation of an obligate aerobe in the chlorobenzene biodegradation process. Decreases in concentrations of trichlorobenzenes were also observed in comparison to a control. Due to the thermodynamically favorable reducing conditions stimulated by EHC‐M^®, the mechanism of degradation of the trichlorobenzenes is presumed to be reductive dehalogenation. However, on the strength of the DNA‐based analysis of microbial community structure, concurrent microaerophilic degradation of chlorobenzene or its metabolites was definitively demonstrated and cannot be ruled out for the other chlorobenzenes. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Contamination in sediments, bivalves and sponges of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica

This study examined the concentrations of total hydrocarbons (THC), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and trace metals (Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Hg and As) in marine sediments off Scott Base (NZ) and compared them with sediments near the highly polluted McMurdo Station (US) as well as less impacted sites including Turtle Rock and Cape Evans. The Antarctic mollusc, Laternula elliptica and three common sponge species were also analysed for trace metals. The mean THC concentration in sediments from Scott Base was 3 fold higher than the pristine site, Turtle Rock, but 10 fold lower than samples from McMurdo Station. McMurdo Station sediments also contained the highest concentrations of PAHs, PCBs and the trace metals, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd and Hg. Copper was significantly higher in bivalves from McMurdo Station than other sites. Trace metal concentrations in sponges were generally consistent within sites but no spatial patterns were apparent.     

Interactions of risk analysis and contingency planning in risk management

Risk management entails knowledge of the risk and how best to reduce it; its objective is to minimize losses arising from existing or potential risk. With effective contingency planning, risk analysis and its corollary, consequence analysis, can contribute synergistically to improved risk management. Until recently, risk analysis and contingency or emergency response planning were considered distinct disciplines with little interactive potential. Fortunately, industry now recognizes that linking the two can help ensure public safety as well as preserve the financial integrity of plant owners. Both areas are receiving increased and well-deserved attention; several incidents in recent years have demonstrated that losses could have been greatly reduced if better precautions and procedures had been in place as a result of risk analysis and contingency planning.     

Evaluation of Three Watershed‐Scale Pesticide Environmental Transport and Fate Models1

Abstract: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) has completed an evaluation of three watershed‐scale simulation models for potential use in Food Quality Protection Act pesticide drinking water exposure assessments. The evaluation may also guide OPP in identifying computer simulation tools that can be used in performing aquatic ecological exposure assessments. Models selected for evaluation were the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), the Nonpoint Source Model (NPSM), a modified version of the Hydrologic Simulation Program‐Fortran (HSPF), and the Pesticide Root Zone Model‐Riverine Water Quality (PRZM‐RIVWQ) model. Simulated concentrations of the pesticides atrazine, metolachlor, and trifluralin in surface water were compared with field data monitored in the Sugar Creek watershed of Indiana’s White River basin by the National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program. The evaluation not only provided USEPA with experience in using watershed models for estimating pesticide concentration in flowing water but also led to the development of improved statistical techniques for assessing model accuracy. Further, it demonstrated the difficulty of representing spatially and temporally variable soil, weather, and pesticide applications with relatively infrequent, spatially fixed, point estimates. It also demonstrated the value of using monitoring and modeling as mutually supporting tools and pointed to the need to design monitoring programs that support modeling.     

An independent review and prioritization of past radionuclide and chemical releases from the Los Alamos National Laboratory--implications for future dose reconstruction studies

From 1999 through 2010, a team of scientists and engineers systematically reviewed approximately eight million classified and unclassified documents at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) that describe historical off-site releases of radionuclides and chemicals in order to determine the extent to which a full-scale dose reconstruction for releases is warranted and/or feasible. As a part of this effort, a relative ranking of historical airborne and waterborne radionuclide releases from LANL was established using priority index (PI) values that were calculated from estimated annual quantities released and the maximum allowable effluent concentrations according to The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC). Chemical releases were ranked based on annual usage estimates and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) toxicity values. PI results for airborne radionuclides indicate that early plutonium operations were of most concern between 1948 and 1961, in 1967, and again from 1970 through 1973. Airborne releases of uranium were found to be of most interest for 1968, from 1974 through 1978, and again in 1996. Mixed fission products yielded the highest PI value for 1969. Mixed activation product releases yielded the highest PI values from 1979 to 1995. For waterborne releases, results indicate that plutonium is of most concern for all years evaluated with the exception of 1956 when (90)Sr yielded the highest PI value. The prioritization of chemical releases indicate that four of the top five ranked chemicals were organic solvents that were commonly used in chemical processing and for cleaning. Trichloroethylene ranked highest, indicating highest relative potential for health effects, for both cancer and non-cancer effects. Documents also indicate that beryllium was used in significant quantities, which could have lead to residential exposures exceeding established environmental and occupational exposure limits, and warrants further consideration. In part because of the close proximity of residents to LANL, further study of historical LANL releases and the potential impact to public health is recommended for those materials with the largest priority index values; namely, plutonium, uranium, and selected chemicals.     

Should I stay or should I go? An experimental study of health and economic government policies following a severe biological agent release

Extensive research has explored policy challenges associated with preparing and responding to a large-scale biological release. A key component in recovery strategy development that has received less attention is the understanding of government policy influence on the impacted populations’ migratory decisions. This study experimentally manipulates health and economic government policies during response and recovery to assess the extent to which public migration is contingent on the level of government intervention. Set immediately following a large-scale anthrax release in San Francisco, we use a five episode video scenario to describe details about the environmental impacts of the disaster, emergency response procedures, and clean-up operations. Within these video segments, the extent of government involvement in economic and health risk policies is manipulated. Using these manipulations as predictors, we track how varying levels of government risk signals influence migration behavior at three distinct decision points during disaster recovery. In addition, two belief scales and two scales of emotion (affect) are included as predictors to explore the potential for their mediating role in explaining intentions to migrate. We find that the decision to migrate is highly context-sensitive, with each decision point showing a unique combination of significant predictors influencing decision making. At 19 days following the anthrax release, the health risk policy manipulation has both a direct and indirect effect on migration behavior. At 3 months, the influence of the health risk policy manipulation is mediated by beliefs, and at 1 year, only indirect effects associated with affect and beliefs influence migration.     

Incineration of hazardous wastes

Glaxo has practiced incineration of liquid and gaseous wastes for over twenty years and currently operate eleven liquid and gas incinerators in the United Kingdom and Singapore. The liquid incinerators burn, as their main streams, those solvents that cannot be recovered and recycled within the processes. The early installations were for readily combustible solvents only. However, there has been a progressive move into the destruction of more difficult and hazardous wastes, with the consequential requirements for more sophisticated technology, in the belief that the responsible destruction of waste should be tackled near to its source. The eventual aim is to be self-sufficient in this area of waste management. The incineration of hazardous liquid and gaseous waste has presented a series of design, operational and monitoring problems into account which have all been successfully overcome. The solutions take into account the environmental consequences of the operations from both liquid and gaseous emissions. In order to ensure minimal environmental impact and safe operation the best practicable technology is employed. Environmental assessment forms part of the process development and permitting procedures.Plenary speaker.