汞在海洋浮游植物中的生物累积和毒性效应

浮游植物是海洋生态系统的主要初级生产者,同时作为食物也是许多水生生物摄取汞的主要途径。本文综述了近年来汞在海洋浮游植物中的最新研究进展,包括汞在浮游植物中的吸收、累积规律及其影响因素,汞对浮游植物的毒性效应(生长抑制、光合作用影响)以及生物的适应机制(汞的还原、螯合解毒、矿化固定等),最后对浮游植物中汞累积和毒性的未来研究方向进行了展望。     

A review of atmospheric mercury emissions,pollution and control in China

Mercury, as a global pollutant, has significant impacts on the environment and human health. The current state of atmospheric mercury emissions, pollution and control in China is comprehensively reviewed in this paper. With about 500-800 t of anthropogenic mercury emissions, China contributes 25%-40% to the global mercury emissions. The dominant mercury emission sources in China are coal combustion, non-ferrous metal smelting, cement production and iron and steel production. The mercury emissions from natural sources in China are equivalent to the anthropogenic mercury emissions. The atmospheric mercury concentration in China is about 2-10 times the background level of North Hemisphere. The mercury deposition fluxes in remote areas in China are usually in the range of 10-50μg·m^-2·yr^-1. To reduce mercury emissions, legislations have been enacted for power plants, non-ferrous metal smelters and waste incinerators. Currently mercury contented in the flue gas is mainly removed through existing air pollution control devices for sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particles. Dedicated mercury control technologies are required in the future to further mitigate the mercury emissions in China.     

含荧光素酶四膜虫B2086-LUC全细胞生物传感器的构建及其对重金属离子的响应

为了获得可用于快速检测环境中重金属污染的全细胞生物传感器,本研究将含有HA标签的萤火虫荧光素酶(LUC)基因重组到含有四膜虫金属硫蛋白MTT1启动子和微管蛋白终止子序列的载体pBX中,获得重组质粒pBX-LUC,用基因枪粒子轰击法将pBX-LUC转化入四膜虫细胞中,通过同源重组和巴龙霉素抗性筛选, LUC基因整合到四膜虫大核基因组MTT1 位点,获得含有LUC基因的细胞株B2086-LUC. B2086-LUC对重金属镉和汞的响应敏感,可检测的最低浓度为5~10ng/mL;对铜和锌的响应较弱,可检测的最低浓度为0.5~ 1mg/mL.因此,四膜虫B2086-LUC可作为环境中镉和汞污染快速检测的全细胞生物传感器.     

酸-碘改性壳聚糖-膨润土脱除单质汞特性及机理分析

为探明烟气中酸性气体(SO2,NO,HCl)和H2O对酸-碘改性壳聚糖-膨润土吸附剂脱除单质汞(Hg0)的影响和脱除机理,在小型固定床试验台架上开展了Hg0脱除的实验研究.结果表明:由于SO2与Hg0在吸附剂表面活性位上存在竞争吸附,SO2抑制吸附剂对Hg0的脱除.H2O和较高浓度(1000μg/m3)的NO对脱汞具有明显地促进作用.由于低温下HCl与Hg0较高的反应能垒,HCl对脱汞没有影响.与单一烟气成分影响相比,在SO2、NO、HCl和H2O的联合作用下,吸附剂的长时间脱汞性能得到大幅提高.机理分析表明壳聚糖首先被酸中的H+质子化,之后再吸附酸与KI反应生成的I2,进而有效地吸附Hg0.量子化学计算表明壳聚糖在酸性条件下对I2具有良好的吸附特性,改性壳聚糖吸附剂对Hg0具有较好的吸附能力,其吸附能约为127kJ/mol.     

Mercury exposure through diet in pregnant women and women of childbearing age

The study examined the stage of clean-up of the Port Lavaca bay sites in Texas, which were polluted during the early 1990's by effluent containing mercury (Hg) from a chloralkali plant. In addition to Hg intoxication through environmental contaminations, human exposure through dietary fish and other seafoods occurred. Bacteria converts inorganic Hg to alkyl organic compounds and subsequently the metal crosses the blood brain barrier thus exerting adverse effects on the fetal developing nervous system. In order to conduct a survey of dietary Hg exposure, blood was collected from pregnant women and those of childbearing age at routine clinic visits at each of three centers in South Texas cities (Galveston, Texas City, Port Lavaca/Victoria, TX). A questionnaire sought dietary and lifestyle information including consumption, sources of fish and other seafoods. A significant number of subjects (119 out of 175, 68%) ate fish caught locally. The blood Hg concentrations (µg?L^?1) range varied with the location of the study centers: City of Galveston 2.6–62; Texas City 2.8–111.8; and the Port Lavaca areas 3.02–126.7. The concentrations of blood Hg was directly proportional to the number of fish meals consumed for each species considered. Mean blood Hg concentrations for no fish meals per week were: Port Lavaca 4.5 (N?=?3), Galveston 4.3 (N?=?3), Texas City 3.5 (N?=?10). For >3 fish meals per week, the mean blood Hg concentrations were: Port Lavaca, 48.0 (N?=?53), Galveston 29.1 (N?=?35), Texas City, 36.1 (N?=?31). Data show that residues of Hg were still present in 1994 despite the clean-up efforts.     

中国汞污染的来源、成因及控制技术路径分析

汞是一种能长期存在于环境且具有全球迁移性的污染物.汞污染防治是一个复杂的系统工程,涉及多部门、多领域、多行业,国家需要在政策、管理和技术等方面采取综合的战略措施推进汞污染防治.本文基于汞污染的环境和社会影响,分析了中国汞污染的来源、成因并评估了中国汞管理体系,结合中国参加全球汞公约谈判的特定背景,识别出汞污染防控的优先行业,包括汞的无意排放优先控制行业:燃煤、有色金属冶炼、汞矿开采和含汞废物处理;汞的有意使用优先控制行业:电石法聚氯乙烯生产,医疗产品、荧光灯和电池生产.本文也进一步提出了汞污染控制技术路径,包括构建汞风险管理和识别平台、完善汞管理体系、加强环境技术研发、推进绿色转型、保护环境和公众健康等.     

Urinary level of homovanillic acid and mercury in autistic children

Catecholamines and their metabolites affect children's nervous system. Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter in the brain. In the routine analysis for diagnostics of diseases, the dopamine metabolite homovanillic acid (HVA) is determined. Mercury is a neurotoxic agent and can cause different undesirable effects on the brain. In the present work a putative correlation between HVA, the main metabolite of dopamine, and mercury in urine of healthy and autistic children was studied. The level of HVA was higher in the urine of autistic children (14.5 ± 8.3 mg L^?1) compared to generally healthy children (4.4 ± 0.5 mg L^?1). The level of mercury in the urine of autistic children was lower (0.36 ± 0.24 µg L^?1) than in the urine of healthy children (2.1 ± 1.0 µg L^?1) showing that there is no correlation between HVA and mercury.     

The plausibility of a role for mercury in the etiology of autism: a cellular perspective

Autism is defined by a behavioral set of stereotypic and repetitious behavioral patterns in combination with social and communication deficits. There is emerging evidence supporting the hypothesis that autism may result from a combination of genetic susceptibility and exposure to environmental toxins at critical moments in development. Mercury (Hg) is recognized as a ubiquitous environmental neurotoxin and there is mounting evidence linking it to neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism. Of course, the evidence is not derived from experimental trials with humans but rather from methods focusing on biomarkers of Hg damage, measurements of Hg exposure, epidemiological data, and animal studies. For ethical reasons, controlled Hg exposure in humans will never be conducted. Therefore, to properly evaluate the Hg-autism etiological hypothesis, it is essential to first establish the biological plausibility of the hypothesis. This review examines the plausibility of Hg as the primary etiological agent driving the cellular mechanisms by which Hg-induced neurotoxicity may result in the physiological attributes of autism. Key areas of focus include: (1) route and cellular mechanisms of Hg exposure in autism; (2) current research and examples of possible genetic variables that are linked to both Hg sensitivity and autism; (3) the role Hg may play as an environmental toxin fueling the oxidative stress found in autism; (4) role of mitochondrial dysfunction; and (5) possible role of Hg in abnormal neuroexcitory and excitotoxity that may play a role in the immune dysregulation found in autism. Future research directions that would assist in addressing the gaps in our knowledge are proposed.     

Mercury pollution in the Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh,India, and its health impacts

The Sonbhadra district in the Singrauli area of Uttar Pradesh, India, has many coal mines and thermal power plants and is a critically polluted area. Many residents of this area reported adverse health conditions which may be linked to metal pollution, especially of mercury investigated here.

In May 2012, samples of water (23), soil (7), blood, hair, and nails from persons showing adverse health conditions selected at random were collected and analyzed for total mercury by atomic absorption spectrometry.

Twenty percent drinking water samples contained mercury from 3 to 26 μg L^?1 (3–26 times the permissible limit). Soil samples had 0.5–10.1 mg kg^?1 Hg.

The average concentrations of mercury in human blood, hair, and nails were found to be 34 μg L^?1, 7.4 mg kg^?1, and 0.8 mg kg^?1, respectively. Mercury concentrations in the blood of these persons were 45 and 28 μg L^?1 on average in the case of men and women. This is much higher than the safe level of 5.8 μg L^?1 set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA).

It was concluded that all residents of Sonbhadra sampled could be suffering from mercury toxicity as the area is polluted by Hg released from the coal-fired thermal power plants.     

Assessment of potentially toxic elements in Swiss chard and sediments of Akaki River,Ethiopia

For the determination of 15 potentially toxic elements (V, Cr, Fe, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Ag, Cd, Sn, Hg, and Pb) in plant and sediment samples of the Akaki River, Ethiopia, inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma–optical emission spectrometry, and a RA-915+ mercury analyzer were applied. Sediment and plant samples were mineralized using a closed-vessel microwave-assisted digestion system. The elemental concentrations varied considerably in plant and sediment samples. The minimum concentration was observed for known toxic elements (As, Hg, and Cd) while the highest concentration was observed for the elements of relatively low toxicity Zn, Mn, and Fe. The concentration of Cr, Fe, Pb, Zn, and As in Swiss chard surpassed the maximum permissible levels at specific sites. At some of the sites, the sediment quality guidelines are surpassed for Cu, Zn, and Pb.