Using vertebrate environmental DNA from seawater in biomonitoring of marine habitats

Conservation and management of marine biodiversity depends on biomonitoring of marine habitats, but current approaches are resource-intensive and require different approaches for different organisms. Environmental DNA (eDNA) extracted from water samples is an efficient and versatile approach to detecting aquatic animals. In the ocean, eDNA composition reflects local fauna at fine spatial scales, but little is known about the effectiveness of eDNA-based monitoring of marine communities at larger scales. We investigated the potential of eDNA to characterize and distinguish marine communities at large spatial scales by comparing vertebrate species composition among marine habitats in Qatar, the Arabian Gulf (also known as the Persian Gulf), based on eDNA metabarcoding of seawater samples. We conducted species accumulation analyses to estimate how much of the vertebrate diversity we detected. We obtained eDNA sequences from a diverse assemblage of marine vertebrates, spanning 191 taxa in 73 families. These included rare and endangered species and covered 36% of the bony fish genera previously recorded in the Gulf. Sites of similar habitat type were also similar in eDNA composition. The species accumulation analyses showed that the number of sample replicates was insufficient for some sampling sites but suggested that a few hundred eDNA samples could potentially capture >90% of the marine vertebrate diversity in the study area. Our results confirm that seawater samples contain habitat-characteristic molecular signatures and that eDNA monitoring can efficiently cover vertebrate diversity at scales relevant to national and regional conservation and management.     

Human milk contamination by nine organochlorine pesticide residues (OCPs)

Abstract

Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are widely used around the world as insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, nematicides, and rodenticides. Despite banned in Brazil, the usage remains occurring in many countries. The persistence and extreme mobility of OCPs contribute to the contamination of the environment and the human body. The OCPs bioaccumulation in adipose tissue triggers the excretion into human milk during breastfeeding. Hence, the present study determined eighteen OCPs residues in the breast milk of mothers from the Western Region of Bahia State, Brazil. Nine different residue species were found, including beta-Hexachlorocyclohexane (9.24?±?0.00?ng g^?1 fat), delta- Hexachlorocyclohexane (22.15?±?10.48?ng g^?1 fat), Heptachlor (58.08?±?74.13?ng g^?1 fat), Aldrin (142.65?±?50.65?ng g^?1 fat), Dieldrin (774.62?±?472.68?ng g^?1 fat), Endosulfan I (408.44?±?245.51?ng g^?1 fat), Dichloro-diphenyl-dichloro-ethylene (29.17?±?22.42?ng g^?1 fat), Dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane (28.87?±?0.00?ng g^?1 fat) and Methoxychlor (1699.67?±?797.43?ng g^?1 fat). The Methoxychlor presence in all samples may reveal a recent exposure, while Dieldrin and Endosulfan I analyses can point to distant past exposure.     

利用多物种净水监测仪在线监测水体抗生素药物及有机磷农药

通过多物种净水监测仪(Multispecies Freshwater Biomonitor,MFB)监测斑马鱼在抗生素药物(恩诺沙星、磺胺嘧啶)和有机磷农药(乐果、马拉磷硫)暴露下的行为强度变化,以验证其作为监测水体环境中抗生素类药物和有机磷农药生物指标的可行性.结果表明,恩诺沙星、磺胺嘧啶对斑马鱼没有急性毒性,乐果、马拉硫磷对斑马鱼的LC50-96值(96h半致死浓度)分别是61、5.4mg.L?1.斑马鱼对环境变化的行为反应快速且敏感,随着药物浓度的增加,斑马鱼行为变化的强度增大,反应时间缩短,且行为强度的变化符合环境压力模型(Stepwise Stress Model,SSM).斑马鱼行为的改变与一般急性毒性实验结果有相关性,可以作为对抗生素和有机磷农药污染水质早期预警的生物在线监测指标.     

Concentrations of heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in needles of Masson pine (Pinus massoniana L.) growing nearby di erent industrial sources

Emissions from industrial activities pose a serious threat to human health and impose the need for monitoring both inorganic and organic pollutants in industrial areas.We selected Masson pine (Pinus massoniana L.) as potential biomonitor and collected the current (C) and previous year (C+1) needles from three industrial sites dominated by petrochemical, ceramics manufacturing, and iron and steel smelting plants and one remote site to determine heavy metals (Cu, Cd, Pb, Zn, Cr, Ni and Co) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in unwashed and water-washed needles. Both unwashed and washed C+1 needles showed generally higher concentrations of heavy metals and PAHs than C needles, although the washed needles more clearly spotlighted the accumulation e ect of PAHs over exposure time. Water-washing resulted in a significant decrease in needle PAH concentrations with more significant e ects shown in C needles. By contrast, needle heavy metal concentrations were much less a ected by washing. Although heavy metals and PAHs might di er in adsorption and uptake strategies, their higher concentrations in the needles at the industrial sites indicated conspicuous contamination due to industrial emissions there. The PAH distribution patterns in pine needles accorded with the real types of energy consumption in the study sites and were e ciently used for pinpointing local pollutant sources.     

Differential blood counting in fish as a non-destructive biomarker of water contamination exposure

Differential white blood cell counting was performed on blood from the fish species Oreochromis niloticus and was used as an in situ indicator of the species’ exposure to contamination. Ten young fish were collected in an area influenced by the discharge of effluents and from a fish farm (control group). The fish were anesthetized and caudal puncture was used to collect the blood. Differential white blood cell counting was performed, as well as the counting of total leukocytes and thrombocytes (in 2000 cells). Physicochemical parameters of the water from both sites were analyzed. The water from the polluted area was found to have high conductivity and low levels of dissolved oxygen, factors that indicate poor environmental quality. Fish collected from the polluted site presented higher percentages of eosinophils and monocytes and fewer thrombocytes because of exposure to pollution and hypoxic conditions. The differential white blood cell count represents a suitable biomarker of environmental health and provides a tool for biomonitoring water quality.     

Biomonitoring of pyrethroid exposure among rural and urban populations in northern Poland

The aim of this study was to determine for the first time in Poland, levels of exposure to synthetic pyrethroids in preschool and school age children and their parents living in urban and rural areas. For this purpose concentrations of pyrethroid metabolites: 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA), 2,2-dibromovinyl-2,2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylic acid (Br₂CA), cis-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (cis-Cl₂CA) and trans-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (trans-Cl₂CA) were determined in 374 urine samples using a validated GC–MS method.     

基于EPMA的背角无齿蚌贝壳中元素分布的初步研究

应用电子显微探针元素分析技术,对背角无齿蚌（Anodonta woodiana）的贝壳（棱柱层和珍珠层）进行了19种元素（Ag、Al、Au、Ca、Co、Cu、Fe、Hf、Mg、Mn、Mo、Na、Re、Se、Sn、Sr、Tl、V、Zn）分布特征的初步研究.元素面分布分析和定量线分析结果均直观而明显地表明：贝壳中Ca含量最高,Hf、Re、Mn、Al、Co、Fe、Sr、Cu和Na的含量较低,而Au、Mg、Tl、Zn、Sn、Ag、V、Mo和Se的含量甚少.Mn在珍珠层的分布高于棱柱层,壳顶区域的珍珠层的含量（0.087±0.045）%显著高于棱柱层（0.030±0.025）%（P<0.05）,腹缘区域的珍珠层的含量（0.072±0.055）%亦显著高于棱柱层（0.044±0.025）%（P<0.05）,而其余元素在贝壳中均匀分布.     

Roe and red deer as bioindicators of heavy metals contamination in north-western Poland

The present paper examines the degree of environmental contamination in areas covered by the Natura 2000 programme, located in north-western Poland, with selected heavy metals based on their concentration in target organs of roe and red deer. Lead, cadmium, copper, iron, and zinc concentrations were determined by inductively coupled plasma–atomic emission spectrometry. Residues of lead and cadmium were found in most of the analysed samples of roe and red deer organs The concentration of cadmium in the organs of the animals studied was much higher than that of lead. The median for Pb in liver and kidneys was 0.055 and 0.092 μg/g dry weight (d.w.) in roe deer, and 0.067 and 0.081 μg/g d.w. in red deer, respectively. The median for liver and kidney cadmium was 0.770 and 6.139 μg/g d.w. in roe deer, and 0.422 and 6.365 μg/g d.w. in red deer, respectively. Our study has demonstrated that this area is laden with lead and cadmium. This is evidenced by the fact that maximum permissible levels of these elements in the organs of red and roe deer, which were used as bioindicators of environmental contamination, were exceeded.     

Interspecific variation of heavy metal concentrations in the different tissues of tropical intertidal gastropods from Malaysia

The present study aims to determine the concentrations of Cd, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the different tissues of five species of tropical intertidal gastropods from Malaysia. Each of the species have organs/tissues that highly accumulated certain metals. For Cu, the mantles of Cerithidea obtusa, Pugilina cochlidium, and Murex trapa; and the digestive caeca of Thais sp. and Chicoreus capucinus highly accumulated Cu. The shells of Chi. capucinus and M. trapa, the digestive caeca of P. cochlidium, and the digestive glands of Thais sp. and Chi. capucinus highly accumulated Cd. The tentacles and the digestive caeca of Cer. obtusa and P. cochlidium, respectively, highly accumulated Zn, the digestive glands of Thais sp., Chi. capucinus, and M. trapa also highly accumulated Zn. The shells of most of the gastropods accumulated high levels of Pb and Ni. The opercula of most of the gastropods, besides the digestive glands for Thais sp., accumulated high levels of Fe. The present study on interspecific variations of heavy metals in gastropods provided information on differences of metal distributions in the different tissues, which could be useful in proposing potential tissues as better biomonitoring tools of heavy metal bioavailabilities in the coastal waters of Peninsular Malaysia.     

Metals in the sediment and liver of four fish species from different trophic levels in Tisza River,Serbia

In aquatic environments metals originate from various natural and anthropogenic sources. The degree of contamination in fish tissues depends on the pollutant, fish species, their mode of feeding, sampling site and trophic level. This study presents concentrations of Al, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se, Sr and Zn in sediment and liver of four ecologically different fish species: piscivorous northern pike (Esox lucius L.), benthivorous sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus L.) and silver bream (Brama brama L.), and omnivorous common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.). Fish were caught at four sites along the stretch of the River Tisza in Serbia during October 2010. The concentrations of metals have been assessed using the inductively coupled plasma – optical emission spectrometry. Results revealed that metals with the highest values in sediment and fish samples were Al and Fe, respectively and sometimes concentrations of Zn are in the same order of magnitude as Fe concentrations. The highest concentration of metals was recorded in omnivorous common carp.