Evaluation and validation of two different chromatographic methods (HPLC and LC-MS/MS) for the determination and confirmation of ochratoxin A in pig tissues

This study was undertaken to compare two different analytical methods for the determination and confirmation of ochratoxin A (OTA) in blood serum, kidney and liver of pigs. Sample clean-up was based on liquid-liquid phase extraction. The detection of OTA was accomplished with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) combined either with fluorescence detection (FL) or electro spray ionization (ESI+) tandem mass spectrometry (MS–MS). Comparative method evaluation was based on the investigation of 90 samples of blood serum, kidney and liver per animal originating from different regions of Serbia. The analytical results are discussed in view of the respective method validation data and the corresponding experimental protocols. In general, analytical data obtained with (LC–MS–MS) liquid chromatography electro spray tandem mass spectro metry detection offered comparable good results at the sub-ppb concentration level. The results indicate that the liquid chromatography electro spray tandem mass spectrometric (LC-MS/MS) method was more specific and sensitive for the analysis and confirmation of ochratoxin A in pig tissues then high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) method after methylation of OTA.     

Impact of a severe flood on large-scale contamination of arable soils by potentially toxic elements (Serbia)

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - Extreme flooding in May, 2014 affected the sub-catchments of six major rivers in Serbia. The goal of the study was to evaluate the contents of potentially...     

Evaluation and selection of healthcare waste incinerators using extended sustainability criteria and multi-criteria analysis methods

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Disposal of healthcare waste is a key issue of environmental sustainability in the world. The amount of healthcare waste is increasing every day, and...     

A COMPARISON OF STREAMFLOW GENERATION MODELS FOR RESERVOIR CAPACITY-YIELD ANALYSIS1

ABSTRACT: An analysis of four streamflow generation schemes for the use in the estimation of the required conservation storage for a single reservoir is presented. The comparison of the generating schemes should aid in the selection of an appropriate model type for the reservoir sizing problem. The streamflow generation models are compared using two criteria. The first comparison is between the statistics of the generated streamflow sequences and the corresponding statistics from the historical record. The second evaluation compares the median reservoir size determined by each model with the required storage based on the historical flow sequence. The results of a comparative analysis for monthly streamflow data for the Rzav River in Yugoslavia are presented and discussed. The results indicate that both evaluation criteria are required to discriminate between the various options.     

Organohalogenated pollutants in human serum from Iassy, Romania and their relation with age and gender

Human serum samples (n=142) from Iassy county (Eastern Romania) collected in 2005 were analyzed for p,p'-DDT and its metabolites, hexachlorobenzene, hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers, chlordane and metabolites and 14 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners. In all samples, p,p'-DDE (principal metabolite of p,p'-DDT) and beta-HCH (most persistent HCH isomer) were the most abundant organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) with median concentrations of 1975 and 923 ng/g lipid weight (lw), respectively. Hexachlorobenzene and p,p'-DDT were also detected in all samples, but at a lower median concentration of 30 and 340 ng/g lw, respectively. The large variation of the ratio p,p'-DDT/p,p'-DDE (range between 0.02 and 0.80) suggests various degrees of exposure to DDT, including recent exposure, at least to some subgroups of the population. Chlordane and its metabolites were in most cases close to the limit of quantification suggesting a very low use of chlordane formulations in Eastern Romania. Unexpectedly, PCBs were present in all samples at sometimes considerable levels (up to 4970 ng/g lw for sum of 14 PCB congeners) indicating a higher exposure of the Romanian population than previously reported. The PCB profile consisted of persistent congeners such as 138, 153, 170 and 180 which contributed for approximately 75% to the sum PCBs. Concentrations of most pollutants correlated significantly with age (r>0.86, p<0.01). Except for p,p'-DDT and gamma-HCH, the mean levels of OCPs in females were statistically higher than in males, while, except for octa-CBs, no gender differences were found for PCBs. Levels of p,p'-DDE, penta-CBs, hexa-CBs and hepta-CBs were significantly higher in individuals with a rural main residence. In a pooled serum sample, 6 polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners were measured at a level of 1.04 ng/g lw. Compared to results available from Central and Eastern European countries, human serum samples from Romania contained higher levels of contamination. This emphasizes that an extensive and rigorous program for the monitoring of OCPs and PCBs in Romanian population is highly needed in the light of possible adverse health effects acknowledged for these pollutants.     

A Fuzzy Model for Assessing Risk of Occupational Safety in the Processing Industry

Abstract

Managing occupational safety in any kind of industry, especially in processing, is very important and complex. This paper develops a new method for occupational risk assessment in the presence of uncertainties. Uncertain values of hazardous factors and consequence frequencies are described with linguistic expressions defined by a safety management team. They are modeled with fuzzy sets. Consequence severities depend on current hazardous factors, and their values are calculated with the proposed procedure. The proposed model is tested with real-life data from fruit processing firms in Central Serbia.     

Spatial pattern of recent rainfall trends in Serbia (1961–2009)

This paper examines a spatial pattern of annual, seasonal and monthly rainfall trends in Serbia. The study used data from 63 weather stations between the period of 1961–2009. The rainfall series was examined by applying the nonparametric method of the Mann–Kendall test and Sen’s method to determine the significance and magnitude of the trends. Significant trends have not been detected for the whole country at an annual scale. Seasonal trends at the confidence level of 97.5 %, however, indicate a slight decrease in winter (5 stations out of 63) and spring (7 stations out of 63) precipitation and an increase in autumn precipitation (10 stations out of 63). Results for monthly rainfall trends also generally showed a nonsignificant trend with the exception of a negative trend in May (6 stations out of 63) and positive trend for October (9 stations out of 63). Calculated global autocorrelation statistics (Moran’s I) indicate a random spatial pattern of rainfall trends on annual, seasonal and monthly timescales with exceptions for March, June and November. Overall, results suggest that only weak, mostly nonsignificant trends are present in Serbia in the period 1961–2009.     

Assessment of heavy metal pollutants accumulation in the Tisza river sediments

In this study we have worked on the evaluation of heavy metal contamination in the sediments taken from the Tisza River and its tributaries, and thereby used the sequential extraction method, geochemical normalization, the calculation of the enrichment factor (EF), and the methods of statistical analysis. The chemical fractionation of Ni, Cu, Zn, Cr, Pb, Fe, and Mn, carried out by using the modified Tessier method, points to different substrates and binding mechanisms of Cu, Zn and Pb in sediments of the tributaries and sediments of the Tisza River. The similarities in the distributions of Fe and Ni in all types of sediments are the result of geochemical similarity as well as of the fact that natural sources mainly affect the concentration levels of these elements. The calculated enrichment factors (EF, measured metal vs. background concentrations) indicated that metal contamination (Cu, Pb, Zn and Cr) was recorded in the sediments of the Tisza River, while no indications of pollution were detected in the tributaries of the Tisza River and the surrounding pools. The maximum values of the EF were close to 6 for Cu and Pb (moderately severe enrichment) and close to 4.5 for Zn (indicating moderate enrichment). It can be said that the Tisza River is slightly to moderately severely polluted with Cu, Zn, and Pb, and minorly polluted with Cr. It is concluded that sediments of the Tisza serve as a repository for heavy metal accumulation from adjacent urban and industrial areas.