Copper kinetics and internal distribution in the marbled crayfish (Procambarus sp.)

Metal pollution e.g. copper, in water bodies occurs worldwide. Although copper is an essential trace metal, at certain levels it is still considered as pollutant. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of exposure concentration on copper bioaccumulation in marbled crayfish (Procambarus sp.) by determining uptake and elimination kinetics. Crayfish were exposed to sub-lethal copper concentrations (average measured concentrations of 0.031 and 0.38 mg Cu L⁻¹) for 14 d and transferred to copper-free water for another 14 d. At different time points during the uptake and elimination phases copper concentrations were measured in five organs (exoskeleton, gills, muscle, ovaries and hepatopancreas). At 0.031 mg Cu L⁻¹, copper levels in the crayfish organs were not significantly increased compared to the control animals, suggesting effective regulation. Exposure to 0.38 mg Cu L⁻¹ did lead to not significantly increased copper levels in muscles and ovaries, while the gills and exoskeleton, which are in direct contact with the water, showed significantly higher copper concentrations. In these four organs, copper showed fast uptake kinetics with equilibrium reached within 10 d of exposure. Copper accumulation was highest in the hepatopancreas; uptake in this storage organ steadily increased with time and did not reach equilibrium within the 14-d exposure period. Copper accumulation levels in the marbled crayfish found in this study were hepatopancreas > gills > exoskeleton > muscle.     

Evidence for bioamplification of nine polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners in yellow perch (Perca flavascens) eggs during incubation

This study investigated bioamplification of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in yellow perch (Perca flavescens) eggs resulting from nutrient utilization by developing embryos during incubation. Newly fertilized eggs containing trace levels of PCBs via maternal deposition were collected from an aquaculture pond in which adult broodstock had been reared over their natural lives. The eggs were incubated using a flow through system that received the same pond water at in-situ temperatures from which they were spawned. Replicate samples of eggs were collected at six time points throughout incubation, ranging from day 0 (newly fertilized eggs) to post-hatch larvae (2-d old). Congener specific PCB fugacities in pooled egg samples showed increases over the incubation period. Just prior to hatching, incubated eggs averaged 2.7-fold higher PCB fugacities compared to fresh eggs. The increase in PCB fugacity with egg incubation time was independent of chemical K_OW. After hatching, PCB residues were lost from the larvae, attenuating the maximum chemical fugacity achieved in late-incubated eggs. However, the rate of PCB elimination in the early larvae stages was K_OW dependent such that a significant larvae/egg fugacity ratio was still evident for intermediate and highly hydrophobic compounds 2 d post-hatching. This study provides the first evidence of in-ovo PCB bioamplification in eggs of an aquatic species and suggests that incubating fish embryos are exposed to higher chemical fugacities in-ovo than would be predicted by maternal deposition alone.     

Assessment of exposure to PCB 153 from breast feeding and normal food intake in individual children using a system approach model

Investigators have typically relied on a single or few discrete time points as measures of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) body burden, however health effects are more likely to be the result of integrative exposure in time, optionally expressed as an area under the time curve (AUC) of PCB serum concentration. Using data from a subgroup of 93 infants from a birth cohort in eastern Slovakia—a region highly polluted by PCBs—we fit a system type model, customized to our longitudinal measures of serum PCB concentrations in cord, 6, 16, and 45 month blood specimens. The most abundant congener, PCB 153, was chosen for modeling purposes. In addition to currently used methods of exposure assessment, our approach estimates a concentration time profile for each subject, taking into account mean residence time of PCB 153 molecules in the body, duration of breast feeding, hypothetical PCB 153 concentration in steady-state without breast feeding and alternately without normal food intake. Hypothetical PCB 153 concentration in steady-state without normal food intake correlates with AUC (r = 0.84, p < 0.001) as well as with duration of breast feeding (r = 0.64, p < 0.001). It makes possible to determine each subject’s exposure profile expressed as AUC of PCBs serum concentration with a minimum model parameters. PCB body burden in most infants was strongly associated with duration of breast feeding in most, but not all children, was apparent from model output.     

The predictive power of the elimination of dioxin-like pollutants from pigs: an in vivo study

Pigs accidentally given feed contaminated by dioxin-like pollutants are a serious public health issue. We have examined whether pigs with limited exposure during early periods of fattening would be categorized as non-compliant with the EU limit at slaughtering when growth-dilution, excretion and metabolism effects are considered. Sixteen female and sixteen castrated male weaned pigs were divided into four groups (e.g. DG0, DG1, DG2 and DG3) in week 2 after birth. From weeks 3 to 13, groups DG1, DG2, and DG3 pigs were fed with a polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin/dibenzofuran (PCDD/F) and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) mixture at dosages of 1, 10 and 100 ng-toxic equivalent (TEQ) per kg dry mass feed in capsules, respectively. From weeks 13 to 23, the animals were nourished with clear feed. Control group DG0 was always fed with clear feed. Subcutaneous fat samples were collected at weeks 13, 18 and 23 by biopsies. The pollutant residues were analyzed by high resolution gas chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry and quantified by a ¹³C-isotope dilution method. The results showed the following: (1) when slaughtered at week 23, the TEQ for DG1 pigs (0.66 ± 0.21 pg/g fat) was under the EU limit of 1 pg PCDD/F-TEQ/g fat; (2) PCDD/F congener-specific first-order elimination rates were linearly correlated with their toxicity equivalency factors (TEFs), and the rates were significantly dose-dependent for the more toxic congeners (TEF ≥ 0.1). Therefore, the pigs' exposure above the EU limit during the early fattening stage did not necessarily lead to their categorization as non-compliant pork; and the residual TEQ for pork can be predicted from early exposure concentrations based on the models established here.     

评估可离子化有机化合物的生物累积潜力：当前的认知和研究的重点

本研究的目的是回顾目前关于可离子化有机化合物(IOCs)的生物累积潜力的认知，重点讨论鱼类经验数据的有效性。IOCs在鱼体内的生物积累潜力可以很好地表征为：依赖pH的鳃摄取和排泄，肠道吸收和磷脂吸附(膜-水分区)。关键的挑战包括缺乏关于IOCs生物转化和血浆结合的经验数据。鱼拥有多种蛋白质，可以在细胞膜上传输IOCs。然而，除了少数情况下，这种传输对环境污染物的吸收和积累的意义是未知的。本文提出了2个研究案例。第一个描述了pH值和生物转化对有机酸和碱的生物富集的建模作用，而第二个则采用了一个更新的模型来研究导致全氟烷基酸积累的因素。全氟化烷基酸个案研究是值得关注的，因为它说明了膜转运蛋白在肾脏中可能具有的重要性，并强调了交叉比对方法(read-across approaches)的潜在价值。认识到当前需要对IOCs进行生物累积危害评估和生态风险评估，作者提供了一个分层策略，从保守的假设(模型和相关数据)到需要化学特定信息的更复杂的模型。
精选自Armitage, J. M., Erickson, R. J., Luckenbach, T., Ng, C. A., Prosser, R. S., Arnot, J. A., Schirmer, K. and Nichols, J. W. (2017), Assessing the bioaccumulation potential of ionizable organic compounds: Current knowledge and research priorities. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 36: 882–897. doi: 10.1002/etc.3680
详情请见http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.3680/full
     

Toxicokinetics,metabolism, and microsomal studies of chlorpropham in rats

A study on the toxicokinetic behavior, metabolism of chlorpropham, and its effect on cytochrome P₄₅₀ from liver microsomes was carried out in albino rats after a single and consecutive oral administration at 500?mg?kg^?1 body weight for 10 and 20 days. Chlorpropham was detected in the blood at 0.08?h (11.43?±?1.72?µg?mL^?1) reaching a maximum concentration at 2?h (30.90?±?2.55?µg?mL^?1) and a minimum at 48?h (1.95?±?0.20?µg?mL^?1) after a single oral administration of 500?mg?kg^?1. The absorption rate constant (K _a) was 0.66?±?0.48?h^?1. The Vd _area (18.01?±?2.78?L?kg^?1) and t _1/2 β (12.23?±?1.96?h) values suggested a wide distribution and long persistence of the compound in the body, respectively. The higher Cl_R (0.82?±?0.00?L?kg^?1?h^?1) compared to Cl_H (0.18?±?0.02?L?kg^?1?h^?1) value indicated that a major portion of chlorpropham was excreted through the urine (30%) compared to the faeces (2.81%). Chlorpropham residue was detected in all tissues of rat at 0.25?h while its metabolite, meta-chloroaniline was detected in liver, kidney, heart, lung, and spleen tissue at 0.25?h. Meta-chloroaniline was not detected in skeletal muscle, brain, fat, and stomach tissue at any time of the observation period. Maximum concentrations of chlorpropham and meta-chloroaniline were detected at 2?h (except in the spleen), and minimum concentrations of chlorpropham at 24 (heart, lung, spleen, skeletal muscle, and stomach) and 48?h (liver, kidney, brain, and fat tissue) respectively; and meta-chloroaniline at 24?h (except heart and spleen). The tissue half-life of chlorpropham in rat varied from 3.80 to 11.60?h. Repeated oral administration of chlorpropham at 500?mg?kg^?1 for 10 and 20 days caused an induction of the liver microsomal pellet of rat.