多溴联苯醚在啮齿类动物体内的代谢动力学研究进展

多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)是一类持久性有机污染物(POPs),其作为一种广泛使用的溴化阻燃剂在环境中普遍存在.PBDEs对生物体和人体存在内分泌干扰等毒性危害,正受到人们越来越多的关注.然而目前PBDEs对人体造成的影响都是由动物实验(主要是啮齿类动物)外推而得,因此研究不同的PBDEs同系物在啮齿类动物体内的代谢动力学...     

多溴联苯醚在中国的污染现状研究进展

多溴联苯醚(Polybrominated diphenyl ethers,PBDEs)作为"新POPs"逐渐受到环境科研工作者的重视.本文综合评述了PBDEs在我国各种环境介质、生物体以及人体中的污染现状.研究分析表明,PBDEs在我国的污染尚处于相对较低的水平,但在广东贵屿和浙江台州等电子垃圾拆解地PBDEs的污染较为严重.本文最后展望了我国PBDEs研究中需要加强的几个方面.     

北江沉积物中多溴联苯醚的含量水平和分布特征

多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)具有与多氯联苯(PCBs)相似的化学结构和环境行为,是一种典型的持久性有机污染物(POPs).本文研究了珠江第二大水系北江流域沉积物中PBDEs的含量水平、空间分布特征和可能来源.     

多溴联苯醚、六溴环十二烷和四溴双酚A在环境中污染现状的研究进展

作为最主要的三大传统溴系阻燃剂(BFRs),多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)、六溴环十二烷(HBCD)、四溴双酚A(TBBPA)具有半挥发性、环境持久性和远距离传输性,目前在全球各种环境介质、生物体内广泛存在.毒理学研究表明,PBDEs、HBCD、TBBPA均具有明显的生物毒性和致癌性,对生态环境和人体健康存在潜在危害.本文简...     

多溴联苯醚在环境中迁移转化的研究进展

多溴联苯醚(Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers,PBDEs)是全球广泛使用的一种添加型溴代阻燃剂,具有高亲脂性、难降解性、生物累积性和高毒性.全面了解PBDEs在环境的迁移转化规律是对其进行科学的风险评价的基础.归纳和分析了近几年国内外学者有关PBDEs在不同环境介质中的分布情况及其迁移转化的研究动态,并重点讨论了光解和生物降解的机理、产物和影响因素.结果表明,大气中以气态的低溴代联苯醚为主,具有较强的长距离迁移能力,而BDE-209等高溴代联苯醚则主要吸附在气溶胶颗粒物上,迁移能力有限;PBDEs在水中的浓度较低,主要在沉积物和生物体的脂肪中累积,并通过食物链的放大作用使处于食物链顶端的生物受到毒害.光解和生物降解是PBDEs在环境中转化的主要途径,在空气中和浅层水中以光解为主,而在深层水和沉积物中生物降解占主导.文章最后指出了今后的主要研究方向.     

多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)光降解研究现状

多溴联苯醚(polybrominated diphenyl ethers,PBDEs)为一类新型的持久性有机污染物,因其在环境中的广泛分布和生物累积性而备受关注,环境中PBDEs的降解也成为研究热点.光降解是自然环境中PBDEs降解的主要途径之一,而光降解过程中会形成毒性更高的溴代二英.本文在总结国内外PBDEs光降解研究的基础上,对影响PBDEs光降解的因素(诸如:分子结构、光源、介质等)、途径和产物,特别是溴代二英的形成进行了综述,对目前存在问题及进一步的研究方向进行了讨论和展望.     

室内环境中多溴联苯醚的污染特征和暴露风险研究进展

多溴联苯醚(polybrominated diphenyl ethers,PBDEs)是一类常见的溴代阻燃剂,具有生育毒性、生殖毒性以及致癌性等慢性毒性.作为典型的溴代阻燃剂,多溴联苯醚常被加入到各种产品中以提高产品的安全性,但在各种商业产品的使用过程中,多溴联苯醚会不可避免地逸出至室内环境中,存在于空气或者灰尘中被人体摄入.研究表明,人类一生有80%—90%的时间处于室内环境中,因此,通过了解目前室内环境中多溴联苯醚的污染现状,进而评估通过室内环境暴露多溴联苯醚对人体的潜在危害极为重要.本文总结了室内环境中多溴联苯醚的浓度水平、组成特征以及人体暴露风险,并对未来的研究提出建议.     

在食品和环境分析中使用大气压气相色谱质谱电离源(APGC)检测多溴联苯(PBBs)和多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)

多溴联苯(PBBs)和多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)是在全球范围内受到管制的持续性有机,染物(POPs),这类化合物结构类似且复杂,定性和定量分析都极具挑战.本文应用大气压气相色谱质谱电离源(APGC)分析10种PBBs和28种PBDEs,显著提升了食品和环境分析中这类化合物的检测灵敏度.     

莱州湾东部海域多溴联苯醚的污染特征及生态风险评价

于2015年4月和11月,在莱州湾东部海域设置6个采样站点,采集海水和表层沉积物样品,采用气相色谱-质谱联用联用测定海水溶解相、颗粒相和沉积物中14种多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)的含量,分析了PBDEs的组成特征,采用主成分分析了其来源,并对其生态风险进行了评价.结果表明,4月份溶解相、颗粒相和表层沉积物中14种PBDEs同系物总含量(∑14PBDEs)的范围分别为0. 29—0. 76 ng·L~(-1)、1.79—3.60 ng·L~(-1)和31.37—44. 39 ng·g-1,其中BDE209的含量范围分别为0. 21—0. 65 ng·L~(-1)、0.84—2.34 ng·L~(-1)和24. 27—36.79 ng·g-1.11月份海水溶解相和沉积相中∑14PBDEs与4月份无显著差异(P 0. 05),但颗粒相中的∑14PBDEs显著低于4月份(P0.05).4、11月颗粒相中∑14PBDEs占海水中总含量(溶解相+颗粒相)的平均比例分别为83.9%和71.2%,表明PBDEs主要分配在颗粒相上.沉积物PBDEs含量与总有机碳呈极显著正相关关系(r0.9,P0.01).14种PBDEs中,BDE209是最主要的同系物,其次是BDE47.主成分分析表明,莱州湾PBDEs主要来源于商业十溴联苯醚的地表径流输入.莱州湾东部海水中五溴联苯醚和八溴联苯醚存在低生态风险,沉积物中五溴联苯醚具有中等生态风险.     

多溴联苯醚的环境毒理学研究进展

多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)是一类广泛使用的溴代阻燃剂,其大量生产和使用导致了越来越严重的环境污染.由于PBDEs具有较高的亲脂性,化学性质比较稳定,它们可远距离传输到地球各种环境介质中,并通过食物链累积放大,在生物体内蓄积产生毒性效应.本文针对近年来PBDEs毒性效应和致毒机制的研究进展,从PBDEs的内分泌干扰毒性、发...     

Rapid,recurring, structured survey versus bioblitz for generating biodiversity data and analysis with a multispecies abundance model

A bioblitz inexpensively and quickly generates biodiversity data, but bioblitzes are often conducted with haphazard, unreplicated sampling. Results tend to be taxonomically, geographically, or temporally biased, lack metadata, and consist of lists of observed taxa that do not enable further analyses or correction for imperfect detection. A rapid, recurring, structured survey (RRSS) uses a structured sampling design and temporal and spatial replication to survey randomly selected sites on a conservation property. We participated in a loosely structured bioblitz and a subsequent RRSS at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville (St. Clair County), Alabama (USA) to compare observed richness derived from the 2 survey approaches. The RRSS data structure enabled us to fit models that accounted for imperfect detection to estimate abundances, occupancy probabilities, and habitat associations. The loosely structured bioblitz data could not be used in such models. We present a new integrated multispecies abundance model that we applied to avian RRSS data. Our model extension enables estimation for the community, employs data augmentation to estimate the number of undetected species, and incorporates covariates. The RRSS generated a more comprehensive and less biased list of observed taxonomic richness than the loosely structured bioblitz (e.g., 73 vs. 45 bird species and 104 vs. 63 insect families from the RRSS vs. loosely structured bioblitz, respectively). Models fit to the RRSS data identified seasonal patterns in avian community composition and allowed for estimation of habitat–occupancy relationships for insect taxa. The RRSS protocol has potential for broad transferability as a standardized, quick, and inexpensive way to inventory biodiversity and estimate ecological parameters while providing an outreach opportunity.     

Compliance with and ecosystem function of biodiversity offsets in North American and European freshwaters

Land-use change via human development is a major driver of biodiversity loss. To reduce these impacts, billions of dollars are spent on biodiversity offsets. However, studies evaluating offset project effectiveness that examine components such as the overall compliance and function of projects remain rare. We reviewed 577 offsetting projects in freshwater ecosystems that included the metrics project size, type of aquatic system (e.g., wetland and creek), offsetting measure (e.g., enhancement, restoration, and creation), and an assessment of the projects’ compliance and functional success. Project information was obtained from scientific and government databases and gray literature. Despite considerable investment in offsetting projects, crucial problems persisted. Although compliance and function were related to each other, a high level of compliance did not guarantee a high degree of function. However, large projects relative to area had better function than small projects. Function improved when projects targeted productivity or specific ecosystem features and when multiple complementary management targets were in place. Restorative measures were more likely to achieve targets than creating entirely new ecosystems. Altogether the relationships we found highlight specific ecological processes that may help improve offsetting outcomes.     

A palaeo-hydrogeological model for arsenic contamination in southern and south-east Asia

An argument is presented in which areas of natural arsenic contamination of modern groundwaters throughout Asia have a common origin. Arsenic originally accumulated in oceanic ferro-manganoan sediments of the eastern Palaeo-Tethys. This was further concentrated through oceanic crustal extinction in what later became the south-east Chinese accreted mineralised terrain. Proto-Himalayan uplift of this area created the palaeo-drainage systems of the Ganges – Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Mekong, and Red Rivers, with consequent headwater erosion of arsenic-rich sediments. Their downstream deposition as immature and easily redistributed Neogene sandstones, silts, and iron-rich clays has created secondary and tertiary reservoirs of adsorbed and authigenic arsenic, from which the current arsenic-rich groundwaters have evolved. Considering river basins within the above palaeo-hydrogeological framework provides a basis for assessing the risk of arsenic in groundwater basins of south and south-eastern Asia.     

Cost‐effective conservation of an endangered frog under uncertainty

How should managers choose among conservation options when resources are scarce and there is uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of actions? Well‐developed tools exist for prioritizing areas for one‐time and binary actions (e.g., protect vs. not protect), but methods for prioritizing incremental or ongoing actions (such as habitat creation and maintenance) remain uncommon. We devised an approach that combines metapopulation viability and cost‐effectiveness analyses to select among alternative conservation actions while accounting for uncertainty. In our study, cost‐effectiveness is the ratio between the benefit of an action and its economic cost, where benefit is the change in metapopulation viability. We applied the approach to the case of the endangered growling grass frog (Litoria raniformis), which is threatened by urban development. We extended a Bayesian model to predict metapopulation viability under 9 urbanization and management scenarios and incorporated the full probability distribution of possible outcomes for each scenario into the cost‐effectiveness analysis. This allowed us to discern between cost‐effective alternatives that were robust to uncertainty and those with a relatively high risk of failure. We found a relatively high risk of extinction following urbanization if the only action was reservation of core habitat; habitat creation actions performed better than enhancement actions; and cost‐effectiveness ranking changed depending on the consideration of uncertainty. Our results suggest that creation and maintenance of wetlands dedicated to L. raniformis is the only cost‐effective action likely to result in a sufficiently low risk of extinction. To our knowledge we are the first study to use Bayesian metapopulation viability analysis to explicitly incorporate parametric and demographic uncertainty into a cost‐effective evaluation of conservation actions. The approach offers guidance to decision makers aiming to achieve cost‐effective conservation under uncertainty.     

Threats to intact tropical peatlands and opportunities for their conservation

Large, intact areas of tropical peatland are highly threatened at a global scale by the expansion of commercial agriculture and other forms of economic development. Conserving peatlands on a landscape scale, with their hydrology intact, is of international conservation importance to preserve their distinctive biodiversity and ecosystem services and maintain their resilience to future environmental change. We explored threats to and opportunities for conserving remaining intact tropical peatlands; thus, we excluded peatlands of Indonesia and Malaysia, where extensive deforestation, drainage, and conversion to plantations means conservation in this region can protect only small fragments of the original ecosystem. We focused on a case study, the Pastaza‐Marañón Foreland Basin (PMFB) in Peru, which is among the largest known intact tropical peatland landscapes in the world and is representative of peatland vulnerability. Maintenance of the hydrological conditions critical for carbon storage and ecosystem function of peatlands is, in the PMFB, primarily threatened by expansion of commercial agriculture linked to new transport infrastructure that is facilitating access to remote areas. There remain opportunities in the PMFB and elsewhere to develop alternative, more sustainable land‐use practices. Although some of the peatlands in the PMFB fall within existing legally protected areas, this protection does not include the most carbon‐dense (domed pole forest) areas. New carbon‐based conservation instruments (e.g., REDD+, Green Climate Fund), developing markets for sustainable peatland products, transferring land title to local communities, and expanding protected areas offer pathways to increased protection for intact tropical peatlands in Amazonia and elsewhere, such as those in New Guinea and Central Africa which remain, for the moment, broadly beyond the frontier of commercial development.     

Parasitic wasps orient to green leaf volatiles

Summary Undamaged plants emit low levels of green leaf volatiles (GLVs), while caterpillar-damaged and artificially damaged plants emit relatively higher levels of certain GLVs. Female braconid parasitoids,Microplitis croceipes, oriented to both damaged plants and to individual GLVs in no-choice tests in a wind tunnel, but seldom oriented to undamaged plants. Female ichneumonid parasitoids,Netelia heroica, also oriented to individual GLVs in a wind tunnel. Males of both wasp species failed to orient to the GLVs. These data show that leaf-feeding caterpillars can cause the release of GLVs, and that parasitic wasps can respond to these odors by flying upwind (chemoanemotactic response), which brings the wasps to their caterpillar hosts. This supports the hypothesis that plants communicate with members of the third trophic level,i.e., plants under herbivore attack emit chemical signals that guide natural enemies of herbivores to sites of plant damage. In this interaction, the GLVs serve as tritrophic plant-to-parasitoid synomones. That parasitoids from two different wasp families oriented to GLVs suggests that the response may be widespread among the Hymenoptera.Mention of a commercial or proprietary product does not constitute an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture     

Human Influence and Classical Biogeographic Predictors of Rare Species Occurrence

Biogeographic theory predicts that rare species occur more often in larger, less‐isolated habitat patches and suggests that patch size and connectivity are positive predictors of patch quality for conservation. However, in areas substantially modified by humans, rare species may be relegated to the most isolated patches. We used data from plant surveys of 81 meadow patches in the Georgia Basin of Canada and the United States to show that presence of threatened and endangered plants was positively predicted for patches that were isolated on small islands surrounded by ocean and for patches that were isolated by surrounding forest. Neither patch size nor connectivity were positive predictors of rare species occurrence. Thus, in our study area, human influence, presumably due to disturbance or introduction of competitive non‐native species, appears to have overwhelmed classical predictors of rare species distribution, such that greater patch isolation appeared to favor presence of rare species. We suggest conservation planners consider the potential advantages of protecting geographically isolated patches in human‐modified landscapes because such patches may represent the only habitats in which rare species are likely to persist. Influencia Humana y Predictores Biogeográficos Clásicos de la Ocurrencia de Especies Raras     

Seasonal dynamics of macro-algae in the South Lake of Tunis

The macro-algae communities observed in the south lake of Tunis are characterized by the predominance of nitrophilous algae which are in the order of biomass importance:Ulva, Cladophora andEnteromorpha. We have noted seasonal changes of alga distribution. The wind appears to be one of the most important factors influencing this distribution. The total biomass reaches a maximum in the spring. Rapid decomposition of the biomass leads to a severe ecological imbalance, resulting in crises of anoxia and fish death. A restoration project has already started. It aims at removal of contaminated muds and the introduction of a new circulation system. The main objectives of this work were to collect information on the distribution and biomass of the phytobenthic communities as a first step in the constitution of a database for further comparison.     

Patterns and biases of climate change threats in the IUCN Red List

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List assessments rely on published data and expert inputs, and biases can be introduced where underlying definitions and concepts are ambiguous. Consideration of climate change threat is no exception, and recently numerous approaches to assessing the threat of climate change to species have been developed. We explored IUCN Red List assessments of amphibians and birds to determine whether species listed as threatened by climate change display distinct patterns in terms of habitat occupied and additional nonclimatic threats faced. We compared IUCN Red List data with a published data set of species’ biological and ecological traits believed to infer high vulnerability to climate change and determined whether distributions of climate change‐threatened species on the IUCN Red List concur with those of climate change‐threatened species identified with the trait‐based approach and whether species possessing these traits are more likely to have climate change listed as a threat on the IUCN Red List. Species in some ecosystems (e.g., grassland, shrubland) and subject to particular threats (e.g., invasive species) were more likely to have climate change as a listed threat. Geographical patterns of climate change‐threatened amphibians and birds on the IUCN Red List were incongruent with patterns of global species richness and patterns identified using trait‐based approaches. Certain traits were linked to increases or decreases in the likelihood of a species being threatened by climate change. Broad temperature tolerance of a species was consistently related to an increased likelihood of climate change threat, indicating counterintuitive relationships in IUCN assessments. To improve the robustness of species assessments of the vulnerability or extinction risk associated with climate change, we suggest IUCN adopt a more cohesive approach whereby specific traits highlighted by our results are considered in Red List assessments. To achieve this and to strengthen the climate change‐vulnerability assessments approach, it is necessary to identify and implement logical avenues for further research into traits that make species vulnerable to climate change (including population‐level threats).