Survey of cyanobacterial toxins in Czech water reservoirs—the first observation of neurotoxic saxitoxins

The environmental occurrence and concentrations of cyanobacterial toxins (cyanotoxins) were investigated in the Czech Republic. Concentrations of microcystins (MCs), cylindrospermopsin (CYN) or saxitoxins (STXs) were determined immunochemically by ELISA assays in 30 water samples collected from the surface layers of 19 reservoirs during the summer season of 2010. MCs were detected in 18 reservoirs and 83 % of samples, with median and maximal concentration being 1.5 and 18.6 μg/L, respectively. The high frequency of MC occurrence coincided with prevalence of cyanobacterium Microcystis sp., which was detected in 87 % samples, followed by Dolichospermum (Anabaena) sp. observed in 33 % samples. CYN was detected by ELISA only in one sample at a concentration of 1.2 μg/L. STXs presence was indicated for the first time in Czech water reservoirs when the toxins were found at low concentrations (0.03–0.04 μg/L) in two samples (7 %) collected from two different reservoirs, where STXs co-occurred with MCs and eventually also with CYN. In both STX-positive samples, the phytoplankton community was dominated by Microcystis sp., but Dolichospermum sp. and/or Aphanizomenon sp. were also present as putative producers of STX and/or CYN. Cyanotoxins commonly occurred in Czech water reservoirs, and MCs frequently at concentrations possibly associated with human health risks. MCs were the most prevalent and abundant cyanotoxins, but also other cyanotoxins were detected, though sporadically. Further research and regulatory monitoring of cyanotoxins other than MCs is therefore required.     

Sustainability in the USA and New Zealand: explaining and addressing the implementation gap in local government

This paper describes the frustrating reality of sustainability implementation in the USA and New Zealand (NZ), an early adopter of sustainability mandates. Local government has a key role in implementation, but has been slow to uptake sustainable practices. We surveyed senior planners in small to medium-sized local government agencies in both countries to identify which features of local government support (or hinder) sustainability in practice.

Environmentally sustainable practices are not well entrenched in either country. In the USA, the framing of sustainability and public support are significant predictors of implementation. However, sustainability is rarely a priority. In NZ, local government capacity is the main driver of implementation. We recommend that planners promote sustainability values, reconcile economic development goals with sustainability (e.g., green economy model), and translate public support for sustainability into institutional priorities. NZ localities also need increased capacity and US localities need continued Federal and State support.     

Importance of conserving large and old trees to continuity of tree-related microhabitats

Protecting structural features, such as tree-related microhabitats (TreMs), is a cost-effective tool crucial for biodiversity conservation applicable to large forested landscapes. Although the development of TreMs is influenced by tree diameter, species, and vitality, the relationships between tree age and TreM profile remain poorly understood. Using a tree-ring-based approach and a large data set of 8038 trees, we modeled the effects of tree age, diameter, and site characteristics on TreM richness and occurrence across some of the most intact primary temperate forests in Europe, including mixed beech and spruce forests. We observed an overall increase in TreM richness on old and large trees in both forest types. The occurrence of specific TreM groups was variably related to tree age and diameter, but some TreM groups (e.g., epiphytes) had a stronger positive relationship with tree species and elevation. Although many TreM groups were positively associated with tree age and diameter, only two TreM groups in spruce stands reacted exclusively to tree age (insect galleries and exposed sapwood) without responding to diameter. Thus, the retention of trees for conservation purposes based on tree diameter appears to be a generally feasible approach with a rather low risk of underrepresentation of TreMs. Because greater tree age and diameter positively affected TreM development, placing a greater emphasis on conserving large trees and allowing them to reach older ages, for example, through the establishment of conservation reserves, would better maintain the continuity of TreM resource and associated biodiversity. However, this approach may be difficult due to the widespread intensification of forest management and global climate change.     

RECOTOX,a French initiative in ecotoxicology-toxicology to monitor,understand and mitigate the ecotoxicological impacts of pollutants in socioagroecosystems

RECOTOX is a cross-cutting initiative promoting an integrated research to respond to the challenges of monitoring, understanding, and mitigating environmental and health impacts of pesticides in agroecosystems. The added value of RECOTOX is to develop a common culture around spatial ecotoxicology including the whole chain of pressure-exposure-impact, while strengthening an integrated network of in natura specifically equipped sites. In particular, it promotes transversal approaches at relevant socioecological system scales, to capitalize knowledge, expertise, and ongoing research in ecotoxicology and, to a lesser extent, environmental toxicology. Thus, it will open existing research infrastructures in environmental sciences to research programs in ecotoxicology of pesticides.     

Predicting the conservation status of data‐deficient species

There is little appreciation of the level of extinction risk faced by one‐sixth of the over 65,000 species assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Determining the status of these data‐deficient (DD) species is essential to developing an accurate picture of global biodiversity and identifying potentially threatened DD species. To address this knowledge gap, we used predictive models incorporating species’ life history, geography, and threat information to predict the conservation status of DD terrestrial mammals. We constructed the models with 7 machine learning (ML) tools trained on species of known status. The resultant models showed very high species classification accuracy (up to 92%) and ability to correctly identify centers of threatened species richness. Applying the best model to DD species, we predicted 313 of 493 DD species (64%) to be at risk of extinction, which increases the estimated proportion of threatened terrestrial mammals from 22% to 27%. Regions predicted to contain large numbers of threatened DD species are already conservation priorities, but species in these areas show considerably higher levels of risk than previously recognized. We conclude that unless directly targeted for monitoring, species classified as DD are likely to go extinct without notice. Taking into account information on DD species may therefore help alleviate data gaps in biodiversity indicators and conserve poorly known biodiversity. Predección del Estado de Conservación de Especies con Deficiencia de Datos     

Age-related accident risks among assembly workers: A longitudinal study of male workers employed in the Swedish automobile industry

This study investigates whether there is evidence of age-related accident risks among male assembly workers in the Swedish automobile industry. Age-related accident ratios (ARs) were measured for all accidents aggregated and for six accident types over a 10-year period, using five age categories and three time intervals. The results showed that regardless of accident type, ARs were generally higher among younger workers than older ones, though not for all accident types and time periods. ARs by (open) age cohorts increased over time in four accident situations out of six for assemblers aged 25–34 (35–44 in 1990–1991). Inequalities in risk exposure, labor-market factors, and early deselection from the occupation are emphasized as significant external factors in the age-related differences observed in ARs.     

环丙沙星(CIP)对鲤鱼早期生长阶段的影响

我们依据经济合作与发展组织的210指导性文件,利用鲤鱼受精卵,进行环丙沙星(CIP)的毒性试验。测试浓度设置为1、100、500、1 000和3 000 μg?L^L-1。我们发现在所有测试组中,暴露于CIP会加速孵化,但在暴露于最高浓度CIP(3000 μg?L^L-1)的测试组,出现了显著的生长下降的现象。在实验的第6天(孵化之后),可以观察到大量增加的肉眼可见的形态异常现象。最高数量肉眼可见的形态异常现象是在自由胚胎和幼虫CIP暴露浓度为100、500、1 000和3 000 μg?L^L-1的测试组中产生的(测试样本的20%~23%)。在所有CIP暴露试验组中,均检测出GST活性的呈逐步降低趋势,但是在CIP浓度为500和3 000 μg?L^L-1的测试组中出现了显著差异(p < 0.01)。其中在大多数测试浓度下,谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶和过氧化氢酶的活性增加(p < 0.01,p < 0.05),而在CIP暴露浓度为500和3 000 μg?L^L-1的测试组,谷胱甘肽还原酶出现活性降低的现象(p < 0.05)。在所有的CIP暴露组中,硫代巴比妥酸活性物质的浓度明显降低(p < 0.01)。可测的CIP最低有效浓度(LOEC)是1 μg?L^L-1。\这些结果表明,孵化过程,早期的个体发育,形态异常的产生,以及鱼类体内的抗氧化和生物转化酶活性和脂质过氧化反应,都会受到CIP影响。
精选自Dana Zivna, Lucie Plhalova, Lucie Chromcova, Jana Blahova, Miroslav Prokes, Misa Skoric, Petr Marsalek, Eva Praskova, Stanislava Stepanova, Zdenka Svobodova. The effects of ciprofloxacin on early life stages of common carp (Cyprinus carpio). Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry: Volume 35, Issue 7, pages 1733–1740, July 2016. DOI: 10.1002/etc.3317
详情请见http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.3317/full
     

Detection of technetium-99 in Ascophyllum nodosum from around the Welsh coast

The presence of the radionuclide ⁹⁹Tc in the marine environment is of concern to environmental scientists because of its conservative nature and high concentration factor in commercially valuable species. The brown seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum (Linnaeus) Le Jolis was used to biomonitor the spatial distribution of ⁹⁹Tc around the Welsh coast, an area relatively unstudied with respect to this isotope. Over the course of a year an inverse relationship was observed between the ⁹⁹Tc concentration in A. nodosum samples and approximate straight-line distance from Sellafield. These data show that detectable levels of a Sellafield derived radionuclide are reaching the Welsh coast despite the overall northward movement of the Sellafield plume.