Changes in persistent contaminant concentration and CYP1A1 protein expression in biopsy samples from northern bottlenose whales, Hyperoodon ampullatus, following the onset of nearby oil and gas development

A small population of endangered northern bottlenose whales (Hyperoodon ampullatus) inhabits "The Gully" a Marine Protected Area on the Scotian Shelf, eastern Canada. Amid concerns regarding nearby oil and gas development, we took 36 skin and blubber biopsy samples in 1996-1997 (prior to major development) and 2002-2003 (five years after development began), and three samples from a population in the Davis Strait, Labrador in 2003. These were analysed for cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) protein expression (n=36), and for persistent contaminants (n=23). CYP1A1 showed generally low expression in whales from The Gully, but higher levels during 2003, potentially coincident with recorded oil spills, and higher levels in Davis Strait whales. A range of PCB congeners and organochlorine compounds were detected, with concentrations similar to other North Atlantic odontocetes. Concentrations were higher in whales from The Gully than from the Davis Strait, with significant increases in 4,4'-DDE and trans-nonachlor in 2002-2003 relative to 1996-1997.     

Hierarchical Bayesian strategy for modeling correlated compositional data with observed zero counts

This article proposes a hierarchical multivariate conditional autoregressive model applied to a compositional response vector. We particularly focus on situations when the composition is discrete occurring when observations are based on small multinomial counts. We address drawbacks that exist in current modeling approaches for such data. Our hierarchical model will be demonstrated with data used to help manage a commercial sockeye salmon fishery in the Fraser River of British Columbia.     

The influence of individual differences on organizational safety attitudes

Workplace accidents cost organizations and the economy billions of dollars annually, disabling and injuring millions of employees. Employee attitudes toward safety have been shown to relate to safe workplace behavior. In an effort to determine what contributes to stronger employee attitudes toward safety, we examined the relationships between safety attitudes and a wide array of individual differences reflecting preferences and tendencies toward risk and control. Using a sample of 190 engineering and occupational safety students from two universities, we found that agreeableness, conscientiousness, prevention regulatory focus, and fatalism related significantly to all six safety attitudes examined. Regression analyses demonstrated that agreeableness, prevention focus, and fatalism significantly related to safety attitudes when controlling for the other individual differences. This study illustrates the utility of examining individual differences when predicting safety-related attitudes.     

INTEGRATION OF WATER QUALITY MODELING,REMOTE SENSING,AND GIS1

ABSTRACT: Water quality modeling has been developed for more than three quarters of a century, but is limited to the study of trends instead of making accurate short-term forecasts. A major barrier to water quality forecasting is the lack of an efficient system for water quality monitoring. Traditional water quality sampling is time-consuming, expensive, and can only be taken for small sizes. Remote sensing provides a new technique to monitor water quality repetitively for a large area. The objective of this research is to use remotely sensed data in a water quality model - QUAL2E - in a case study of the Te-Chi Reservoir in Taiwan. The water quality variables developed from the simulations are displayed in map form. The developed forecasting system is designed to predict water quality variables using remote sensing data as an input to initialize and update water quality conditions.     

Calculated physical properties of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans

The modified neglect of diatomic overlap (MNDO) method, a semi-empirical molecular orbital calculation, has been used to calculate the heats of formation, ionization potentials, dipole moments, and LUMOs (lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals) for all of the tetra, penta, hexa, hepta, and octa-chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans. These data have been used to predict gas chromatographic retention indexes.     

Time‐Dependent Health Risk from Contaminated Groundwater Including Use of Reliability,Resilience, and Vulnerability as Measures

Traditionally, assessment of human health risk caused by contamination of a water supply focuses on the maximum risk to an individual. Here, we introduce a time‐dependent risk assessment method and adapt and explore the reliability, resilience, and vulnerability (RRV) criteria from the surface‐water literature as possible tools for assessing this risk. Time‐dependent risk assessment, including RRV, is applied to two synthetic examples where water quality at a well varies over time. We calculate time‐dependent health risks for discrete periods of exposure to the contaminated water for a variable population. The RRV criteria provide information about time‐dependent risk: probability of an acceptable risk, probability of system recovery, maximum risk, and average exceedance of a prescribed risk threshold. The results demonstrate that episodic contamination events produce fundamentally different time‐dependent risks than long‐term events: these differences, such as generally lower risks for the episodic contamination, can be captured via plots of the risk and the RRV criteria. Furthermore, the evaluation of time‐dependent health risk and the RRV criteria demonstrates significant sensitivity to the shape of the contaminant breakthrough curve, length of exposure, and variability within the population. Overall, analysis of time‐dependent health risks provides substantial insight into the structure of risk, with RRV providing a reasonable framework for the evaluation of these risks.     

Prenatal genetic considerations of congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT)

Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) constitute 20% of all congenital malformations occurring in one in 500 live births. Worldwide, CAKUT are responsible for 40% to 50% of pediatric and 7% of adult end-stage renal disease. Pathogenic variants in genes causing CAKUT include monogenic diseases such as polycystic kidney disease and ciliopathies, as well as syndromes that include isolated kidney disease in conjunction with other abnormalities. Prenatal diagnosis most often occurs using ultrasonography; however, further genetic diagnosis may be made using a variety of testing strategies. Family history and pathologic examination can also provide information to improve the ability to make a prenatal diagnosis of CAKUT. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of genetic considerations in the prenatal diagnosis of CAKUT disorders. Specifically, we discuss monogenic causes of CAKUT, associated ultrasound characteristics, and considerations for genetic diagnosis, antenatal care, and postnatal care.     

The causes and natural history of fetal ascites

The purpose of this study was to examine the natural history and differential diagnosis of ultrasound-detected, isolated fetal ascites. Retrospective review of our patient data base, from 1989 to 1993, revealed 18 patients with fetal ascites diagnosed sonographically. Fetuses presenting with generalized hydrops were excluded. One of the 18 fetuses with ascites had a chromosomal abnormality (trisomy 21), four fetuses had intrauterine infections, seven had gastrointestinal processes, two had genitourinary tract abnormalities, and four were labelled as ‘idiopathic’ (all four resulting in normal neonates). Seventeen of 18 fetuses survived; there was one fetal demise secondary to active syphilis. One fetus with parvovirus infection required intrauterine transfusion and did well. Two infants are developmentally retarded, including one with trisomy 21 and one with microcephaly secondary to cytomegalovirus infection. Fourteen of 18 fetuses had documented in-utero resolution of the ascites. Eleven of the 18 were associated with polyhydramnios sometime during fetal life. None of the fetuses developed hydrops. In conclusion, fetal ascites can result from many different aetiologies, including gastrointestinal and genitourinary anomalies. Chromosomal abnormalities and viral aetiologies must also be considered. Fetuses who have isolated ascites can have a good outcome with resolution of the ascites antenatally.     

A national critical loads framework for atmospheric deposition effects assessment: II. Defining assessment end points,indicators, and functional subregions

The United States Environmental Protection Agency, with support from the US Department of Energy and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, has been evaluating the feasibility of an effects-based (critical loads) approach to atmospheric pollutant regulation and abatement. The rationale used to develop three of the six steps in a flexible assessment framework (Strickland and others, 1992) is presented along with a discussion of a variety of implementation approaches and their ramifications. The rationale proposes that it is necessary to provide an explicit statement of the condition of the resource that is considered valuable (assessment end point) because: (1) individual ecosystem components may be more or less sensitive to deposition, (2) it is necessary to select indicators of ecosystem condition that can be objectively measured and that reflect changes in the quality of the assessment end point, and (3) acceptable status (i.e., value of indicator and quality of assessment end point at critical load) must be defined. The rationale also stresses the importance of defining the assessment regions and subregions to improve the analysis and understanding of the indicator response to deposition. Subregional definition can be based on a variety of criteria, including informed judgment or quantitative procedures. It also depends on the geographic scale at which exposure and effects models are accurate and on data availability, resolution, and quality. The research described in this article has been funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency. This document has been prepared at the EPA Environmental Research Laboratory in Corvallis, Oregon, through contract #68-C8-0006 with ManTech Environmental Technology, Inc., and Interagency Agreement #1824-B014-A7 with the US Department of Energy and at Oak Ridge National Laboratory managed by Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc., under Contract DE-AC05-84OR21400 with the US Department of Energy. Environmental Sciences Division Publication No. 3903. It has been subjected to the agency’s peer and administrative review and approved for publication. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.     

Interactions of risk analysis and contingency planning in risk management

Risk management entails knowledge of the risk and how best to reduce it; its objective is to minimize losses arising from existing or potential risk. With effective contingency planning, risk analysis and its corollary, consequence analysis, can contribute synergistically to improved risk management. Until recently, risk analysis and contingency or emergency response planning were considered distinct disciplines with little interactive potential. Fortunately, industry now recognizes that linking the two can help ensure public safety as well as preserve the financial integrity of plant owners. Both areas are receiving increased and well-deserved attention; several incidents in recent years have demonstrated that losses could have been greatly reduced if better precautions and procedures had been in place as a result of risk analysis and contingency planning.