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Impacts on air pollution in urban areas

Environmental management involves controlling various forms of pollution to levels that do not pose a threat to the health of the people and the environment in general. This paper presents a framework to analyze sources of local air pollution in cities. Using an OLS model, an investigation is performed of the relationship among the concentrations of air pollutants [more precisely, concentrations of sulfur dioxide (SO₂), dust, nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon oxide (CO) and ozone (O₃)], economic activities, and meteorology. Time series analysis leads to a model, that explains a high degree of the variance in the air pollution data. The model is applied to daily time series from three measurement stations in innsbruck, Austria. Estimation results of the model generally fit with the expected relations. Space heating influences SO₂, dust, and NO, while NO₂ levels are primarily affected by traffic. These results also indicate interdependent relations among the pollutants NO, NO₂, O₃, and CO; O₃ levels depend on temperature and sunshine.     

Optional strategies for reduced metabolism in gray mouse lemurs

Among the order of primates, torpor has been described only for the small Malagasy cheirogaleids Microcebus and Cheirogaleus. The nocturnal, gray mouse lemur, Microcebus murinus (approx. 60 g), is capable of entering into and spontaneously arousing from apparently daily torpor during the dry season in response to reduced temperatures and low food and water sources. Mark–recapture studies indicated that this primate species might also hibernate for several weeks, although physiological evidence is lacking. In the present study, we investigated patterns of body temperature in two free-ranging M. murinus during the austral winter using temperature-sensitive data loggers implanted subdermally. One lemur hibernated and remained inactive for 4 weeks. During this time, body temperature followed the ambient temperature passively with a minimum body temperature of 11.5°C, interrupted by irregular arousals to normothermic levels. Under the same conditions, the second individual displayed only short bouts of torpor in the early morning hours but maintained stable normothermic body temperatures throughout its nocturnal activity. Reduction of body temperature was less pronounced in the mouse lemur that utilized short bouts of torpor with a minimum value of 27°C. Despite the small sample size, our findings provide the first physiological confirmation that free-ranging individuals of M. murinus from the humid evergreen littoral rain forest have the option to utilize short torpor bouts or hibernation under the same conditions as two alternative energy-conserving physiological solutions to environmental constraints.     

Organic pollutants in compost and digestate. Part 2. Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, and -furans, dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls, brominated flame retardants, perfluorinated alkyl substances, pesticides, and other compounds

Compost and digestate are important recycling fertilizers and have beneficial effects on soil parameters. However, they can contain significant amounts of organic pollutants. Here, the first comprehensive data set on dibenzo-p-dioxins and -furans (PCDD/F), dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (DL-PCB), brominated flame retardants, perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), pesticides, phthalates, nonylphenol and chlorinated paraffins (CP) in source-separated compost and digestate from Switzerland is presented (n = 3-18). The median summation 17PCDD/F and summation 12DL-PCB concentrations were at 3.2 ng I-TEQ kg(-1)dry weight (dw) and 3.0 ng WHO-TEQ kg(-1)dw, respectively. Brominated diphenyl ether 209 (BDE 209) accounted for 72% of the total polyBDE content (10 microg kg(-1)dw). Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) and tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) levels were at 100 and 0.51 microg kg(-1)dw, respectively. PFAS were identified for the first time in compost and digestate (median concentration 6.3 microg kg(-1)dw, summation 21compounds). Out of 269 pesticides analysed, 30 fungicides, 14 herbicides, eight insecticides and one acaricide were detected. Di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) median concentration accounted for 280 microg kg(-1)dw and nonylphenol was below the detection limit of 1 mg kg(-1)dw. The sum of short and medium chain CP was between 90 and 390 microg kg(-1)dw. The concentrations observed were at or above the levels found in background soils, which are the main recipient of compost and digestate. Where actually applied, compost can contribute considerably to the total input of organic pollutants to the soil. However, on a total Swiss agricultural area base, inputs seem to be limited.     

Cysteine-glutathione disulfide, the sperm-release pheromone of the marine polychaete Nereis succinea (Annelida: Polychaeta)

Summary. In the marine polychaete Nereis succinea (Frey & Leuckart 1847) a sex pheromone was isolated from the coelomic fluid of sexually mature females and identified by NMR studies and independent synthesis. This pheromone is released by the females during reproduction together with eggs and coelomic fluid into the free water column and induces sperm release of surrounding males. Its structure was ascertained as L-cysteine-glutathione disulfide. It exhibited a response threshold of 0.6 · 10⁻⁷ M. Received 15 July 1997; accepted 25 November 1997.