Sorption and photolysis studies in soil and sediment of the herbicide napropamide

The influence of soil and sediment composition on sorption and photodegradation of the herbicide napropamide [N,N-diethyl-2-(1-naphthyloxy)propionamide] was investigated. Five soils and one sediment were selected for this study and the clay fractions were obtained by sedimentation. Sorption-desorption was studied by batch equilibration technique and photolysis in a photoreactor emitting within 300-450 nm wavelength with a maximum at 365 nm. Sorption increased with clay content and was not related to organic matter content. High irreversibility of sorption was related to the greater montmorillonite content. The presence of soil or sediment reduced photolysis rate due to screen effect and this process did not depend on solid composition but on particle size distribution.     

Formation and long-term fate of non-extractable residues in outdoor lysimeter studies

Long-term outdoor lysimeter studies using (14)C-labelled compounds allow the quantification of the 'non-extractable residue fraction'. More than 20 lysimeter studies under realistic environmental conditions showed that more than 80% of residual carbon of the molecule is retained in the topsoil layer even after several years. Generally, 50-90% of this residual radiocarbon is regarded as 'soil bound residue'. Microbial biomass is present in large quantities in topsoil and continuously influences chemical and biochemical alteration of pesticide molecules that may interact directly with the total soil organic matter. Labelling techniques using radioactive isotopes like (14)C have been used to characterize these residues in the humus matrix. Our studies have been directed to the investigation of extractability and/or bioavailability of these residues in long-term investigations.     

A new sensitive test based on yeast cells for studying environmental pollution

Different tests based on yeast cells were developed for determination of mutagenic/carcinogenic action; however, they all showed lower sensitivity compared to bacterial tests, the main reason for this being the limited permeability of yeast cells. We found that general permeability of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells can be increased by mutation and on this basis we developed a more sensitive test. The aim of this study was to prove the applicability of our test, called D7ts1, in environmental studies. Soil, water and air samples were taken during 1998 from regions in Bulgaria with declared low, average or high pollution levels and investigated for presence of mutagenic/carcinogenic activities in the bacterial test of Ames, the yeast D7 test of Zimmermann and our new D7ts1 test. Results obtained evidenced the following conclusions: (1) the usage of D7ts1 test instead of D7 test permits a clearer measurement of positive samples and detects mutagenic/carcinogenic activities undetectable by D7 test; (2) all samples with positive Ames test were positive in the D7ts1 test; however, some samples, clearly positive in the D7ts1, were negative in the Ames test; therefore, the simultaneous usage of D7ts1 and Ames tests in environmental studies is advantageous because it detects dangers for the human health activities to which bacterial cells do not respond; and (3) regions in Bulgaria declared clean were found to be polluted; particularly troubled are the whole-year positive data in the three tests for air samples from a 'clean' region.     

Achondrogenesis type 2 diagnosed by transvaginal ultrasound at 12 weeks' gestation

Ultrasound examination at 12 weeks' gestation revealed severe generalised subcutaneous oedema in a pregnancy at risk for achondrogenesis type II. Transvaginal scanning confirmed the oedema and suggested abnormal limb development. The prenatal diagnosis was confirmed by X-ray examination after transvaginal termination.     

Extreme34S-Anreicherungen in gelöstem Sulfat von Grundwässern im Umfeld einer Altmülldeponie

Wir danken Dr. Kerndorff für die kritische Durchsicht des Manuskripts.