Organochlorine pesticides in placenta in Kyrgyzstan and the effect on pregnancy,childbirth, and newborn health

Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were determined by gas chromatography in 241 placentas from cotton-growing regions, 121 placentas from an urban area (city of Osh), and 146 placentas from unpolluted mountain regions of Kyrgyzstan. Manifestations of disease were recorded in the mothers during pregnancy and parturition and in their newborns during the first 6 days of life. OCPs were detected in 240 out of 508 placentas (47.2%), with increased incidence in the two polluted regions (65%), particularly in placentas from women living near former pesticide storehouses and agro air-strips (99%), but only in 2.7% of placentas from the unpolluted region. α-, β-, and γ-hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH); DDT; DDE; aldrin; and heptachlor were detected. The sum of concentrations of all OCPs (total OCPs) was calculated for each of the 240 placentas with detectable OCPs (median 9.5 μg/kg placenta, mean 88.3 μg/kg, range 0.1–3070 μg/kg). The incidence of health problems in four subgroups of this data set, with increasing levels of total OCPs, was compared with the incidence of health problems in the group of 268 placentas, where OCPs were undetectable. Relative risk of health problems in both, mothers and newborns, increased significantly, in a concentration-dependent manner, with increasing levels of total OCPs (p?<?0.0001). Health complications with increased incidence in OCP-exposed newborns included, i.a., low birth weight, congenital malformations, infections, and stillbirths, in OCP-exposed mothers preterm delivery, (pre-)eclampsia/gestosis, and frequency of hospitalizations after delivery (infections). Women living near former pesticide storehouses and agro airstrips should be considered as being at risk. Reduction of exposure is urgently needed.     

Spatial variance in multimedia mass balance models: comparison of LOTOS-EUROS and SimpleBox for PCB-153

The aim of this study was to determine whether nested generic box models can be used to predict spatial variance. An inter-comparison study was performed for the nested box model SimpleBox, and the spatially resolved model LOTOS-EUROS, using PCB-153 emissions in Europe as an example. We compared the two models concerning (1) average environmental concentrations, (2) spatial concentration variances, (3) spatial concentration patterns (maps), and (4) agreement with measured concentrations for the air and soil compartments. In SimpleBox, the spatial concentration variances and patterns were calculated subsequently for each separate grid cell surrounded by a regional and a continental shell with homogeneous, averaged circumstances. Average European PCB-153 concentrations calculated by LOTOS-EUROS and SimpleBox for the period 1981-2000 agree well for the air and soil compartments. Moreover, the predicted concentrations of both models are in line with the measured PCB-153 concentrations in Europe during that period. For PCB-153, the prediction of spatial concentration variances with the nested multimedia fate model SimpleBox performs adequately in most cases, except for the lower concentration boundary in the air compartment. It is concluded that SimpleBox can be used to predict the spatial maximum and average concentrations of PCB-153 in the air and soil compartments. The proposed method has to be tested systematically for different types of compounds, emission scenarios, environmental compartments and spatial scales in order to allow conclusions about the general applicability of the method.