Clinical effects and cholinesterase activity changes in workers exposed to phorate (Thimet)

Abstract

Phorate (Thimet), an aliphatic derivative of phospnorus is a hignly toxic insecticide. In order to implement the safety measures, the clinical manifestations and cholinesterase (ChE) activity were evaluated before and after 2 weeks of exposure to this insecticide in 40 male tormulators.

The 2 week's exposure reveal signs and symptoms of toxicity in 60% of the formulators. Gastrointestinal symptoms and lowering of heart rate (bradycardia) were more prominent as compared to the neurological symptoms. A significant depression in plasma ChE activity was observed at the end of 1st week (55%) and 2nd week (71%) as compared to the respective pre‐exposure values. A recovery up to 79% of the pre‐exposure activity of this enzyme was noticed 10 days after cessation of the above exposure.     

Contributions to ecological chemistry CXII balance of conversion of buturon‐14C in wheat under outdoor conditions 1

Abstract

The urea herbicide buturon (N‐[p‐chlorophenyl] ‐N’ ‐methyl‐N’ ‐isobutinyl‐urea), ¹⁴C‐labeled, was sprayed on winter wheat as an aqueous formulation (2.98 kg/ha) under outdoor conditions. Upon harvest (three months after application), a total of 49. 2% of the applied radiocarbon was recovered: 2.0% in the plants, 46.9% in the soil, and 0.3% in the leaching water (depth > 50 cm); less than 0.1% was in the grains (0.464 ppm). Only about half of the radioactivity present in plants could be recovered under mild extraction conditions; about half of this was unchanged buturon. In straw and husk extracts, the following metabolites were identified by gaschromatography/mass spectrometry: N‐(p‐chlorophenyl)‐N‐methyl‐O‐methyl‐carbamate (metabolite I), N‐phenyl‐N’ ‐formyl‐urea (metabolite II), two unstable metabolites giving (p‐chlorophenyl)‐isocyanate upon purification (metabolites III and IV), N‐(p‐chlorophenyl)‐N’ ‐methyl‐N’ ‐isobutenylol‐urea (metabolite V), p‐chloroformanilide (metabolite VI) and biologically bound p‐chloroaniline (metabolite VII). In the root and basal stem extract, the following metabolites were identified by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry: N‐(p‐chlorophenyl)‐O‐methyl‐carbamate (metabolite VIII) and N‐(p‐chlorophenyl)‐N’ ‐methyl‐urea (metabolite IX).     

Effect of some xenobiotics on kynurenine hydrolase and kynurenine aminotransferase of mouse liver

Abstract

The effects of some xenobiotics on the activity of the B₆‐dependent kynurenine hydrolase (KH) and kynurenine aminotransferase (KATE) in mouse liver, were investigated. Polychlorinated biphenyl (Aroclor 1254) (400mg/kg/day ×4) markedly decreased the activity of both enzymes. Benzo(a)pyrene (BP) and 3‐methylcholanthrene (3‐MC) (40mg/Kg/day ×1) as well as phénobarbital (PB) (75mg/kg/day ×3) did not alter the activity of KH, while that of KATE was mildy reduced. The response of the two enzymes to treatment with chlorpromazine (CPZ) (5mg/Kg/day ×5) were opposite with marked elevation of KH and inhibition of KATE activities. Treatment with B‐naphthoflavone (B‐NF) (80mg/Kg/day ×2), Pyrazole (200mg/Kg/day ×1) or indole (400mg/kg/day ×1) produce no change in the activity of either enzyme. It, seems therefore, that Aroclor(1254) and chlorpromazine may cause disordered kynurenine metabolism through alterations in the activities of its metabolizing enzymes. This, in turn, might affect nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide biosynthesis and/or the accumulation of some tryptophan metabolites suspected of being carcinogenic or co‐carcinogenic.     

A theoretical overview of the relationship between the resource curse and genuine savings as an indicator for “weak” sustainability

This paper shows the strong relation between the factors that lead to the resource curse (RC) and factors that lead to a decline of genuine savings (GS). There is substantial empirical evidence that economies that rely predominantly on their natural resources are also characterized by slower economic growth. This so‐called RC is commonly traced back to the fact that natural resources' generate rents that are independent of a country's economic performance, which can lead to suboptimal reinvestments of this consumed natural capital. We argue that the factors responsible for the RC also have a negative effect on GS, a concept that measures “weak” sustainable development by considering reinvestment of natural capital rents in physical and human capital. We discuss whether the RC hampers possibilities for resource abundant countries to obtain sufficiently high rates of GS, and find indeed many reasons why resource‐dependent countries have problems achieving positive GS rates. We survey both areas of research, emphasizing the influence of the exogenous and endogenous determinants of economic growth, which are usually used to theoretically and empirically explain the RC on the three different forms of capital considered by GS. We specify why most countries suffering from the RC have negative GS rates and explain in detail where the linkages are. This overview could help with potential advancements in the explanation of GS through the inclusion of RC effects.     

Reconstructions of Soil Moisture for the Upper Colorado River Basin Using Tree‐Ring Chronologies1

Anderson, SallyRose, Glenn Tootle, and Henri Grissino‐Mayer, 2012. Reconstructions of Soil Moisture for the Upper Colorado River Basin Using Tree‐Ring Chronologies. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 48(4): 849‐858. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2012.00651.x Abstract: Soil moisture is an important factor in the global hydrologic cycle, but existing reconstructions of historic soil moisture are limited. We used tree‐ring chronologies to reconstruct annual soil moisture in the Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB). Gridded soil moisture data were spatially regionalized using principal components analysis and k‐nearest neighbor techniques. We correlated moisture sensitive tree‐ring chronologies in and adjacent to the UCRB with regional soil moisture and tested the relationships for temporal stability. Chronologies that were positively correlated and stable for the calibration period were retained. We used stepwise linear regression to identify the best predictor combinations for each soil moisture region. The regressions explained 42‐78% of the variability in soil moisture data. We performed reconstructions for individual soil moisture grid cells to enhance understanding of the disparity in reconstructive skill across the regions. Reconstructions that used chronologies based on ponderosa pines (Pinus ponderosa) and pinyon pines (Pinus edulis) explained more variance in the datasets. Reconstructed soil moisture data was standardized and compared with standardized reconstructed streamflow and snow water equivalent data from the same region. Soil moisture and other hydrologic variables were highly correlated, indicating reconstructions of soil moisture in the UCRB using tree‐ring chronologies successfully represent hydrologic trends.     

垃圾渗滤液发酵产氢和产甲烷特性研究

以实际垃圾渗滤液作为厌氧发酵基质,研究了初始pH为7.0、中温(37℃)条件下的发酵产氢、产甲烷特性。结果表明,利用垃圾渗滤液作为基质发酵产氢或甲烷时,氢气的最大累积产量为24.33mL(以每克COD计,下同),甲烷的最大累积产量为91.59mL,产氢发酵在初期存在明显的迟滞期,但是产甲烷发酵不存在明显迟滞期;产氢发酵的液相末端产物中含有大量的挥发性有机酸和乙醇,乙醇、乙酸、丁酸质量浓度分别为487.23、1 175.21、1 225.78mg/L,相比产氢发酵,产甲烷发酵的液相末端产物中乙醇、乙酸、丁酸质量浓度均较低,分别为256.38、106.73、107.42mg/L;产甲烷发酵的最终pH是6.32,接近中性,而产氢发酵的最终pH为4.21,呈明显酸性;产甲烷发酵对COD的去除率(41.78%)高于产氢发酵对COD的去除率(32.14%),可能是产氢发酵液相末端产物中的乙酸能被产甲烷菌利用,而被进一步降解。     

氢氧化铁用于污水污泥原位恶臭控制的研究

考察了添加不同剂量氢氧化铁对于污水污泥处置过程中的恶臭污染的控制效果。结果表明,在厌氧发酵32d时,添加0.05%、0.10%、0.25%(质量分数,下同)的氢氧化铁分别使污水污泥处理中硫化氢的平均去除率(与未添加氢氧化铁相比)达到81.3%、93.7%、97.5%;氢氧化铁的添加对污水污泥厌氧发酵中氨气的释放量没有明显影响。利用冷扩散连续萃取法考察了厌氧发酵过程中污水污泥中硫的形态分布,发现在氢氧化铁的作用下生成了硫化亚铁、二硫化亚铁、单质硫,从而降低了硫化氢的释放速率,有效控制了污水污泥厌氧发酵中的恶臭。氢氧化铁是一种可以用于污泥处理的高效除臭剂。     

Building the role of local government authorities towards the achievement of the human right to water in rural Tanzania

In recent decades, many changes have occurred in the approach to financing and operating water services in developing countries. The demand‐responsive approach is now adopted in many countries in a context of donor‐supported decentralization processes, which gives more responsibility to end users. However, the government's responsibility at different levels is enforced by the international recognition of the human right to water. This paper examines specific actions that build the role of local government authorities in this scenario. A collaboration between an international NGO and a rural district in Tanzania from 2006 to 2009 is used as an action research case study that is representative of local capacity‐building needs in decentralized contexts and rural areas. Three main challenges were detected: i) lack of reliable information; ii) poor allocation of resources in terms of equity; and iii) lack of long‐term community management support from the district. Two mechanisms were established: i) water point mapping as a tool for information and planning; and ii) a District Water and Sanitation Unit Support (DWUS) for community management. The results show how the framework provided by the goal of human right to water helps to define useful strategies for equity‐oriented planning and post‐project support at the local level.     

安徽砀山水果产区近十年气候变化的R/S分析

基于1996—2005年的地面气象资料,应用R/S方法对砀山近十年平气温、降水和日照量等气候要素进行了分析。结果表明,砀山年平均气温、极端最高气温和极端最低气温均呈下降趋势,年降水量呈上升趋势,年日照量变化和缓,且具有较强的持续性。气候要素年际季节变化趋势表现为:冬、夏季平均温差减小,气温年较差有减小的趋势;降水夏季增加,其他各季节平均降水变率减小,各季节平均日照量变率减小。