Assessment of soil washing for heavy metal contaminated paddy soil using FeCl3 washing solutions

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - In this study, soil washing is applied for the remediation of heavy-metal (Pb, Cu and Zn) contaminated paddy soil located near an abandoned mine area. FeCl3...     

DEHP和MEHP对H295R细胞类固醇激素合成基因表达的影响

为探讨邻苯二甲酸二(2-乙基己基)酯(di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate,DEHP)及其代谢产物邻苯二甲酸单-2-乙基己酯(mono-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate,MEHP)对H295R细胞类固醇激素合成关键基因表达的影响,本实验将H295R细胞分别暴露于DEHP(0、1、10、100、1 000μmol·L-1)和MEHP(0、1、10、100、1 000μmol·L-1)24 h,用MTT法检测细胞活性,并应用荧光定量PCR法分析细胞类固醇激素合成过程中关键酶的基因表达水平。结果显示,1 000μmol·L-1DEHP和MEHP对H295R细胞染毒24 h显著降低H295R细胞活力,所以本研究采用了较低的染毒浓度(0、1、10和100μmol·L-1)对H295R细胞染毒24 h来评估DEHP和MEHP对H295R细胞类固醇激素合成通路的影响。1、10和100μmol·L-1DEHP显著增加醛固酮合成酶CYP11B2的基因表达水平。10μmol·L-1DEHP显著上调了3-β羟基类固醇脱氢酶(3β-HSD2)的基因表达水平。1、10和100μmol·L-1MEHP显著下调了3-β羟基类固醇脱氢酶(3β-HSD1和3β-HSD2)、17β羟基类固醇脱氢酶17β-HSD4、17α羟化酶/17,20裂解酶CYP17和芳香酶CYP19a的基因表达水平。10和100μmol·L-1MEHP染毒H295R 24 h显著下调了CYP21和STAR的基因表达水平,然而,10和100μmol·L-1MEHP显著上调了CYP11B2的基因表达水平。100μmol·L-1MEHP显著下调了17β-HSD1的基因表达水平。上述研究结果表明,DEHP、MEHP都可不同程度影响H295R细胞类固醇激素合成过程中关键基因的表达。MEHP可以通过抑制STAR基因的表达,从而将影响胆固醇在细胞内的转运;并能显著性抑制类固醇激素合成过程中CYP17、CYP19a、3β-HSD1、3β-HSD2、17β-HSD1、17β-HSD4、CYP21基因的表达,最终将抑制H295R细胞中类固醇激素的合成。与DEHP相比,MEHP对H295R细胞类固醇激素合成关键基因表达的影响较明显。     

湿润亚热带森林锰、铜、锌随降雨分配的迁移动态特征

为探究森林生态系统中重金属随降雨分配迁移的特征,连续观测两年降雨,对比分析Mn、Cu、Zn在穿透雨、树干茎流、地表径流中浓度、输出量、变异情况的差异,并讨论了重金属迁移规律的产生机制.结果表明,林型对雨水的再分配有较大影响.米槠次生林树干茎流水量极显著大于杉木人工成熟林,故前者树干茎流的重金属浓度低于后者;对于林内雨,穿透雨中重金属浓度在米槠次生林（阔叶林）更高,树干茎流中重金属浓度则在杉木人工成熟林（针叶林）更高.整体而言,林内雨的重金属浓度在旱季高于雨季,表现出明显的季节变化;林型对地表径流的影响较复杂,体现在植被类型、林龄、土壤理化性质等方面.本研究中,Mn随地表径流的输出量在米槠次生林显著大于其它3种林型;Zn在较大林龄的米槠次生林和杉木人工成熟林有更大的输出量;降雨分配过程中3种元素的浓度变异情况有所不同,表现为Mn变异最大,Zn次之,Cu最稳定.本研究结果对进一步了解森林生态系统中重金属的迁移特征提供了依据.     

Projecting the environmental profile of Singapore's landfill activities: Comparisons of present and future scenarios based on LCA

This article aims to generate the environmental profile of Singapore's Semakau landfill by comparing three different operational options associated with the life cycle stages of landfilling activities, against a 'business as usual' scenario. Before life cycle assessment or LCA is used to quantify the potential impacts from landfilling activities, an attempt to incorporate localized and empirical information into the amounts of ash and MSW sent to the landfill was made. A linear regression representation of the relationship between the mass of waste disposed and the mass of incineration ash generated was modeled from waste statistics between years 2004 and 2009. Next, the mass of individual MSW components was projected from 2010 to 2030. The LCA results highlighted that in a 'business as usual' scenario the normalized total impacts of global warming, acidification and human toxicity increased by about 2% annually from 2011 to 2030. By replacing the 8000-tonne barge with a 10000-tonne coastal bulk carrier or freighter (in scenario 2) a grand total reduction of 48% of both global warming potential and acidification can be realized by year 2030. Scenario 3 explored the importance of having a Waste Water Treatment Plant in place to reduce human toxicity levels - however, the overall long-term benefits were not as significant as scenario 2. It is shown in scenario 4 that the option of increased recycling championed over all other three scenarios in the long run, resulting in a total 58% reduction in year 2030 for the total normalized results. A separate comparison of scenarios 1-4 is also carried out for energy utilization and land use in terms of volume of waste occupied. Along with the predicted reductions in environmental burdens, an additional bonus is found in the expanded lifespan of Semakau landfill from year 2032 (base case) to year 2039. Model limitations and suggestions for improvements were also discussed.     

危险废物事故排放的湖泊水环境健康风险预测

分析了二维流场点源瞬时排放模型,并借鉴美国环保局推荐使用的健康风险评价模型,建立了一种危险废物事故排放时水环境对人体健康风险的预测方法。以电镀污泥为例验证了该方法的有效性。结果显示:该方法需要参数少且计算简单;电镀污泥中目标污染物(Cr、Cu、Ni、Pb、Zn)所引起的湖泊水环境非致癌风险(3.49×10-4)和致癌风险(3.21×10-11)分别小于美国标准中的可接受风险水平(1.00和1.00×10-6),风险不明显。     

Allozyme polymorphisms in horseshoe crabs, Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda, collected from polluted and unpolluted intertidal areas in Peninsular Malaysia

It has been widely reported that allozyme frequency variation is a potential indicator of heavy metal-induced impacts in aquatic populations. In the present study, wild populations of horseshoe crab (Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda) were collected from contaminated and uncontaminated sites of Peninsular Malaysia. By adopting horizontal starch gel electrophoresis, seven enzyme systems were used to study allozyme polymorphisms. Nine polymorphic loci were observed in C. rotundicauda. The relationships of allozyme variations with the concentrations of Cd, Cu, Ni, and Zn in sediments and in muscle tissues of horseshoe crabs were determined. Based on genetic distance, the lower mean value of Nei??s D (0.017) indicated that both of the contaminated populations of Kg. Pasir Puteh and Kuala Juru were very closely related when compared to the relatively uncontaminated Pantai Lido population. Higher heterozygosities were shown by the contaminated populations when compared to the uncontaminated population. Different allelic frequencies could be observed for the aldolase (ALD; E.C. 2.7.5.1) locus between the contaminated and uncontaminated populations of C. rotundicauda. The dendrogram of genetic relationships of the three populations of C. rotundicauda showed the same clustering pattern as the dendrograms are based on heavy metals in the sediments and in the horseshoe crabs?? abdominal muscles. From the F statistics, the present study showed that the three populations of horseshoe crabs were considered to have undergone moderate genetic differentiation with a mean F _ST value of 0.092 .The current results suggest that allozyme polymorphism in horseshoe crabs is a potential biomonitoring tool for metal contamination, although further validation is required.     

Seasonal variability of chlorophyll-a and oceanographic conditions in Sabah waters in relation to Asian monsoon—a remote sensing study

A study was conducted to investigate the influence of Asian monsoon on chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) content in Sabah waters and to identify the related oceanographic conditions that caused phytoplankton blooms at the eastern and western coasts of Sabah, Malaysia. A series of remote sensing measurements including surface Chl-a, sea surface temperature, sea surface height anomaly, wind speed, wind stress curl, and Ekman pumping were analyzed to study the oceanographic conditions that lead to large-scale nutrients enrichment in the surface layer. The results showed that the Chl-a content increased at the northwest coast from December to April due to strong northeasterly wind and coastal upwelling in Kota Kinabalu water. The southwest coast (Labuan water) maintained high concentrations throughout the year due to the effect of Padas River discharge during the rainy season and the changing direction of Baram River plume during the northeast monsoon (NEM). However, with the continuous supply of nutrients from the upwelling area, the high Chl-a batches were maintained at the offshore water off Labuan for a longer time during NEM. On the other side, the northeast coast illustrated a high Chl-a in Sandakan water during NEM, whereas the northern tip off Kudat did not show a pronounced change throughout the year. The southeast coast (Tawau water) was highly influenced by the direction of the surface water transport between the Sulu and Sulawesi Seas and the prevailing surface currents. The study demonstrates the presence of seasonal phytoplankton blooms in Sabah waters which will aid in forecasting the possible biological response and could further assist in marine resource managements.     

Effect-based assessment of passive air samples from four countries in Eastern Europe

Although passive sampling has been previously used for the monitoring of volatile and semi-volatile contaminants in air, there are limited data on the use of this technique coupled with bioassays based on specific biological responses. Biological responses including those mediated by the aryl hydrocarbon (AhR) receptor as well as (anti-)estrogenicity and (anti-)androgenicity of samples from four Eastern European countries (Lithuania, Slovakia, Romania, and Serbia) were determined. To address the potential differences of specific toxic potencies of pollutant mixtures in ambient air in Eastern Europe, each country was characterized by a single more remote location that served to determine regional background conditions and one location in more urbanized and industrialized locations, which were defined as “impacted” areas. Besides samples from Lithuania, a significant gradient in concentrations of AhR-mediated potency from background and impacted localities was observed. Greatest potencies were measured in samples from impacted locations in Romania and Slovakia. Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that were quantified accounted for 3–33 % of the 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin equivalents determined by use of the bioassay. No significant estrogenic potency was detected but anti-estrogenic effects were produced by air from two background locations (Lithuania, Slovakia) and three impacted locations (Lithuania, Romania, and Serbia). Anti-androgenic potency was observed in all samples. The greatest anti-estrogenic potency was observed at the background location in Slovakia. Anti-estrogenic and anti-androgenic potencies of studied air samples were probably associated with compounds that are not routinely monitored. The study documents suitability of passive air sampling for the assessment of specific toxic potencies of ambient air pollutants.     

Environmental and Biological Assessment of Exposure to Benzene in Petroleum Workers

Occupational exposure to benzene was measured in two gasoline marketing terminals and five major refineries in Singapore. A total of 280 workers were monitored over two years. This assessment was carried out with two primary objectives: (1) To find out the extent of occupational exposure to benzene in the petroleum industry in Singapore, (2) To identify suitable biomarkers for monitoring of low levels of benzene exposure. The exposure was measured in five different categories of petroleum and petrochemical workers, i.e., truck drivers, despatch assistant, process operators, oil movements operators and laboratory technicians. The results revealed wide variations in exposure, from 0.01 to 13.6 ppm for personal time weighted average (TWA) exposure over the whole workshift. The exposure of truck drivers appeared to be the highest, with geometric mean (GM) of 1.98 ppm (ranged from 0.25 to 13.6 ppm). The average benzene exposure for process operators was relative low with a GM of 0.04 ppm. Lowest benzene exposure was found in the laboratory technicians, with a GM of 0.02 ppm. As cigarette smoking is known to affect metabolism of benzene, data analyses on the relationships with environmental exposure were conducted only on the 190 nonsmokers. The results showed that urinary trans, trans-muconic acid (ttMA), unmetabolized benzene in urine (UBZ) and benzene in blood (BBZ) were better biomarkers for low level benzene exposure as compared to urinary phenolic metabolites in urine, such as hydroquinone, phenol and catechol.     

Distribution and chemical partitioning of heavy metals in marine near-shore sediment cores: a case study from the Xugou, Lianyungang, China

The concentrations and chemical partitioning of heavy metals (Co, Cr, Ni, Zn, Cu, and Pb) in the marine near-shore sediment cores were investigated. Typically, the mean concentrations from Core B sediment samples were 98.6, 21.1, 47.0, 46.4, 107.6, and 31.9 mg kg^???1 for Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb, respectively. The heavy metal concentrations were normalized to commonly used reference elements Al, Li, Sc, and total organic carbon. Based on Pearson coefficients, Li was found to be a good normalizer for Co (r?= 0.974), Cr (r?= 0.967), Ni (r?= 0.898), and Zn (r?= 0.929) in 80 sediment samples from three sampling sites. However, the correlation coefficients between Li and Cu, and Li and Pb were relatively low. Multivariate statistic approaches (Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis) were adopted for data treatment, allowing the identification of two main factors controlling the heavy metal variability in the sediments. Heavy metals in the enrichment sections were evaluated by a sequential extraction method for possible chemical forms in sediments. The results showed that the residual, Fe/Mn oxides and Organic/sulfide fractions were dominant geochemical phases in the enriched sections, indicating low bioavailability of heavy metals in sediments.