Guadalquivir River (South of Spain) is among the major freshwater sources of the European Atlantic basin. Until now scientific efforts have been focused on contamination by heavy metals and some priority pollutants in Guadalquivir River. However, the presence of "emerging contaminants", such as pharmaceutically active compounds, has not yet been studied. In this work the occurrence and risk assessment of sixteen pharmaceutically active compounds, belonging to different therapeutic groups, in Guadalquivir River during its course through Seville city are reported. Wastewater effluents from four wastewater treatment plants discharging into Guadalquivir River and river water samples were analyzed. All studied pharmaceutically active compounds, except sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, estrone and clofibric acid, were detected in effluent wastewaters at concentration levels up to 28.9 μg L(-1). Among the pharmaceutically active compounds found in effluent wastewater, seven were present in Guadalquivir River samples at concentration levels up to 0.75 μg L(-1), which indicated an important dilution from effluent discharge. Environmental risk assessment reveals that potential ecotoxicological risk cannot be expected on Guadalquivir River at measured concentration levels. Only, the lipid regulator gemfibrozil showed a medium risk for the environment. The risk for acute toxic effects in the environment with the current use of active pharmaceutical ingredients is unlikely. However, the results do not rule out the potential for chronic environmental effects. 相似文献
DNA damage was evaluated in the haemolymph of Mytilus galloprovincialis from nine sites along the south coast of Portugal using the comet assay. DNA damage was low, in the same range of sites considered to suffer low impact from genotoxic contaminants. Even so, differences between sites, seasons and genders were found. Highest values were in mussels from the main estuaries and the fishery harbour, reflecting higher genotoxin levels, whereas the lowest values can be used as a baseline for future work. Non-contaminant related factors (e.g. temperature and oxygen) were also shown to influence DNA damage. Between seasons, highest values were in summer related not only to the increase of tourism in this region (~10-fold), but also to temperature. Between genders, males were found to be more sensitive. The condition index was also generally higher in summer. Lipid peroxidation, another damage biomarker, was measured in gills to assess if there is any association between the responses of both biomarkers and if they are similarly affected by the same environmental conditions. LPO like DNA damage was higher in summer. This work confirms that DNA damage is a sensitive biomarker to discriminate genotoxic contamination, even in areas considered to suffer low impact from genotoxins. 相似文献
Food and Environmental Virology - Enteric viruses have been described as important contaminants in fresh and ready-to-eat foods such as sandwiches, deli meat and dairy products. This is a... 相似文献
During gestation, essential and non-essential trace elements are transferred from the pregnant females to embryos. This study aimed to determine and compare the concentrations of seven essential trace elements (Fe, Zn, Se, Cu, Mn, Cr, Co) and six non-essential trace elements (As, Cd, V, U, Tl, Ag) in the muscle and the liver of a Munk’s pygmy devil ray pregnant female, Mobula munkiana, and its embryo. Transfer evidence of essential and non-essential trace elements was detected in M. munkiana tissues. Arsenic was found in elevated concentrations in the pregnant female and the embryo tissues. Elevated levels of Cd, V, U, and Ag were found in the pregnant female liver, but were minimal in the embryo tissue. This is the first study to investigate maternal transfer of essential and non-essential trace elements in these species and their reproductive strategy.
Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Cadmium (Cd) is known for its many toxic effects on male population such as hypogonadism and fertility difficulties, which are oftenly associated with... 相似文献
To assess how the decimation of large vertebrates by hunting alters recruitment processes in a tropical forest, we compared the sapling cohorts of two structurally and compositionally similar forests in the Rio Manu floodplain in southeastern Peru. Large vertebrates were severely depleted at one site, Boca Manu (BM), whereas the other, Cocha Cashu Biological Station (CC), supported an intact fauna. At both sites we sampled small (> or =1 m tall, <1 cm dbh) and large (> or =1 cm and <10 cm dbh) saplings in the central portion of 4-ha plots within which all trees > or =10 cm dbh were mapped and identified. This design ensured that all conspecific adults within at least 50 m (BM) or 55 m (CC) of any sapling would have known locations. We used the Janzen-Connell model to make five predictions about the sapling cohorts at BM with respect to CC: (1) reduced overall sapling recruitment, (2) increased recruitment of species dispersed by abiotic means, (3) altered relative abundances of species, (4) prominence of large-seeded species among those showing depressed recruitment, and (5) little or no tendency for saplings to cluster closer to adults at BM. Our results affirmed each of these predictions. Interpreted at face value, the evidence suggests that few species are demographically stable at BM and that up to 28% are increasing and 72% decreasing. Loss of dispersal function allows species dispersed abiotically and by small birds and mammals to substitute for those dispersed by large birds and mammals. Although we regard these conclusions as preliminary, over the long run, the observed type of directional change in tree composition is likely to result in biodiversity loss and negative feedbacks on both the animal and plant communities. Our results suggest that the best, and perhaps only, way to prevent compositional change and probable loss of diversity in tropical tree communities is to prohibit hunting. 相似文献
When parasitic infections are severe or highly prevalent among prey, a significant component of the predator's diet may consist of parasitized hosts. However, despite the ubiquity of parasites in most food webs, comparisons of the nutritional quality of prey as a function of infection status are largely absent. We measured the nutritional consequences of chytridiomycete infections in Daphnia, which achieve high prevalence in lake ecosystems (>80%), and tested the hypothesis that Daphnia pulicaria infected with Polycaryum laeve are diminished in food quality relative to uninfected hosts. Compared with uninfected adults, infected individuals were smaller, contained less nitrogen and phosphorus, and were lower in several important fatty acids. Infected zooplankton had significantly shorter carapace lengths (8%) and lower mass (8-20%) than uninfected individuals. Parasitized animals contained significantly less phosphorus (16-18% less by dry mass) and nitrogen (4-6% less) than did healthy individuals. Infected individuals also contained 26-34% less saturated fatty acid and 31-42% less docosahexaenoic acid, an essential fatty acid that is typically low in cladocera, but critical to fish growth. Our results suggest that naturally occurring levels of chytrid infections in D. pulicaria populations reduce the quality of food available to secondary consumers, including planktivorous fishes, with potentially important effects for lake food webs. 相似文献
Genetic variability and structuring of rabbitfish populations with contrasting life histories, Siganus argenteus and Siganus fuscescens were determined using allozyme analysis. A total of 13–14 polymorphic loci were examined from samples collected in 2002 and
2003 from eight reefs representing 25 populations north (Kuroshio Current) and south (Mindanao Current) of the bifurcation
of the North Equatorial Current along the eastern Philippine coast. S. fuscescens populations (HOBS = 0.085) showed higher heterozygosity than S. argenteus (HOBS = 0.053), consistent with predictions of the neutral theory for demersal egg spawners compared to pelagic egg spawners. The
generally lower genetic variability of Kuroshio populations may be due to greater environmental disturbance affecting larval
mortality and recruitment success. There was no significant overall population genetic structuring for S. argenteus (FST = 0.01485, P > 0.05) compared to S. fuscescens (FST = 0.03275, P < 0.05). The latter species showed highly significant genetic structuring among Kuroshio and Mindanao Current populations
in both 2002 and 2003 (FCT = 0.08120, P < 0.05; FCT = 0.07500, P < 0.05, respectively), as well as among populations within regions. This conforms to expectations of correlations between
observed population genetic structure and life history features related to dispersal potential and gene flow. However, there
were significant temporal (i.e., 2002 vs. 2003 samples) genetic variations for both S. fuscescens (FCT = 0.08542, P < 0.05) and S. argenteus (FCT = 0.06330, P < 0.05), which may reflect interannual variability in recruitment success. Differences in population spatial genetic patterns
between the two reef fish species suggest that broad scale physical factors (e.g. NEC bifurcation) and regional environmental
perturbations (e.g. incidence of typhoons) affect population genetic structure of sympatric congeneric species with different
life histories differently. Finer scale ecological processes, which affect larval dispersal and recruitment (e.g., local hydrographic
features, distribution of habitats), particularly in the Mindanao Current region, exert more influence on structuring populations
of S. fuscescens.相似文献
There is a concern that artificial reefs (AR) may act purely as fishing aggregation devices. Predators attracted to ARs can
influence the distribution and abundance of prey fish species. Determining the role of predators in AR is important in advancing
the understanding of community interactions. This paper documents the effects of predation on fish assemblages of AR located
near a coastal lagoon fish nursery. The Dicentrarchus labrax is a very opportunistic species preying on juveniles (0+ and 1+ age classes) of several demersal fish species on the ARs. Reef prey and sea bass abundance were negatively correlated. The
mean numbers of prey per sea bass stomach increased with the increase of reef fish prey abundance, suggesting that predation
has a significant influence, resulting in a decrease in prey abundance. Prey mortality (4–48%) of demersal reef fish associated
species depends on bass density. Prey selection was related both with prey abundance and vulnerability. Results showed that
D. labrax predation on AR-fish associated species can increase prey natural mortality. However, the role of bass predation on the ecological
functioning of exploited ARs is not clear. There may be increases in local fishing yields due either to an increase in predator
biomass through aggregation of sea bass attracted to ARs or to greater production. In contrast, predation on juveniles of
economically important reef fish preys, especially the most frequent and abundant (Boops boops), can contribute to a decrease in recruitment to the fishery. Our results indicate that inter-specific interactions (predator–prey)
are important in terms of conservation and management, as well as for the evaluation of the long-term effects of reef deployment.
Thus, it is necessary to consider ecological interactions, such as predation, prior to the development and deployment of artificial
habitats as a tool for rehabilitation. 相似文献
The effects of light exposure on the photosynthetic activity of kleptoplasts were studied in the sacoglossan mollusc Elysia viridis. The photosynthetic activity of ingested chloroplasts was assessed in vivo by non-destructively measuring photophysiological
parameters using pulse amplitude modulation (PAM) fluorometry. Animals kept under starvation were exposed to two contrasting
light conditions, 30 μmol photons m−2 s−1 (low light, LL), and 140 μmol photons m−2 s−1 (high light, HL), and changes in photosynthetic activity were monitored by measuring the maximum quantum yield of photosystem
II (PSII), Fv/Fm, the minimum fluorescence, Fo, related to chlorophyll a content, and by measuring rapid light-response curves (RLC) of relative electron transport rate (rETR). RLCs were characterised
by the initial slope of the curve, αRLC, related to efficiency of light capture, and the maximum rETR level, rETRm,RLC, determined by the carbon-fixation metabolism. Starvation induced the decrease of all photophysiological parameters. However,
the retention of photosynthetic activity (number of days for Fv/Fm > 0), as well as the rate and the patterns of its decrease over time, varied markedly with light exposure. Under HL conditions,
a rapid, exponential decrease was observed for Fv/Fm, αRLC and rETRm,RLC, Fo not showing any consistent trend of variation, and retention times ranged between 6 and 15 days. These results suggested
that the retention of chloroplast functionality is limited by photoinactivation of PSII reaction center protein D1. In contrast,
under LL conditions, a slower decrease in all parameters was found, with retention times varying from 15 to 57 days. Fv/Fm, αRLC and rETRm,RLC exhibited a bi-phasic pattern composed by a long phase of slow decrease in values followed by a rapid decline, whilst Fo decayed exponentially. These results were interpreted as resulting from lower rates of D1 photoinactivation under low light
and from the gradual decrease in carbon provided by photosynthesis due to reduction of functional photosynthetic units. 相似文献