Dioxin concentration in human milk in Hebei province in China and Tokyo, Japan: potential dietary risk factors and determination of possible sources

Very limited information is available on body burdens and environmental levels of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs (dl-PCBs) in mainland China. In the current studies, human milk samples were collected from 30 breastfeeding mothers in Shijiazhuang city (industrialized) and 11 in the Tanshan countryside (agricultural) of Hebei Province in northern China. An additional 20 samples were obtained from mothers in Tokyo, Japan. PCDDs, PCDFs, and dl-PCBs in human milk were analyzed by high-resolution gas chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry. Our results show that arithmetic means for body burdens of PCDDs/Fs and dl-PCBs in Hebei were 3.6 and 1.9 pg TEQ g⁻¹ fat, respectively, which were only about one fourth of the levels in Japan. In addition, no difference was found in the chemical levels except dl-PCBs between the urban and rural areas. Based on the results of an in-person interview of the Chinese mothers using a 59-item questionnaire, freshwater fish consumption was found to correlate with the body burden of dioxins. Principal component analysis of dioxin congeners revealed that the patterns of dioxins in the Hebei urban and rural areas are quite similar; however, they are clearly different from those in Japan. Collectively, our results suggest that the lower body burdens of dioxin in Hebei may be due in part to the relatively slow industrialization and a lower consumption of marine foods. Finally, the results indicate that comprehensive monitoring of dioxins and dl-PCBs in humans as well as in the environment and foods is necessary in China.     

Depth profiles of radiocarbon and carbon isotopic compositions of organic matter and CO2 in a forest soil

Depth profiles of the specific activities of (14)C and carbon isotopic compositions (Delta(14)C, delta(13)C) in soil organic matter and soil CO(2) in a Japanese larch forest were determined. For investigating the transport of CO(2) in soil, specific activities of (14)C, Delta(14)C and delta(13)C in the organic layer, and atmospheric CO(2) in the same forest area were also determined. The specific activity of (14)C and Delta(14)C in the soil organic matter decreased with the increase in depth of 0-60cm, while that of soil CO(2) did not vary greatly at a soil depth of 13-73cm and was more prevalent than that of atmospheric CO(2). Peaks of specific activities of (14)C appeared at the depth of 0-4cm and Delta(14)C values were positive in the depth range from 0 to 15cm. These results suggest that the present soil at a depth of 0-4cm had been produced from the mid-1950s up until 1963, and the bomb C had reached the depth of 15cm in the objective soil area. The delta(13)C in the soil organic matter increased at the depth of 0-55cm, while that of soil CO(2) collected on 8 November 2004 decreased rapidly at the depth of 0-13cm and only slightly at the depth of 53-73cm. By combining the Delta(14)C and delta(13)C of the respective components and using the Keeling plot approach it was made clear that the entering of atmospheric CO(2) showed a large contribution to soil CO(2) at the depth of 0-13cm and a negligible contribution at the depth of 53-73cm for soil air collected on 8 November 2004. Respiration of live roots was presumed to be the main source of soil CO(2) at the depth of 53-73cm on 8 November 2004.     

Species-specific and female host-biased ectophoresy in the roundworm Caenorhabditis japonica

Caenorhabditis japonica is a bacteriophagous nematode species that was discovered on the semi-social burrower bug, Parastrachia japonensis, which demonstrates egg-guarding and provisioning behaviors. To understand the life history of C. japonica in relation to P. japonensis, we demonstrated the specificity of this association and fluctuations in nematode number on the insect throughout the year. C. japonica dauer larvae (DL), larvae in a nonfeeding diapause stage, were predominantly found as clumps on the adult female insects but rarely found on the male insects in all populations examined. This female-biased association was consistent throughout the year, but after the nymphs hatched, nematodes were not detected on the mother insects showing provisioning behavior. DL appeared on the nymphs, and the number of DL on the newly emerged female insects gradually increased thereafter. C. japonica has never been detected on other invertebrates collected from the P. japonensis habitat thus far. Our data suggest that the life cycles of C. japonica and P. japonensis are synchronized.     

紫外光-氯联用污水消毒削弱拖尾程度的实验研究

研究了紫外光-氯联用消毒工艺削弱二级出水氯消毒拖尾程度.考察了紫外光-氯使用顺序、pH、氯投量、紫外光剂量等因素对氯消毒大肠杆菌动力学曲线的影响.SS浓度对"拖尾现象"有显著影响,降低SS浓度能够有效提高拖尾区灭活率.紫外光-氯联用消毒能提高一级反应区的灭活速率1.08～1.25倍,并将拖尾区灭活率提高2～2.5个对数级,二者存在明显协同作用.UV/HOCl方式效果优于HOCl/UV方式.降低pH,提高氯投量将加快一级反应区消毒速度而更快进入拖尾区.紫外光剂量变化对拖尾区开始时间没有显著影响.     

Measurement and modeling of oxidation rate of hydrogen isotopic gases by soil

Measurements of oxidation rate of hydrogen isotopic gases by soil were made to model HT oxidation rate by soil. Soil was sampled at a cultivated farmland and laboratory measurements of the oxidation rate of H(2) and D(2) gases simulating HT gas were carried out under controlled conditions of soil. The oxidation rate increased with increase of H(2) or D(2) concentration in air and nearly saturated at high concentration. The oxidation rate was low under extremely dry and wet soil conditions and was the highest at soil water content of 8-14 w/w%. The oxidation rate increased exponentially with increasing soil temperature and was the highest at 46 degrees C. Michaelis constant K(m) increased exponentially with increasing soil temperature. Oxidation rate of H(2) was generally higher than that of D(2), while K(m) of H(2) was generally lower than that of D(2). From these results, oxidation rate of HT was modeled as a product of the functions that represent dependency on each soil factor.     

Effects of light quality on initiation and development of meroplanktonic diatom blooms in a eutrophic shallow sea

We investigated the effects of light quality on resting stage cell germination and vegetative cell growth of meroplanktonic diatoms in a small port in Hakata Bay, Japan and in the laboratory. During the investigation over the year of 2006, the meroplanktonic diatom bloom first occurred in the end of May and then repeated wane and wax until October in the small port. From late April to middle May, light penetrating the water column was often strong and attenuations of all spectral lights were low. During this period, Skeletonema costatum, Thalassiosira minima, and Chaetoceros sp. appeared frequently, followed by the blooms of S. costatum and Chaetoceros sp. in late May. Thereafter, S. costatum and Chaetoceros sp. bloomed in late June but not in middle June, when pigmented flagellates bloom appeared. The attenuation of short-wavelength light such as violet and blue lights was markedly high during these diatom and flagellate blooms; all blooms disappeared within several days. Vegetative cell strains of the three diatoms under light emitting diodes (LEDs) with six different spectra (violet, blue, green, orange, red, and near-infrared) grew at a higher rate under short-wavelength light, violet and blue. On the other hand, when suspensions of bottom sediments from Hakata Bay were cultured under the same LEDs and in the dark, vegetative cells of S. costatum appeared under all LEDs except for orange and near-infrared, vegetative cells of T. minima appeared under all LEDs but not in the dark, and vegetative cells of Chaetoceros sp. appeared under violet and blue LEDs. However, vegetative cell densities of the three diatoms increased much more under violet light than under other LEDs within a short period (6 days). Our study indicates that underwater penetration by short-wavelength light, such as violet and blue, may be an important factor in the initiation and development of meroplanktonic diatom blooms.     

硅促进水稻种子萌发及缓解幼苗砷毒性的效应研究

通过As~(Ⅲ)胁迫下水稻种子的发芽试验和幼苗毒性试验,研究了外源硅对水稻种子发芽率、幼苗生长的影响及其缓解幼苗砷毒性的效应。外源硅的2种处理方式为种子萌发时添加外源硅(Si1)和采用硅处理液浸种(Si2)。结果表明,发芽时介质中As浓度达到10 mg·L~(-1)时显著抑制水稻种子萌发(P0.05),发芽率仅为80%,但是Si1和Si2处理下发芽率则提高到97%和100%,这说明外源硅可促进砷胁迫下水稻种子萌发;砷浓度≥5 mg·L~(-1)时,Si1和Si2处理均可提高水稻的相对幼苗高度和根耐性指数,提高幅度分别为6.00%~16.8%和57.9%~77.0%、7.10%~23.5%和54.2%~61.2%,并且降低了水稻幼苗砷含量,降低幅度分别为17.8%~21.4%和31.0%~49.1%。这说明外源硅处理可促进砷胁迫下水稻幼苗的生长;不同砷浓度处理与水稻芽长、根长及幼苗干重之间存在"S"型的剂量-效应关系,且外源硅显著提高了相应的EC50,缓解了砷对水稻幼苗生长的毒性。综上所述,砷胁迫下水稻种子萌发时添加外源硅或采用硅处理液浸种均可促进水稻种子萌发和幼苗生长,并降低了幼苗砷累积和缓解砷对水稻幼苗的毒性。     

Odd-numbered perfluorocarboxylates predominate over perfluorooctanoic acid in serum samples from Japan, Korea and Vietnam

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) has recently attracted attention as a potential health risk following environmental contamination. However, information detailing exposure to perfluorinated carboxylic acids (PFCAs) other than PFOA is limited. We measured the concentrations of PFCAs (from perfluorohexanoic acid to perfluorotetradecanoic acid) in serum samples obtained from patients in Japan (Sendai, Takayama, Kyoto and Osaka) between 2002 and 2009, Korea (Busan and Seoul) between 1994 and 2008 and Vietnam (Hanoi) in 2007/2008. Total PFCA levels (geometric mean) were increased from 8.9 ng mL(-1) to 10.3 ng mL(-1) in Japan; from 7.0 ng mL(-1) to 9.2 ng mL(-1) in Korea; and were estimated at 4.7 ng mL(-1) in Vietnam. PFCAs of greater length than PFOA were significantly increased in Sendai, Takayama and Kyoto, Japan, and levels of long-chain PFCAs exceeded PFOA levels in serum. Among these PFCAs, perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnDA) was the predominant component (28.5%), followed by perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA 17.5%), perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA 7.9%), perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTrDA 6.1%) and perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoDA 1.8%). Odd-numbered PFCAs (PFNA, PFUnDA and PFTrDA) were also observed in Korea and Vietnam and their presence increased significantly in Korea between 1994 and 2007/2008. The proportion of long-chain PFCAs in serum was relatively high compared to reports in Western countries. Further investigations into the sources and exposure routes are needed to predict the future trajectory of these serum PFCA levels.     

Development of a dynamic transfer model of (14)C from the atmosphere to rice plants

A dynamic compartment model was investigated to describe ¹⁴C accumulation in rice plants exposed to atmospheric ¹⁴C with temporally changing concentrations. In the model, rice plants were regarded to consist of three compartments: the ear and the mobile and immobile carbon pools of the shoot. Photosynthetically fixed carbon moves into the ear and the mobile carbon pool, and these two compartments release a part of this carbon into the atmosphere by respiration. Carbon accumulated in the mobile carbon pool is redistributed to the ear, while carbon transferred into the immobile carbon pool from the mobile one is accumulated there until harvest. The model was examined by cultivation experiments using the stable isotope, ¹³C, in which the ratios of carbon photosynthetically fixed at nine times during plant growth to the total carbon at the time of harvest were determined. The model estimates of the ratios were in relatively good agreement with the experimental observations, which implies that the newly developed compartment model is applicable to estimate properly the radiation dose to the neighboring population due to an accidental release of ¹⁴C from nuclear facilities.     

Characteristics of a bioxalate chelating extraction process for removal of chromium,copper and arsenic from treated wood

The disposal of wood waste treated with chromated copper arsenate (CCA) is a problem in many countries. We have proposed a novel chelating extraction technique for CCA-treated wood using bioxalate, a solution of oxalic acid containing sufficient sodium hydroxide to adjust the pH to 3.2, which is an effective way to obtain an extraction efficiency of 90% for chromium, copper, and arsenic. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the characteristics of bioxalate extraction of CCA-treated wood. Extractions of CCA-treated western hemlock chips with solutions of bioxalate, oxalic acid, and sodium hydroxide were carried out. The use of bioxalate was confirmed as the most effective extraction technique for chromium, copper and arsenic, with an efficiency of 90%. Extraction with simple oxalic acid was ineffective for copper (less than 40% extraction efficiency), but effective for chromium and arsenic, with 90% efficiency. Sodium hydroxide showed a similar tendency, being ineffective for chromium and copper (less than 20% extraction efficiency), but relatively effective for arsenic (around 70–80% efficiency). We also discovered an interesting phenomenon whereby the addition of sodium hydroxide to a simple oxalic acid solution during the oxalic acid extraction progress resulted in dramatically increased extraction efficiency for copper, chromium and arsenic, up to 90%. Although oxalic acid was ineffective for copper extraction, the addition of sodium hydroxide during the oxalic acid extraction process rendered it effective.