Hair mercury levels in an urban population from southern Italy: fish consumption as a determinant of exposure

Mercury levels in hair of a general population, 237 adults aged between 35-45, in Naples, Italy, were assessed. The subjects were asked to fill in a questionnaire about age, gender, body weight, height, body mass index (BMI), fish consumption, number, surface and area of dental amalgam fillings. Total mercury (THg) concentrations in human hair ranged from 0.221 to 3.402 microg/g and the mean value for the subjects under study was 0.638 microg/g. Study participants were divided into three groups in accordance with fish consumption and dental amalgam: ANF (amalgam and no fish); NAF (no amalgam but with fish) and AAF (amalgam and fish). Significant differences in THg were found in the three groups (p<0.05). A multiple linear regression analysis showed a weak but significant correlation of THg content in hair with respect to gender and age, but almost no association was found between THg and dental fillings. Conversely, a strong correlation was obtained between THg and fish consumption regardless of the group evaluated. Finally, mercury levels in hair exceeded the levels corresponding to the EPA reference dose (RfD) of 0.1 microg Hg/kg body weight per day (1 microg Hg/g hair) in 6% of the population (4% men and 2% women). However, the THg limits in our subjects were not exceeded according to the WHO guidelines, which use a benchmark dose of 0.23 microg Hg/kg bw/day (14 microg Hg/g maternal hair).     

Influence of type and amount of straw cover on weed emergence

This research was undertaken during 2003-2004 growing season to evaluate the effects of type [forage sorghum "hybrid Cober Exp" (Sorghum bicolor x Sorghum sudanense), forage millet (Pennisetum americanum "var. BN2"), finger millet (Eleusine coracana), and St Lucia grass (Brachiaria brizantha)] and amount of straw cover (5.5 and 3.0 t ha(-1)) upon the emergence of Bidens pilosa, Chamaesyce spp., Amaranthus spp., and Commelina benghalensis, under field conditions of the Brazilian Cerrado, in the region of Uberlandia--MG. The control consisted additional treatment lacking the straw cover. Emergence of weed depended on the type and amount of straw cover, as well as the weed species. The lowest number of B. pilosa seedlings was found in the presence of forage sorghum straw; Chamaesyce spp. in the lack of straw; Amaranthus spp. in the presence of higher amount of forage sorghum and forage millet, and lower amounts of forage millet and Finger Millet. All the types and amounts of straw reduced the emergency of C. benghalensis, except at the lowest level of St Lucia grass and the lack of straw.     

Absence of Hg transpiration by shoot after Hg uptake by roots of six terrestrial plant species

In this paper we investigated if, and to what extent, six different plant species accumulate, translocate and emit mercury (Hg) into the air. The Hg uptake by roots, distribution of Hg to the shoot and release of Hg via shoots of garden pea, spring wheat, sugar beet, oil-seed rape, white clover and willow were investigated in a transpiration chamber. The airborne Hg was trapped in a Hopcalite trap or a gold trap. Traps and plant materials were analysed for content of Hg by CVAAS. The results show that all plant species were able to take up Hg to a large extent from a nutrient solution containing 200 microg L(-1) Hg. However, the Hg translocation to the shoot was low (0.17-2.5%) and the Hg that reached the leaves was trapped and no release of the absorbed Hg to the air was detected.     

Detection of Hepatitis E Virus in Livers and Muscle Tissues of Wild Boars in Italy

Food and Environmental Virology - In industrialized countries, hepatitis E is now recognized as an emerging zoonosis. Autochthonous cases have been increased over recent years in Europe and are...     

Methane oxidation and attenuation of sulphur compounds in landfill top cover systems: Lab-scale tests

In this study,a top cover system is investigated as a control for emissions during the aftercare of new landfills and for old landfills where biogas energy production might not be profitable.Different materials were studied as landfill cover system in lab-scale columns:mechanical–biological pretreated municipal solid waste(MBP);mechanical–biological pretreated biowaste(PB);fine(PBS_f)and coarse(PBS_c)mechanical–biological pretreated mixtures of biowaste and sewage sludge,and natural soil(NS).The effectiveness of these materials in removing methane and sulphur compounds from a gas stream was tested,even coupled with activated carbon membranes.Concentrations of CO_2,CH_4,O_2,N_2,H_2S and mercaptans were analysed at different depths along the columns.Methane degradation was assessed using mass balance and the results were expressed in terms of methane oxidation rate(MOR).The highest maximum and mean MOR were observed for MBP(17.2 g CH_4/m~2/hr and 10.3 g CH_4/m~2/hr,respectively).Similar values were obtained with PB and PBS_c.The lowest values of MOR were obtained for NS(6.7 g CH_4/m~2/hr)and PBS_f(3.6 g CH_4/m~2/hr),which may be due to their low organic content and void index,respectively.Activated membranes with high load capacity did not seem to have an influence on the methane oxidation process:MBP coupled with 220 g/m~2and 360 g/m~2membranes gave maximum MOR of 16.5 g CH_4/m~2/hr and 17.4 g CH_4/m~2/hr,respectively.Activated carbon membranes proved to be very effective on H_2S adsorption.Furthermore,carbonyl sulphide,ethyl mercaptan and isopropyl mercaptan seemed to be easily absorbed by the filling materials.     

Ecosystem-based adaptation to climate change: defining hotspot municipalities for policy design and implementation in Brazil

We developed an indicator that defines priority municipalities in order to facilitate the deployment of preventive policies and strategies for ecosystem-based adaptation to climate change (EbA) in Brazilian municipalities. Based on the premises that poor people are the population most vulnerable to climate change and that conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystems are adaptive to climate change, our indicator uses three parameters: (1) poverty, (2) proportion of natural-vegetation cover, and (3) exposure to climate change. Thus, we searched for Brazilian municipalities that simultaneously belonged to the quartile of municipalities with the highest percentage of poverty, the quartile with the highest percentage of natural-vegetation cover, and the quartile with the highest exposure indices in two global climate models (Eta-HadGEM, Eta-Miroc). We found 398 (7.1%) EbA hotspots among 5565 Brazilian municipalities, which comprise 36% of the total area of native remnants in the country and are home to 22% of the poor people in Brazil. In their majority, these municipalities cover significant portions of the Amazon, Cerrado, Caatinga, and Atlantic forest, and indeed, these regions are recognised as some of the most vulnerable to climate change in the world. Considering the relevance of these biomes for the global water and nutrient cycle (Amazon), global food security (Cerrado), vulnerability to desertification (Caatinga), and biodiversity (all) we discuss the adaptive strategies in place, the need to bring them to scale, and existing policy gaps. Finally, in an effort to guide international and national investment and policies, we discuss how the approach described here can be applied to societies inhabiting tropical forests, savannas, and semiarid zones in other parts of the world. In particular, we propose that the indicator developed here is a simple and fast way to achieve early detection of priority municipalities for deployment of EbA action and policies, particularly in tropical developing countries.     

Getting started with environmental cost accounting

Proactive corporations have been looking at methods to determine the real costs of doing business, including environmental costs using environmental cost accounting (ECA) methodology. Many companies do not track or measure environmental costs and therefore do not know their true environmental costs. Unfortunately, conventional accounting practices rarely tease out environmental costs, and the costs associated with environmental compliance remain hidden in general overhead accounts. ECA can bring the world of business and the environment closer. When we have a better handle on environmental costs, we can use this information to better prioritize environmental projects, identify cost improvement projects, and allocate environmental costs to products. In this article we explore how some companies approach ECA and show how to initiate an ECA program.     

Effects of salinity on the clam <Emphasis Type="Italic">Chamelea gallina</Emphasis> haemocytes. Part II: Superoxide dismutase response

The effects of different salinity levels (28, 34 and 40‰) on functional responses of Chamelea gallina haemocytes were evaluated in a two part study dealing with modulations of immune parameters. This part (Part II) of the study was focused on the superoxide dismutase (SODs) activity and expression in haemocyte lysate and cell-free haemolymph. Results of this study established that the exposure of C. gallina specimens at 40‰ salinity provoked a decrease in Mn-SOD and Cu/Zn-SOD activities in haemocyte lysate suggesting a declining superoxide anion generation at the highest salinity tested. Expression of MnSOD was coherent with activity values, while Cu/ZnSOD showed two immunoreactive bands. The former corresponds to the cytosolic Cu/Zn-SOD (16 kDa) was not coherent with the enzyme activity and the second (28–30 kDa) probably attributed to EC-SOD. In cell-free haemolymph, Mn-SOD activity decrease and Cu/Zn-SOD activity increase at 40‰ were observed, likely due to EC-SOD contribution, strongly induced at the same salinity. After EC-SOD detection with two different antibody, we postulate that the EC-SOD like-protein band (29 kDa) may be constitute partly by EC-SOD and probably by Cu/Zn-SOD dimeric form not completely dissociated under reducing condition or a Cu/Zn-SOD degenerated but still recognized by antibody. The cell-free haemolymph increase of EC-SOD at high salinity values plays an important role in immune defence of C. gallina. According to the conclusion of Part I of this study, our data confirmed the destabilizing effect of 40‰ salinity on haemocyte functionality, while to 28‰ exposure, data don’t confirm its stressful action as instead stated by results of Part I. Further studies are necessary to clear up this discrepancy.