Ploidy-, gender-, and dose-dependent alteration of selected biomarkers in Clarias gariepinus treated with benzo[a]pyrene

Naturally-occurring and artificially-induced polyploids have been documented in various fish species but to date no comparison has been reported of the impacts of ploidy on fish biomarker responses to organic pollutants. This study describes effects of ploidy, gender, and dose on biliary fluorescent aromatic compound (FAC) concentrations, hepatic ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activities in one of the most commonly cultured warm-water species, the African catfish Clarias gariepinus. Recently matured male and female diploid and triploid fish were intraperitoneally (i.p.) injected with 0, 5 or 25 mg/kg benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) and liver and gallbladder were sampled 48 hr later. No significant differences were found between ploidies in bile concentrations of 7,8 dihydrodiolbenzo[a]pyrene (7,8D BaP), 1-hydroxybenzo[a]pyrene (1-OH BaP) or 3-hydroxybenzo[a]pyrene (3-OH BaP). However, concentrations of the biliary FACs did differ between males and females at different dose of injection with generally higher concentrations in females at the low dose of BaP and higher concentrations in males at the higher BaP concentration. Hepatic EROD activity did not exhibit gender-dependent difference, whereas it was significantly higher in triploids than diploids. GST activities were not significantly influenced by any of the tested factors. This work advanced our understanding of the role of ploidy, gender, and dose in biotransformation of pollutants in fish.     

Molecular biomarkers of energy metabolism in mussels under anthropogenic pollution of Peter the Great Bay, the Sea of Japan

The functional state of the indicator species, the Gray mussel Crenomytilus grayanus (Bivalvia), has been analyzed in five areas of Peter the Great Bay exposed to anthropogenic pollution. The following indices of the state of mussels have been used: molecular biomarkers of energy metabolism—Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase, Mg²⁺-ATPase, and total ATPase activity—as well as the level of lipid peroxidation (LPO) and glutathione concentration in the hepatopancreas, gills, and gonads of mussels. The activity of ATPases, LPO level, and glutathione concentration significantly change in mussels from polluted areas relative to those in mussels from a conventionally unpolluted area (a bay in the Far Eastern State Marine Reserve). The molecular biomarkers used in the study provide reliable information on animal metabolism in impact areas. With consideration of the data obtained, it is concluded that the state of mussels in polluted areas is impaired.     

Improved recovery of repeat intoxicated drivers using fingernails and blood spots to monitor alcohol and other substance abuse

Objectives: This study reports the results of a pilot program in Kenosha County that used a combination of direct biomarkers extracted from blood spots and nails to monitor repeat intoxicated drivers for their use of alcohol and drugs with a detection window spanning from 3 weeks to several months. The objectives were to test whether the direct biomarkers phosphatidylethanol (PEth), ethylglucuronide (EtG), and 5 drug metabolites would (1) help assessors obtain a more objective evaluation of repeat offenders during the assessment interview, (2) allow for timely identification of relapses and improve classification of drivers into risk categories, and (3) predict recidivism by identifying offenders most likely to obtain a subsequent operating while intoxicated (OWI) offense within 4 years of enrollment in the program.

Methods: All (N = 261) repeat offenders were tested using PEth obtained from blood spots and EtG obtained from fingernails; 159 participants were also tested for a 5 drugs of abuse nail panel. Drivers were tested immediately after the assessment interview (baseline) and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after baseline. Based on biomarker results and self-reports of abstinence, offenders were classified into different risk categories and required to follow specific testing timelines based on the program's decision tree.

Results: The baseline analysis shows that 60% of drivers tested positive for alcohol biomarkers (EtG, PEth, or both) at the assessment interview, with lower detection rates (0–11%) for the 5 drug metabolites. The comparison of biomarkers results to self-reports of abstinence identified 28% of all offenders as high risk and assigned them to more frequent testing and more intense monitoring. The longitudinal analysis shows that 56% (completers) of participants completed the program successfully and the remaining 44% (noncompliant) terminated prematurely. Two thirds (68%) of the completers were able to reduce or control their drinking and one third relapsed at least one time during their mandated monitoring periods. After a brief intervention by the assessors, 79% of relapsers tested negative for biomarkers in their repeat tests. The rearrest analysis showed that offenders classified in the noncompliant and relapsers groups were 7 times more likely to receive a new OWI 4 years after enrollment compared to drivers classified as abstainers or controllers. Refractory drivers were monitored the longest and reported no subsequent rearrests.

Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the benefits of more individualized interventions with repeat OWI offenders and calls for further development of multimodal approaches in traffic medicine including those that use direct alcohol biomarkers as evidence-based practices to reduce recidivism.     

2种有机污染物对鲈鱼生化标志物系统的影响及作用评价

实验生态条件下筛选了鲈鱼的一组生化标志物组成生化标志物系统,研究其对不同有机污染胁迫的响应差异.将鲈鱼分别暴露于2种有机污染物:0.1 mg/L、1 mg/L的十二烷基苯磺酸钠(SDBS)和2μg/L、20μg/L的苯并[a]芘(B[a]P),研究长时间(18 d)、亚致死污染胁迫下鲈鱼生化标志物系统各组分:肝脏组织抗氧化酶中的超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)、过氧化氢酶(CAT)、谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶(Gpx)、谷胱甘肽(GSH)、谷胱甘肽硫转酶(GST)以及诱导型一氧化氮合酶(iNOS)和脑组织中乙酰胆碱脂酶(AChE)活性的变化,同期检测了热激蛋白70(Hsp70)表达的变化,并对所得到的结果进行了主成分分析(PCA).结果表明,①与未受胁迫的对照组相比,B[a]P胁迫能够显著诱导鲈鱼体内的SOD、GST、Gpx活性以及GSH含量的变化(p0.05),但对其它几种酶的活性影响并不明显;SDBS胁迫对CAT、Gpx、iNOS和AChE活性的诱导作用明显,但对SOD、GST和GSH的影响较小.Gpx是对2种污染物胁迫响应最灵敏的一种生化标志物.②同时测定了不同胁迫条件下鲈鱼血细胞Hsp70表达的影响,结果发现其在SDBS胁迫组中的表达始终高于对照组,而B[a]P在胁迫前期能诱导Hsp70表达升高,以后逐渐下降至对照水平.③鲈鱼的生化标志物系统的不同组分对不同种类的污染胁迫响应有明显差异,对结果进行主成分分析(PCA)后发现,基于PCA和生化标志物系统的研究方法能有效区分不同污染因子的作用,可能在海洋环境污染的早期、预警性评价中具有良好的应用前景.     

A review of biomarker compounds as source indicators and tracers for air pollution

An overview of the application of organic geochemistry to the analysis of organic matter on aerosol particles is presented here. This organic matter is analyzed as solvent extractable bitumen/ lipids by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The organic geochemical approach assesses the origin, the environmental history and the nature of secondary products of organic matter by using the data derived from specific molecular analyses. Evaluations of production and fluxes, with cross-correlations can thus be made by the application of the same separation and analytical procedures to samples from point source emissions and the ambient atmosphere. This will be illustrated here with typical examples from the ambient atmosphere (aerosol particles) and from emissions of biomass burning (smoke). Organic matter in aerosols is derived from two major sources and is admixed depending on the geographic relief of the air shed. These sources are biogenic detritus (e.g., plant wax, microbes, etc.) and anthropogenic particle emissions (e.g., oils, soot, synthetics, etc.). Both biogenic detritus and some of the anthropogenic particle emissions contain organic materials which have unique and distinguishable compound distribution patterns (C₁₄-C₄₀). Microbial and vascular plant lipids are the dominant biogenic residues and petroleum hydrocarbons, with lesser amounts of the pyrogenic polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and synthetics (e.g., chlorinated compounds), are the major anthropogenic residues. Biomass combustion is another important primary source of particles injected into the global atmosphere. It contributes many trace substances which are reactants in atmospheric chemistry and soot paniculate matter with adsorbed biomarker compounds, most of which are unknown chemical structures. The injection of natural product organic compounds into smoke occurs primarily by direct volatilization/steam stripping and by thermal alteration based on combustion temperature. Although the molecular composition of organic matter in smoke particles is highly variable, the molecular tracers are generally still source specific. Retene has been utilized as a tracer for conifer smoke in urban aerosols, but is not always detectable. Dehydroabietic acid is generally more concentrated in the atmosphere from the same emission sources. Degradation products from biopolymers (e.g., levoglucosan from cellulose) are also excellent tracers. An overview of the biomarker compositions of biomass smoke types is presented here. Defining additional tracers of thermally-altered and directly-emitted natural products in smoke aids the assessment of the organic matter type and input from biomass combustion to aerosols. The precursor to product approach of compound characterization by organic geochemistry can be applied successfully to provide tracers for studying the chemistry and dispersion of ambient aerosols and smoke plumes. Presented at the 6th FECS Conference on Chemistry and the Environment, Atmospheric Chemistry and Air Pollution, August 26–28, 1998, Copenhagen.     

Duckweeds for water remediation and toxicity testing

The presence of toxic substances in wastewaters and outdoor bodies of water is an important ecotoxicological issue. The aim of this review is to illustrate how duckweeds, which are small, simply constructed, floating aquatic plants, are well suited to addressing this concern. The ability of duckweeds to grow rapidly on nutrient-rich water and to facilitate the removal of many substances from aqueous solution comprises the potential of these macrophytes for the remediation of wastewater and polluted aqueous reservoirs, while producing usable biomass containing the unwanted substances having been taken up. Their ease of cultivation under controlled and even sterile conditions makes duckweeds excellent test organisms for determining the toxicity of water contaminants, and duckweeds are important as model aquatic plants in the assessment of ecotoxicity. Duckweeds are also valuable for establishing biomarkers for the toxic effects of water contaminants on aquatic higher plants, but the current usefulness of duckweed biomarkers for identifying toxicants is limited. The recent sequencing of a duckweed genome holds the promise of combining the determination of water contaminant toxicity with toxicant diagnostics by means of gene expression profiling via DNA microarrays.     

Biochemical biomarkers and overall health status of mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis exposed to nickel and chromium

This study examined the effects of nickel and chromium exposure on two biochemical biomarkers, glutathione peroxidase (GPX) and acetylcholinesterase (ACHE), in parallel with an indicator of overall health, Scope for Growth (SFG), in the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis to evaluate their ecological relevance and to assess their potential use as biomarkers of Ni and Cr pollution. SFG integrates major physiological responses into an index that represents the energy status of the animals and is considered an ecologically relevant biomarker. Following exposure to a range of Ni and Cr concentrations effects of Ni and Cr were evident on GPX and SFG but not on ACHE. Accumulation in the mussels’ tissues increased according to exposure concentrations. Adverse effects on the energy status and induction of GPX were found at the higher exposure concentrations while possible hormetic effects on the energy status and moderate GPX suppression were associated with lower exposure concentrations. Nevertheless GPX was negatively correlated with SFG suggesting that GPX responses reflect the overall health of the organisms and thus show potential as an early warning signal of population level effects of Ni and Cr. On the other hand, our results indicate that ACHE is not a suitable biomarker for Ni and Cr pollution.     

监测水体重金属污染的分子生物标志物研究进展

水体重金属污染具有持久性、高度危害性和难治理性,如何快速、准确监测并对其进行科学评价,成为当今环境科学关心的热点问题。大量研究表明,水生生物体内某些生理指标的变化可以反映水体重金属的污染程度。综述了乙酰胆碱酯酶、抗氧化防御系统、腺苷三磷酸、DNA损伤以及金属硫蛋白等几种分子水平上的生物标志物监测重金属污染的原理、国内外研究进展以及应用现状。认为分子生物标志物具有特异性、敏感性等优势,可以较快指示水体重金属污染对生物体的影响,在实际应用中需注意各种干扰因素。在进行野外研究时,要注重混合重金属与多途径暴露下,分子生物标志物的变化规律。生物体之间差异性会导致标志物在同样暴露条件下产生不同的变化规律,需要加强＂离体＂标志物和＂标准化＂标志物的研究,确保监测结果的可靠性和可重复性。生物标志物较为敏感,容易受到外界环境及体内生理因素影响,可考虑综合运用多种生物标志物指示重金属污染。目前,有关重金属对水生生物毒性效应的研究较多,但重金属对生物体的致毒机理方面研究并不深入,这将是今后研究的重点问题之一。     

Comparative study of microbial community structure in di erent filter media of constructed wetland

Comparisons of microbial community structure, in eight filter media of zeolites, anthracite, shale, vermiculite, ceramic filter media, gravel, steel slag and bio-ceramic, were undertaken by analyzing the phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) composition. A total of 20 fatty acids in the range of C11 to C20 were determined but only 13 PLFAs were detected in steel slag. They consist of saturated fatty acids, branched fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. The variation of fatty acids was revealed in the relative proportions of these fatty acids in di erent media. The aerobic prokaryotes were the predominant group in all media. The PLFA composition showed significant di erences among the eight di erent media by Tukey’s honestly test. It was found that steel slag was significantly di erent in the microbial community as compared to other filter media, probably due to its alkaline e uent. Steel slag alone is probably not a good choice of substratum in constructed wetlands. The principle components analysis (PCA) showed that zeolites, bio-ceramic, shale and vermiculite had a similar microbial community structure while steel slag and ceramic filter media were distinct from other media.     

多环芳烃对海洋贝类多生物水平毒性效应的研究进展

多环芳烃类化合物(PAHs)是海洋中常见的一类持久性有机污染物,对海洋生态安全及海洋生物健康造成严重威胁。海洋贝类作为海洋生态毒理学研究的模式生物,其滤食性、固着性等生理特点使其对PAHs具有较高的生物蓄积能力,可以在不同生物水平产生一系列的毒性效应。本文综述目前PAHs在海洋贝类多种生物水平所造成的生物毒性效应及其检测方法的研究进展,重点从个体生理特征、组织结构、细胞毒性和基因毒性4个层次展开讨论,为更有效地利用海洋贝类这一模型生物,深入开展PAHs对海洋生物的致毒效应与机制研究提供思路与检测方法参考。