Toxicity of HC Orange No. 1 to Daphnia magna, zebrafish (Brachydanio rerio) embryos, and goldfish (Carassius auratus)

HC Orange No. 1 (HCO1; 2-nitro-4′-hydroxydiphenylamine) (CAS No. 54381-08-7) is used as a color additive in hair dyes and can be released into aquatic environments in wastewater. In this paper, the effects of HCO1 on aquatic organisms were studied using a battery of toxicological tests. These included measuring immobilization of Daphnia magna, inhibition of zebrafish embryo development, and acute lethality in zebrafish and goldfish, which are different species belonging to different trophic levels. HCO1 was toxic to all of the organisms studied. In our experiments, HCO1 remarkably restrained the mobility of D. magna, which may cause subsequent death. The EC₅₀ value for restrained the mobility of D. magna at 48 h was 1.54 mg HCO1 l⁻¹. In addition, HCO1 showed toxicity in zebrafish and goldfish, where LC₅₀values at 96 h were 4.04 and 5.37 mg l⁻¹, respectively. The results also indicated that HCO1 remarkably retarded the development of zebrafish embryos, which may cause embryo abnormality and even lethality. The most sensitive toxicological endpoint in the development of the embryos was failure to hatch, which had an EC₅₀ of 0.19 mg HCO1 l⁻¹. These results indicated that HCO1 is a potential teratogen to zebrafish embryos. In addition, as HCO1 concentrations increased, the outcomes of each of these toxicity tests changed in a concentration-dependent manner. Together, the results revealed that HCO1 appears to be toxic to multiple different species of aquatic organisms. The EC₅₀ (LC₅₀) values contain sufficient discriminatory power for risk assessment of HCO1 in aquatic environments. Based on the present results, more efficient risk assessment procedures for HCO1 will be designed in the future, integrating more flexible testing methods into the testing schemes that employ only the necessary tools for each case.     

Comparison of solid-phase and eluate assays to gauge the ecotoxicological risk of organic wastes on soil organisms

Development of methodologies to assess the safety of reusing polluted organic wastes in soil is a priority in Europe. In this study, and coupled with chemical analysis, seven organic wastes were subjected to different aquatic and soil bioassays. Tests were carried out with solid-phase waste and three different waste eluates (water, methanol, and dichloromethane).Solid-phase assays were indicated as the most suitable for waste testing not only in terms of relevance for real situations, but also because toxicity in eluates was generally not representative of the chronic effects in solid-phase.No general correlations were found between toxicity and waste pollutant burden, neither in solid-phase nor in eluate assays, showing the inability of chemical methods to predict the ecotoxicological risks of wastes. On the contrary, several physicochemical parameters reflecting the degree of low organic matter stability in wastes were the main contributors to the acute toxicity seen in collembolans and daphnids.     

Comparison of solid-phase bioassays and ecoscores to evaluate the toxicity of contaminated soils

Five bioassays (inhibition of lettuce germination and growth, earthworm mortality, inhibition of springtail population growth, avoidance by springtails) were compared, using four coke factory soils contaminated by PAHs and trace elements, before and after biotreatment. For each bioassay, several endpoints were combined in an ‘ecoscore’, a measure of test sensitivity. Ecoscores pooled over all tested bioassays revealed that most organisms were highly sensitive to the concentration of 3-ring PAHs. When four soils were combined, behavioural tests using the springtail Folsomia candida showed higher ecoscores, i.e. they were most sensitive to soil contamination. However, despite overall higher sensitivity of behavioural tests, which could be used for cheap and rapid assessment of soil toxicity, especially at low levels of contamination, some test endpoints were more sensitive than others, and this may differ from a soil to another, pointing to the need for a battery of bioassays when more itemized results are expected.     

基于水电梯级开发的河流生态健康研究

为进一步了解水电开发对河流健康的影响,本文以雅砻江下游水电梯级开发为例,构建河流健康评价指标体系,选择无人为干扰和干扰较小的河流为参照,以指标变化率衡量水电梯级开发前后河流受扰动程度,分别采用综合评价法和赋值评分法进行了定量评价。综合评价结果显示,雅砻江下游河段的综合健康指数为0.71,该研究区域在丰水期、平水期和枯水期的综合健康指数分别为0.74、0.70和0.69,均处于亚健康状态;赋值评分法结果显示建库前的河流健康指数(River health index,RHI)为19.1,等级为健康,建库后为14.3,等级为亚健康,两种方法评价结果基本一致。本文以期完善河流健康评价体系,并为生态修复提供依据。     

School building condition,school attendance,and academic achievement in New York City public schools: A mediation model

Little is known about how the condition of school facilities affects academic outcomes. This study examines the role of school attendance as a mediator in the relationship between facilities in disrepair and student grades in city and state tests. Data on building condition and results from English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics (Math) standardized tests were analyzed using a sample of 95 elementary schools in New York City. Variables relevant to academic achievement such as ethnicity, socioeconomic status, teacher quality, and school size were used as covariates. In run-down school facilities students attended less days on average and therefore had lower grades in ELA and Math standardized tests. Attendance was found to be a full mediator for grades in ELA and a partial mediator for grades in Math. This study provides empirical evidence of the effects of building quality on academic outcomes and considers the social justice issues related to this phenomenon.     

Fractionation and Biotoxicity of Heavy Metals in Urban Dusts Collected from Hong Kong and London

Samples of urban dusts, road site dusts and car park dusts, were collected at two selected sites each in Hong Kong and London. Sequential extraction was used to characterise the chemical compositions of these urban dusts. Copper, lead, zinc, pH, electrical conductivity and organic content were measured. Biotoxicity tests of urban dusts were conducted on higher plants (Brassica chinensis and Lolium perenne), a dinoflagellate green alga (Dunaliella tertiolecta) and luminescent bacteria (Photobacterium phosphoreum). A significant correlation was found between total lead (r =; – 0.70, p < 0.01) and zinc (r =; – 0.74, p < 0.05), and the 20 min – EC50 using P. phosphoreum. In addition, there was a significant correlation (r = – 0.72, p < 0.01) between the exchangeable lead content in dust and the 48 h- EC30 using D. tertiolecta. No specific trend was obtained for higher plants. Total lead and zinc contents were higher in dusts from London while the percentage of exchangeable fraction of metal contents was higher in those from Hong Kong.     

Safeguarding Crushing Points by Limitation of Forces

Limitation of forces can be a simple measure to safeguard crushing points at doors, machines, and vehicles. In this connection different standards define a threshold force value of 150 N. This widely accepted value refers to static forces only. The dynamic forces that arise from impact on a person are frequently ignored, although they are generally higher than the static forces.

The article describes an instrument for the measurement of static and dynamic crushing forces. This instrument has a stiffness that approximates the average stiffness of human fingers as one of the most at-risk parts of the human body with regard to crushing injuries. Sensory tests were carried out to define dynamic forces considered admissible at crushing points.     

Theoretical Analysis of Percussive Tests of Products

The goal of theoretical research is to establish parameters, which have to be given in standards for percussive tests of products. Those parameters are essential for each user to be able to construct identical (equivalent) testing equipment. This would ensure identical results for identical products.

The paper presents a detailed analysis of the distribution and the value of the forces generated during percussive collisions of two bodies. Elastic, plastic, and elastoplastic collisions are considered. Parameters determining the coefficient of restitution, the courses of energy, momenta, and the values of the forces in colliding elements are determined. The dynamic force acting on a product during a percussive test was studied.     

Tracing the geographic origin of traded leopard body parts in the indian subcontinent with DNA‐based assignment tests

Illicit trade in wildlife products is rapidly decimating many species across the globe. Such trade is often underestimated for wide‐ranging species until it is too late for the survival of their remaining populations. Policing this trade could be vastly improved if one could reliably determine geographic origins of illegal wildlife products and identify areas where greater enforcement is needed. Using DNA‐based assignment tests (i.e., samples are assigned to geographic locations), we addressed these factors for leopards (Panthera pardus) on the Indian subcontinent. We created geography‐specific allele frequencies from a genetic reference database of 173 leopards across India to infer geographic origins of DNA samples from 40 seized leopard skins. Sensitivity analyses of samples of known geographic origins and assignments of seized skins demonstrated robust assignments for Indian leopards. We found that confiscated pelts seized in small numbers were not necessarily from local leopards. The geographic footprint of large seizures appeared to be bigger than the cumulative footprint of several smaller seizures, indicating widespread leopard poaching across the subcontinent. Our seized samples had male‐biased sex ratios, especially the large seizures. From multiple seized sample assignments, we identified central India as a poaching hotspot for leopards. The techniques we applied can be used to identify origins of seized illegal wildlife products and trade routes at the subcontinent scale and beyond.     

Regulating post-implantation fetal sex selection: a UK perspective

This article reviews the current and potential laws relevant to post-implantation fetal social sex selection and considers whether they could provide an effective deterrent and control of the practice, if the United Kingdom decided that such control were desirable. It concludes that enacting, drafting and enforcing of any legislation throws up many difficult practical and ethical issues. These issues need to be debated and further information collected before any legislation is rushed into. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.