Comparing differential tolerance of native and non-indigenous marine species to metal pollution using novel assay techniques

Recent research suggests anthropogenic disturbance may disproportionately advantage non-indigenous species (NIS), aiding their establishment within impacted environments. This study used novel laboratory- and field-based toxicity testing to determine whether non-indigenous and native bryozoans (common within marine epibenthic communities worldwide) displayed differential tolerance to the common marine pollutant copper (Cu). In laboratory assays on adult colonies, NIS showed remarkable tolerance to Cu, with strong post-exposure recovery and growth. In contrast, native species displayed negative growth and reduced feeding efficiency across most exposure levels. Field transplant experiments supported laboratory findings, with NIS growing faster under Cu conditions. In field-based larval assays, NIS showed strong recruitment and growth in the presence of Cu relative to the native species. We suggest that strong selective pressures exerted by the toxic antifouling paints used on transport vectors (vessels), combined with metal contamination in estuarine environments, may result in metal tolerant NIS advantaged by anthropogenically modified selection regimes.     

Assessing the genotoxicity of urban air pollutants using two in situ plant bioassays

Genotoxicity of urban air has been analysed almost exclusively in airborne particulates. We monitored the genotoxic effects of airborne pollutants in the urban air of Perugia (Central Italy). Two plant bioindicators with different genetic endpoints were used: micronuclei in meiotic pollen mother cells using Tradescantia-micronucleus bioassay (Trad-MCN) and DNA damage in nuclei of Nicotiana tabacum leaves using comet assay (Nicotiana-comet). Buds of Tradescantia clone # 4430 and young N. tabacum cv. Xanthi plants were exposed for 24 h at three sites with different pollution levels. One control site (indoor control) was also used. The two bioassays showed different sensitivities toward urban pollutants: Trad-MCN assay was the most sensitive, but DNA damage in N. tabacum showed a better correlation with the pollutant concentrations. In situ biomonitoring of airborne genotoxins using higher plants combined with chemical analysis is thus recommended for characterizing genotoxicity of urban air.     

Bioconcentration and Phytotoxicity of Cd in Eichhornia crassipes

Plants of Eichhornia crassipes grown at various levels of cadmium ranging from 0.1 to 100 μg ml⁻¹ accumulated Cd in a concentration and duration dependent manner. At all levels, Cd accumulation by various plant tissues followed the order roots shoot leaves. Approximately 80% of total Cd was accumulated by plant at highest concentration (100 μg ml⁻¹) used in the experiment. Cadmium induced phytotoxicity appears at 25.0 μg ml⁻¹ resulting into reduced levels of chlorophyll, protein and in vivo nitrate reductase activity of the plant. However, a slight induction of these physiological variables was obtained at lowest Cd (0.1 μg ml⁻¹) concentration. In contrast, carotenoid content increased at highest Cd concentration i.e., 100 μg ml⁻¹. Similar effects at low and high levels of Cd was obtained with respect to mitotic index and micronuclei in root meristem of the plant. It could be inferred that Cd toxicity in plant is differential depending upon the low and high concentration of Cd in the medium.     

Perfluorooctane Sulfonate Increases the Genotoxicity of Cyclophosphamide in the Micronucleus Assay with V79 Cells: Further Proof of Alterations in Cell Membrane Properties Caused by PFOS (3 pp)

Background, Aim and Scope Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS; C8F17SO3-) is a fully fluorinated organic compound which has been manufactured for decades and was used widely in industrial and commercial products. The recent toxicological knowledge of PFOS mainly concerns mono-substance exposures of PFOS to biological systems, leaving the potential interactive effects of PFOS with other compounds as an area where understanding is significantly lacking. However, a recent study, reported the potential of PFOS to enhance the toxicity of two compounds by increasing cell membrane permeability. This is of particular concern since PFOS has been reported to be widely distributed in the environment where contaminants are known to occur in complex mixtures. In this study, PFOS was evaluated alone and in combination with cyclophosphamide (CPP) to investigate whether a presence of PFOS leads to an increased genotoxic potential of CPP towards hamster lung V79 cells. Genotoxicity was investigated using the micronucleus (MN) assay according to the recent draft ISO/DIS 21427-2 method. PFOS alone demonstrated no genotoxicity up to a concentration of 12.5 mg/L. However, PFOS combined with two different concentrations of CPP, with metabolic activation, caused a significant increase in the number of micronucleated cells compared to treatments with CPP only. These results provide a first indication that PFOS has the potential to enhance the genotoxic action of CPP towards V79 cells, suggesting that together with the alterations in cell membrane properties shown previously, that genotoxicity of complex mixtures may be increased significantly by changes in chemical uptake. Together with an earlier study performed by the own working group it can be concluded that PFOS alone is not genotoxic in this bioassay using V79 cells up to 12.5 mg/L, but that further investigations are needed to assess the potential interaction between PFOS and other substances, in particular regarding the impact of membrane alterations on the uptake of toxic substances. Materials and Methods: - Results: - Discussion: - Conclusions: - Recommendations and Perspectives: -     

A simple spectroscopic method to determine dimethoate in water samples by complex formation

Abstract

A simple and rapid method for the determination of dimethoate in water was developed based on the monitoring of the complex formation between bis 5-phenyldipyrrinate of nickel (II) and the herbicide dimethoate. The method showed a short response time (10?s), high selectivity (very low interference from other sulfate and salts), high sensitivity (limit of detection (LOD) 0.45?µM, limit of quantitation (LOQ) of 1.39?µM), and a K_d of 2.4?µM. Stoichiometry experiments showed that complex formation occurred with a 1:1 relation. The method was applied to different environmental water samples such as lagoon, stream, urban, and groundwater samples. The results indicated that independently from the water source, the method exhibited high precision (0.25–2.47% variation coefficient) and accuracy (84.42–115.68% recovery). In addition, the method was also tested using an effluent from a wastewater treatment plant from Mexico; however, the results indicated that the presence of organic matter had a pronounced effect on the detection.     

水体环境内毒素活性的鲎法定量检测及影响因素研究

内毒素是革兰氏阴性菌和某些蓝藻细胞壁上的脂多糖复合物,是常见的外源性致热原,具有强免疫刺激能力,与人类多种疾病密切相关.本研究采用最低检测限为0.03 EU.mL-1的动态浊度东方鲎(Tachypleus Amebocyte Lysate,TAL)试剂,对不同水体环境样品的内毒素活性定量检测,分析了pH值和无机盐对TAL试验检测结果的影响.结果表明pH值在6.0～8.4范围内适合进行内毒素检测,过酸条件引起检测结果的抑制,过碱条件引起检测结果的增强,检测前可用无热原Tris-HCl(pH=7.4)溶液调节pH.当NaCl、Na2SO4、CaCl2、MgCl2和KCl浓度小于50 mg.L-1时不会干扰内毒素的检测,当浓度升高至1 000～10 000 mg.L-1时引起抑制效果.浓度为2.5 mg.L-1的FeCl3、Fe2(SO4)3、AlCl3和Al2(SO4)3即可以引起强烈抑制效果,内毒素活性的实测值已经严重偏离实际值.采用动态浊度TAL试验检测超纯水、自来水和景观用水的内毒素活性,结果表明所检测的超纯水的内毒素活性<0.06 EU.mL-1,自来水的内毒素活性为0.46 EU.mL-1,景观用水的内毒素活性为432.68EU·mL-1.     

Determination of estrogens and estrogenic activities in water from three rivers in Tianjin, China

Studies on estrogenic disrupting compounds(EDCs) occurrence and identification of main responsible compounds in river water discharged into the sea are of significance.In the present research,we screened estrogenic activities of 10 river water samples from 3 main rivers discharged into Bohai Sea in Tianjin using a recombinant two-hybrid yeast assay and chemical analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.All sample extracts induced significant estrogenic activity,with 17β-estradiol equivalents(EEQ) of raw water ranging from 5.72 to 59.06 ng/L.Six most concerned EDCs in the river water samples including estrone,17β-estradiol,17α-ethinylestradiol,estriol,diethylstilbestrol and estradiol valerate were determined,with their concentrations up to 50.70,31.40,24.40,37.20,2.56,and 8.47 ng/L,respectively.Through causality analysis by comparing the EEQ values of yeast assay and chemical analysis,17α-ethinylestradiol and 17β-estradiol were identified as the main contributors to the estrogenic effects of the river samples,accounting for the whole estrogenic activities(62.99% to 185.66%),and estrogen antagonistic compounds might presented in the heavy polluted water samples.The proposed approach using both chemical analysis and bioassay could be used for identification and evaluation of the estrogenic activity of EDCs in river water.     

Comparative cytotoxicity of nanoparticles and ions to Escherichia coli in binary mixtures

The objective of this study was to understand toxicity of mixture of nanoparticles (NPs) (ZnO and TiO₂) and their ions to Escherichia coli. Results indicated the decrease in percentage growth of E. coli with the increase in concentration of NPs both in single and mixture setups. Even a small concentration of 1 mg/L was observed to be significantly toxic to E. coli in binary mixture setup (exposure concentration: 1 mg/L ZnO and 1 mg/L TiO₂; 21.15% decrease in plate count concentration with respect to control). Exposure of E. coli to mixture of NPs at 1000 mg/L (i.e., 1000 mg/L ZnO and 1000 mg/L TiO₂) resulted in 99.63% decrease in plate count concentration with respect to control. Toxic effects of ions to E. coli were found to be lesser than their corresponding NPs. The percentage growth reduction was found to be 36% for binary mixture of zinc and titanium ions at the highest concentration (i.e., 803.0 mg/L Zn and 593.3 mg/L Ti where ion concentrations are equal to the Zn ions present in 1000 mg/L ZnO NP solution and Ti^+ 4 ions present in 1000 mg/L TiO₂ NP solution). Nature of mixture toxicity of the two NPs to E. coli was found to be antagonistic. The alkaline phosphatase (Alp) assay indicated that the maximum damage was observed when E. coli was exposed to 1000 mg/L of mixture of NPs. This study tries to fill the knowledge gap on information of toxicity of mixture of NPs to bacteria which has not been reported earlier.     

用蛋白磷酸酶抑制法测定水体中的微囊藻毒素类物质

建立了一种灵敏的测定水体中微囊藻毒素类物质的方法。从鱼肝脏中分离的蛋白磷酸酶２Ａ被微囊藻毒素抑制，并且抑制与毒素剂量相关，抑制模式表现为典型的Ｓ型曲线。根据末知样品存在时蛋白磷酸酶的相对活力，可由本研究得出的标准曲线及公式，计算样品中可能存在的微囊藻毒素类物质。研究表明，在一年的观测周期内，即使没有可见的水华发生，东湖及鱼池中仍有可检测出微囊藻毒素类物质。     

三类氧化硅的形态分布及其转化特性

本文对以硅酸钠与工业水玻璃为原料酸化制备三类氧化硅(Silica A,B,C)作了较为详细的探讨。应用逐时络合比色与光子相关光谱(PCS)等形态表征方法,对制备过程中的诸多影响因素进行了研究。结果表明,在0.02—0.4mol·1~(-1)范围内浓度对形态分布无甚影响,而滴定速率与熟化时间对形态分布有较大影响。所得Silica A,B,C样品中其主要形态所对应的分别是Si_a,Si_b,与小颗粒态Si_c,大颗粒态Si_c。