Air pollution and young children's inhalation exposure to organophosphorus pesticide in an agricultural community in Japan

Assessment of airborne organophosphorus pesticides in houses of young children (1-6 years old) and childcare facilities was conducted following pesticide applications in an agricultural community in Japan. Trichlorfon and fenitrothion, applied in two separate periods, were frequently detected from outdoor and indoor air. Dichlorvos, the primary degradation product of trichlorfon, was also detected after the application of trichlorfon. Both the outdoors and indoor concentration of applied pesticide were shown to increase with decreasing distance from the pesticide-applied farm. Indoor concentration of these pesticides significantly correlated with outdoor concentration (p=0.001 for trichlorfon and p=0.001 for fenitrothion), indicating infiltration of applied pesticide inside. Ratio of indoor to outdoor concentration (I/O ratio) of fenitrothion was higher for houses with windows open during the application than those with closed windows (median value: 0.74 vs. 0.16, p=0.003). However, a similar trend was not observed for trichlorfon as well as dichlorvos in the first period. Dichlorvos was found to have a higher I/O ratio than trichlorfon during the period, and clear correlation between indoor concentrations of dichlorvos and those of trichlorfon suggested increased decomposition of trichlorfon in the indoor environment. Daily inhalation exposure estimated by using the fixed measurement data and time-activity questionnaire ranged from 0 to 35 ng/kg/day for trichlorfon, from 0 to 26 ng/kg/day for dichlorvos, and from 0 to 44 ng/kg/day for fenitrothion. Median inhalation exposure from indoor air accounted for 74%, 86.3%, and 45% of the daily inhalation exposure, respectively. For kindergarteners or nursery school children, inhalation exposure at childcare facilities was comparable with or more than that at home, indicating that pollution level at childcare facilities had potential of high impact on children's exposure. Estimated daily inhalation exposures were inversely correlated to the proximity of their activity location to the pesticide-applied farm.     

Removal of estrogenic activity of natural steroidal hormone estrone by ligninolytic enzymes from white rot fungi

Natural steroidal hormone estrone (E1) was treated with the white rot fungus Phanerochaete sordida YK-624 under ligninolytic condition with low-nitrogen and high-carbon culture medium. E1 decreased by 98% after 5 d of treatment and the activities of ligninolytic enzymes, manganese peroxidase (MnP) and laccase, were detected during treatment, which suggested that the disappearance of E1 is related to ligninolytic enzymes produced extracellularly by white rot fungus. Therefore, E1 was treated with MnP and laccase prepared from the culture of white rot fungi. HPLC analysis demonstrated that E1 disappeared completely in the reaction mixture after 1 h of treatment with either MnP or laccase. Using the yeast two-hybrid assay system, it was also confirmed that both enzymatic treatments completely removed the estrogenic activity of E1 after 2 h. These results strongly suggest that ligninolytic enzymes are effective in removing the estrogenic activity of E1.     

Cytochrome p450 induction and gonadal status alteration in common carp (Cyprinus carpio) associated with the discharge of dioxin contaminated effluent to the Hikiji River,Kanagawa Prefecture,Japan

Accumulations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, dibenzofurans and coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls were analyzed in common carp (Cyprinus carpio) collected in the Hikiji River, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan in which dioxin contaminated effluent was released during the period starting from November 1992 to March 2000. Higher levels of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin toxic equivalents were observed in carps collected downstream to the dioxin release site (contaminated site) than the reference site. Modulations of cytochrome p450 (CYP) enzyme in liver, serum estrogen concentration and gonadal somatic index (GSI) were also measured as biomarkers for the contaminants. Total CYP content in livers was markedly higher in male and female carps from the contaminated site relative to the reference site fish. The expression level of the cytochrome p450 1A and Ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase activity were significantly higher in female carps from the contaminated site than from the reference site. A lower level of plasma estrogen was observed in carps from the contaminated site. The GSI in female carps from the contaminated site was smaller than that recorded at the reference site. The present study indicates that dioxins released to the Hikiji River might induce the CYP enzyme and inhibit the reproductive functions in common carps dwelling downstream from the release site.     

Tracing the sources of gaseous components (<Superscript>222</Superscript>Rn,CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> and its carbon isotopes) in soil air under a cool-deciduous stand in Sapporo,Japan

Radon (²²²Rn) and carbon dioxide were monitored simultaneously in soil air under a cool-temperate deciduous stand on the campus of Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan. Both ²²²Rn and CO₂ concentrations in soil air varied with atmospheric (soil) temperature in three seasons, except for winter when the temperature in soil air remained constant at 2–3°C at depth of 80 cm. In winter, the gaseous components were influenced by low-pressure region passing through the observation site when the ground surface was covered with snow of ~1 m thickness. Carbon isotopic analyses of CO₂ suggested that CO₂ in soil air may result from mixing of atmospheric air and soil components of different origins, i.e. CO₂ from contemporary soil organic matter and old carbon from deeper source, to varying degrees, depending on seasonal meteorological and thus biological conditions.     

Estimating the carbon footprint of household activities in Japan from the time-use perspective

The household sector is a major driver of energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, most existing studies have only estimated households’ carbon footprint from their expenditures. Households’ daily activity time, a scarce resource that limits and determines their consumption behavior, has rarely been integrated into the estimation. Incorporating the daily time-use patterns should thus provide a more practical perspective for mitigation policies aiming at promoting sustainable household lifestyles. In this study, by linking household time-use data and expenditure data of Japan, the carbon footprint and the GHG intensity of time of 85 daily household activities constituting the 24 hours in a day are estimated. Compared to the maximal 20-activity disaggregation in existing studies, our detailed 85-category disaggregation of daily time enables unprecedented details on the discrepancies between the carbon footprint from daily activities, many of which have previous been treated as one activity. Results indicate significant carbon mitigation potential in activities with a high GHG intensity of time, such as cooking, bathing, and mobility-related and activities. Average daily GHG emissions were also found to be higher on weekends as time-use patterns shift from paid work to free-time activities, highlighting the need for mitigation strategies on a weekly scale.

     

Measurement of bisphenol A concentrations in human colostrum

Bisphenol A (BPA), an estrogenic endocrine disrupting chemical, has been reported to affect embryos and alter their postnatal development. In the present study, we measured the concentrations of BPA in human colostrum by a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with the aim of understanding the present status of BPA burden in human breast milk in Shizuoka, Japan. Human colostral samples were collected from 101 healthy mothers within three days after delivery. The BPA concentrations of colostral samples were estimated by ELISA after the acetonitrile extraction and solid phase extraction column purification. BPA in 101 samples was detected in the concentration range of 1-7 ng ml(-1). The mean concentration of BPA was 3.41+/-0.13 (mean+/-SD) ng ml(-1). This is the first demonstration as to what BPA concentrations are in human colostrum. The BPA concentrations in colostrum were higher than those in blood sera samples obtained from healthy women in a previous study. In our study, there was no significant correlation between the concentrations of BPA in colostrum and the age and parity of mothers.     

Different uses of plant semiochemicals in host location strategies of the two tachinid parasitoids

Some members of the family Tachinidae (Insecta: Diptera) deposit numerous very small eggs, termed “microtype” eggs, on the food plants of their caterpillar hosts. Parasitization is successful only when the hosts ingest these eggs. To increase the chance of hosts encountering the eggs, microtype tachinid parasitoids have to choose a suitable plant that harbors hosts and lay their eggs near the hosts. In their host location process, semiochemicals emitted by host-infested plants offer the tachinids a reliable cue. We investigated the behavioral responses of two microtype tachinid parasitoids, Pales pavida and Zenillia dolosa, to maize plants infested with their caterpillar host, Mythimna separata, in a wind tunnel. P. pavida females showed a significantly higher rate of landing on caterpillar-infested plants than on mechanically wounded or intact plants, whereas Z. dolosa landed on both the caterpillar-infested and mechanically wounded plants at significantly higher rates than on intact plants. We also examined which part of a caterpillar-infested maize leaf induces oviposition. P. pavida deposited eggs on the margin of the leaf, whereas Z. dolosa preferentially laid eggs around a caterpillar-infested area or a mechanically wounded spot. P. pavida eggs retained their parasitization ability for more than 15?days after they were deposited, whereas the eggs of Z. dolosa could not survive more than 5?days after oviposition. Our results suggest that each tachinid parasitoid employs a different host location strategy to exploit semiochemicals coming from plant–herbivore interaction as cues in order to increase their parasitization success.     

Investigation of the soil radon variation during the winter months in Sapporo, Japan

Soil radon was measured from late October 2000 to January 2001 at three test sites on the campus of Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan. Factors affecting radon concentrations were investigated with relation to meteorological data, as well as soil 226Ra content, mineral composition, water content, and pH, Eh and conductivity. Soil radon varied with time and with sampling site appreciably, in a manner unaltered by the surface geology. However, the ratio of radon isotopes (220Rn/222Rn) in the soil was constant within each sampling site, regardless of varying concentration of these nuclides during the monitoring period. Snow covering on the soil surfaces may affect the 222Rn concentration.