Article
Environmental Sciences
Therese Manning, Graeme E. Batley
Summary: To assess the suitability of sediments for ocean disposal, a defensible sediment quality guideline value for dioxin-like compounds was required. The use of a tissue residue approach based on equilibrium partitioning between sediment and organisms determined an adequate conservative value of 70 pg TEQ/g dry weight. This approach can be applied internationally in similar situations.
ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Giulia Liberatori, Pietro Cotugno, Lucrezia Sturba, Maria Luisa Vannuccini, Gennaro Capasso, Raffaele Velardo, Harrie Besselink, Federica Massari, Angelo Tursi, Vera Corbelli, Peter Alexander Behnisch, Ilaria Corsi
Summary: The study assessed the distribution of PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like compounds in topsoils of Taranto, with concentrations decreasing with distance from industrial areas. Some soils exceeded Italian regulatory limits, with dl-PCBs being the predominant component in most sites.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Irina Gyllenhammar, Marie Aune, Ulrika Friden, Tatiana Cantillana, Anders Bignert, Sanna Lignell, Anders Glynn
Summary: Body burdens of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Swedish first-time mothers were investigated through measurements in breast milk from 1996 to 2017. The trends in POPs body burdens were primarily affected by factors such as the mother's age, pre-pregnancy BMI, weight gain during pregnancy, weight loss after delivery, and education level. The levels of most organic pollutants showed a declining trend over the study period.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
V. M. Kannan, V. G. Gopikrishna, V. K. Saritha, K. P. Krishnan, Mahesh Mohan
Summary: This study assessed the concentration and distribution of highly toxic organic compounds in selected fjords of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. The results showed higher levels of PCDD/Fs and DL-PCBs compared to other polar regions, and the sediments from Kongsfjorden exhibited the presence of the most toxic DL-PCBs.
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
(2022)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Tomoya Takiguchi, Hoa Thi Vu, Yoshikazu Nishino
Summary: Bone metabolism is regulated by endocrine systems, and exposure to PCDD/Fs can have adverse effects on bones and teeth. Previous studies have shown that exposure to PCDD/Fs can affect odontogenesis and bone genesis, particularly enamel formation and palatine bone. It is also found that exposure to PCDD/Fs in milk can affect both teeth and bones, with reversible effects on bones. Furthermore, high concentrations of PCDD/Fs can adversely affect teeth even in adulthood, but exposure to PCDD/Fs may also induce osteogenesis and improve bone properties. Further human studies are needed to investigate the associations between PCDD/F concentrations and biological markers for teeth and bones.
Article
Environmental Sciences
S. V. Ajay, Thomas M. Kanthappally, E. V. Sooraj, K. P. Prathish
Summary: The paper discusses the use of dl-POPs emission trends as a measure of environmental performance for designing feasible MSWM schemes. The study focuses on a lower-middle-income, high-density state in India and develops an annual inventory of dl-POPs at the lowest administrative block level for comparative assessment. It also predicts the health risk posed by different MSWM schemes based on per-capita annual emissions of dl-POPs and proposes a scheme that can achieve a 10-fold reduction in dose levels.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Raul Alvarado, Nicolas Otero, Marcos Mandado, Nicolas Ramos-Berdullas
Summary: The ability of 2D hybrid structures (h-BNCs) formed by boron, nitrogen, and carbon atoms as potential substrates for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) detection of dioxin-like pollutants is theoretically analyzed. The strong confinement and high tunability of the electromagnetic response of carbon nanostructures within h-BNC sheets make them promising for optical spectroscopies, such as SERS. The analysis of adsorption complexes and Raman spectra shows a high affinity of BNC96 for pollutants, with large enhancement factors observed for both static and pre-resonance Raman spectra.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Anna Pouch, Agata Zaborska, Ksenia Pazdro
Summary: The study provides initial results on the occurrence of seventeen polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans and twelve dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls in arctic fjord seawater, with highly chlorinated PCDFs and PCB118 as dominant compounds. The samples showed varying toxicity equivalent levels for Sigma PCDD/Fs and Sigma dl-PCBs, indicating a potential threat to marine biota from high concentrations of dioxins and dl-PCBs in some samples.
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yutaka Tashiro, Akitoshi Goto, Tatsuya Kunisue, Shinsuke Tanabe
Summary: Persistent organochlorine chemicals were found in the tissue of habu from both urban and rural areas, with higher concentrations in urban specimens. Higher levels of DDTs, PCBs, and chlorinated dioxins and related compounds were detected in habus collected near military facilities, indicating potential contamination from unknown sources within or around the facilities.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Rongrui Liu, Tim R. Zacharewski, Rory B. Conolly, Qiang Zhang
Summary: A human PBPK modeling framework for DLC mixtures was developed, which can flexibly simulate the exposure and internal burden of DLC mixtures. The results of simulations showed that tissue burdens of DLC mixtures were consistently lower than those of single exposure, except for the liver. The model also demonstrated marked differences in the contributions of individual congeners to blood or tissue toxic equivalency (TEQ) values compared to intake TEQ.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yi Wang, Anping Peng, Keqiang Ding, Lingxiao Ren, Zeyou Chen, Cheng Gu
Summary: This study explores the reaction of halophenols with Fe3+-montmorillonite and finds that the position and species of the substituents impact the reaction rate, product species, and transformation pathways. The results show that ortho-substituted chlorophenols are more reactive than meta-substituted chlorophenols, regardless of humidity. Bromophenols are slightly more reactive than chlorophenols and are more affected by humidity. Hydroxylated polyhalogenated diphenyl ethers are more frequently detected polymerization products.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Go Suzuki, Hidenori Matsukami, Chieko Michinaka, Shunji Hashimoto, Kei Nakayama, Shin-ichi Sakai
Summary: Commercial mixtures of decabromodiphenyl ether (deca-BDE) contain not only polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and dioxin-like compounds (DLCs), but also pose significant risks to aquatic organisms. While the inclusion of deca-BDE in the Stockholm Convention list of persistent organic pollutants is expected to reduce PBDF concentrations, other DLCs and alternative flame retardants are still likely to be discharged. Strong hydrophobic compounds are effectively removed by current wastewater treatment in Japan, but weaker compounds may still pose a risk.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Quang Tri Ho, Sylvia Frantzen, Bente M. Nilsen, Ole Jakob Nostbakken, Atabak M. Azad, Arne Duinker, Lise Madsen, Michael S. Bank
Summary: This study investigated the bioaccumulation of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in marine fish from the North-East Atlantic Ocean (NEAO). It was found that POPs congener composition profiles were mainly influenced by fish species rather than geographical location. The study also revealed that factors such as fat content, fish size, trophic position, and latitude had an impact on POPs concentrations in fish. Additionally, a non-linear relationship between POPs concentrations and fat content was observed, with concentrations reaching saturation when fat content exceeded 10%.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Binay Kumar, Jandeep Singh, Sunil Mittal, Harminder Singh
Summary: This study analyzed hazardous substances in 5 different brands of sanitary napkins being used in India using gas chromatography mass spectroscopy (GCMS). The concentration of chemicals such as volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), persistent organic pollutant, phthalates, and total chlorine were reported. The study also calculated the amount of plastic present in each sanitary napkin and the total plastic waste generation potential. Data analysis revealed that Indian sanitary pads have higher concentrations of hazardous chemicals compared to similar products in developed countries.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Rui Zhang, Qiuxuan Wu, Xiaoyi Qi, Xiaoxiang Wang, Xuesheng Zhang, Chao Song, Ying Peng, Doug Crump, Xiaowei Zhang
Summary: This study investigated the dioxin-like toxicity of brominated congeners in birds using avian AHR1-luciferase reporter gene assays, revealing significant interspecies differences in sensitivity. Molecular docking and dynamics simulations were employed to develop mechanism-driven prediction models, providing insights into the interactions between AHR1 and brominated DLCs. The findings offer a novel strategy for computational prediction models to support safety assessment of DLCs and ecotoxicological risk assessment of brominated congeners in birds.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
S. L. Kober, P. Schaefer, H. Hollert, M. Frohme
Summary: The investigation of large contaminated sites is limited due to the cost of traditional analysis methods. The authors propose a new high-throughput screening system that combines GPS data collection, quantitative analysis of explosives, and visualization of heatmaps. This system allows for fast characterization of contaminated areas.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Susari Malala Irugal Bandaralage, Juan Ignacio Bertucci, Brad Park, Derek Green, Markus Brinkmann, Anita Masse, Doug Crump, Niladri Basu, Natacha Hogan, Markus Hecker
Summary: This study investigated the effects of dietary HBCD on adult fathead minnows and the accumulation and maternal transfer dynamics of HBCD in adult tissue and eggs. The results showed that exposed adults had significantly increased egg production in the medium treatment group. The study also found a correlation between HBCD accumulation in eggs and exposure time.
ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Maximilian Kraft, Lisa Goelz, Maximilian Rinderknecht, Johannes Koegst, Thomas Braunbeck, Lisa Baumann
Summary: Thyroid hormones play a vital role in developmental and metabolic processes in vertebrates, including eye development. This study demonstrated the effects of two environmental pollutants on thyroid follicle and eye development in transgenic zebrafish, confirming their role as thyroid system-disrupting chemicals. These findings suggest that morphological changes in thyroid follicles and eyes can be used as novel endpoints for the assessment of thyroid system-related effects in fish.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Xiaowen Ji, Jenna Cantin, Ana S. Cardenas Perez, Yufeng Gong, John P. Giesy, Markus Brinkmann
Summary: This study investigated the passive adsorption of nine antipsychotic drugs by the benthic oligochaete in spiked freshwater sediments. The results showed that some drugs had positive fluxes from sediment to water, and the oligochaetes accumulated certain drugs. The simulation model indicated that the antipsychotic compounds in sediment were predominantly present in stable or bound fractions, and dissolved organic carbon and degradation played important roles in the dissipation rates of the drugs. The uptake and diffusion-induced model matched the measured concentrations well.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Saurabh Prajapati, Pouya Sabokruhie, Markus Brinkmann, Karl-Erich Lindenschmidt
Summary: The South Saskatchewan River is a crucial water source for residents, industries, and power plants in Saskatchewan and Canada. Using a 1D modeling approach coupled with the HEC-RAS system and the WASP-TOXI module, this study analyzed the concentrations of copper and nickel at different sites along the river. The model successfully estimated the concentrations in water samples and performed reasonably well for sediment samples, providing valuable insights for future studies on water quality in the Canadian prairies.
Review
Environmental Sciences
Christy Morrissey, Clementine Fritsch, Katharine Fremlin, William Adams, Katrine Borga, Markus Brinkmann, Igor Eulaers, Frank Gobas, Dwayne R. J. Moore, Nico van den Brink, Ted Wickwire
Summary: The exposure assessment component of a Wildlife Ecological Risk Assessment aims to estimate exposure to a chemical or environmental contaminant in wildlife, but there is often high uncertainty and error due to limited data. Both USEPA and EFSA require exposure assessments to include estimates of the quantity, frequency, and duration of exposure while considering all relevant factors. In this review, we propose a new framework for constructing an exposure matrix to better inform and communicate the complexity and realism in exposure assessments for wildlife.
INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Hannah Mahoney, Jenna Cantin, Yuwei Xie, Markus Brinkmann, John P. Giesy
Summary: This study aimed to characterize the effects of PFECHS using in vitro systems, such as rainbow trout liver cells and lymphocytes. The results showed that exposure to PFECHS caused minor acute toxic effects and had a low bioconcentration factor. However, PFECHS was observed to affect mitochondrial membrane and key molecular receptors related to oxidative stress.
AQUATIC TOXICOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Hannah Mahoney, Jenna Cantin, Josephine Rybchuk, Yuwei Xie, John P. Giesy, Markus Brinkmann
Summary: This study evaluated the toxic potency of PFECHS, an emerging PFAS, on zebrafish embryos and its potential effects in aquatic environments. The results showed that PFECHS caused fewer mortalities than PFOS in both acute and chronic exposures but resulted in a similar incidence of deformities. Exposure to PFECHS also increased the levels of specific genes at concentrations relevant to the environment. These findings provide insights into the safety of emerging PFAS alternatives in the aquatic environment and highlight the potential similarity of effects with legacy PFASs.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Xiaowen Ji, Catherine Estefany Davila Arenas, Ana Sharelys Cardenas Perez, John P. Giesy, Markus Brinkmann
Summary: The present study used DGT samplers to develop a predictive model between antipsychotic compounds in water and crayfish. The model accurately predicted the uptake by organisms, except for one compound. The study also showed partial resupply of antipsychotic compounds from sediments to the aqueous phase.
ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Mohsen Asadi, Femi F. Oloye, Yuwei Xie, Jenna Cantin, Jonathan K. Challis, Kerry N. McPhedran, Warsame Yusuf, David Champredon, Pu Xia, Chantel De Lange, Seba El-Baroudy, Mark R. Servos, Paul D. Jones, John P. Giesy, Markus Brinkmann
Summary: Wastewater surveillance is useful for understanding the spread of COVID-19 in communities. This study developed the Wastewater Viral Load Risk Index (WWVLRI) to interpret wastewater surveillance results. The index considers the reproduction number, clinical data, daily per capita concentrations of virus particles in wastewater, and weekly viral load change rate. It provides a valuable resource for decision-makers and health authorities.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Marina Tenorio Botelho, Gabriely Groto Militao, Markus Brinkmann, Gisela de Aragao Umbuzeiro
Summary: This study found that 6PPD-quinone has moderate mutagenicity in the marine amphipod Parhyale hawaiensis and weak mutagenicity in bacteria.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND MOLECULAR MUTAGENESIS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Markus Brinkmann, Stephanie Petersen, Alexander Pelletier, Leland Bryshun, Nicole Schaefer, Michaella Barnes, Lorne Doig, Graham Strickert, Timothy Jardine
Summary: Many large inland rivers are polluted by industrial and agricultural activities, and the redistribution of contaminated sediments can reintroduce toxic pollutants into the aquatic environment. The study used chemical measurements and bioassays to assess the risk to aquatic biota in the Saskatchewan River. The results showed low concentrations of pollutants in sediments, indicating limited risk to biota and human consumers.
JOURNAL OF SOILS AND SEDIMENTS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Lisa Goelz, Pauline Pannetier, Teresa Fagundes, Susanne Knoerr, Laura Behnstedt, Sara Coordes, Peter Matthiessen, Jane Morthorst, Lucia Vergauwen, Dries Knapen, Henrik Holbech, Thomas Braunbeck, Lisa Baumann
Summary: This study aimed to integrate thyroid-related endpoints for fish into a test protocol and evaluate the effects of different endocrine disruptors on the thyroid system in zebrafish. The results showed that exposure to certain chemicals induced changes in thyroid follicles and eye development. The integrated Fish Endocrine Disruption Test (iFEDT) provides a promising tool for assessing the disruption of both the steroid and thyroid endocrine systems in zebrafish.
INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Editorial Material
Ecology
Francisco Sylvester, Fabian G. Weichert, Veronica L. Lozano, Ksenia J. Groh, Miklos Balint, Lisa Baumann, Claus Baessler, Werner Brack, Barbara Brandl, Joachim Curtius, Paul Dierkes, Petra Doell, Ingo Ebersberger, Sotirios Fragkostefanakis, Eric J. N. Helfrich, Thomas Hickler, Sarah Johann, Jonas Jourdan, Sven Klimpel, Helge Kminek, Florencia Liquin, Darrel Moellendorf, Thomas Mueller, Joerg Oehlmann, Richard Ottermanns, Steffen U. Pauls, Meike Piepenbring, Jakob Pfefferle, Gerrit Jasper Schenk, J. F. Scheepens, Martin Scheringer, Sabrina Schiwy, Antje Schlottmann, Flurina Schneider, Lisa M. Schulte, Maria Schulze-Sylvester, Ernst Stelzer, Frederic Strobl, Andrea Sundermann, Klement Tockner, Tobias Troeger, Andreas Vilcinskas, Carolin Voelker, Ricarda Winkelmann, Henner Hollert
Summary: Chemical pollution research needs to be integrated with other factors contributing to biodiversity loss and the assessment of human impacts on ecosystems in order to provide more effective guidance for biodiversity loss mitigation.
NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Iyanu Kumayon, Saurabh Prajapati, Markus Brinkmann, Tara Tara Kahan
Summary: In recent decades, contamination of the environment with microplastics and microfibers has become a global concern. While marine environments have been extensively studied, rivers have been identified as major contributors of plastic pollution. However, studies on microplastic and microfiber contamination in rivers of the Canadian prairie region, particularly the South Saskatchewan River (SSR), are limited. This study fills this gap by analyzing samples from the SSR and providing insights into the levels and composition of microplastic and microfiber contamination in this vital water source.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2023)