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Biomedical subjects

M Gochfeld

Publications and source records attributed to M Gochfeld.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

Accuracy and reproducibility of blood lead testing in commercial laboratories.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the proficiency of commercial laboratories in analyzing lead in clinical blood samples from subjects without overt lead exposure. DESIGN: We submitted masked duplicate blood lead specimens to 8 masked laboratories. Each laboratory received blood aliquots immediately following drawing (time 1) and 2 weeks later (time 2) from 7 human subjects and 3 bovine blood samples with known lead levels of 0.26, 0.57, and 0.79 micromol/L (5.4, 11.8, and 16.4 microg/dL). Of the 8 laboratories, 5 were commercial laboratories, 1 was a state laboratory, 1 was a research laboratory, and 1 was the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reference laboratory. OUTCOME MEASURES: Correlation coefficients were calculated, and differences within and between laboratories were assessed by analysis of variance. RESULTS: Results were obtained for all specimens, with all the human subjects' overall mean lead levels being less than 0.48 micromol/L (<10 microg/dL). Each laboratory reported all human blood specimens appropriately, as having lead levels less than 0.48 micromol/L (<10 microg/dL) and within 0.14 micromol/L (3 microg/dL) of the overall mean for that subject. All internal reproducibilities were very high (range, 0.92-1.00) except for one (0.60), possibly lower because of 1 pair of specimens. Mean differences between blood samples analyzed at time 1 and time 2 ranged from -1.4 to 1.2, with only 2 laboratories having significant differences (P<.01). CONCLUSIONS: Overall, there was strong reproducibility within and among laboratories, with no overall time trend or interlaboratory or intralaboratory variance. The storage conditions did not seem to affect the aggregate results. The data suggest that through implementation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Wisconsin Blood Lead Proficiency Testing Program, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Blood Lead Laboratory Reference System, and mandated federal and state proficiency programs, laboratories in this geographic region have improved their performance as compared with previous published studies and an unpublished study.

Humans↗
PubMed1998

Temporal trends in metal levels in eggs of the endangered roseate tern (Sterna dougallii) in New York.

Female birds sequester certain organic and inorganic compounds in their eggs which have been widely used as a bioindicator for examining the body burdens of contaminants and therefore the temporal and spatial trends of the contaminants in the environment. The same analyses can also reflect the status or vulnerability of the indicator species. Extensive bridge de-leading activities in the New York Bight (Cape May to Montauk) in the early 1990s coincided with a long-term study of the endangered roseate tern (Sterna dougallii) on Long Island, New York, affording the opportunity to test the utility of such fish-eating species as bioindicators of lead contamination, as well as the potential impact on the bird population itself. In this paper we test the null hypothesis that there were no temporal trends between 1989 and 1994 in metal levels in eggs of roseate terns nesting at Cedar Beach, Long Island, where the birds have been declining since the late 1980s. We report levels and trends for cadmium, chromium, manganese, mercury, and selenium as well as lead in abandoned eggs collected each year. There were significant interyear differences for all metals, with 1990 to 1992 generally having higher levels than 1989 and 1994. The yearly differences were particularly prominent for lead, where the 10-fold increase may have been partially due to the increased removal of leaded paint from bridges in the early 1990s, leading to increased lead in the aquatic environment. Cadmium and chromium are also released during de-leading. The causes for the higher levels in the other metals in the early 1990s are unclear. Metal levels in roseate tern eggs are several times higher than the median reported for most birds, and the possible impact on the population requires study.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Fishing, consumption, and risk perception in fisherfolk along an east coast estuary.

Increasingly public and governmental agencies are concerned about the safety of fish and shellfish that recreational fishermen consume. Fishing behavior, consumption patterns, and risk perceptions were examined for people flashing and crabbing in Barnegat Bay, NJ. Women fished in significantly larger groups than men, and their groups included more children. Subjects fished an average of seven times per month and crabbed three times per month; they caught fish on most outings, and 80% ate their catch. Subjects consumed fish an average of five times a month, eating just under 10 oz (ca. 280 g) per meal. Only 25% of the fish consumed by women, and 49% of the fish consumed by men, are self-caught. Nearly 90% of the people believe the fish and crabs from Barnegat Bay are safe to eat, although about 40% have heard some warnings about their safety. Most people heard about advisories from newspapers or television. Most subjects believe that saltwater fish are safer than freshwater fish and that fish they catch themselves or buy in a bay store are safer than those from a supermarket. People generally do not have a clear understanding of the relationship between contaminants and fish size or trophic level, suggesting an avenue for risk reduction.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Apparent paralytic shellfish poisoning in captive herring gulls fed commercial scallops.

This report describes an acute poisoning event observed in captive herring gull (Larus argentatus) chicks fed a batch of store-bought scallops. They developed a characteristic acute syndrome, that has not hitherto been reported in birds and the cause of which remains to be identified. We suggest that it is a variant of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) insofar as it was paralytic and caused by shellfish. However, analyses by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to identify known toxins (saxitoxins, brevetoxins, domoic acid) in the scallops were negative.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

A risk assessment for consumers of mourning doves.

Recreational and subsistence hunters and anglers consume a wide range of species, including birds, mammals, fish and shellfish, some of which represent significant exposure pathways for environmental toxic agents. This study focuses on the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Savannah River Site (SRS), a former nuclear weapons production facility in South Carolina. The potential risk of contaminant intake from consuming mourning doves (Zenaida macroura), the most popular United States game bird, was examined under various risk scenarios. For all of these scenarios we used the mean tissue concentration of six metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, selenium, chromium, manganese) and radiocesium, in doves collected on and near SRS. We also estimated risk to a child consuming doves that had the maximum contaminant level. We used the cancer slope factor for radiocesium, the Environmental Protection Agencies Uptake/Biokinetic model for lead, and published reference doses for the other metals. As a result of our risk assessments we recommend management of water levels in contaminated reservoirs so that lake bed sediments are not exposed to use by gamebirds and other terrestrial wildlife. Particularly, measures should be taken to insure that the hunting public does not have access to such a site. Our data also indicate that doves on popular hunting areas are exposed to excess lead, suggesting that banning lead shot for doves, as has been done for waterfowl, is desirable.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Paradigms for ecological risk assessment.

Ecological risk assessment developed from the convergence of human health risk assessment, ecology, and ecotoxicology to provide data for environmental management and decision making. There has been an emphasis on using the health risk paradigm. However, ecological systems are much more complex than the single-species, single-lifetime approach used in human health risk assessment; hence several modifications are necessary, as ecological risk assessment evolves for particular uses. The advancement of ecological risk assessment is particularly timely, given competing considerations for cleanup of a variety of hazardous-waste sites, including the huge Department of Defense and Department of Energy sites, as well as the 1000+ Superfund sites. Sufficient resources are not available to clean up all sites completely, much less at the same time. Some sites pose no current identifiable risk to human receptors, but may be unusable for human habitation. Where human receptors are not the targets, ecological risk assessment can be used not only to evaluate the risks to ecosystems, but to help determine the degree of cleanup required to restore degraded environments to functioning ecosystems that provide valuable ecological services, and to rank sites for possible cleanup.

Ecology↗
PubMed1997

Attitudes toward environmental hazards: where do toxic wastes fit?

The public is continually faced with making decisions about the risks associated with environmental hazards, and, along with managers and government officials, must make informed decisions concerning possible regulation, mitigation, and restoration of degraded sites or other environmental threats. We explored the attitudes regarding several environmental hazards of six groups of people: undergraduate science majors, undergraduate nonscience majors, and graduate students in environmental health, in ecological risk assessment, and in nonscience disciplines, as well as nonstudents over 35 yr of age. We had predicted that there would be significant differences in attitudes between science and nonscience majors and as a function of age. Relative concerns could be divided into three discrete classes (in descending order of concern): (1) general ecological problems (cutting tropical forests, polluting groundwater, trash along the coasts, lead in drinking water, and acid rain), (2) radon and nuclear wastes, and finally (3) specific nuclear waste facilities, chromium, fertilizers and pesticides, and electromagnetic waves. For any hazard, attitudes were consistent across groups with regard to ranking the severity of the environmental problem and willingness to expend funds to solve the problems. Attitudes about spending money to develop methods to evaluate risk fell in the middle level of concern. There were no major differences among classes of college-age students, or between them and older nonstudents.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Risk, mercury levels, and birds: relating adverse laboratory effects to field biomonitoring.

There is an abundance of field data on levels of mercury in a variety of organisms and there are a number of studies that demonstrate the adverse effects of mercury on laboratory animals, but few studies examine the relationship between the two. Thus it is often difficult to determine the ecological relevance of mercury concentrations found in nature, or to predict the ecosystem consequences of current levels. In this paper we review the levels in tissues that are associated with adverse effects in birds from laboratory studies and compare these with levels found in wild bird populations in the New York Bight to provide a basis for interpreting values in avian populations. We use feathers from fledgling birds which would have been fed on locally obtained food to eliminate the problem of where toxic burdens were acquired by more mobile adult birds. Laboratory studies indicate that in some species mercury levels of 1.5 ppm in eggs and/or 5 to 40 ppm in the feathers of birds are associated with adverse effects, including impaired reproduction. We report egg levels in birds that range as high as 3.8 ppm and feather levels that range as high as 10.3 ppm, although means are much lower. The levels in eggs of some wild birds in the New York Bight are within the range known to lower hatchability, embryo and chick survival, and chick weight, all variables that reduce reproductive success. Species with high egg levels include Forster's tern (Sterna forsteri) and black skimmer (Rynchops niger). Levels in feathers of some young wild birds from the New York Bight are within the range associated with reduced hatchability of eggs, behavioral abnormalities of adults, and infertility. Species with dangerously elevated mercury levels in feathers include great egret (Ardea [=Egretta] alba), snowy egret [Egretta thula), and black skimmers.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Metal levels in mourning doves from South Carolina: potential hazards to doves and hunters.

Most game birds are found in lower trophic levels, but since such birds are harvested and consumed by humans, there is a particular need to assess their contaminant levels. In this paper, we report concentrations of mercury, lead, cadmium, selenium, manganese, and chromium in the breast feathers, liver, and muscle of mourning doves (Zenaida macroura) collected at a partially drawn-down, contaminated reactor-cooling reservoir (Par Pond) on the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site in South Carolina and at nearby agricultural fields managed as dove hunting areas. We test the hypothesis that the levels in doves are not harmful to either dove populations or humans. We also tested the simultaneous effects of collection location, year (1992, 1993), and dove age-class (hatch-year vs after hatch-year) on heavy metal and selenium levels. For all three tissues, mercury levels were nondetectable at all locations. Lead was highest in tissues from agricultural fields with prior histories of dove hunting activities. Doves at those fields were likely ingesting lead shot to a greater degree than at the recently drawn-down reservoir which was closed to public access and hunting. For other metals, Par Pond doves had equally high or higher tissue levels. For all metals, levels in doves from South Carolina were generally within the lower range of those reported in the literature, suggesting that these metals were likely to pose no health problems to these doves. Except for lead and selenium, metal levels in dove muscle that we observed were well below reference metal doses established for human intake. Lead and selenium, at the levels described here, would only be a problem if a child (not an adult) ate 120 g of dove meat every day of the year. Thus, we conclude that meat from these doves, if consumed by hunters, would not pose a risk.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Community exposure and medical screening near chromium waste sites in New Jersey.

Chromium waste slag containing potentially hazardous levels of hexavalent chromium was used as fill material at more than 160 residential, industrial, and recreational sites. Persons living or working in the vicinity of the sites may have been exposed through inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact with contaminated soils and dusts. In 1992-1993, the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (NJDHSS) and the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI) conducted a screening project to assess exposure to chromium and to provide medical evaluations to people living in 14 residential areas or working in 78 workplaces near chromium waste sites. The screening included a physical examination for irritant or allergic effects and a urine chromium test for recent exposure. Participants were referred for follow-up medical evaluation if specific criteria were met. Of 800 residents and 938 workers receiving the screening physical examination, 32 adults were referred for follow-up evaluation. Of 806 residents and 934 workers submitting a urine specimen for chromium analysis, 158 adults and children had levels exceeding specified criteria and were referred for follow-up evaluation. The proportion of persons referred on the basis of the urine chromium test varied among screened groups. Multiple linear regression models showed that average urine chromium differences between residents and a comparison group, adjusting for potential confounders, were highest in children under 6 years of age. Most of the persons undergoing the follow-up medical examinations revealed no apparent clinical effects attributable to chromium exposure. The screening results indicated the need for expanded environmental evaluation in specific residential areas and workplaces.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Heavy metal and selenium concentrations in feathers of egrets from Bali and Sulawesi, Indonesia.

Herons and egrets are ideal organisms to use asindicators of heavy metal exposure in an ecosystem because different speciesfeed at different levels of the food chain and live in both coastal andinland habitats. This paper reports on the concentration of heavy metals andselenium in the feathers of cattle egrets Bubulcus ibis that wereexamined from nesting and roosting sites in Bali and Sulawesi, Indonesia, andin feathers of little egrets Egretta garzetta and intermediate egretsE. intermedia from the same colony in Bali. Mercury and manganeseconcentrations were significantly higher in cattle egrets from Bali comparedto Sulawesi, but otherwise there were no significant differences. There weresignificant differences in lead, cadmium and mercury among the three egretspecies nesting on Bali: 1) the cadmium and mercury concentrations related tosize and trophic level (insectivorous cattle egrets had the lowestconcentrations, fish-eating intermediate egrets had the highestconcentrations), and 2) cattle egrets had significantly lower concentrationsof lead than the other two species. For cattle egrets, secondary flightfeathers had significantly higher levels of cadmium and mercury, and lowerlevels of manganese, than mixed breast and tertiary feathers, reflectingtemporal differences in exposure.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Spatial patterns in a bioindicator: heavy metal and selenium concentration in eggs of herring gulls (Larus argentatus) in the New York Bight.

Concentrations of selenium and five heavy metals (lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium, and manganese) in the eggs of herring gulls (Larus argentatus) were studied at six breeding colonies in the New York Bight to detect locational differences and to explore their use as a bioindicator of point source or nonpoint source pollution. The herring gull is widespread in North America, Europe, and Asia, and has urban-adapted counterparts in the southern hemisphere as well. We anticipated that the chromium contamination at Jersey City and high levels of manganese in industrial releases to the Passaic River would be reflected in the nearest colony (Shooter's Island), and that lead contamination from bridge remediation would be apparent in the Jamaica Bay colonies. There were significant locational differences in all metal levels, although the patterns were not the same for all metals. Shooter's Island in Newark Bay ranked first or second for five of the elements, but inexplicably had the lowest mercury level. Cadmium levels were highest at Canarsie Pol in Jamaica Bay, but mercury levels were highest at the relatively isolated Lavallette colony in northern Barnegat Bay. Chromium and manganese levels were indeed highest at Shooter's Island, but the lead levels in Jamaica Bay were only intermediate. We predicted that the essential trace elements, manganese, chromium, and selenium, which are known to be present at relatively high concentrations in various animal species, would have relatively low coefficients of variation, reflecting homeostatic mechanisms. This was confirmed. In conclusion, herring gull egg contents can be used to monitor metal concentrations at nearby colonies to indicate areas of concern for particular metals. They may confirm suspected associations or identify hitherto unsuspected problems.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Age differences in metals in the blood of herring (Larus argentatus) and Franklin's (Larus pipixcan) gulls.

Concentrations of heavy metals and selenium were measured in the blood of adult and young herring (Larus argentatus) and Franklin's (Larus pipixcan) gulls collected during the same breeding season in colonies in the New York Bight and in northwestern Minnesota, respectively. Concentrations were expected to be higher in young herring gulls collected in an urban, industrialized area, compared to young Franklin's gulls collected in a relatively pristine prairie marsh. Exposure is similar for the fledgling and adult gulls because by the time the blood of young gulls is drawn both adults and young have been eating foods from the surrounding region for two months; leading to the prediction that metal levels should be similar in adults and young. However, young Franklin's gulls had significantly higher levels of arsenic, cadmium, and manganese than adults; adults had significantly higher levels of mercury and selenium. Young herring gulls had significantly higher concentrations of arsenic and selenium, but lower levels of lead than adult herring gulls. Interspecific comparisons indicated that young Franklin's gulls had significantly higher levels of cadmium than young herring gulls, and adult Franklin's gulls had higher levels of selenium and chromium than adult herring gulls, but for all other comparisons herring gulls had higher levels of metals in their blood. Young herring gulls chicks had higher arsenic, manganese, and selenium levels and lower cadmium and lead levels in 1993 than in 1994. Overall, the levels in the two species were usually within an order of magnitude.

Aging↗
PubMed1997

Risk perception, federal spending, and the Savannah River Site: attitudes of hunters and fishermen.

This paper examines the attitudes of 285 hunters and fishermen from South Carolina about hunting and fishing, risk, environmental issues, and future land use of the Savannah River Site, We test the null hypothesis that there is no difference in hunting and fishing rates, attitudes toward the safety of fish and deer obtained from SRS, attitudes toward future land use at SRS, and perceptions of the severity of environmental problems as a function of how far respondents lived from the site. Respondents hunted or fished an average of over 40 days a year, and only half felt that the fish and deer from SRS were safe to eat. Willingness to expend federal funds was correlated with perceptions of the severity of the problem. Preferences for future land use at SRS fell into three categories: high (environmental research park, hunting, fishing, camping), medium (nuclear production, factories, preserve only), and low (nuclear waste storage, residential). There were no differences in hunting and fishing rates, ranking of the severity of environmental problems, and willingness to expend federal funds as a function of distance of residence from SRS, but attitudes toward future land use differed significantly as a function of location of residence. Those living close to SRS were more willing to have the site used for factories, residential, nuclear material production and to store nuclear wastes than those living farther from the site. Our data on recreational rates, attitudes toward future land use, and willingness to expend federal funds to solve environmental problems reiterate the importance of assessing stakeholder attitudes toward decisions regarding future land use at DOE sites.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Factors influencing susceptibility to metals.

Although the long-neglected field of human susceptibility to environmental toxicants is currently receiving renewed attention, there is only scant literature on factors influencing susceptibility to heavy metals. Genetic factors may influence the availability of sulfhydryl-containing compounds such as glutathione and metallothionein, which modify the distribution and toxicity of certain metals. Age and gender play a role in modifying uptake and distribution, although the mechanisms are often obscure. Concurrent exposure to divalent cations may enhance or reduce the toxicity of certain metals through competition for receptor-mediated transport or targets. Increasing use of biomarkers of exposure should greatly increase our understanding of the underlying distribution of susceptibility to various environmental agents.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1997

Lead and neurobehavioral development in gulls: a model for understanding effects in the laboratory and the field.

Animals, including humans, are increasingly exposed to a variety of environmental chemicals that can cause adverse developmental neurobehavioral effects. Most studies either examine effects in the laboratory, or report levels in wild animals, but the relationship between dose, tissue levels and effects are seldom examined in one system. Establishing this relationship is particularly important for endocrine disruptors because of the current controversies regarding impacts on both humans and wildlife. In this paper we synthesize results from a 10-year research program that uses the herring gull chick as a model to examine the relationship between dose, tissue levels, and response to lead in both the laboratory and the wild; and compare levels that cause deficits to those that occur in wild populations of a number of birds. The laboratory studies show that lead affects several aspects of neurobehavioral development in herring gull chicks. There are critical periods for the effects of lead on neurobehavioral development; and there are dissociations: different behaviors have different critical periods. Response latency may be affected most when exposure occurs at one age, while accuracy of response may be affected more at a different age of exposure. Further, there is not necessarily a correlation between impairment and the recovery trajectory. The field experiments show that there are similar lead-induced neurobehavioral deficits in the wild as occur in the laboratory. However, there were important differences: recovery occurred sooner in the field compared to the laboratory; parents partially compensated for the behavioral deficits and succeeded in getting surviving chicks to a similar fledging weight as control chicks, and although survival was decreased in lead-injected chicks in the wild, it was not as low as predicted because of the protective behavior of their parents. These impairments resulted in decreases in survival, which reduced overall fledging rates for a population with lead exposure. Data on exposure levels, as indicated by lead levels in feathers of birds worldwide, suggest that some birds are at risk of neurobehavioral impairment from exposure to lead. Although the neurobehavioral deficits are subtle, and difficult to prove using only wild populations, the data from the field experiments with herring gulls clearly indicate that the deficits occur. This providers a model for studying the neurobehavioral effects of any chemicals on wild populations.

Animals↗