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Influence of lead acetate on the histological, ultrastructural and histochemical picture of the livers of albino rats.

The amount of lead pollution in the environment is increasing proportionally to the development of industry. Lead is capable of damaging the organism in many ways due to its high affinity to various tissues, different enzymes and serum proteins and its tendency to cumulate (1, 14). Acute lead poisoning occurs in people who have had intense, but short-term contact with organic lead compounds (tetraethylolead) used as an antidetonant in motor fuels, or plumbous orthoplumbate (red lead), which is an important component in anticorrosive paints (4, 6). Chronic poisoning by lead and lead salts, which used to occur in printers and workers in battery factories, is now a threat to the whole human population because of the hundreds of thousands of tons of tetraethylolead used as a fuel additive. This substance pollutes not only the atmosphere, but also the soil and the water and because of this, the food (10). The toxic effects of lead on the central and peripheral nervous system and the hematopoetic system is well known (9, 12), Less clear, however, are the toxic effects of this metal on the liver. As of now, there are still different views on the existence of negative effects of lead on the livers of people and animals exposed to this metal. Some researchers found no changes in the liver in cases of long-term contact with lead (3).

Animals↗

Lessons learned from the study of immigrants to Israel from areas of Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine contaminated by the Chernobyl accident.

During the past 6 years, immigration to Israel of 700,000 persons from the former Soviet Union (FSU) included about 140,000 from radiocontaminated regions of Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia near Chernobyl. In Beer Sheva, a major center for immigrant absorption in Israel, a primary objective was to evaluate their health status and to refer them for care. 137Cs levels in 1228 men, women, and children were measured with a portable whole-body counter. Whole-body counts showed clear correlation with the degree of 137Cs ground contamination in previous regions of residence. The population could thus be sub-divided according to degree of exposure, based on previous regions of residence. The thyroid status of 300 local immigrant children was evaluated because of the increased risk of childhood thyroid cancer in the regions from which they came. This group was subdivided into comparative groups of children who came from less and more contaminated areas according to the International Atomic Energy Agency soil 137Cs contamination maps. Enlarged thyroids were found in about 40% of both groups. One 12-year-old girl from Gomel had a malignant papillary carcinoma. Thyroid-stimulating hormone levels, though within normal limits, were significantly greater (p < 0.02) for girls from high exposure regions. Liquidators showed significant increases in serum clastogenic factor and in the number of circulating glycophorin A-mutated red cells. In studies of over 700 people from both radiocontaminated and unaffected regions of the FSU, evidence for posttraumatic stress disorder was found more frequently in persons coming from the more contaminated areas.

Blood Pressure↗

Deer-herd health and production profiling in New Zealand. I. Study design.

A 2-year observational study was conducted on 15 commercial red-deer farms in the North Island of New Zealand, to provide health and production data, and identify risk factors for outcomes including health, reproduction, venison and velvet antler production. About 2,700 hinds, 2,400 weaner deer and 1,500 stags were monitored. Daily management practices, deer performance and health problems were recorded. At 3-monthly visits, samples were collected from deer, pastures and soils. Data were processed by multivariable statistical techniques to identify the most important factors affecting production and health.

Animal Husbandry↗

Advanced backcross QTL analysis of a hard winter wheat x synthetic wheat population.

Advanced backcross quantitative trait locus (AB-QTL) analysis was used to identify QTLs for yield and yield components in a backcross population developed from a cross between hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) variety Karl 92 and the synthetic wheat line TA 4152-4. Phenotypic data were collected for agronomic traits including heading date, plant height, kernels per spike, kernel weight, tiller number, biomass, harvest index, test weight, grain yield, protein content, and kernel hardness on 190 BC2F(2:4) lines grown in three replications in two Kansas environments. Severity of wheat soil-borne mosaic virus (WSBMV) reaction was evaluated at one location. The population was genotyped using 151 microsatellite markers. Of the ten putative QTLs identified, seven were located on homologous group 2 and group 3 chromosomes. The favorable allele was contributed by cultivated parent Karl 92 at seven QTLs including a major one for WSBMV resistance, and by the synthetic parent at three QTLs: for grain hardness, kernels per spike, and tiller number.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Paleosols and the evolution of atmospheric oxygen: a critical review.

A number of investigators have used chemical profiles of paleosols to reconstruct the evolution of atmospheric oxygen levels during the course of Earth history (Holland, 1984, 1994; Kirkham and Roscoe, 1993; Ohmoto, 1996). Over the past decade Holland and his co-workers have examined reported paleosols from six localities that formed between 2.75 and 0.45 Ga. They have found that the chemical profiles of these paleosols are consistent with a dramatic change in atmospheric PO2 between 2.2 and 2.0 Ga from < or = 0.002 to > or = 0.03 atm (Holland, 1994). Ohmoto (1996) examined chemical data from twelve reported paleosols ranging in age from 2.9 to 1.8 Ga. He concluded that these chemical profiles indicate that atmospheric PO2 has not changed significantly during the past 3.0 Ga. We seek to resolve the conflict between these reconstructions through a broader examination of the paleosol literature, both to determine which reported paleosols can be definitively identified as such and to determine what these definite paleosols tell us about atmospheric evolution. We here review reports describing over 50 proposed paleosols, all but two are older than 1.7 Ga. Our review indicates that 15 of these reported paleosols can be definitively identified as ancient soils. The behavior of iron uring the formation of these 15 paleosols provides both qualitative and semiquantitative information about the evolution of the redox state of the atmosphere. Every definitely identified pre-2.44 Ga paleosol suffered significant Fe loss during weathering. This loss indicates that atmospheric PO2 was always less than about 5 x l0(-4) atm prior to 2.44 Ga. Analysis of the Hokkalampi paleosol (2.44-2.2 Ga) (Marmo, 1992) and the Ville Marie paleosol (2.38-2.215 Ga) (Rainbird, Nesbitt, and Donaldson, 1990) yield ambiguous results regarding atmospheric PO2. Loss of Fe during the weathering of the 2.245 to 2.203 Ga Hekpoort paleosol (Button, 1979) indicates that atmospheric PO2 was less than 8 x 10(-4) atm shortly before 2.2 Ga. The presence of red beds immediately overlying the Hokkalampi, Ville Marie, and Hekpoort paleosols suggests that by about 2.2 Ga there was an unquantified but substantial amount of oxygen in the atmosphere. Iron loss was negligible during formation of the 2.2 to 2.0 Ga Wolhaarkop (Holland and Beukes, 1990) and Drakenstein (Wiggering and Beukes, 1990) paleosols and during formation of all the later paleosols we previewed. Thus, atmospheric PO2 probably has been > or = 0.03 atm since sometime between 2.2 and 2.0 Ga.

Atmosphere↗

Presence of plant protection products in three agricultural areas of Regione Lazio.

Aim of the research was to verify the impact of plant protection products on three significant agricultural areas of Regione Lazio: Maccarese, Cisterna di Latina, Sabaudia-Terracina. This research studied the presence of some active ingredients, indicated by technicians as distributed, on soil, water, crop and air samples, the last one in greenhouse; the analysis, carried out by multi-residue methods, allowed to investigate also on a large amount of active ingredients not indicated by technicians. The determinations have been obtained, using internal standards, by GC-NPD, GC-ECD, HPLC-UV, HPLC-DAD, with different columns, conditions and wavelength of adsorption. Taking into account the results we could to assert that only a small part of the molecules searched were found in the samples and that they are typical for the crops and the environment treated. In greenhouse, more persistence was founded in wood greenhouse, treated from the outside, probably for the release of a.i. in time from wood and for a better distribution. The active ingredients more frequently founded must be controlled to avoid possible accumulation or leaching, especially for herbicides in the areas of Maccarese and Cisterna di Latina. Furthermore, the molecule on which more attention must be done when applied, are: linuron on carrots, penconazole on zucchini and cymoxanil, often used inappropriately, particularly on minor crops, like red-radish. Although the number of sampling was limited, it has been possible to outline the situation in the three zones considered, for directing choices, that could be more sensible at sanitary spin-off and at the environment.

Air Pollutants↗

Effectiveness of commercial reagents for heavy metal removal from water with new insights for future chelate designs.

Toxic heavy metals in air, soil, and water are global problems that are a growing threat to the environment. To meet the federal and state guidelines for heavy metal discharge, companies often use chemical precipitation or chelating agents. In order to be competitive economically, many of these chelating ligands are simple, easy to obtain, and, generally offer weak bonding for heavy metals. Laboratory testing of three commercial reagents, trimercaptotriazine (TMT), Thio-Red potassium/sodium thiocarbonate (STC), and HMP-2000 sodium dimethyldithiocarbamate (SDTC) has shown that the compounds were unable to reduce independent solutions containing 50.00 ppm of divalent cadmium, copper, iron, lead, or mercury to meet EPA standards. Additionally, the compounds displayed high leaching rates and in some cases decomposed to produce toxic substances. In contrast, the studies demonstrate that a recently reported sulfur-containing multidentate ligand is both safe and effective for the removal of these metals.

Chelating Agents↗

Placental transfer of lead and its effects on the newborn.

Following delivery, blood was taken from 122 mothers and their infants' cords for estimation of lead, haemoglobin, packed cell volume and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration. All were resident in Kasanda, a township within a radius of 3000 metres of Brokin Hill Lead Mine and Smelter, Zambia, where the annual mean atmospheric lead concentration was 9.6 microgram/m3 and the soil lead concentration 100-9400 p.p.m. Their mean blood levels were high, being 41.2 microgram and 37 microgram/dl for mothers and infants respectively, with a significant correlation (r = 0.77, P less than 0.001). Thus an infant's blood lead at birth closely follows that of its mother even at high values. The increased lead level transfer, however, did not appear adversely to affect the birth weight or red cell values of the newborn. Cord blood lead levels are being used in Broken Hill to monitor a community's exposure to lead.

Birth Weight↗

PCDDs, PCDFs, PCBs and DDE in edible marine species from the Adriatic Sea.

Edible marine species from several areas of the Adriatic sea were analyzed for their content in persistent organic pollutants (POPs), such as polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDDs), dibenzofurans (PCDFs), biphenyls (PCBs), and pp'-DDE (dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene), a metabolite of the organochlorine pesticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT). On the whole, PCDD/F contamination levels were low. In general, I-TEQ findings were greater for those species at higher levels in the trophic web (mackerel > red mullet > anchovy). Contamination levels were within 0.23 and 1.07 pg TEQ/g fw (fresh weight) in the aforesaid species, while all remaining species exhibited contamination levels ranging from approximately 0.07 to 0.25 pg TEQ/g fw. Besides, TEQ cumulative findings in species from the northern area were in general greater than those from the central and southern areas. PCB cumulative findings in the samples also revealed a detectable difference in contamination levels in species obtained from the northern, central, and southern sampling sites, between 7.6 and 177, 2.3 and 157, and 4.5 and 94 ng/g fw, respectively. The greatest PCB concentrations were found in mackerel (94-177 ng/g fw). Finally, DDE concentration levels varied from 0.7 to 32.4 ng/g fw. The highest levels of contamination were found in mackerel, red mullet and anchovy (17.7-32.4 ng/g fw, 8.1-9.8 ng/g fw, and 6.4-11.9 ng/g fw, respectively).

Animals↗

Red-pigmented Histoplasma capsulatum--an unusual variant.

An unusual variant of Histoplasma capsulatum was isolated from a canebrake. The mycelial form produced a red pigment that diffused into the medium and which was also present in the cell walls of the mycelium, microconidia and macroconidia. The yeast cells were not pigmented nor did they produce any pigment.

Cell Wall↗

Echinococcus multilocularis in the red fox Vulpes vulpes from the East Carpathian region of Poland and the Slovak Republic.

The occurrence of Echinococcus multilocularis in the Poland-Slovak frontier zone of the East Carpathian region was assessed, for comparison with that in adjacent regions in both countries. A total of 392 red foxes from Poland and 427 red foxes from the Slovak Republic were examined from 2001 to 2004. Significant differences in prevalences were observed in foxes captured from the borderland and adjacent zones in both countries. The mean prevalence of E. multilocularis in the Polish borderland reached 45.7+/-18.6% and in the Slovak border 35.0+/-10.7%. In both countries, the prevalence of E. multilocularis in red foxes from adjacent districts, outside the frontier Carpathian region, was considerably lower (18.9+/-9.2% in Poland and 20.8+/-9.0% in Slovakia). These differences are probably due to geomorphological and ecological factors, which contribute to the survival of the tapeworm eggs and the subsequent spread of infection. The Carpathian regions of northeast Slovakia and southeast Poland are characterized by specific climatic conditions such as low mean annual air temperatures, low temperatures in active soil surfaces, high soil humidities and a high mean annual rainfall.

Animals↗

[Antibiotic properties of Pseudomonas cepacia].

The antibiotic activity and some of the physicochemical properties of the pigment produced by P. cepacia 4137 were studied. The pigment was isolated from the medium with chloroform. Preparative chromatography on columns with silica gel and thin-layer chromatography on Silufol plates revealed red-orange and straw-yellow fractions in the composition of the antibiotic. The latter fraction showed a significant antimicrobial activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, fungi and yeasts. The red fraction was inferior to the yellow one with respect to its antimicrobial activity. Both substances could be stained with a butanol solution of FeCl3. The absorption maxima of their methanol solutions were observed at 225, 325 and 455 nm with respect to the red fraction and at 220, 330 and 405 with respect to the yellow fraction. The elemental analysis of a more highly purified red fraction showed the following: C 54.10, H 6.85, N 7.93 and O 31.12. It is suggested that the substances are derivatives of hydroxyphenazine carboxylic acids.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Facile and sensitive spectrophotometric determination of carbosulfan in formulations and environmental samples.

Facile, selective and sensitive spectrophotometric method has been developed for the determination of carbosulfan in insecticidal formulations, fortified water, food grains, agriculture wastewater and soil samples with newly synthesized reagents. The method was based on acid and alkaline hydrolysis of the carbosulfan pesticide, and the resultant hydrolysis product of carbosulfan was coupled with 2,6-dibromo-4-methylaniline to give a yellow color product with lambda(max) of 464 nm or interaction with 2,6-dibromo-4-nitroaniline to produce yellow colored product with lambda(max) of 408 nm or coupling with 2,4,6-tribromoaniline to form red colored product has a lambda(max) of 471 nm. Under optimal conditions, Beer's law range for 2,6-dibromo-4-methylaniline (DBMA) was found to be 0.2-12.0 microg ml(-1), 0.6-16.0 microg ml(-1) for 2,6-dibromo-4-nitroaniline (DBNA) and 0.4-15.0 microg ml(-1) for 2,4,6-tribromoaniline (TBA). The molar absorptivity of the color systems were found to be 3.112 x 10(4) l mol(-1) cm(-1) for DBMA, 3.214 x 10(4) l mol(-1) cm(-1) for DBNA and 3.881 x 10(4) l mol(-1) cm(-1) for TBA. Sandell's of the color reactions are 0.013 microg cm(-2) (DBMA), 0.012 microg cm(-2) (DBNA) and 0.011 microg cm(-2) (TBA) respectively. The effect of the non-target species on the determination of carbosulfan was studied to enhance the selectivity of the proposed methods. The formation of colored derivatives with the coupling agents is instantaneous and stable for 28, 30, and 26 h. Performance of the proposed methods were compared statistically in terms Student's F and t-tests with the reported methods.

Carbamates↗

A parasitological survey of wild red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from the province of Guadalajara, Spain.

An epizootiological survey of leishmaniosis, coccidiosis and parasitic helminths in 67 foxes (Vulpes vulpes) was conducted in Guadalajara (central Spain). Examination for parasitic protozoa revealed prevalences of 74% Leishmania (determined by molecular methods) and 2.9% coccidia oocysts (fecal flotation). Survey of parasitic helminths (fecal flotation/necropsy) demonstrated the presence of nine species, including six nematodes, two cestodes and one trematode. Nematodes were the most common parasites of foxes, followed by cestodes and trematodes. Greater levels of nematodes like Uncinaria, with a free-living stage in its life-cycle, were found in foxes in areas where moist soils were likely to exist, in contrast to areas of semiarid characteristics, where Toxascaris leonina or Trichuris vulpis were predominant. With regard to helminths of importance as human pathogens, trichinoscopy revealed the presence of a relatively high number of foxes (8.9%) infected with Trichinella spiralis. Finally, Toxocara canis infection was less frequent (4.4%) than trichinellosis.

Animals↗

Fluorescence inner-filtering correction for determining the humification index of dissolved organic matter.

The use of fluorescence spectrometry has been suggested as a simple method to determine the extent of natural organic matter humification by quantifying the red-shifting of fluorescence emission that occurs with increasing humification. Humification indices are calculated by dividing fluorescence intensity at longer wavelengths by intensity at shorter wavelengths. These indices calculated without any specific efforts to standardize dissolved organic matter (DOM) concentration will result in index values thatvary with DOM concentration due to fluorescence innerfiltering effects. This study critically evaluated the effect of DOM concentration on humification index determination using organic matter isolated from field corn extract, soil: water extract, and soil fulvic acid. The results show that humification index values are sensitive to DOM concentration of the solution and are linear with respect to transmittance of the solution at the 254 nm used as the excitation wavelength. An approximate correction for DOM is to exploit the linear nature of the regression fit and to determine index values at the extrapolated 100% transmittance value. An exact correction using explicit correction factors for both primary and secondary innerfiltration effects was shown to give humification index values that are concentration invariant when absorbance of the solution at 254 nm was less than approximately 0.3 unit. Defining the humification index as the fluorescence intensity in the 300-345 nm region divided by the sum of intensity in the 300-345 nm and 435-480 nm regions was statistically advantageous. This study suggests that for quantitative results which can be used to compare humification of natural organic matter across different studies, correction of the fluorescence emission spectra for innerfiltration effects is needed.

Calibration↗

Speckled eggs: water-loss and incubation behaviour in the great tit Parus major.

Many small passerine birds worldwide lay white eggs speckled with red, brown and black protoporphyrin pigment spots (maculation). Unlike some patterns of avian eggshell pigmentation which clearly serve a crypsis or signalling function, the ubiquity of maculation among passerines suggests that its origins lie in another function, not specific to any particular ecological or behavioural group. Elsewhere, we have presented evidence that protoporphyrin pigments serve a structural function related to eggshell thickness and calcium availability: eggshell maculation in the great tit Parus major increases with decreasing soil calcium levels, pigments demarcate thinner areas of shell, and both the pigment intensity and distribution are related to shell thickness. Here we show that maculation also affects the rate of water loss from the egg during incubation (approximately Mass Loss per Day or MLD, which is critical to egg viability), but not that of unincubated eggs. We also demonstrate, both by observation and experiment, that the effect of female incubation behaviour on MLD compensates in some way for variation in egg characteristics, and that differences between females in the degree of such compensation are related to differences in clutch maculation. Our results suggest that, while a principal function of maculation in this species may be to strengthen the eggshell, it may also reduce eggshell permeability when large amounts of pigment are used, and that this necessitates a behavioural adjustment from the female during incubation. We discuss these findings and make further testable predictions from our model.

Animals↗

Selective medium for isolation of saprophytic coryneform bacteria.

Out of 64 test chemicals for which the toxicity was analysed on pure cultures of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, nalidixic acid, polymyxin B sulfate, colistin, methyl red, cefotaxim, amikacin, 2-chlorphenol, metronidazole and potassium tellurite were shown to perform best for the selective isolation of coryneform microorganisms; sodium azide, potassium thiocyanate and lithium chloride were not suitable. A new selective agar medium (NPC) for coryneform bacteria containing standard agar, plate count agar or columbia agar together with nalidixic acid (20 mg/l), polymyxin B sulfate (40,000 IU/l) and cycloheximide (100 mg/l) was tested with samples of milk, surface water, waste water and soil. The NPC agar was not inhibitory to micrococci, probably due to their close relatedness with coryneforms. Use of sugar-free nutrient agar (standard agar) restricted growth of Streptococcus faecalis. Pseudomonads, flavobacteria and chromobacteria, which often accounted for 1-5% of the NPC agar-resistant Gram-negative rods, could be distinguished from the Gram-positive bacteria due to differences in colony morphology, since on this medium colony shape is not masked by color reactions. The NPC medium was more effective in eliminating Gram-negative bacteria, bacilli, moulds and yeasts than beta-phenethyl alcohol media and potassium tellurite media.

Actinomycetales↗

Purification and characterization of a myosin I heavy chain kinase from Acanthamoeba castellanii.

In previous work from this laboratory, a partially purified protein kinase from the soil amoeba Acanthamoeba castellanii was shown to phosphorylate the heavy chain of the two single-headed Acanthamoeba myosin isoenzymes, myosin IA and IB, resulting in a 10- to 20-fold increase in their actin-activated Mg2+-ATPase activities (Maruta, H., and Korn, E.D. (1977) J. Biol. Chem. 252, 8329-8332). A myosin I heavy chain kinase has now been purified to near homogeneity from Acanthamoeba by chromatography on DE-52 cellulose, phosphocellulose, and Procion red dye, followed by chromatography on histone-Sepharose. Myosin I heavy chain kinase contains a single polypeptide of 107,000 Da by electrophoretic analysis. Molecular sieve chromatography yields a Stokes radius of 4.1 nm, consistent with a molecular weight of 107,000 for a native protein with a frictional ratio of approximately 1.3:1. The kinase catalyzes the incorporation of 0.9 to 1.0 mol of phosphate into the heavy chain of both myosins IA and IB. Phosphoserine has been shown to be the phosphorylated amino acid in myosin IB. The kinase has highest specific activity toward myosin IA and IB, about 3-4 mumol of phosphate incorporated/min/mg (30 degrees C) at concentrations of myosin I that are well below saturating levels. The kinase also phosphorylates histone 2A, isolated smooth muscle light chains, and, to a very small extent, casein, but has no activity toward phosvitin or myosin II, a third Acanthamoeba myosin isoenzyme with a very different structure from myosin IA and IB. Myosin I heavy chain kinase requires Mg2+ but is not dependent on Ca2+, Ca2+/calmodulin, or cAMP for activity. The kinase undergoes an apparent autophosphorylation.

Amoeba↗