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An updated cohort mortality study of workers at a northeastern United States petroleum refinery.

An update of a cohort study of 4855 employees at a Paulsboro, New Jersey refinery was conducted to further examine mortality patterns. The earlier study investigated refinery workers employed for a minimum of 1 year between 1 January 1946 and 1 January 1979. The vital status of these workers was ascertained through 1979. The update extended enrollment in the study and vital status follow-up for an additional 8 years (1980-1987). As in the previous study, mortality from all causes [standardized mortality ratio (SMR) = 87; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 83-91] was significantly lower than expected compared with the general population. Total cancer mortality was also lower than expected (SMR = 96; 95% CI: 86-106). A borderline significant mortality increase in prostatic cancer was found (SMR = 144; 95% CI: 106-190). This increase was similar to the nonsignificant increase reported in the original study (SMR = 135; 95% CI: 90-196). The excess was of comparable magnitude among white males and nonwhite males, although it was not significant for the latter. Detailed analysis indicated that the prostatic cancer was not likely to be related to employment at the refinery. Mortality from lymphatic and hematopoietic cancers was similar to the expected mortality. Mortality from overall leukemia was as expected and detailed analyses by specific cell type showed no increase. An increase in mortality occurred from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma among male workers (SMR = 132; 95% CI: 74-217). The increase was not statistically significant and unlikely to be associated with refinery employment. Mortality from multiple myeloma among male employees was lower than expected (SMR = 74; 95% CI: 20-190). Mortality from asbestos-related diseases (pulmonary fibrosis, lung cancer, malignant mesothelioma) was also lower than expected among male workers. No cause-specific mortality was found to be associated with duration of employment at the refinery, including several causes which have been reported to be elevated in previous studies. The findings of this updated study indicate, as in the previous report, the generally favorable mortality experience of Paulsboro refinery workers.

Adult↗

Metabolic diversity of aromatic hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria from a petroleum-contaminated aquifer.

We characterized bacteria from contaminated aquifers for their ability to utilize aromatic hydrocarbons under hypoxic (oxygen-limiting) conditions (initial dissolved oxygen concentration about 2 mg/l) with nitrate as an alternate electron acceptor. This is relevant to current intense efforts to establish favorable conditions for in situ bioremediation. Using samples of granular activated carbon slurries from an operating groundwater treatment system, we isolated bacteria that are able to use benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, or p-xylene as their sole source of carbon under aerobic or hypoxic-denitrifying conditions. Direct isolation on solid medium incubated aerobically or hypoxically with the substrate supplied as vapor yielded 10(3) to 10(5) bacteria ml-1 of slurry supernatant, with numbers varying little with respect to isolation substrate or conditions. More than sixty bacterial isolates that varied in colony morphology were purified and characterized according to substrate utilization profiles and growth condition (i.e., aerobic vs. hypoxic) specificity. Strains with distinct characteristics were obtained using benzene compared with those isolated on toluene or ethylbenzene. In general, isolates obtained from direct selection on benzene minimal medium grew well under aerobic conditions but poorly under hypoxic conditions, whereas many ethylbenzene isolates grew well under both incubation conditions. We conclude that the conditions of isolation, rather than the substrate used, will influence the apparent characteristic substrate utilization range of the isolates obtained. Also, using an enrichment culture technique, we isolated a strain of Pseudomonas fluorescens, designated CFS215, which exhibited nitrate dependent degradation of aromatic hydrocarbons under hypoxic conditions.

Bacteria↗

Induction of mixed function oxidases by petroleum in the American eel, Anguilla rostrata.

American eels, Anguilla rostrata, were exposed to crude oil by ingestion of a 10, 100, or 500 microliters/kg fish dose per day for five days. Depuration was followed for an additional twelve days. All oil doses caused an induction of hepatic microsomal enzymes, maximally by three days of exposure. Benzo(a)pyrene hydroxylase (BaPH) showed a dose related response, with greater induction at 100 microliters/kg than at the other doses. The highest dose was hepatotoxic. Cytochrome P-450 induction was dose independent, and remained induced maximally for the entire experimental period, in contrast to BaPH which declined in activity. Reaction optimum for BaPH was at pH 7.5 and 27 degrees C. A study of tissue distribution showed the liver to account for nearly all BaPH activity. A significant increase in the protein content of the hepatic postmitochondrial fraction of oil-exposed fish was also observed.

Animals↗

Uptake and depuration of petroleum hydrocarbons by crayfish.

No differences were noted in the amount of naphthalene uptake (approximately 125 micrograms) by individual crayfish exposed for 1, 2, or 4 hr at 25 degree C in open, non-aerated glass jars containing 14C-naphthalene-5% of a water-soluble fraction (WSF) of No. 2 fuel oil. The cephalothorax, containing the hepatopancreas (a food absorption organ), showed greater uptake of naphthalene than the tail flesh or tail skeleton of individual crayfish exposed to the oil for 3 hr at 25 degree C. Crayfish exposed to the oil for 1, 2, or 4 hr and then placed in open, non-aerated containers of oil-free water lost most of the carbon-14 activity during the first 24 hr, with smaller losses occurring at 24 hr intervals up to and including 96 hr. Carbon-14 naphthalene in a 5% WSF of No. 2 fuel oil held in 12 open, non-aerated, oil-free, glass jars for 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 hr at 25 degree C showed little volatilization (P greater than 0.4).

Animals↗