Search results for "Biomonitor"
showing 10 items of 211 documents
Biomonitoring of parabens in human milk and estimated daily intake for breastfed infants
2020
In this study, we assessed the presence of four parabens in human milk of 120 mothers from Valencia (Spain) which took part in a human biomonitoring project (BETTERMILK). The detection frequency ranges of parabens were 41-60% and 61-89% for unconjugated- and total (unconjugated + conjugated)-parabens, respectively. The concentrations ranged from <LoQ to 31 ng/mL and from <LoQ to 49 ng/mL for unconjugated- and total-parabens, respectively. The frequency of use of some cosmetic products and human milk protein levels were the main predictors of parabens in milk. The study evidences the presence of both conjugated and unconjugated paraben forms in human milk. The newborns estimated daily intake…
The Biological Monitoring as a Source of Information on Environmental Pollution with Heavy Metals
2022
Abstract The influence of environmental pollution on living organisms has been known for a long time, but it was not until the second half of the twentieth century that methodical studies on the influence of anthropopressure on changes in ecosystems began. Living organisms began to be used as biological indicators of environmental pollution. Cyclical and quantitative studies of pollutant concentrations in bioaccumulators have become the basis of modern biological monitoring (biomonitoring) of environmental pollution. Biomonitoring studies are carried out with the passive method (passive biomonitoring), in which living organisms occurring in their natural environment are analysed, and with a…
The use of blue tit eggs as a biomonitoring tool for organohalogenated pollutants in the European environment
2010
In the present study, large scale geographical variation in the occurrence of organohalogenated pollutants (OHPs) was investigated throughout Europe using eggs of a terrestrial resident passerine species, the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). Blue tit eggs from 10 sampling locations, involving suburban, rural and remote areas, in 7 European countries were collected and analysed. Sum polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) levels ranged from 150 ng/g lipid weight (lw) to 2003 ng/g lw. Sum polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) ranged from 3.95 ng/g lw to 114 ng/g lw. As expected, PCB and PBDE concentrations were significantly higher in the sampled suburban locations compared to the rural and remote loc…
Characterization of the Etna volcanic emissions through an active biomonitoring technique (moss-bags): Part 1 – Major and trace element composition
2013
Active biomonitoring using moss-bags was applied to an active volcanic environment for the first time. Bioaccumulation originating from atmospheric deposition was evaluated by exposing mixtures of washed and air-dried mosses (Sphagnum species) at 24 sites on Mt. Etna volcano (Italy). Concentrations of major and a large suite of trace elements were analysed by inductively coupled mass and optical spectrometry (ICP-MS and ICP-OES) after total acid digestion. Of the 49 elements analysed those which closely reflect summit volcanic emissions were S, Tl, Bi, Se, Cd, As, Cu, B, Na, Fe, Al. Enrichment factors and cluster analysis allowed clear distinction between volcanogenic, geogenic and anthropo…
Use of Lichen and Moss in Assessment of Forest Contamination with Heavy Metals in Praded and Glacensis Euroregions (Poland and Czech Republic)
2011
The concentrations of selected metals-Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb-were determined in the samples of Hypogymnia physodes lichen and Pleurozium schreberi moss collected in Polish and Czech Euroregions Praded and Glacensis. More specifically, the samples were collected in Bory Stobrawskie, Bory Niemodlińskie, and Kotlina Kłodzka (Poland) and in Jeseniki (Czech Republic). The concentration of metals in the samples was measured using the atomic absorption spectrometry (flame AAS technique and electrothermal atomization AAS technique). The results were used to calculate the comparison factor (CF) that quantifies the difference in concentration of a given bioavailable analyte × accumulated in liche…
Effects of tobacco smoke on indoor air quality: the use of mosses in biomonitoring.
2020
This research was carried out to assess the possibility of using Pleurozium schreberi mosses as bioindicators of atmospheric aerosol pollution in living quarters (kitchen and bedroom), with metals originating from tobacco smoke from various types of cigarettes: conventional cigarettes, e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products. The moss-bag method of active biomonitoring was used. The mosses were exposed in these indoor spaces for three months and, after the exposition period, their analytes – Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb – were determined using flame atomic absorption spectrometry (F-AAS). Results were interpreted using the relative accumulation factors (RAF), coefficients of variation (CV) and th…
The use of mosses in biomonitoring of selected areas in Poland and Spitsbergen in the years from 1975 to 2014
2015
We have compared historical changes in concentrations of the heavy metals Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb accumulated in samples from the Polish woodlands of Beskidy and Karkonosze (S, SE Poland) and the north-east regions of the country, versus the relatively little polluted areas of Spitsbergen of the Svalbard Archipelago. We have combined the results from literature with new results from 2014. The regions of Beskidy and Karkonosze were the most exposed to heavy metals deposition. However, from 1975 to 2014 there was a considerable decrease of concentrations of Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb at all Polish sites, clearly signifying improvement of environmental quality. For example, the average Cd concentrati…
THE USE OF NEUTRON ACTIVATION ANALYSIS IN THE BIOMONITORING OF TRACE ELEMENT DEPOSITION IN THE OPOLE PROVINCE
2013
Abstract The neutron activation analysis procedure was used to determine the concentration of 42 elements: Na, Mg, Al, Cl, K, Ca, Sc, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Co, Zn, As, Se, Br, Rb, Sr, Zr, Nb, Mo, I, Ag, Cd, Sb, Ba, Cs, La, Ce, Nd, Sm, Eu, Tb, Yb, Hf, Ta, W, Au, Hg, Th, and U accumulated in mosses sampled for testing in September and October 2011 in the Opole Province (Southern Poland). Samples of different moss species were collected near the intersections of the grid lines marked on the map of the province. The distance between the points was approximately 20 km. The analysis of the results made it possible to identify the places of increased deposition of element-pollutants and to indicate t…
Detection of primary DNA damage: applicability to biomonitoring of genotoxic occupational exposure and in clinical therapy
1995
The biological effect of putative genotoxic chemicals in the work place environment was monitored in peripheral mononuclear blood cells of exposed workers. DNA strand breaks, alkali-labile sites of DNA and DNA cross-links were measured using the alkaline filter elution method. A dose dependent increase in DNA damage was found in sterilization workers exposed to ethylene oxide and metal workers with exposure towards N-nitrosodiethanolamine. Two subpopulations with different response to the external exposure were found in nonsmoking sterilization workers. Nurses handling antineo-plastic agents without adequate safety provisions showed a statistically significantly higher rate of DNA strand br…
Human experts vs. machines in taxa recognition
2020
The step of expert taxa recognition currently slows down the response time of many bioassessments. Shifting to quicker and cheaper state-of-the-art machine learning approaches is still met with expert scepticism towards the ability and logic of machines. In our study, we investigate both the differences in accuracy and in the identification logic of taxonomic experts and machines. We propose a systematic approach utilizing deep Convolutional Neural Nets with the transfer learning paradigm and extensively evaluate it over a multi-pose taxonomic dataset with hierarchical labels specifically created for this comparison. We also study the prediction accuracy on different ranks of taxonomic hier…