Search results for "Environmental pollutant"

Organochlorine Pesticides and Polychlorinated Biphenyl Congeners in LannerFalco biarmicus feldeggiiSchlegel Chicks and Lanner Prey in Sicily, Italy

2008

This paper reports on research conducted to elucidate the risk posed to the Sicilian population of the endangered lanner falcon Falco biarmicus feldeggii Schlegel by organochlorine (OC) pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), as part of a wider study on contaminant risk to the lanner. Seventeen lanner nest sites were studied in northern and central Sicily. Sampling (in 2005) and analysis were carried out for selected OC pesticides and PCB congeners in lanner chick blood (15 chicks from 6 nest sites) and in two of the main lanner prey species, magpie Pica pica (36 individuals from 6 lanner nest sites) and rock dove Columba livia (10 individuals from 2 lanner nest sites). No OC and P…

Implementing the contamination prevention programs in the pesticide industry by infrared spectroscopy.

2014

Abstract An infrared spectroscopy based methodology has been successfully developed to implement contamination prevention programs in the pesticide industry. Sensitivity of the IR procedure, traditionally considered the Achilles Hell of the technique, has been improved by using a transmission cell with an open upper side, an internal volume of 35 µL and an optical pathlength of 0.5 mm, providing detection limits of 32 mg L−1 for folpet and 48 mg L−1 for cymoxanil. The manufacturing of folpet and cymoxanil was employed as an example and the IR methodology was validated for the implementation of contamination prevention programs in the pesticide industry. The swab test and rinsate method were…

Species-Specific GC/ICP-IDMS for Trimethyllead Determinations in Biological and Environmental Samples

2005

An accurate and sensitive species-specific isotope dilution GC/ICPMS method was developed for the determination of trimethyllead (Me3Pb+) in biological and environmental samples. A trimethyllead spike was synthesized from 206Pb-enriched metallic lead by reaction of lead halide with methyllithium and subsequent formation of trimethyllead iodide. The isotopic composition of the spike solution was determined by GC/ICPMS after derivatization with tetraethylborate, and its concentration was determined by reverse isotope dilution analysis. The species-specific GC/ICP-IDMS method was validated by reference material CRM 605 (urban dust) certified for Me3Pb+. The method was also applied to determine…

Estimation of the presence of unmetabolized dialkyl phthalates in untreated human urine by an on-line miniaturized reliable method

2015

Abstract At present, human exposure to dialkyl phthalates is assessed through urinary measurement of their metabolites due mainly to contamination in their analysis by their ubiquitous presence. An on-line miniaturized method and the processing of the untreated urine samples have been the key factors for minimizing contamination and achieving unbiased results. Di(2-ethylhexyl) (DEHP), diethyl (DEP), dibutyl (DBP) and mono-ethylhexyl (MEHP) phthalates in urine samples have been included in the study; MEHP as metabolite of the main dialkyl phthalate such as DEHP. On-line in-tube solid-phase microextraction (IT-SPME)-capillary liquid chromatography (CapLC) with diode array detection (DAD) is e…

Toxicity assessment of pesticides using the microtox test: application to environmental samples.

1997

Prenatal exposure to mixtures of xenoestrogens and repetitive element DNA methylation changes in human placenta

2014

BACKGROUND: Prenatal exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) has previously shown to alter epigenetic marks. OBJECTIVES: In this work we explore whether prenatal exposure to mixtures of xenoestrogens has the potential to alter the placenta epigenome, by studying DNA methylation in retrotransposons as a surrogate of global DNA methylation. METHODS: The biomarker total effective xenoestrogen burden (TEXB) was measured in 192 placentas from participants in the longitudinal INMA Project. DNA methylation was quantitatively assessed by bisulfite pyrosequencing on 10 different retrotransposons including 3 different long interspersed nuclear elements (LINEs), 4 short interspersed nuclear …

Exposure and risk assessment to arsenic species in Spanish children using biomonitoring

2018

We present a new approach to arsenic (As) risk assessment using biomonitoring. In this pilot study we determined the levels of total and speciated urinary arsenicin 109 Spanish school children aged between 6 and 11 years, and interpreted these concentrations in a risk assessment context. The geometric mean (GM) for total As (TAs) was 33.82 mu/L. The order of occurrence and average concentrations of the different species was arsenobetaine (AsB) (100%, 15 mu g/L), dimethylarsinic (DMA) (97%, 8.32 mu g/L), monomethylarsonic (MMA) (26%, 027 mu g/L) and inorganic As (iAs) (4%, 0.14 mu g/L). 18% of children presented exposures to inorganic arsenic (7.52 mu g/g creatinine) higher than guidance val…

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…

Immobilized humic substances as sorbents

2005

A new method was developed for the immobilization of humic substances. Humic acids (HA) immobilized onto different carriers were studied as sorbents for organic and inorganic substances. The sorption isotherms of 4-aminoazobenzene, Crystal Violet, Methylene Green, and flavine mononucleotide on immobilized HA show that pH and salt concentration have a significant effect on the sorption process, largely depending on the properties of polymeric matrix. Humic acids from different sources showed differing sorption capacity for the studied groups of substances.

Assessing population exposure to phthalate plasticizers in thirteen Spanish cities through the analysis of wastewater

2021

Phthalates are widely used plasticizers that produce endocrine-disrupting disorders. Quantifying exposure is crucial to perform risk assessments and to develop proper health measures. Herein, a wastewater-based epidemiology approach has been applied to estimate human exposure to six of the mostly used phthalates within the Spanish population. Wastewater samples were collected over four weekdays from seventeen wastewater treatment plants serving thirteen cities and ca. 6 million people (12.8 % of the Spanish population). Phthalate metabolite loads in wastewater were transformed into metabolite concentrations in urine and into daily exposure levels to the parent phthalates. Considering all th…