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The Science of the Total Environment Feb 2023There is increasing evidence that the presence of certain pharmaceuticals in the environment leads to biota exposure and constitute a potential risk for ecosystems.... (Review)
Review
There is increasing evidence that the presence of certain pharmaceuticals in the environment leads to biota exposure and constitute a potential risk for ecosystems. Bioaccumulation is an essential focus of risk assessment to evaluate at what degree emerging contaminants are a hazard both to the environment and the individuals that inhabit it. The main goals of the present review are 1) to summarize and describe the research and factors that should be taken into account in the evaluation of bioaccumulation of pharmaceuticals in aquatic organisms; and 2) to provide a database and a critical review of the bioaccumulation/bioconcentration factors (BAF or BCF) of these compounds in organisms of different trophic levels. Most studies fall into one of two categories: laboratory-scale absorption and purification tests or field studies and, to a lesser extent, large-scale, semi-natural system tests. Although in the last 5 years there has been considerable progress in this field, especially in species of fish and molluscs, research is still limited on other aquatic species like crustaceans or algae. This revision includes >230 bioconcentration factors (BCF) and >530 bioaccumulation factors (BAF), determined for 113 pharmaceuticals. The most commonly studied is the antidepressant group, followed by diclofenac and carbamazepine. There is currently no reported accumulation data on certain compounds, such as anti-cancer drugs. BCFs are highly influenced by experimental factors (notably the exposure level, time or temperature). Field BAFs are superior to laboratory BCFs, highlighting the importance of field studies for reliable assessments and in true environmental conditions. BAF data appears to be organ, species and compound-specific. The potential impact on food web transfer is also considered. Among different aquatic species, lower trophic levels and benthic organisms exhibit relatively higher uptake of these compounds.
Topics: Animals; Aquatic Organisms; Ecosystem; Bioaccumulation; Fishes; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Water Pollutants, Chemical
PubMed: 36473663
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160638 -
The Science of the Total Environment Jan 2022Legacy landmines in post-conflict areas are a non-discriminatory lethal hazard and can still be triggered decades after the conflict has ended. Efforts to detect these...
Legacy landmines in post-conflict areas are a non-discriminatory lethal hazard and can still be triggered decades after the conflict has ended. Efforts to detect these explosive devices are expensive, time-consuming, and dangerous to humans and animals involved. While methods such as metal detectors and sniffer dogs have successfully been used in humanitarian demining, more tools are required for both site surveying and accurate mine detection. Honeybees have emerged in recent years as efficient bioaccumulation and biomonitoring animals. The system reported here uses two complementary landmine detection methods: passive sampling and active search. Passive sampling aims to confirm the presence of explosive materials in a mine-suspected area by the analysis of explosive material brought back to the colony on honeybee bodies returning from foraging trips. Analysis is performed by light-emitting chemical sensors detecting explosives thermally desorbed from a preconcentrator strip. The active search is intended to be able to pinpoint the place where individual landmines are most likely to be present. Used together, both methods are anticipated to be useful in an end-to-end process for area surveying, suspected hazardous area reduction, and post-clearing internal and external quality control in humanitarian demining.
Topics: Animals; Bees; Bioaccumulation; Biological Monitoring; Dogs; Explosive Agents; Specimen Handling; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 34500270
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150041 -
International Journal of Environmental... Jul 2022Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are widely used as an additive in flame retardants, plasticizers, lubricants, consumer chemicals, and foaming agents. They can accumulate...
Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are widely used as an additive in flame retardants, plasticizers, lubricants, consumer chemicals, and foaming agents. They can accumulate in aquatic organisms from water (waterborne exposure) and food (dietary exposure). However, the bioaccumulation characteristics and relative importance of different exposure routes to the bioaccumulation of OPEs are relatively poorly understood. In this study, were exposed to fo typical OPEs (tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP), tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCIPP), tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBOEP), and triphenyl phosphate (TPHP)), and their toxicokinetics under waterborne and dietary exposure routes were analyzed. For the waterborne exposure route, the bioconcentration factors (BCFs) increased in the order of TBOEP, TCEP, TDCPP, and TPHP, which were consistent with their uptake rate constants. TPHP might have the most substantial accumulation potential while TBOEP may have the smallest potential. In dietary exposure, the depuration rate constants of four OPEs were different from those in the waterborne experiment, which may indicate other depuration mechanisms in two exposure routes. The biomagnification factors (BMFs) of fur OPEs were all below 1, suggesting trophic dilution in the transfer of four OPEs from to . Except for TBOEP, the contributions of dietary exposure were generally lower than waterborne exposure in under two exposure concentrations. This study provides information on the bioaccumulation and contribution of OPEs in via different exposure routes and highlights the importance of considering different exposure routes in assessing the risk of OPEs.
Topics: Animals; Bioaccumulation; Daphnia; Environmental Monitoring; Esters; Flame Retardants; Organophosphates; Phosphates; Zooplankton
PubMed: 35954739
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19159382 -
Environmental Pollution (Barking, Essex... Sep 2022Research on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in freshwater ecosystems has focused primarily on legacy compounds and little is still known on the presence of...
Research on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in freshwater ecosystems has focused primarily on legacy compounds and little is still known on the presence of emerging PFAS. Here, we investigated the occurrence of 60 anionic, zwitterionic, and cationic PFAS in a food web of the St. Lawrence River (Quebec, Canada) near a major metropolitan area. Water, sediments, aquatic vegetation, invertebrates, and 14 fish species were targeted for analysis. Levels of perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) in river water exceeded those of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) or perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), and a zwitterionic betaine was observed for the first time in the St. Lawrence River. The highest mean PFAS concentrations were observed for the benthopelagic top predator Smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu, ΣPFAS ∼ 92 ± 34 ng/g wet weight whole-body) and the lowest for aquatic plants (0.52-2.3 ng/g). Up to 33 PFAS were detected in biotic samples, with frequent occurrences of emerging PFAS such as perfluorobutane sulfonamide (FBSA) and perfluoroethyl cyclohexane sulfonate (PFECHS), while targeted ether-PFAS all remained undetected. PFOS and long-chain perfluorocarboxylates (C10-C13 PFCAs) dominated the contamination profiles in biota except for insects where PFBA was predominant. Gammarids, molluscs, and insects also had frequent detections of PFOA and fluorotelomer sulfonates, an important distinction with fish and presumably due to different metabolism. Based on bioaccumulation factors >5000 and trophic magnification factors >1, long-chain (C10-C13) PFCAs, PFOS, perfluorodecane sulfonate, and perfluorooctane sulfonamide qualified as very bioaccumulative and biomagnifying. Newly monitored PFAS such as FBSA and PFECHS were biomagnified but moderately bioaccumulative, while PFOA was biodiluted.
Topics: Alkanesulfonates; Alkanesulfonic Acids; Animals; Bioaccumulation; Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; Fishes; Fluorocarbons; Food Chain; Rivers; Sulfonamides; Water; Water Pollutants, Chemical
PubMed: 35817301
DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119739 -
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety Jul 2022The form of chromium (Cr) is an important factor that influences its bioavailability and potential toxicity, while the difference of Cr bioaccumulation between organic...
The form of chromium (Cr) is an important factor that influences its bioavailability and potential toxicity, while the difference of Cr bioaccumulation between organic and inorganic Cr has been rarely investigated. The present study compared the bioaccumulation of organic Cr (e.g., chromium picolinate (CrPic)) and inorganic Cr (e.g., trivalent (Cr(III)) and hexavalent (Cr(VI))) in juvenile coral trout (Plectropomus leopardus). The fish were exposed to a gradient level of different forms of dietary Cr for 66 days. Then the Cr bioaccumulation in fish were comparatively quantified between CrPic, Cr(VI) and Cr(III) groups. The results showed that the Cr bioaccumulation was form- and tissue-specific, dose- and time-dependent. Specifically, the newly bioaccumulated Cr in fish generally increased with the increasing dietary Cr level and exposure time, while the CrPic groups accumulated the highest Cr in most cases, followed by Cr(VI) and Cr(III) groups. The highest Cr content was observed in gut for CrPic groups, while it was highest in heart for Cr(VI) and Cr(III) groups, followed by kidney, skin, fin, liver, gill, bone, eyes and muscle in order. Overall, the results here firstly demonstrated that the dietary organic Cr(III) had significantly higher bioaccumulation than inorganic Cr (Cr(III) and Cr(VI)). Our findings suggested the complexity and variability of form-specific Cr bioavailability and toxicity should be cautiously evaluated in aquatic environments, which has been largely overlooked previously.
Topics: Animals; Anthozoa; Bioaccumulation; Chromium; Picolinic Acids; Trout
PubMed: 35636236
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2022.113692 -
Communications Biology Nov 2023Nematodes represent >3/5 of the abundance of the world's metazoans and usually account for nearly 90% of the total benthic fauna, playing a key ecological role in the...
Nematodes represent >3/5 of the abundance of the world's metazoans and usually account for nearly 90% of the total benthic fauna, playing a key ecological role in the benthic ecosystem functioning on a global scale. These small metazoans include a relevant number of microscopic predators and, in turn, are the most abundant preys of macro-megafauna and fish juveniles thus playing a key role in marine food webs. Here, using two independent approaches, we test the bioaccumulation in marine nematodes of several heavy metals present in contaminated sediments. We report here that nematodes, despite their short life cycle and small size, bioaccumulate significantly heavy metals. Bioaccumulation increases from deposit feeders and microalgal grazers to predators of microbes and other tiny metazoans. These results suggest that nematodes also contribute to their biomagnification along the food webs and can contribute to increase the transfer of contaminants from the sediments to larger organisms.
Topics: Animals; Bioaccumulation; Ecosystem; Metals, Heavy; Food Chain; Fishes
PubMed: 38012231
DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05539-x -
The Science of the Total Environment Jun 2022Volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) are found in a broad range of industrial and consumer products. They are categorized as "high production volume chemicals" by the U.S.... (Review)
Review
Volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) are found in a broad range of industrial and consumer products. They are categorized as "high production volume chemicals" by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and listed as candidates of substances of very high concern in 2018, by the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH). Industrial wastewater and treated effluents may contain VMSs in different amounts, which can be discharged in the receptor media and may lead to environmental contamination. This can result in direct exposure to aquatic receptors in the water column or to benthic invertebrates from contact and/or ingestion of sediments, and indirect exposures through the aquatic food chain. The possible toxicological effects of VMSs for the aquatic biota and human ecology are not very well known since published information regarding this topic is scarce. VMSs have been subjected to regulatory scrutiny for environmental concerns and have already been screened to determine their environmental risk and ecological harm. This paper aims to assess VMSs bioaccumulation and potential biomagnification on food webs, using several bioaccumulation metrics. The result is a high-level overview of all the collected data, comparing the findings and the experimental conditions applied during the assessments. Several studies present conflicting results regarding the bioaccumulation categorization. Some aquatic organisms demonstrated a high bioconcentration and bioaccumulation of these contaminants. Trophic magnification factors (TMFs) have been suggested as the most reliable tool to assess a chemical behaviour in food webs. However, bioaccumulation studies in food webs provided mixed information, with some studies indicating trophic dilution and others presenting a potential of trophic biomagnification of VMSs. Efforts should be directed to obtain field-based levels of VMSs at different trophic levels and a wider range of linear VMSs should be analysed, since most studies focused on D4, D5 and D6.
Topics: Animals; Bioaccumulation; Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; Fishes; Food Chain; Humans; Water Pollutants, Chemical
PubMed: 35167889
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153821 -
International Journal of Environmental... Feb 2020This study investigated the changes in bioaccumulation, bioabsorption, photosynthesis rate, respiration rate, and photosynthetic pigments (phycoerythrin, phycocyanin,...
This study investigated the changes in bioaccumulation, bioabsorption, photosynthesis rate, respiration rate, and photosynthetic pigments (phycoerythrin, phycocyanin, and allophycocyanin) of following cadmium exposure within 24 h. The bioabsorption was significantly higher than the bioaccumulation at all cadmium levels ( < 0.05). The ratios of bioabsorption/bioaccumulation in light and dark bottles were 2.17 and 1.74, respectively, when was exposed to 5 Cd mg/L. The chlorophyll a (Chl-a) concentration, oxygen evolution rate (photosynthetic efficiency), and oxygen consumption rate (respiratory efficiency) decreased with increasing bioaccumulation and ambient cadmium levels. The levels of bioaccumulation and bioabsorption in light environments were significantly higher than those in dark environments ( < 0.05). In addition, the ratios of phycoerythrin (PE)/Chl-a, phycocyanin (PC)/Chl-a, and allophycocyanin (APC)/Chl-a were also higher in light bottles compared to dark bottles at all ambient cadmium levels. These results indicated that the photosynthesis of seaweed will increase bioaccumulation and bioabsorption in a cadmium environment.
Topics: Bioaccumulation; Cadmium; Chlorophyll; Chlorophyll A; Photosynthesis; Rhodophyta
PubMed: 32085376
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17041294 -
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry Mar 2020The present study investigated the dietary bioaccumulation and biotransformation of hydrophobic organic sunscreen agents, 2-ethylhexyl-4-methoxycinnamate (EHMC) and...
The present study investigated the dietary bioaccumulation and biotransformation of hydrophobic organic sunscreen agents, 2-ethylhexyl-4-methoxycinnamate (EHMC) and octocrylene (OCT), in rainbow trout using a modified Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 305 dietary bioaccumulation test that incorporated nonbiotransformed reference chemicals. Trout were exposed to 3 dietary concentrations of each chemical to investigate the relationship between dietary exposure concentration and observed accumulation and depuration. Both EHMC and OCT were significantly biotransformed, resulting in mean in vivo whole-body biotransformation rate constants (k ) of 0.54 ± 0.06 and 0.09 ± 0.01 d , respectively. The k values generated for both chemicals did not differ between dietary exposure concentrations, indicating that chemical concentrations in the fish were not high enough to saturate biotransformation enzymes. Both somatic and luminal biotransformation substantially reduce EHMC and OCT bioaccumulation potential in trout. Biomagnification factors (BMFs) and bioconcentration factors (BCFs) of EHMC averaged 0.0035 kg lipid kg lipid and 396 L kg , respectively, whereas those of OCT averaged 0.0084 kg lipid kg lipid and 1267 L kg . These values are 1 to 2 orders of magnitude lower than the BMFs and BCFs generated for reference chemicals of similar log K . In addition, for both chemicals, derived BMFs and BCFs fell below established bioaccumulation criteria (1.0 kg lipid kg lipid and 2000 L kg , respectively), suggesting that EHMC ad OCT are unlikely to bioaccumulate to a high degree in aquatic biota. Environ Toxicol Chem 2020;39:574-586. © 2019 SETAC.
Topics: Acrylates; Animals; Bioaccumulation; Biotransformation; Cinnamates; Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; Oncorhynchus mykiss; Sunscreening Agents; Water Pollutants, Chemical
PubMed: 31749247
DOI: 10.1002/etc.4638 -
The Science of the Total Environment Oct 2020Cylindrospermopsin (CYN), a cyanotoxin produced by harmful algal blooms, has been reported worldwide; however, there remains limited understanding of its potential risks... (Review)
Review
Cylindrospermopsin (CYN), a cyanotoxin produced by harmful algal blooms, has been reported worldwide; however, there remains limited understanding of its potential risks to surface water quality. In the present study, we critically reviewed available literature regarding the global occurrence, bioaccumulation, and toxicity of CYN in aquatic systems with a particular focus on freshwater. We subsequently developed environmental exposure distributions (EEDs) for CYN in surface waters and performed probabilistic environmental hazard assessments (PEHAs) using guideline values (GVs). PEHAs were performed by geographic region, type of aquatic system, and matrix. CYN occurrence was prevalent in North America, Europe, and Asia/Pacific, with lakes being the most common system. Many global whole water EEDs exceeded guideline values (GV) previously developed for drinking water (e.g., 0.5 μg L) and recreational water (e.g., 1 μg L). GV exceedances were higher in the Asia/Pacific region, and in rivers and reservoirs. Rivers in the Asia/Pacific region exceeded the lowest drinking water GV 73.2% of the time. However, lack of standardized protocols used for analyses was alarming, which warrants improvement in future studies. In addition, bioaccumulation of CYN has been reported in mollusks, crustaceans, and fish, but such exposure information remains limited. Though several publications have reported aquatic toxicity of CYN, there is limited chronic aquatic toxicity data, especially for higher trophic level organisms. Most aquatic toxicity studies have not employed standardized experimental designs, failed to analytically verify treatment levels, and did not report purity of CYN used for experiments; therefore, existing data are insufficient to derive water quality guidelines. Considering such elevated exceedances of CYN in global surface waters and limited aquatic bioaccumulation and toxicity data, further aquatic monitoring, environmental fate and mechanistic toxicology studies are warranted to robustly assess and manage water quality risks to public health and the environment.
Topics: Alkaloids; Animals; Asia; Bacterial Toxins; Bioaccumulation; Cyanobacteria Toxins; Europe; North America; Uracil
PubMed: 32585507
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139807