A total of 82 aerosol samples (PM10-2.5) were collected from June 18, 2015 to October 1, 2016 at the remote sea site, the Ieodo Ocean Research Station (IORS), in the East China Sea. Samples were analyzed for 10 elements (Al, Fe, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Cd, Sb, Tl, and Pb) as well as Pb isotopic composition to characterize temporal variations in elemental concentration levels, and to identify the potential source regions of atmospheric pollutants transported over the remote East China Sea. The results showed that the annual average element concentrations were lowest compared to those at different sites in East Asia, suggesting a very clean background area of IORS, with values ranging from 114 ng m⁻³ for Al to 0.045 ng m⁻³ for Tl. Concentrations averaged seasonally for all the elements revealed the highest levels occurring between winter and spring, and the lowest levels in summer. High enrichment factors (EF) of more than 100 for trace elements suggest that these elements originated mostly from anthropogenic sources. Coupling the Pb isotopic composition with a back trajectory analysis identified the potential source regions for each sample. Our approach identified China as a dominant contributor affecting atmospheric composition changes at IORS, the remote area of the East China Sea. As the largest anthropogenic emission source in East Asia, China contributed to almost 100% of the elemental concentration levels in winter and spring, ∼53% in summer and ∼63% in autumn. Because IORS's ambient air is sensitive to even slight changes in pollutant loading due to the significantly low pollution levels, long-term monitoring of air quality at IORS will provide invaluable information on the progress and efforts of atmospheric pollution management linked to emission controls in East Asian countries, especially China.

Mining activities have contaminated many riverine floodplains with arsenic (As). When floodplain soils become anoxic under water-saturated conditions, As can be released from the solid phase. Several microbially-driven As solubilization processes and numerous influential factors were recognized in the past. However, the interplay and relative importance of soil properties and the influence of environmental factors such as temperature remain poorly understood, especially considering the (co)variation of soil properties in a floodplain. We conducted anoxic microcosm experiments at 10, 17.5, and 25 °C using 65 representative soils from the mining-impacted Ogosta River floodplain in Bulgaria. To investigate the processes of As solubilization and its quantitative variation we followed the As and Fe redox dynamics in the solid and the dissolved phase and monitored a range of other solution parameters including pH, Eh, dissolved organic C, and dissolved Mn. We related soil properties to dissolved As observed after 20 days of microcosm incubation to identify key soil properties for As solubilization. Our results evidenced reductive dissolution of As-bearing Fe(III)-oxyhydroxides as the main cause for high solubilization. The availability of nutrients, most likely organic C as the source of energy for microorganisms, was found to limit this process. Following the vertical nutrient gradient common in vegetated soil, we observed several hundred μM dissolved As after 1–2 weeks for some topsoils (0–20 cm), while for subsoils (20–40 cm) with comparable total As levels only minor solubilization was observed. While high Mn contents were found to inhibit As solubilization, the opposite applied for higher temperature (Q10 2.3–6.1 for range 10–25 °C). Our results suggest that flooding of nutrient-rich surface layers might be more problematic than water-saturation of nutrient-poor subsoil layers, especially in summer floodings when soil temperature is higher than in winter or spring.

Microcystin-LR (MCLR) has been reported to cause developmental neurotoxicity in zebrafish, but there are few studies on the mechanisms of MCLR-induced transgenerational effects of developmental neurotoxicity. In this study, zebrafish were exposed to 0, 1, 5, and 25 μg/L MCLR for 60 days. The F1 zebrafish embryos from the above-mentioned parents were collected and incubated in clean water for 120 h for hatching. After examining the parental zebrafish and F1 embryos, MCLR was detected in the gonad of adults and F1 embryos, indicating MCLR could potentially be transferred from parents to offspring. The larvae also showed a serious hypoactivity. The contents of dopamine, dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), serotonin, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and acetylcholine (ACh) were further detected, but only the first three neurotransmitters showed significant reduction in the 5 and 25 μg/L MCLR parental exposure groups. In addition, the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity was remarkably decreased in MCLR parental exposure groups, while the expression levels of manf, bdnf, ache, htr1ab, htr1b, htr2a, htr1aa, htr5a, DAT, TH1 and TH2 genes coincided with the decreased content of neurotransmitters (dopamine, DOPAC and serotonin) and the activity of AChE. Neuronal development related genes, α1-tubulin, syn2a, mbp, gfap, elavl3, shha and gap43 were also measured, but gap43 was the gene only up-regulated. Our results demonstrated MCLR could be transferred to offspring, and subsequently induce developmental neurotoxicity in F1 zebrafish larvae by disturbing the neurotransmitter systems and neuronal development.

Cadmium uptake in rice is believed to be mediated by the Fe transport system. Phyto-available Cd can be changed by Fe fertilization of substrates. This work investigated whether and how Fe fertilization affects mitigation of Cd accumulation in paddy rice. A 90-d soil column experiment was conducted to study the change of Cd and Fe availability in soil after Fe fertilization (ionic and chelated Fe). A low-Cd accumulating cultivar (TY116) and a high-Cd accumulating cultivar (JY841) were grown in two Cd-polluted paddy soils amended with chelated Fe fertilizers. Additionally, both cultivars were grown in hydroponics to compare Fe-related gene expression in EDDHAFe-deficient and EDDHAFe-sufficient roots.The column experiment showed that EDTANa2Fe(II) and EDDHAFe(III) fertilization had a better mitigation effect on soil Cd availability compared to FeSO4·7H2O. Moreover, the field experiment demonstrated that these two chelated fertilizations could reduce Cd concentrations in brown rice by up to 80%. Iron concentrations in the brown rice were elevated by Fe chelates. Compared to EDDHAFe(III), EDTANa2Fe(II) fertilization had a stronger mitigation effect by generating more EDTANa2Cd(II) in the soil solution to decrease phyto-available Cd in the soil. While EDDHAFe(III) fertilization could increase soil pH and decrease soil Eh which contributed to decreasing phyto-available Cd in a contaminated soil. In the hydroponic experiment, Fe sufficiency significantly reduced Cd concentrations in above-ground organs. In some cases, the expression of OsIRT1, OsNRAMP1 and OsNRAMP5 was inhibited under Fe sufficiency relative to Fe deficiency conditions. These results suggest that mitigation of rice Cd by Fe chelate fertilization results from a decrease in available Cd in substrates and the inhibition of the expression of several Fe-related genes in the IRT and NRAMP families.

Perturbations of rainwater chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) fluorescence induced by changes in rainfall intensity and pH were investigated by field observations and laboratory pH titrations. Microbial humic-like fluorophores dominated the rainwater CDOM pool, followed by tryptophan-like and tyrosine-like substances. Increased rainfall intensity had notable dilution effects on all six fluorescent components (C1-C6) identified using parallel factor (PARAFAC) analysis, the effect being especially pronounced for the microbial humic-like C1, tryptophan-like C3, and tyrosine-like C5. The results also indicated that increasing pH from 7 to 9 led to decreased fluorescence intensity (Fmax) of all the six components, while a pH increase from 5 to 7, resulted in increasing Fmax of terrestrial humic-like C2, tyrosine-like C5, and tryptophan-like C6 and decreasing microbial humic-like C1, tryptophan-like C3, and fulvic-like C4. Two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) demonstrated that synchronous fluorescence responded first to pH modifications at fulvic-like wavelength (λEx/λEm = ∼316/416 nm), followed by tyrosine-like wavelength (λEx/λEm = ∼204/304 nm), tryptophan-like wavelength (λEx/λEm = ∼226/326 nm), microbial humic-like wavelength (∼295/395 nm), and finally terrestrial humic-like wavelength (∼360/460 nm). Our results suggest that a decrease in areas affected by acid rain in South China occurring at present may possibly result in apparent compositional changes of CDOM fluorescence. The decreased rainfall in South-West China and increased rainfall in North-West China during the past five decades may possibly accordingly result in increased and decreased Fmax of all the six components identified in South-West and North-West China, respectively.

Phosphorus (P) plays a critical role in algal growth; therefore, a better understanding of P availability is essential to control harmful algal blooms. Three algae species, Microcystis aeruginosa, Chlorella pyrenoidosa, and Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, were mono-cultured and co-cultured on three types of P substrates, dissolved inorganic P (DIP), phosphomonoesters glucose-6-phosphate (G-6-P) and β-glycerol phosphate (β-glycerol-P), and phosphonate (glyphosate), to explore their growth and P utilization. All three species could utilize dissolved organic P (DOP) to sustain their growth, whereas DIP was their preferred P substrate in both culture types. Algae could regulate the P uptake capacity under different P conditions, and the added P could be rapidly accumulated at the beginning of the culture and slowly utilized during the subsequent life cycle. M. aeruginosa exhibited wider P selectivity and could utilize all three P substrates, whereas the other two species could only use phosphomonoester (G-6-P and β-glycerol-P) in the mono-cultures. However, in the co-cultures, the relative bioavailability of DOP for M. aeruginosa and C. pyrenoidosa was enhanced, and M. aeruginosa might contribute to the growth of C. pyrenoidosa and P. subcapitata when fed with glyphosate. The three species showed an intrinsic ability to produce alkaline phosphatase (AP), and AP activity (APA) was regulated by Pi stress. However, high APA did not necessarily lead to high Pi release and algal growth on unfavorable substrates. Although M. aeruginosa was not superior in growth rate in the mono-cultures, it showed a better P accumulation ability and maintained stable growth on different P substrates. Moreover, it was a good competitor, suppressing the thriving growth of the other species in co-cultures. Overall, the findings indicated the strategic flexibility of P utilization by algae and the strong competitive ability of M. aeruginosa in Pi-limited and DOP-enriched natural waters.

Toxic organic substances and polar organic marker compounds, i.e. polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their nitro-derivatives (N-PAHs), as well as dicarboxylic acids (DCAs) and sugars/sugar anhydrites (S/SAs) were analyzed in size-segregated PM samples (<0.49, 0.49–0.97, 0.97–3 and >3 μm) collected at two urban sites (urban traffic and urban background) during the cold and the warm season. The potential associations between the organic PM determinants and the adverse cellular effects (i.e. cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, DNA damage, oxidative DNA adduct formation, and inflammatory response) induced by the extractable organic matter (EOM) of PM, previously measured in Velali et al. (2016b), were investigated by bivariate correlations and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Partial Least Square regression analysis (PLS) was also employed in order to identify the chemical classes mainly involved in the EOM-induced toxicological endpoints in the various particle size fractions. Results indicated that particle size range <0.49 μm was the major carrier of PM mass and organic compounds at both sites. All toxic organic compounds exhibited higher concentrations at the urban traffic site, except PCBs and OCPs that did not exhibit intra-urban variations. Conversely, wintertime levels of levoglucosan were significantly higher at the urban background site as a result of residential biomass burning. The PLS regression analysis allowed quite good prediction of the EOM-induced cytotoxicity and genotoxicity based on the determined organic chemical classes, particularly for the finest size fraction of PM. Nevertheless, it is expected that other chemical constituents, not determined here, also contribute to the measured toxicological responses.

Leaf-shredding amphipods play a critical role in the ecosystem function of leaf litter breakdown, a key process in many low order streams. Fungicides, however, may adversely influence shredders' behavior and the functions they provide, while there is only limited knowledge concerning effects on their reproductive performance. To assess the latter, a semi-static 56-day partial life-cycle bioassay using the model shredder Hyalella azteca (n = 30) was performed applying two environmentally relevant concentrations of a model fungicide mixture (i.e., 5 and 25 μg/L) composed of five fungicides with different modes of toxic action. Variables related to the food processing (leaf consumption and feces production), growth (body length and dry weight), energy reserves (lipid content), and reproduction (amplexus pairs, number and length of offspring) were determined to understand potential implications in the organisms' energy budget. While the fungicides did not affect leaf consumption, both fungicide treatments significantly reduced amphipods' feces production (∼20%) compared to the control. This observation suggests an increased food utilization to counteract the elevated and stress-related energy demand: although growth as well as energy reserves were unaffected, amplexus pairs were less frequently observed in both fungicide treatments (∼50–100%) suggesting a tradeoff regarding energy allocation favoring the maintenance of fundamental functions at the organism level over reproduction. As a result, the time to release of first offspring was delayed in both fungicide treatments (7 and 14 days) and the median number of offspring was significantly lower in the 25-μg/L treatment (100%), whereas offspring length remained unaffected. The results of this study thus indicate that chronic fungicide exposures can negatively impact shredders' reproductive performance. This may translate into lower abundances and thus a reduced contribution to leaf litter breakdown in fungicide-impacted streams with potentially far-reaching consequences for detritus-based food webs.

Biological degradation is the main process for oil degradation in a subsurface oil plume. There is, however, little information on the biodegradation potential of Arctic, marine subsurface environments. We therefore investigated oil biodegradation in microcosms at 2 °C containing Arctic subsurface seawater from the Disko Bay (Greenland) and crude oil at three concentrations of 2.5–10 mg/L. Within 71 days, the total petroleum hydrocarbon concentration decreased only by 18 ± 18% for an initial concentration of 5 mg/L. The saturated alkanes nC13-nC30 and the isoprenoids iC18-iC21 were biodegraded at all concentrations indicating a substantial potential for biodegradation of these compound classes. Polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) disappeared from the oil phase, but dissolution was the main process of removal. Analysis of diagnostic ratios indicated almost no PAC biodegradation except for the C1-naphthalenes. To conclude, the marine subsurface microorganisms from the Disko Bay had the potential for biodegradation of n-alkanes and isoprenoids while the metabolically complex and toxic PACs and their alkylated homologs remained almost unchanged.

Baltic amber, adored for its beauty already in Homer's Odyssey (ca. 800 B.C.E), has its material density close to that of wide-spread plastics like polyamide, polystyrene, or acrylic. Migrations of amber stones in the sea and their massive washing ashore have been monitored by Baltic citizens for ages. Based on the collected information, we present the hypothesis on the behaviour of microplastic particles in sea coastal zone. Fresh-to-strong winds generate surface waves, currents and roll-structures, whose joint effect washes ashore from the underwater slope both amber stones and plastics – and carries them back to the sea in a few days. Analysis of underlying hydrophysical processes suggests that sea coastal zone under stormy winds plays a role of a mill for plastics, and negatively buoyant pieces seem to repeatedly migrate between beaches and underwater slopes until they are broken into small enough fragments that can be transported by currents to deeper areas and deposited out of reach of stormy waves. Direct observations on microplastics migrations are urged to prove the hypothesis.