Fifty fish samples were collected from the Pearl River estuary (PRE) and Daya Bay, South China and were analyzed for DDTs, HCHs, chlordanes and polybrominated biphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Except the high concentrations of DDT observed in fishes, the concentrations of HCHs, chlordanes and PBDEs were low when compared to other regions. BDE-47 was the predominant PBDE congener and the BDE-209 concentrations were relatively low, despite its high concentration in surface sediments. The absence of significant increase of DDT, HCH, chlordane and PBDE concentrations towards higher δ15N values, as well as the lack of a significant correlation (p < 0.1) between log concentrations (lipid normalized) and δ15N, may indicate a weak biomagnification of these chemicals in the food webs. Good agreement was observed between their concentrations and lipid contents of the organisms. Bioconcentration was suggested to be responsible for the accumulation of OCPs and PBDEs in the lower trophic organisms in the studied subtropical waters. Bioconcentration was suggested to be responsible for the accumulation of OCPs and PBDEs in the lower trophic organisms of subtropical waters.

A wide variety of aquatic organisms, including juvenile salmonids, assess local predation risks using chemosensory cues. Such chemical cues are typically released from injured conspecifics and their detection may lead to species-typical antipredator behaviour, increasing the probability of prey to survive during predator encounters. Studies have demonstrated however, that under weak acidification (pH ~6.0), the response towards these chemical alarm cues is impaired. However, it remains unknown if the loss of response is graded (i.e., the behavioural response decreases with a reduction in pH) or if there is a threshold pH at which prey can no longer detect the alarm cues. We conducted two laboratory experiments to examine the effects of a graded reduction in pH on the behavioural response of juvenile rainbow trout to conspecific chemical alarm cues. The results of our first experiment suggest that at pH 6.6 and above, the alarm cues elicited a strong antipredator response, while alarm cues buffered to pH 6.2 did not (i.e. not different from distilled water). However, alarm cues buffered to pH 6.4 elicited a weak response, suggesting a graded response. We directly tested this in our second experiment using a repeated measures design. The response to alarm cues at varying pH levels did indeed follow a graded loss of function. Together, our results suggest that juvenile rainbow trout exhibit a reduction in the response to conspecific alarm cues proportional to ambient acidity and that the response to these critically important cues is lost at pH below 6.4. As the detection and response to these chemical alarm cues have been shown to confer direct survival benefit to individuals, these results are therefore presented in relation to possible sub-lethal effects of anthropogenic acidification to freshwater fish.

Bacteria, fungi and viruses are often encountered in aerosols and they can be pathogenic or cause allergies following inhalation. Wastewater treatment facilities have been found to generate bioaerosols, which are transported by the prevailing winds downstream to areas that can be up to several hundred meters away. Bioaerosol formation has a significant effect on air quality in the vicinity of the treatment plants. The amount and characteristics of the formed bioaerosols depend on the aeration system employed at the aeration tank of the wastewater treatment facility. In this work we determined Enterobacteria in air and wastewater samples at the main wastewater treatment facility of the city of Chania (Crete, Greece). Concentrations of airborne bacteria were measured near the aeration and sedimentation tanks. Samples of airborne bacteria were taken by using Merck's MAS-100 bioaerosol collector followed by incubation and enumeration of the colonies. The use of different growth media enabled the separation and enumeration of several classes of microorganisms. As part of this study, Enterobacteria in air samples were also determined by filtration sampling followed by analysis of the collected microorganisms using DAPI staining to determine total cell counts (both viable and non-viable cells). Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with specific 23S rRNA probes was also used in order to identify specific groups of microorganisms (well known pathogens) present in the bioaerosols. The analysis was also performed in wastewater taken from the aeration and secondary sedimentation tanks in an effort to correlate the airborne bacteria with those in the wastewater.