Mercury levels measured in 302 hair samples of 4 year-old children from Menorca (western Mediterranean Sea) are reported. Their concentrations, arithmetic mean 1.4 μg/g, ranging between 0.040 μg/g and 10 μg/g, were higher than in other children inland populations but lower than in previously studied island cohorts, e.g. Faroe, Madeira and Seychelles. 20% of the samples were above the WHO recommended values. Higher concentrations in females than males were observed. Frequent consumption of fish and other seafood were significantly related to the observed mercury concentrations. Oily fish was the main source of this pollutant but shellfish and squid consumption were also associated with high mercury concentrations. Maternal smoking, occupational status or previous siblings were also found to significantly influence the levels of this pollutant. McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities used to assess children's motor and cognitive abilities did not show association with mercury concentrations at 4 years of age.

This study reveals potential accumulation of trace metals in the sea and groundwater due to ship breaking activities which take place along the Bay of Bengal in Sitakund Upazilla, Chittagong, Bangladesh. When compared with WHO and Bangladesh domestic standards for water quality, it is revealed that seawater was strongly polluted by Fe and Hg, moderately by Mn and Al, and slightly by Pb and Cd. Groundwater was strongly polluted by Fe, Pb and Hg, moderately by Mn and Al, and slightly by As. Trace element concentrations of all seawater samples exceeded the average concentration of elements in the Earth’s seawater. The application of Principal Components Analysis identified two sources of pollution–marine and ship breaking. The mechanism of groundwater pollution inferred that if seawater is polluted, nearby groundwater is also polluted with trace metals due to the influence of seawater intrusion.

The current study estimates premature mortality caused by long-term exposure to elevated concentrations of PM₂.₅ (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter equal to or less than 2.5 μm) in Japan from 2006 to 2009. The premature mortality is calculated based on a relative risk of 1.04 (95 % CI, 1.01–1.08) per 10 μg m⁻³ increase above the annual mean limit of 10 μg m⁻³ taken from the World Health Organization Air Quality Guidelines. The spatiotemporal variations of PM₂.₅ are estimated based on the measurements of suspended particulate matter (SPM) (with aerodynamic diameter approximately less than 7.0 μm) at 1,843 monitors. The improvements of air quality in Japan by reducing the emissions of SPM from 2006 to 2009 could save 3,602 lives based on a reduction target of 10 μg m⁻³ annual mean concentration. This finding could be a tangible benefit gained by reducing the emissions of particulate matter in Japan.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of microcystin-LR, microcystin-RR, microcystin-YR, and the neurotoxin anatoxin-a in water samples collected monthly during 1 year in San Roque reservoir (Córdoba, Argentina) to identify the environmental factors that could promote the presence of these cyanotoxins. The HPLC-UV and MS/MS analysis showed the presence of microcystin in most of the sampling times, even when Cyanobacteria were subdominant. Microcystin concentrations varied from not detectable levels to 119.0 μg L⁻¹. Thus, they frequently surpassed the guidelines suggested by WHO for drinking water (1 μg L⁻¹) and recreational exposure (20 μg L⁻¹). To the extent of our knowledge, this is the first report of anatoxin-a in freshwaters in South America. Anatoxin-a concentrations varied from not detectable levels to 6.6 ng L⁻¹, a thousand times below the provisional guideline adopted by New Zealand for drinking water. Microcystin showed significant correlation with Microcystis and Pseudoanabaena while anatoxin-a correlated with Oscillatoria and Anabaena counts. Linear discriminant analysis showed that higher pH levels and more variable chlorophyll-a concentrations were measured in San Roque reservoir when cyanotoxins were present. Lower inorganic nitrogen concentrations were observed in autumn, when the prevalence of Anabaena became significant in Cyanobacteria composition and highest anatoxin-a levels were measured. The observed dynamic of phytoplankton going together with the cyanotoxins occurrence could be explained by the hypothesis of cyanotoxins acting as allelopathic compounds. The microcystin levels measured plus the presence of anatoxin-a show the need of stronger management efforts to preserve human and wildlife health.

Caviar (fish roe of sturgeon) may contain high levels of contaminants. An inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometer and a direct mercury analyzer were used to assess the contents of four heavy metals (Hg, Se, Sn, and Ba) in caviar of wild Persian sturgeon sea foods. The levels of Hg ranged from 1.39 to 1.50 μg g(-1), Se from 0.90 to 1.10 μg g(-1), Sn from 0.23 to 0.33, and Ba from 0.71 to 1.17 μg g(-1). Evaluation of these levels showed that except for Hg, the average concentrations of other metals are significantly lower than adverse level for the human consumption when compared with Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations and World Health Organization permissible limits. Therefore, their contribution to the total body burden of these heavy metals can be considered as negligibly small given that caviar is a luxury product.

Field studies were conducted to investigate arsenic (As), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) contamination in agricultural soils and wheat crops at two areas in Huaibei, China. Area A is in the proximity of Shuoli coal mine. In area B, three coal mines and a coal cleaning plant were distributed. The potential health risk of As, Cu, and Zn exposure to the local inhabitants through consumption of wheat grains was also estimated. The results showed that significantly higher (p < 0.05) concentrations of As, Cu, and Zn were found in soils collected from area B than in those from area A. Arsenic concentrations in wheat sampled from area A were negatively correlated with the distance from the coal mine (p < 0.001). Concentrations of Cu and Zn in wheat seedlings and grains collected from area B were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than in those collected from area A, with the exception of Zn in wheat seedlings. Concentrations of Cu and Zn in most wheat grain samples were above the permissible limits of Cu and Zn in edible plants set by the Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization. The hazard index of aggregate risk through consumption of wheat grains was 2.3-2.4 for rural inhabitants and 1.4-1.5 for urban inhabitants. The average intake of inorganic As for rural inhabitants in Huaibei was above 10 μg day(-1). These findings indicated that the inhabitants around the coal mine are experiencing a significant potential health risk due to the consumption of locally grown wheat.

Lead from historical mining and mineral processing activities may pose potential human health risks if materials with high concentrations of bioavailable lead minerals are released to the environment. Since the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives of Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization withdrew the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake of lead in 2011, an alternative method was required for lead exposure assessment. This study evaluated the potential lead hazard to young children (0-7 years) from a historical mining location at a semi-arid area using the U.S. EPA Integrated Exposure Uptake Biokinetic (IEUBK) Model, with selected site-specific input data. This study assessed lead exposure via the inhalation pathway for children living in a location affected by lead mining activities and with specific reference to semi-arid conditions and made comparison with the ingestion pathway by using the physiologically based extraction test for gastro-intestinal simulation. Sensitivity analysis for major IEUBK input parameters was conducted. Three groups of input parameters were classified according to the results of predicted blood concentrations. The modelled lead absorption attributed to the inhalation route was lower than 2 % (mean ± SE, 0.9 % ± 0.1 %) of all lead intake routes and was demonstrated as a less significant exposure pathway to children's blood, compared with ingestion. Whilst dermal exposure was negligible, diet and ingestion of soil and dust were the dominant parameters in terms of children's blood lead prediction. The exposure assessment identified the changing role of dietary intake when house lead loadings varied. Recommendations were also made to conduct comprehensive site-specific human health risk assessment in future studies of lead exposure under a semi-arid climate.

Arsenic contamination of groundwater is a major threat to human beings globally. Among various methods available for arsenic removal, adsorption is fast, inexpensive, selective, accurate, reproducible and eco-friendly in nature. The present paper describes removal of arsenate from water on zirconium oxide-coated sand (novel adsorbent). In the present work, zirconium oxide-coated sand was prepared and characterised by infrared and X-ray diffraction techniques. Batch experiments were performed to optimise different adsorption parameters such as initial arsenate concentration (100-1,000 μg/L), dose (1-8 g/L), pH of the solution (2-14), contact time (15-150 min.), and temperature (20, 30, 35 and 40 °C). The experimental data were analysed by Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherm models. Furthermore, thermodynamic and kinetic parameters were evaluated to know the mode of adsorption between ZrOCMS and As(V). The maximum removal of arsenic, 97 %, was achieved at initial arsenic concentration of 200 μg/L, after 75 min at dosage of 5.0 g/L, pH 7.0 and 27 ± 2 °C. For 600 μg/L concentration, the maximum Langmuir monolayer adsorption capacity was found to be 270 μg/g at 35 °C. Kinetic modelling data indicated that adsorption process followed pseudo-second-order kinetics. The mechanism is controlled by liquid film diffusion model. Thermodynamic parameter, ΔH°, was -57.782, while the values of ΔG° were -9.460, -12.183, -13.343 and -13.905 kJ/mol at 20, 30, 35 and 40 °C, respectively, suggesting exothermic and spontaneous nature of the process. The change in entropy, ΔS° = -0.23 kJ/mol indicated that the entropy decreased due to adsorption of arsenate ion onto the solid adsorbent. The results indicated that the reported zirconium oxide-coated marine sand (ZrOCMS) was good adsorbent with 97 % removal capacity at 200 μg/L concentration. It is interesting to note that the permissible limit of arsenic as per World Health Organization is 10 μg/L, and in real situation, this low concentration can be achieved through this adsorbent. Besides, the adsorption capacity showed that this adsorbent may be used for the removal of arsenic from any natural water resource.

While the World Health Organization 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) equivalency factors are useful estimates of relative potencies of mixtures when conducting risk assessments, they are not useful when comparing the results of bioassays such as the H4IIE-luc to concentrations of TCDD equivalents calculated from instrumental analyses. Since there are thousands of dioxin-like compounds (DLCs), one use of screening assays is to determine if all of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) active DLCs in a mixture have been accounted for in instrumental analyses. For this purpose, bioassay-specific relative potency (ReP) values are needed. RePs of 21 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, polychlorinated dibenzofurans, and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls that exhibit effects mediated through the AhR were determined by use of the H4IIE-luc assay. Different values of RePs are derived, depending on the statistical, curve-fitting methods used to derive them from the dose–response relationships. Here, we discuss the various methods for deriving RePs from in vitro data and their assumptions and effects on values of RePs. Full dose–response curves of 2,3,7,8-TCDD and other representative DLCs were used to estimate effective concentrations at multiple points (e.g., EC20-50-80), which were then used to estimate ReP of each DLC to 2,3,7,8-TCDD.

The CROMIS AhR kit, a simple and rapid yeast bioassay kit, was developed and used to detect dioxins and dioxin-like compounds in 20 gas and solid samples collected from refuse incineration plants in Japan. The World Health Organization toxic equivalent (WHO-TEQ) values of the samples were also calculated using high-resolution gas chromatography/high--resolution mass spectrometry. The WHO-TEQ values of the samples varied greatly, ranging from 0.0021–6.3 ng/g to 0.00013–16 ng/m³N (normal cubic meter) in the solid and gas samples, respectively. 2,3,4,7,8-Pentachlorodibenzofuran (23478-PeCDF) and 1,2,3,7,8-pentachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (12378-PeCDD) were the major contributors to the samples’ WHO-TEQ values. The yeast in the bioassay responded to these congeners, and the EC₅₀ values of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (2378-TeCDD), 12378-PeCDD, and 2,3,4,7,8-PeCDF were 490, 560, and 590 nM, respectively. The incinerator samples were subjected to the bioassay to obtain 2378-TeCDD equivalent values (CROMIS-TEQ values). The CROMIS-TEQ values of the solid and gas samples ranged from 0.0019 to 5.64 ng/g and from 0.14 to 20 ng/m³N, respectively. The CROMIS-TEQ and WHO-TEQ values displayed good correlations (r ² = 0.94 and 0.95 in the solid and gas samples, respectively), except for those of the samples with low dioxin concentrations (below the Japanese emission standards). Therefore, the CROMIS AhR kit is a useful tool for the initial screening of samples containing dioxin-like compounds.