Long-term exposure to primary traffic pollutants may be harmful for health but few studies have investigated effects on mortality. We examined associations for six primary traffic pollutants with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in 2003–2010 at small-area level using linear and piecewise linear Poisson regression models. In linear models most pollutants showed negative or null association with all-cause, cardiovascular or respiratory mortality. In the piecewise models we observed positive associations in the lowest exposure range (e.g. relative risk (RR) for all-cause mortality 1.07 (95% credible interval (CI) = 1.00–1.15) per 0.15 μg/m³ increase in exhaust related primary particulate matter ≤2.5 μm (PM2.5)) whereas associations in the highest exposure range were negative (corresponding RR 0.93, 95% CI: 0.91–0.96). Overall, there was only weak evidence of positive associations with mortality. That we found the strongest positive associations in the lowest exposure group may reflect residual confounding by unmeasured confounders that varies by exposure group.

Exposure of young children to toxic metals in urban environments is largely due to soil and dust ingestion. Soil particle size distribution and concentrations of toxic metals in different particle sizes are important risk factors in addition to bioaccessibility of these metals in the particles. Analysis of particle size distribution and metals concentrations for 13 soils, 12 sampled from urban gardens and 1 from orchard found that fine particles (<105 μm) comprised from 22 to 66% by weight of the tested soils, with Ba, Cu, Pb and Zn generally at higher concentrations in the finer particles. However, metal bioaccessibility was generally lower in finer particles, a trend most pronounced for Ba and Pb. Gastric was higher than gastrointestinal bioaccessibility for all metals except Cu. The lower bioaccessibility of Pb in urban garden soils compared to orchard soil is attributable to the higher organic matter content of the garden soils.

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition is one of the main threats for biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Measurement techniques like ion-exchange resin collectors (IECs), which are less expensive and time-consuming than conventional methods, are gaining relevance in the study of atmospheric deposition and are recommended to expand monitoring networks. In the present work, bulk and throughfall deposition of inorganic nitrogen were monitored in three different holm oak forests in Spain during two years. The results obtained with IECs were contrasted with a conventional technique using bottle collectors and with a literature review of similar studies. The performance of IECs in comparison with the conventional method was good for measuring bulk deposition of nitrate and acceptable for ammonium and total dissolved inorganic nitrogen. Mean annual bulk deposition of inorganic nitrogen ranged 3.09–5.43 kg N ha−1 according to IEC methodology, and 2.42–6.83 kg N ha−1 y−1 using the conventional method. Intra-annual variability of the net throughfall deposition of nitrogen measured with the conventional method revealed the existence of input pulses of nitrogen into the forest soil after dry periods, presumably originated from the washing of dry deposition accumulated in the canopy. Important methodological recommendations on the IEC method and discussed, compiled and summarized.

Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) have been detected at high concentrations in various environmental and biotic samples, but little is known about their toxicity. In this study, the potential neurotoxicity of three OPFRs (TCEP, TDCPP, and TPP) and Chlorpyrifos (CPF, an organophosphate pesticide) were compared in Chinese rare minnow using an acute toxicity test and a 21-day fish assay. The acute test demonstrated significant inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) by CPF. Although significant AChE inhibition at high concentration of TPP was also observed, none of the OPFRs had effects similar to CPF on these enzymes, indicating that their acute toxicities to Chinese rare minnow may be unrelated to cholinesterase inhibition. In addition, the 21-day fish assay with TDCPP demonstrated no significant effects on cholinesterase activities or neurotransmitter levels. Nonetheless, this OPFR exhibited widespread effects on the neurotrophic factors and their receptors (e.g., ntf3, ntrk1, ntrk2, ngfr, and fgf2, fgf11, fgf22, fgfr4), indicating that TDCPP or other OPFRs may elicit neurological effects by targeting neurotrophic factors and their receptors in Chinese rare minnow.

Contamination of fine plastic particles (FPs), including micrometer to millimeter plastics (MPs) and nanometer plastics (NPs), in the environment has caught great concerns. FPs are strong adsorbents for hydrophobic toxic pollutants and may affect their fate and toxicity in the environment; however, such information is still rare. We studied joint toxicity of FPs with phenanthrene to Daphnia magna and effects of FPs on the environmental fate and bioaccumulation of 14C-phenanthrene in fresh water. Within the five sizes particles we tested (from 50 nm to 10 μm), 50-nm NPs showed significant toxicity and physical damage to D. magna. The joint toxicity of 50-nm NPs and phenanthrene to D. magna showed an additive effect. During a 14-days incubation, the presence of NPs significantly enhanced bioaccumulation of phenanthrene-derived residues in daphnid body and inhibited the dissipation and transformation of phenanthrene in the medium, while 10-μm MPs did not show significant effects on the bioaccumulation, dissipation, and transformation of phenanthrene. The differences may be attributed to higher adsorption of phenanthrene on 50-nm NPs than 10-μm MPs. Our findings underlined the high potential ecological risks of FPs, and suggested that NPs should be given more concerns, in terms of their interaction with hydrophobic pollutants in the environment.

Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents contain potentially neuroactive chemicals though few methods are available to screen for the presence of such agents. Here, two parallel approaches (in vivo and in vitro) were used to assess WWTP exposure-related changes to neurochemistry. First, fathead minnows (FHM, Pimephales promelas) were caged for four days along a WWTP discharge zone into the Maumee River (Ohio, USA). Grab water samples were collected and extracts obtained for the detection of alkylphenols, bisphenol A (BPA) and steroid hormones. Second, the extracts were then used as a source of in vitro exposure to brain tissues from FHM and four additional species relevant to the Great Lakes ecosystem (rainbow trout (RT), river otter (RO), bald eagle (BE) and human (HU)). The ability of the wastewater (in vivo) or extracts (in vitro) to interact with enzymes (monoamine oxidase (MAO) and glutamine synthetase (GS)) and receptors (dopamine (D2) and N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDA)) involved in dopamine and glutamate-dependent neurotransmission were examined on brain homogenates. In vivo exposure of FHM led to significant decreases of NMDA receptor binding in females (24–42%), and increases of MAO activity in males (2.8- to 3.2-fold). In vitro, alkylphenol-targeted extracts significantly inhibited D2 (66% in FHM) and NMDA (24–54% in HU and RT) receptor binding, and induced MAO activity in RT, RO, and BE brains. Steroid hormone-targeted extracts inhibited GS activity in all species except FHM. BPA-targeted extracts caused a MAO inhibition in FHM, RT and BE brains. Using both in vivo and in vitro approaches, this study shows that WWTP effluents contain agents that can interact with neurochemicals important in reproduction and other neurological functions. Additional work is needed to better resolve in vitro to in vivo extrapolations (IVIVE) as well as cross-species differences.

Modeling the rain-runoff processes and phosphorus transport processes in lowland polders is critical in finding reasonable measures to alleviate the eutrophication problem of downstream rivers and lakes. This study develops a lowland Polder Hydrology and Phosphorus modeling System (PHPS) by coupling the WALRUS-paddy model and an improved phosphorus module of a Phosphorus Dynamic model for lowland Polder systems (PDP). It considers some important hydrological characteristics, such as groundwater–unsaturated zone coupling, groundwater–surface water feedback, human-controlled irrigation and discharge, and detailed physical and biochemical cycles of phosphorus in surface water. The application of the model in the Jianwei polder shows that the simulated phosphorus matches well with the measured values. The high precision of this model combined with its low input data requirement and efficient computation make it practical and easy to the water resources management of Chinese polders. Parameter sensitivity analysis demonstrates that Kuptake, cQ2, cW1, and cQ1 exert a significant effect on the modeled results, whereas KresuspensionMax, Ksettling, and Kmineralization have little effect on the modeled total phosphorus. Among the three types of uncertainties (i.e., parameter, initial condition, and forcing uncertainties), forcing uncertainty produces the strongest effect on the simulated phosphorus. Based on the analysis result of annual phosphorus balance when considering the high import from irrigation and fertilization, lowland polder is capable of retaining phosphorus and reducing phosphorus export to surrounding aquatic ecosystems because of their special hydrological regulation regime.

Although animal studies suggested that prenatal cadmium exposure can cause neurodevelopmental deficits, little is explored in human populations, or its mechanism. We investigated the association between prenatal cadmium exposures and infants' developmental quotients (DQs) based on the Gesell Developmental Schedules (gross motor, fine motor, adaptive, language, and social domains) at 12 months of age and explored the role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in prenatal cadmium-induced neurodevelopmental deficits in Shandong, China, by enrolling 300 mothers between September 2010 and December 2011. Maternal blood cadmium concentration (median, 1.24 μg/L) was negatively associated with social domain DQs and BDNF levels in cord serum. A 10-fold increase in maternal cadmium levels was associated with a 5.70-point decrease in social domain DQs, a 4.31-point decrease in BDNF levels. BDNF levels were positively associated with social domain DQs. These data suggest that prenatal low-level cadmium exposure has adverse effects on neurodevelopment. BDNF may play an important role in the decline of social domain DQs induced by prenatal low-level cadmium exposure.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of a shrimp farm cultivation cycle in the composition of sediments and on the structure of macrobenthic assemblages. Concentrations of nutrients, Zn and Cu were significantly higher in impact than control areas. In general, the level of contaminants was highest during the harvesting period and in sites closest to the discharge of effluents. Abundances and number of taxa of benthic invertebrates were at least one order of magnitude smaller in impacted areas than in controls. The structure of the benthic assemblages was significantly different at these two treatments. The combined use of biological and chemical data showed to be efficient to provide precise answers regarding the extent of impacts caused by shrimp cultivation. The results provide the basis for a better understanding of impacts of this activity and can subsidize the development of better management practices for coastal areas.