This study aimed to evaluate the Spirulina platensis influence as a food supplement in Nile tilapia post-larvae grown in saline water. The experiment consisted of two treatments with three replicates. In first one the animals were fed ration containing the androgen 17 α - methyltestosterone and S. platensis, and in the other only diet with the hormone. At the end of the reversal (28 days), tilapia that received S. platensis showed average weights of 1.17 ± 0.16 g, significantly superior to the animals fed only ration, which reached an average weight of 0.62 ± 0.38 g (P < 0.05); however, survival rates showed no significant difference (P < 0.05). At the end of the experiment (78 days), fish gonadal analysis showed indices of 47.5% of males for fish reared without microalgae and 59.09% for fish reared with S. platensis. It was conclude that Nile tilapia showed good growth and survival rate in the presence of S. platensis, compared to the fish fed only diet in saline water. However, it was not possible to obtain acceptable rates of sex reversal after the administration of masculinizing hormone through the diet.

The rediscovery of the presence of chlordecone in the surface waters of the French West Indies has caused significant mobilization, first locally, then nationally. Pesticide used to control banana weevil until 1993, chlor decone remains almost permanently in soils, and is only washed away very gradually. If environmental pollution raised no objection as and when it was discovered, the issue of health consequences of such pollution remains central for the population and public authorities. Public health measures were first taken for water, then for soils and finally for food through the adoption of several MRLs over a short period. The French West Indies are therefore a small-scale laboratory in a sustained polluted world, where, after the recognition of irreversible pollution, it is time to better know and contain it, but also to live with it. | La redécouverte de la présence de chlordécone dans les eaux de surface des Antilles françaises a provoqué une mobilisation importante, d’abord localement, puis à l’échelon national. Pesticide utilisé pour lutter contre le charançon du bananier jusqu’en 1993, il demeure de manière quasi-pérenne dans les sols, ne s’écoulant que peu à peu dans les eaux. Si la pollution environnementale ne soulève pas de contestation au fur et à mesure de sa découverte, la question des conséquences sanitaires d’une telle pollution demeure au centre des interrogations de la population et des autorités publiques. Les mesures de santé publique ont d’abord été prises pour les eaux, puis pour les terres et enfin pour l’alimentation à travers l’adoption de plusieurs limites maximales de résidus sur une période courte. Les Antilles françaises constituent donc un laboratoire à petite échelle dans un monde durablement pollué, où, après avoir acté l’existence d’une pollution irréversible, il s’agit maintenant de mieux la connaître et la circonscrire mais aussi de vivre avec.

National audience | The rediscovery of the presence of chlordecone in the surface waters of the French West Indies has caused significant mobilization, first locally, then nationally. Pesticide used to control banana weevil until 1993, chlor decone remains almost permanently in soils, and is only washed away very gradually. If environmental pollution raised no objection as and when it was discovered, the issue of health consequences of such pollution remains central for the population and public authorities. Public health measures were first taken for water, then for soils and finally for food through the adoption of several MRLs over a short period. The French West Indies are therefore a small-scale laboratory in a sustained polluted world, where, after the recognition of irreversible pollution, it is time to better know and contain it, but also to live with it. | La redécouverte de la présence de chlordécone dans les eaux de surface des Antilles françaises a provoqué une mobilisation importante, d’abord localement, puis à l’échelon national. Pesticide utilisé pour lutter contre le charançon du bananier jusqu’en 1993, il demeure de manière quasi-pérenne dans les sols, ne s’écoulant que peu à peu dans les eaux. Si la pollution environnementale ne soulève pas de contestation au fur et à mesure de sa découverte, la question des conséquences sanitaires d’une telle pollution demeure au centre des interrogations de la population et des autorités publiques. Les mesures de santé publique ont d’abord été prises pour les eaux, puis pour les terres et enfin pour l’alimentation à travers l’adoption de plusieurs limites maximales de résidus sur une période courte. Les Antilles françaises constituent donc un laboratoire à petite échelle dans un monde durablement pollué, où, après avoir acté l’existence d’une pollution irréversible, il s’agit maintenant de mieux la connaître et la circonscrire mais aussi de vivre avec.

International audience | Titanium dioxide nanoparticles seem to have a low toxicity to terrestrial organisms, though few studies are published in this area. TiO2 used in sunscreens are nanocomposites where TiO2 has been coated with magnesium, silica or alumina, as well as amphiphilic organics like polydimethyl siloxane (PDMS), and these coatings are modified by ageing. We assessed the ccotoxicity and propensity for bioaccumulation of an aged TiO2 nanocomposite used in sunscreen cosmetics, and its potential effect on the frequency of apoptosis in different earthworm tissues. The earthworm Lumbricus terrestris was exposed to the TiO2 nanocomposite for 7 days in water or 2-8 weeks in soil with the nanocomposite mixed either into food or soil at concentrations ranging from 0 to 100 mg kg(-1). Apoptosis was then measured by immunohistochemistry and Ti localized by XRF microscopy. Results showed no mortality, but an enhanced apoptotic frequency which was higher in the cuticule, intestinal epithelium and chloragogenous tissue than in the longitudinal and circular musculature. TiO2 nanoparticles did not seem to cross the intestinal cpithelium/chloragogenous matrix barrier to enter the coclomic liquid, or the cuticule barrier to reach the muscular layers. No bioaccumulation of TiO2 nanocomposites could thus be observed.

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles seem to have a low toxicity to terrestrial organisms, though few studies are published in this area. TiO₂ used in sunscreens are nanocomposites where TiO₂ has been coated with magnesium, silica or alumina, as well as amphiphilic organics like polydimethyl siloxane (PDMS), and these coatings are modified by ageing. We assessed the ecotoxicity and propensity for bioaccumulation of an aged TiO₂ nanocomposite used in sunscreen cosmetics, and its potential effect on the frequency of apoptosis in different earthworm tissues. The earthworm Lumbricus terrestris was exposed to the TiO₂ nanocomposite for 7days in water or 2–8weeks in soil with the nanocomposite mixed either into food or soil at concentrations ranging from 0 to 100mgkg⁻¹. Apoptosis was then measured by immunohistochemistry and Ti localized by XRF microscopy. Results showed no mortality, but an enhanced apoptotic frequency which was higher in the cuticule, intestinal epithelium and chloragogenous tissue than in the longitudinal and circular musculature. TiO₂ nanoparticles did not seem to cross the intestinal epithelium/chloragogenous matrix barrier to enter the coelomic liquid, or the cuticule barrier to reach the muscular layers. No bioaccumulation of TiO₂ nanocomposites could thus be observed.

In this work, an efficient in situ solvent formation microextraction (ISFME) was combined with stopped-flow injection spectrofluorimetry (SFIS) for the determination of copper. In the proposed approach, thiamine was oxidized with copper(II) to form hydrophobic and highly fluorescent thiochrome (TC), which was subsequently extracted into ionic liquid as an extractant phase. A small amount of an ion-pairing agent (NaPF₆) was added to the sample solution containing a water-miscible ionic liquid ([Hmim][BF₄]) to obtain a hydrophobic ionic liquid ([Hmim][PF₆]), which acted as the extraction phase. After centrifuging, phase separation was performed and the enriched analyte was determined by SFIS. ISFME is an efficient method for separation and preconcentration of metal ions from aqueous solutions with a high ionic strength. Variables affecting the analytical performance were studied and optimized. Under optimum experimental conditions, the proposed method provided a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.024μgL⁻¹ and a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 2.1%. The accuracy of the combined methodology was evaluated by recovery experiments and by analyzing certified reference material (GBW 07605 Tea). Finally, the proposed method was successfully applied to copper determination in water and food samples.

The objective of this study was to investigate the changes in cropland areas as a result of water availability using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 250 m time-series data and spectral matching techniques (SMTs). The study was conducted in the Krishna River basin in India, a very large river basin with an area of 265 752 km2 (26 575 200 ha), comparing a water-surplus year (2000-2001) and a water-deficit year (2002-2003). The MODIS 250 m time-series data and SMTs were found ideal for agricultural cropland change detection over large areas and provided fuzzy classification accuracies of 61-100% for various land-use classes and 61-81% for the rain-fed and irrigated classes. The most mixing change occurred between rain-fed cropland areas and informally irrigated (e.g. groundwater and small reservoir) areas. Hence separation of these two classes was the most difficult. The MODIS 250 m-derived irrigated cropland areas for the districts were highly correlated with the Indian Bureau of Statistics data, with R2-values between 0.82 and 0.86. The change in the net area irrigated was modest, with an irrigated area of 8 669 881 ha during the water-surplus year, as compared with 7 718 900 ha during the water-deficit year. However, this is quite misleading as most of the major changes occurred in cropping intensity, such as changing from higher intensity to lower intensity (e.g. from double crop to single crop). The changes in cropping intensity of the agricultural cropland areas that took place in the water-deficit year (2002-2003) when compared with the water-surplus year (2000-2001) in the Krishna basin were: (a) 1 078 564 ha changed from double crop to single crop, (b) 1 461 177 ha changed from continuous crop to single crop, (c) 704 172 ha changed from irrigated single crop to fallow and (d) 1 314 522 ha changed from minor irrigation (e.g. tanks, small reservoirs) to rain-fed. These are highly significant changes that will have strong impact on food security. Such changes may be expected all over the world in a changing climate.

The objective of this study was to investigate the changes in cropland areas as a result of water availability using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 250 m time-series data and spectral matching techniques (SMTs). The study was conducted in the Krishna River basin in India, a very large river basin with an area of 265 752 km2 (26 575 200 ha), comparing a water-surplus year (2000-2001) and a water-deficit year (2002-2003). The MODIS 250 m time-series data and SMTs were found ideal for agricultural cropland change detection over large areas and provided fuzzy classification accuracies of 61-100% for various land-use classes and 61-81% for the rain-fed and irrigated classes. The most mixing change occurred between rain-fed cropland areas and informally irrigated (e.g. groundwater and small reservoir) areas. Hence separation of these two classes was the most difficult. The MODIS 250 m-derived irrigated cropland areas for the districts were highly correlated with the Indian Bureau of Statistics data, with R2-values between 0.82 and 0.86. The change in the net area irrigated was modest, with an irrigated area of 8 669 881 ha during the water-surplus year, as compared with 7 718 900 ha during the water-deficit year. However, this is quite misleading as most of the major changes occurred in cropping intensity, such as changing from higher intensity to lower intensity (e.g. from double crop to single crop). The changes in cropping intensity of the agricultural cropland areas that took place in the water-deficit year (2002-2003) when compared with the water-surplus year (2000-2001) in the Krishna basin were: (a) 1 078 564 ha changed from double crop to single crop, (b) 1 461 177 ha changed from continuous crop to single crop, (c) 704 172 ha changed from irrigated single crop to fallow and (d) 1 314 522 ha changed from minor irrigation (e.g. tanks, small reservoirs) to rain-fed. These are highly significant changes that will have strong impact on food security. Such changes may be expected all over the world in a changing climate.

El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar el efecto que se produce al acondicionar el peletizado con agua o Maxi-Mil® A, sobre los parámetros productivos de pollos de engorde de la línea Arbor Acres Plus® Mixto. Se realizó en el Centro de Investigación y Enseñanza Avícola de la Escuela Agrícola Panamericana Zamorano. La empresa CADECA proporcionó 3,216 pollos entre machos y hembras de la línea Arbor Acres Plus®, los cuales se distribuyeron en 48 corrales de (1.50 × 3.75 m), cada corral contó con un bebedero de campana y dos comederos de tolva donde se suministró agua y alimento ad libitum. Los tratamientos se establecieron en cuatro fases alcanzadas en cinco semanas (35 días), los cuales fueron divididos al azar y por el tipo de peletizado en: Alimento Normal (pelet), Alimento con Agua al 0.5 % (pelet con agua), Alimento con Maxi-Mil® A al 0.5 % (pelet con Maxi-Mil® A). Se usó un diseño de Bloques Completos al Azar (BCA), para 48 unidades experimentales que se distribuyeron en 16 bloques o repeticiones. Cada unidad experimental tuvo 67 pollos, obteniendo 12 aves/m². Se evaluó el efecto en los siguientes parámetros de producción: peso corporal, consumo de alimento, índice de conversión alimenticia, ganancia de peso y mortalidad del ave en cada uno de los tratamientos, los cuales no demostraron diferencia significativa entre tratamientos (P>0.05). En conclusión, las formas de acondicionamiento de los pelets no tuvieron ningún efecto significativo sobre los parámetros productivos en pollos de engorde, de la línea Arbor Acres Plus® Mixto.

El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar el efecto que se produce al acondicionar el peletizado con agua o Maxi-Mil® A, sobre los parámetros productivos de pollos de engorde de la línea Arbor Acres Plus® Mixto. Se realizó en el Centro de Investigación y Enseñanza Avícola de la Escuela Agrícola Panamericana Zamorano. La empresa CADECA proporcionó 3,216 pollos entre machos y hembras de la línea Arbor Acres Plus®, los cuales se distribuyeron en 48 corrales de (1.50 × 3.75 m), cada corral contó con un bebedero de campana y dos comederos de tolva donde se suministró agua y alimento ad libitum. Los tratamientos se establecieron en cuatro fases alcanzadas en cinco semanas (35 días), los cuales fueron divididos al azar y por el tipo de peletizado en: Alimento Normal (pelet), Alimento con Agua al 0.5 % (pelet con agua), Alimento con Maxi-Mil® A al 0.5 % (pelet con Maxi-Mil® A). Se usó un diseño de Bloques Completos al Azar (BCA), para 48 unidades experimentales que se distribuyeron en 16 bloques o repeticiones. Cada unidad experimental tuvo 67 pollos, obteniendo 12 aves/m². Se evaluó el efecto en los siguientes parámetros de producción: peso corporal, consumo de alimento, índice de conversión alimenticia, ganancia de peso y mortalidad del ave en cada uno de los tratamientos, los cuales no demostraron diferencia significativa entre tratamientos (P>0.05). En conclusión, las formas de acondicionamiento de los pelets no tuvieron ningún efecto significativo sobre los parámetros productivos en pollos de engorde, de la línea Arbor Acres Plus® Mixto.