Naphthenic acids (NA) have been identified as harmful environmental contaminants that influence survival, growth and development of wildlife. Amphibian larvae are particularly susceptible to waterborne contaminants, but little information exists regarding exposure of amphibian embryos or tadpoles to NA. Our results demonstrate that embryos of Lithobates pipiens and Silurana tropicalis exposed to 2–4 mg/l of a commercial NA blend suffer significant reductions (32% and 25%, respectively) in growth and development upon hatching. Increased incidences of deformities were observed in exposed individuals of both species, but were only significant in L. pipiens. Embryos suffered 100% mortality following exposure to 6 mg/l NAs, and narcosis at lower concentrations. LC50 estimates were 4.10 mg/l for 72-h exposure in L. pipiens and 4.13, 3.51, and 2.95 mg/l for 24-, 48-, and 72-h exposure in S. tropicalis. These data suggest that exposure to NAs at environmentally realized concentrations may negatively affect tadpole populations.

The tissue-specific accumulation and time-dependent depuration of radioactive ⁶³Ni by the byssus, gut, foot, gills, kidney, adductor muscle and faeces of Mytilus edulis has been investigated using a pulse-chase technique. The rate and extent of depuration of ⁶³Ni varied between tissues and, after 168 h, the concentration factors and assimilation efficiencies ranged from 1 to 35 L kg⁻¹ and 5%–13%, respectively. Mussels were also exposed to a range of environmentally-realistic concentrations of dissolved Ni, prior to the analysis of biological endpoints. The clearance rate was concentration-dependent and at the highest concentration decreased by 30%. Neutral red retention (NRR) assays indicated a cytotoxic response and DNA strand breaks were observed in the haemocytes. The association of DNA damage with that of physiological and cytotoxic effects suggests that Ni exerts a significant impact on Mytilus edulis at cellular and genetic levels.

This study investigated the physiological response of the epiphytic lichen Evernia prunastri to ecologically relevant concentrations of nitrogen compounds. Lichen samples were sprayed for 4 weeks either with water or 50, 150 and 500 μM NH₄Cl. The integrity of cell membranes and chlorophyll a fluorescence emission (FV/FM and PIABS) were analyzed. No membrane damage occurred after the exposure period. FV/FM, a classical fluorescence indicator, decreased during the second week of treatment with 500 μM NH₄Cl and the third week with 50 and 150 μM NH₄Cl. PIABS, an overall index of the photosynthetic performance, was more sensitive and decreased already during the first week with 500 μM NH₄Cl and the second week with 150 μM NH₄Cl. Since E. prunastri has been exposed to ammonium loads corresponding to real environmental conditions, these findings open the way to an effective use of this species as early indicators of environmental nitrogen excess.

Total mercury concentrations are presented for 19 Swedish watercourses 2000–2010, together with an analysis of factors affecting these concentrations in space and time. Organic matter (OM) measured as absorbance at 420nm (Abs₄₂₀) and total organic carbon (TOC) were the variables most strongly correlated with THg concentrations in the pooled dataset from all 19 watercourses, explaining 66% and 61% of the variance respectively. The correlation between THg and OM indicates that OM is the main controlling factor independent of geographical variation in Hg deposition, geology, or any other factor evaluated in this study. Despite an increase in TOC concentrations at most sites during the study period, THg increased in only one of the watercourses, and the THg/TOC ratio decreased significantly at six sites. The Abs₄₂₀ did not increase like TOC. We suggest that OM-fractions absorbing at 420nm are more important for Hg mobilization than other OM-fractions.

Consequences of irrigation by arsenic (As) enriched groundwater were assigned in the Hetao Plain, part of Chinas’ Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Examinations followed the As flow path from groundwater to soil and finally plants. A sunflower and a maize field were systematically sampled, each irrigated since three years with saline well water, characterized by elevated As concentrations (154 and 238μgL⁻¹). The annual As input per m² was estimated as 120 and 186mg, respectively. Compared to the geogenic background, As concentrations increased toward the surface with observed enrichments in topsoil being relatively moderate (up to 21.1mgkg⁻¹). Arsenic concentrations in plant parts decreased from roots toward leaves, stems and seeds. It is shown that the bioavailability of As is influenced by a complex interplay of partly counteracting processes. To prevent As enrichment and soil salinization, local farmers were recommended to switch to a less problematic water source.

The uptake and depuration of a range of pharmaceuticals in the freshwater shrimp (Gammarus pulex) and the water boatman (Notonecta glauca) was studied. For one compound, studies were also done using the freshwater snail Planobarius corneus. In G. pulex, bioconcentration factors (BCFs) ranged from 4.6 to 185,900 and increased in the order moclobemide < 5-fluoruracil < carbamazepine < diazepam < carvedilol < fluoxetine. In N. glauca BCFs ranged from 0.1 to 1.6 and increased in the order 5-fluorouracil < carbamazepine < moclobemide < diazepam < fluoxetine < carvedilol. For P. corneus, the BCF for carvedilol was 57.3. The differences in degree of uptake across the three organisms may be due to differences in mode of respiration, behaviour and the pH of the test system. BCFs of the pharmaceuticals for each organism were correlated to the pH-corrected liposome–water partition coefficient of the pharmaceuticals.

Despite considerable progress in ecotoxicology, it has become clear that this discipline cannot answer its central questions, such as, “What are the effects of toxicants on biodiversity?” and “How the ecosystem functions and services are affected by the toxicants?”. We argue that if such questions are to be answered, a paradigm shift is needed. The current bottom-up approach of ecotoxicology that implies the use of small-scale experiments to predict effects on the entire ecosystems and landscapes should be merged with a top-down macroecological approach that is directly focused on ecological effects at large spatial scales and consider ecological systems as integral entities. Analysis of the existing methods in ecotoxicology, ecology, and environmental chemistry shows that such integration is currently possible. Therefore, we conclude that to tackle the current pressing challenges, ecotoxicology has to progress using both the bottom-up and top-down approaches, similar to digging a tunnel from both ends at once.

We investigated changes of bacterial abundance and biodiversity during bioremediation experiments carried out on oxic and anoxic marine harbor sediments contaminated with hydrocarbons. Oxic sediments, supplied with inorganic nutrients, were incubated in aerobic conditions at 20 °C and 35 °C for 30 days, whereas anoxic sediments, amended with organic substrates, were incubated in anaerobic conditions at the same temperatures for 60 days. Results reported here indicate that temperature exerted the main effect on bacterial abundance, diversity and assemblage composition. At higher temperature bacterial diversity and evenness increased significantly in aerobic conditions, whilst decreased in anaerobic conditions. In both aerobic and anaerobic conditions, biodegradation efficiencies of hydrocarbons were significantly and positively related with bacterial richness and evenness. Overall results presented here suggest that bioremediation strategies, which can sustain high levels of bacterial diversity rather than the selection of specific taxa, may significantly increase the efficiency of hydrocarbon degradation in contaminated marine sediments.

To assess the potential contribution of nitric oxide (NO) emission from the plants grown under the increasing nitrogen (N) deposition to atmospheric NO budget, the effects of simulated N deposition on NO emission and various leaf traits (e.g., specific leaf area, leaf N concentration, net photosynthetic rate, etc.) were investigated in 79 plant species classified by 13 plant functional groups. Simulated N deposition induced the significant increase of NO emission from most functional groups, especially from conifer, gymnosperm and C₃ herb. Moreover, the change rate of NO emission was significantly correlated with the change rate of various leaf traits. We conclude that the plants grown under atmospheric N deposition, especially in conifer, gymnosperm and C₃ herb, should be taken into account as an important biological source of NO and potentially contribute to atmospheric NO budget.

Residential soils from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA were collected and analyzed for chlordanes and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). This study is one of the very few urban soil investigations in the USA. The chlordanes concentrations ranged from 0 to 7500 ng g⁻¹ dry weight (d.w.), with a mean and standard deviation of 130 ± 920 ng g⁻¹ d.w., which is about 1000 times larger than background levels. ΣPCB concentrations ranged from 3 to 1200 ng g⁻¹ d.w., with a mean and standard deviation of 56 ± 160 ng g⁻¹ d.w. and are about 10 times higher than world-wide background levels. Both groups exhibit considerable variability in chemical patterns and site-to-site concentrations. Although no measurements of dioxins were carried out, the potential toxicity due to the 12 dioxin-like PCBs found in the soil is in the same order of magnitude of the provisional threshold recommended by USEPA to perform soil remediation.