Publications by authors named "Abigail S Joyce"

Article Synopsis
  • Lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) are essential for clean energy, but they now use a group of contaminants called bis-perfluoroalkyl sulfonimides (bis-FASIs), which are toxic and mobile like other harmful PFAS substances.
  • Research shows that the environmental levels of bis-FASIs near manufacturing sites and their harmful effects are similar to those from banned PFAS, highlighting a significant concern for the clean energy sector.
  • The study emphasizes the need to evaluate the environmental implications of clean energy initiatives to ensure they don't inadvertently increase the release of pollutants, counteracting benefits of reduced carbon emissions.
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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates sex differences in mitochondrial function and toxicant susceptibility in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans, highlighting factors that may contribute to these differences, like hormonal influence and genetic factors.
  • Results showed minimal differences in mitochondrial function between the sexes of C. elegans, though there were notable differences in the uptake of the mitochondrial toxicant rotenone.
  • Altered non-mitochondrial respiration was observed in specific strains, which could provide further insights into how sex-related mitochondrial health affects responses to environmental stressors.
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Fluorine nuclear magnetic resonance (F-NMR) spectroscopy has been shown to be a powerful tool capable of quantifying the total per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in a complex sample. The technique relies on the characteristic terminal -CF shift (-82.4 ppm) in the alkyl chain for quantification and does not introduce bias due to sample preparation or matrix effects.

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Biomonitoring at contaminated sites undergoing cleanup, including Superfund sites, often uses bioaccumulation of anthropogenic contaminants by field-deployed organisms as a metric of remedial effectiveness. Bioaccumulation studies are unable to assess the equilibrium status of the organisms relative to the contaminants to which they are exposed. Establishing equilibrium provides a reproducible benchmark on which scientific and management decisions can be based (e.

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Aims: Mitochondrial dysfunction is implicated in several diseases, including neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease. However, there is uncertainty about which of the many mechanisms by which mitochondrial function can be disrupted may lead to neurodegeneration. Pentachlorophenol (PCP) is an organic pollutant reported to cause mitochondrial dysfunction including oxidative stress and mitochondrial uncoupling.

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Low-density polyethylene sheets are used as passive samplers for aquatic environmental monitoring to measure the freely dissolved concentration (C ) of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs). Freely dissolved HOCs in water will partition into the polyethylene until a thermodynamic equilibrium is achieved; that is, the HOC's activity in the passive sampler is the same as its activity in the surrounding environment. One way to evaluate the equilibrium status or estimate the uptake kinetics is by using performance reference compounds (PRCs).

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Performance reference compounds (PRCs) are often added to passive samplers prior to field deployments to provide information about mass transfer kinetics between the sampled environment and the passive sampler. Their popularity has resulted in different methods of varying complexity to estimate mass transfer and better estimate freely dissolved concentrations (C ) of targeted compounds. Three methods for describing a mass transfer model are commonly used: a first-order kinetic method, a nonlinear least squares fitting of sampling rate, and a diffusion method.

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This Critcal Review evaluates passive sampler uptake of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) in water column and interstitial water exposures as a surrogate for organism bioaccumulation. Fifty-seven studies were found where both passive sampler uptake and organism bioaccumulation were measured and 19 of these investigations provided direct comparisons relating passive sampler uptake and organism bioaccumulation. Polymers compared included low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polyoxymethylene (POM), and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and organisms ranged from polychaetes and oligochaetes to bivalves, aquatic insects, and gastropods.

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Low-density polyethylene (PE) passive samplers containing performance reference compounds (PRCs) were deployed at multiple depths in two urban coastal marine locations to estimate dissolved concentrations of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs), including dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and its metabolites, polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners, and polybrominated flame retardants. PE samplers pre-loaded with PRCs were deployed at the surface, mid-column, and near bottom at sites representing the nearshore continental shelf off southern California (Santa Monica Bay, USA) and a mega commercial port (Los Angeles Harbor). After correcting for fractional equilibration using PRCs, concentrations ranged up to 100 pg L(-1) for PCBs and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), 500 pg L(-1) for DDMU and 300 pg L(-1) for DDNU, and to 1000 pg L(-1) for p,p'-DDE.

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An improved process for the preparation of N-alkylbis(3-aminopropyl)amines is described. These triamines are of interest as monomers for the condensation polymerization with esterified carbohydrate diacids (aldaric acids) to generate the corresponding poly(4-alkyl-4-azaheptamethylene aldaramides). The triamine synthesis is comprised of two efficient steps and requires no chromatographic purification.

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