Accumulation of anticoagulant rodenticides in a non-target insectivore, the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus).

Studies on exposure of non-targets to anticoagulant rodenticides have largely focussed on predatory birds and mammals; insectivores have rarely been studied. We investigated the exposure of 120 European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) from throughout Britain to first- and second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (FGARs and SGARs) using high performance liquid chromatography coupled with fluorescence detection (HPLC) and liquid-chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS). The proportion of hedgehogs with liver SGAR concentrations detected by HPLC was 3-13% per compound, 23% overall.

Assessment and modeling of the toxicity of organic chemicals to Chlorella vulgaris: development of a novel database.

This study reports a database of toxicity values for 91 compounds assessed in a novel, rapid, and economical 15 min algal toxicity test. The toxicity data were measured using the unicellular green alga Chlorella vulgaris in an assay that determined the disappearance of fluorescein diacetate. The chemicals tested covered a wide range of physicochemical properties and mechanisms of action.

QSAR analysis of the toxicity of aromatic compounds to Chlorella vulgaris in a novel short-term assay.

The use of alternative toxicity tests and computational prediction models is widely accepted to fill experimental data gaps and to prioritize chemicals for more expensive and time-consuming assessment. A novel short-term toxicity test using the alga Chlorella vulgaris was utilized in this study to produce acute aquatic toxicity data for 65 aromatic compounds. The compounds tested included phenols, anilines, nitrobenzenes, benzaldehydes and other poly-substituted benzenes.