Cytotoxicity and Oxidative Stress Induced by Technology-Critical Elements Traditional Metal Contaminants: An Bioassay Study.

Technology-critical elements (TCEs), essential in emerging technologies, are increasingly finding their way into our environment, raising concerns about their sparsely studied behavior and toxicity. To contribute insights into the toxicological aspects, we employed bioassays to investigate the possible cytotoxic effects in four representative cell lines (AR-EcoScreen GR-KO-M1, DR-EcoScreen, MCF7AREc32, VM7Luc4E2) and the potential to induce oxidative stress via the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) pathway for a number of these elements. Nine TCEs, three rare-earth elements (REEs: Gd, Nd, Yb) and six less-studied TCEs (LSTCEs: Ga, Ge, In, Ta, Te, Tl), were selected for this study, along with three well-studied traditional metal contaminants (TMCs: As, Cd, Pb) for comparison.

Environmental footprints of the data center service sector in Sweden.

The global data center (DC) sector has expanded rapidly during the last decades, due to the rising demand for digital services. In the Nordic region, Sweden has emerged as a global hub, attracting leading technology companies like Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, and Google. Server halls of DCs are energy intensive buildings, which puts pressure on local water resources and contributes to global greenhouse gas emissions.

Managing health risks in urban agriculture: The effect of vegetable washing for reducing exposure to metal contaminants.

A common, yet poorly evaluated, advice to remove contaminants from urban vegetables is to wash the produce before consumption. This study is based on 63 samples of chard, kale, lettuce and parsley that have grown near a heavily trafficked road in the third largest city in Sweden, with one portion of each sample being analysed without first being washed, and the other portion being subjected to common household washing. Concentrations of 71 elements were analysed by ICP-SFMS after a sample digestion that dissolves both the plant tissues and all potentially adhering particles.

Temporal risk assessment - 20th century Pb emissions to air and exposure via inhalation in the Swedish glass district.

The objective of the present study was to assess historical emissions of Pb to air around a number of glassworks sites in southeastern Sweden, and the possible implications for human exposure. To do so, a four-step method was applied. First, emissions of Pb to air around 10 glassworks were modelled for the 20th century.

Testing the applicability of dendrochemistry using X-ray fluorescence to trace environmental contamination at a glassworks site.

The potential of dendrochemistry as a tool for tracing anthropogenic contamination at a glassworks site in southeastern Sweden was investigated through a multidisciplinary approach combining continuous high-resolution time series of tree rings and sediment profiles. Tree cores from Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), Norway spruce (Picea abies) and European aspen (Populus tremula) were analysed for their elemental composition using an energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) technique. Sediment cores were sampled along a transect extending from the pollution point source to unpolluted areas and analysed using core-scanning-XRF (CS-XRF).

Physicochemical and toxicological characterization of hazardous wastes from an old glasswork dump at southeastern part of Sweden.

More than 34 old glasswork sites in the southeastern part of Sweden pose a permanent threat to human and environmental health due to the presence of toxic trace elements in open dumps with glass waste. The possibility of leaching of trace elements from different fractions of the disposed waste needed to be assessed. In the present investigation, leachate from a mixture of soil and waste glass of particle sizes of less than 2 mm (given the name fine fraction) was characterized by analyzing the pH (7.

Effects of a 1-Day Training Course in Dermoscopy Among General Practitioners.

Background: General practitioners (GPs) are often the first point of contact for Swedish patients seeking medical advice for skin lesions of concern, but many lack training in dermoscopy.

Objective: To examine the effects of a 1-day training course in dermoscopy among Swedish GPs.

Methods: The intervention group consisted of GPs who underwent a 1-day training course in dermoscopy and a control group that did not undergo any education.

Exposure of metals and PAH through local foods and risk of cancer in a historically contaminated glassworks area.

Background: Production of crystal glass and colored art glassware have been going on in the south-eastern part of Sweden since the 1700s, at over 100 glassworks and smaller glass blowing facilities, resulting in environmental contamination with mainly arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and polycyclic hydrocarbons (PAH). High levels of metals have been found in soil, and moderately elevated levels in vegetables, mushrooms and berries collected around the glassworks sites compared with reference areas. Food in general, is the major exposure source to metals, such as Cd and Pb, and PAHs.

Challenges in assessing the health risks of consuming vegetables in metal-contaminated environments.

A great deal of research has been devoted to the characterization of metal exposure due to the consumption of vegetables from urban or industrialized areas. It may seem comforting that concentrations in crops, as well as estimated exposure levels, are often found to be below permissible limits. However, we show that even a moderate increase in metal accumulation in crops may result in a significant increase in exposure.

Fractionation of Pb and Cu in the fine fraction (<10 mm) of waste excavated from a municipal landfill.

The fractionation of metals in the fine fraction (<10 mm) of excavated waste from an Estonian landfill was carried out to evaluate the metal (Pb and Cu) contents and their potential towards not only mobility but also possibilities of recovery/extraction. The fractionation followed the BCR (Community Bureau of Reference) sequential extraction, and the exchangeable (F1), reducible (F2), oxidizable (F3) and residual fractions were determined. The results showed that Pb was highly associated with the reducible (F2) and oxidizable (F3) fractions, suggesting the potential mobility of this metal mainly when in contact with oxygen, despite the low association with the exchangeable fraction (F1).

Increased Cancer Incidence in the Local Population Around Metal-Contaminated Glassworks Sites.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine mortality causes and cancer incidence in a population cohort that have resided in close proximity to highly metal-contaminated sources, characterized by contamination of, in particular, arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), and lead (Pb).

Methods: Data from Swedish registers were used to calculate standardized mortality and cancer incidence ratios. An attempt to relate cancer incidence to metal contamination levels was made.

Effect of Medicago sativa L. and compost on organic and inorganic pollutant removal from a mixed contaminated soil and risk assessment using ecotoxicological tests.

Several Gentle Remediation Options (GRO), e.g., plant-based options (phytoremediation), singly and combined with soil amendments, can be simultaneously efficient for degrading organic pollutants and either stabilizing or extracting trace elements (TEs).

An assessment of health risks associated with arsenic exposure via consumption of homegrown vegetables near contaminated glassworks sites.

The health risk posed by arsenic in vegetables grown in private gardens near 22 contaminated glassworks sites was investigated in this study. Firstly, vegetable (lettuce and potato) and soil samples were collected and arsenic concentrations measured to characterize the arsenic uptake in the selected crops. Secondly, a probabilistic exposure assessment was conducted to estimate the average daily intake (ADIveg), which was then evaluated against toxicological reference values by the calculation of hazard quotients (HQs) and cancer risks (CRs).

Metal uptake by homegrown vegetables - the relative importance in human health risk assessments at contaminated sites.

Risk assessments of contaminated land often involve the use of generic bioconcentration factors (BCFs), which express contaminant concentrations in edible plant parts as a function of the concentration in soil, in order to assess the risks associated with consumption of homegrown vegetables. This study aimed to quantify variability in BCFs and evaluate the implications of this variability for human exposure assessments, focusing on cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in lettuce and potatoes sampled around 22 contaminated glassworks sites. In addition, risks associated with measured Cd and Pb concentrations in soil and vegetable samples were characterized and a probabilistic exposure assessment was conducted to estimate the likelihood of local residents exceeding tolerable daily intakes.

Assessing the risk of an excess fluoride intake among Swedish children in households with private wells--expanding static single-source methods to a probabilistic multi-exposure-pathway approach.

It is often assumed that water consumption is the major route of exposure for fluoride and analysis of water fluoride content is the most common approach for ensuring that the daily intake is not too high. In the present study, the risk of excess intake was characterized for children in households with private wells in Kalmar County, Sweden, where the natural geology shows local enrichments in fluorine. By comparing water concentrations with the WHO drinking water guideline (1.

Climate change - An uncertainty factor in risk analysis of contaminated land.

Metals frequently occur at contaminated sites, where their potential toxicity and persistence require risk assessments that consider possible long-term changes. Changes in climate are likely to affect the speciation, mobility, and risks associated with metals. This paper provides an example of how the climate effect can be inserted in a commonly used exposure model, and how the exposure then changes compared to present conditions.