High liver content of polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) in otters (Lutra lutra) from England and Wales.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), used as flame retardants since the 1970s, are being phased out of use, but are persistent and widespread in the environment. Historical declines in Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) populations have been associated with exposure to dieldrin and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), but links with other persistent organic pollutants have not been explored. In this study, liver samples from 129 otters, collected across England and Wales from 1995-2006, were analysed for PBDEs, together with PCBs, DDT breakdown products, and hexachlorobenzene.

Dual actions of lindane (γ-hexachlorocyclohexane) on calcium homeostasis and exocytosis in rat PC12 cells.

The persistent organochlorine pesticide lindane is still abundantly found in the environment and in human and animal tissue samples. Lindane induces a wide range of adverse health effects, which are at least partially mediated via the known inhibition of GABA(A) and glycine receptors. Additionally, lindane has been reported to increase the basal intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)).

Exposure to persistent organic pollutants and first-year survival probability in gray seal pups.

Many studies have demonstrated that persistent organic pollutants are transferred from mother to pup during lactation in phocid seals, but none have been able to determine the significance of these findings for survivorship. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between blubber contaminant concentrations and first-year survival in gray seal pups. A mark-recapture framework was used to estimate survival probabilities and animals were "marked" using novel mobile phone tags.

Polybrominated diphenyl ether-associated alterations in cell biochemistry as determined by attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy: a comparison with DNA-reactive and/or endocrine-disrupting agents.

Whether polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) induce effects in target cells is increasingly important given that their environmental burdens are rising. Attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy can be used to biochemically signature cells based on the notion that a detailed "biochemical-cell fingerprint" in the form of an infrared (IR) spectrum is derived. By employing subsequent computational approaches such as principal component analysis (PCA) and/or linear discriminant analysis (LDA), data reduction is achieved to allow for the identification of wavenumber-related biomarkers of effect Clustering of similar spectra (or scores) away from dissimilar ones highlights the variance responsible for discriminating classes.

A mass balance of tri-hexabrominated diphenyl ethers in lactating cows.

Beef and dairy products can be important vectors of human exposure to polybrominated diphenylethers (BDEs), and hence an understanding of BDE transfer from feed to cows' milk and tissue is important for BDE exposure assessment The fate of tri- to hexaBDEs in lactating cows exposed to a naturally contaminated diet was studied by analyzing feed, feces, and milk samples from a mass balance study. Tissue distribution was studied in one cowslaughtered afterthe experiment The carryover rates from feed to milk ranged from 0.15 to 0.

Uptake and storage of PCBs by plant cuticles.

The uptake kinetics and storage of PCBs by isolated cuticles and cuticular waxes from Hedera helix, Prunus laurocerasus, and Ilex aquifolium were studied. Small chambers were used, allowing variation in plant uptake parameters to be studied by having the same air boundary layer in each chamber. During the 64 day study tri- and tetrachlorinated biphenyls generally reached equilibrium in waxes but not in whole cuticles.

Use of two-photon excitation microscopy and autofluorescence for visualizing the fate and behavior of semivolatile organic chemicals within living vegetation.

The uptake, transport, storage, and processing of semivolatile organic chemicals (SVOCs) by vegetation plays an important role in their environmental fate. Understanding these processes at the plant cellular level is essential to understanding the fate and behavior of SVOCs within the environment. Traditional analytical methods have relied on destructive analysis of the plant and a level of inference to suggest exactly where within the plant the chemical is residing, how it is getting there, and what its subsequent fate might be.

Validation of a passive atmospheric deposition sampler for polybrominated diphenyl ethers.

An atmospheric deposition sampler was validated with respect to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), a compound group that is widely used as flame retardants in many types of consumer products. The deposition sampler consists of an adsorption cartridge that is connected to a glass funnel. Extraction tests with spiked cartridges using soxhlet extraction with acetone revealed recoveries of >80% for all of the investigated PBDEs.

Decabromodiphenyl ether (deca-BDE) commercial mixture components, and other PBDEs, in airborne particles at a UK site.

The occurrence of the major components of the decabromodiphenyl ether (deca-BDE) flame retardant and other PBDEs was investigated in daily air particulate samples from 17th April to 20th May 2004 at a semi-rural site in north-west England. BDE-209 was found at between <0.49 and 100 pg m(-3) (median 13 pg m(-3)), and other higher-brominated PBDE congeners were also found, particularly the nona-BDEs (e.

PAHs in background soils from Western Europe: influence of atmospheric deposition and soil organic matter.

The levels and distribution of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined in soil samples from background locations in the UK and Norway, to investigate their spatial distribution and the controlling environmental factors. Concentrations ranged between 42 and 11200 microg kg(-1) (geometric mean 640 microg kg(-1)) and 8.6 and 1050 microg kg(-1) (150 microg kg(-1)) dry weight in the UK and Norwegian soil, respectively.

Infrared spectral analysis of MCF-7 cells treated with serum-lipid extracts segregates predominantly brominated flame retardant-exposed subjects from those with mainly organochlorine exposures.

We set out to determine whether infrared (IR) spectra of treated MCF-7 cells derived using attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform IR (ATR) microspectroscopy could be used to signature different exposures. Serum-lipid samples from residents living in an electronics waste (e-waste) dismantling region (Region E, n = 26) in the south of P.R.

Exposure of electronics dismantling workers to polybrominated diphenyl ethers, polychlorinated biphenyls, and organochlorine pesticides in South China.

In P.R. China, electronic waste (e-waste) from across the world is dismantled and discarded.

Polychlorinated biphenyls, DDT, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and organic pesticides in United Kingdom harbor seals (Phoca vitulina)--mixed exposures and thyroid homeostasis.

Polychlorinated biphenyls, DDT and its metabolites, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and selected organochlorine pesticide concentrations were measured in blubber samples from 60 free-living harbor seals in 2003 from five sites around the United Kingdom coast. Significant regional differences among contaminant levels were found, with seals on Islay and Jura (southwest Scotland) having the highest levels of polychlorinated biphenyls and seals in the Wash (eastern England) having the highest polybrominated diphenyl ether levels. Animals from the north and northeast of Scotland (Orkney and the Moray Firth) had the lowest levels of all the contaminant groups studied.

Fate of higher brominated PBDEs in lactating cows.

Dietary intake studies of lower brominated diphenyl ethers (BDEs) have shown that fish and animal products are important vectors of human exposure, but almost no data exist for higher brominated BDEs. Therefore, the fate of hepta- to decaBDEs was studied in lactating cows exposed to a naturally contaminated diet by analyzing feed, feces, and milk samples from a previous mass balance study of PCB. Tissue distribution was studied in one cow slaughtered after the experiment.

Persistent organic pollutants in European background air: derivation of temporal and latitudinal trends.

Data are presented for polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyls ethers (PBDEs) and selected organochlorine compounds (OCs) in passive air samplers (PAS) along a rural/remote latitudinal transect from southern UK to northern Norway during 2002-2004. This study is part of an ongoing campaign, using semi-permeable membrane devices (SPMDs) as PAS over two year intervals since 1994. Data for PCBs, selected OCs and PBDEs are compared with that from previous campaigns.

Chlorinated paraffins: a review of analysis and environmental occurrence.

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs), as technical mixtures of polychlorinated alkanes (PCAs), are ubiquitous in the environment. CPs tend to behave in a similar way to persistent organic pollutants (POPs), leading several countries to impose regulations on the use of CPs. In this article, we review the literature on the properties of CPs, the current analytical tools available to determine CPs in various types of environmental matrices, and concentrations found in the environment.

Visualizing the air-to-leaf transfer and within-leaf movement and distribution of phenanthrene: further studies utilizing two-photon excitation microscopy.

Two-photon excitation microscopy (TPEM) was used to monitor the air-to-leaf transfer and within-leaf movement and distribution of phenanthrene in two plant species (maize and spinach) grown within a contaminated atmosphere. Phenanthrene was visualized within the leaf cuticle, epidermis, mesophyll, and vascular system of living maize and spinach plants. No detectable levels of phenanthrene were observed in the roots or stems of either species, suggesting phenanthrene entered the leaves only from the air.

Organohalogen chemicals in human blood from the United Kingdom.

Blood serum from 154 volunteers at 13 UK locations in 2003 were analysed for a range of PCBs, organochlorine pesticides and PBDEs. HCB, p,p'-DDE and p,p'-DDT and beta-HCH were the dominant organochlorine pesticides in most samples. BDEs 47, 99, 100, 153, 154 and 183 were the most regularly detected PBDEs.

Detailed study of factors controlling atmospheric concentrations of PCNs.

Atmospheric concentrations of polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) (108 samples in total) were measured at two rural/ semirural sites in England and one remote site on the west coast of Ireland in the years 2001 and 2000, respectively. Detailed analysis of the factors affecting concentrations is performed. At Mace Head (MH) Ireland, concentrations of sigmaPCNs ranged between 1.

Spatial and temporal variability in air concentrations of short-chain (C10-C13) and medium-chain (C14-C17) chlorinated n-alkanes measured in the U.K. atmosphere.

Two studies were carried out on short-chain (C10-C13) and medium-chain (C14-C17) polychlorinated n-alkanes (sPCAs and mPCAs) in U.K. air samples.

Short and medium chain length chlorinated paraffins in UK human milk fat.

Chlorinated paraffins (also called polychlorinated n-alkanes -- PCAs) are a class of industrial chemicals comprising chlorinated straight chain hydrocarbons. They have a wide range of applications and are now found in a range of environmental compartments. We analysed a total of 25 human milk-fat samples, donated by 18 individuals from the urban London and more rural Lancaster areas in the UK, for short chain PCAs (C(10)-C(13) sPCAs) and medium chain PCAs (C(14)-C(17) mPCAs), using gas chromatography-ECNI high-resolution mass spectrometry.

Direct observation of organic contaminant uptake, storage, and metabolism within plant roots.

Two-photon excitation microscopy (TPEM) is used to visualize and track the uptake and movement of anthracene and phenanthrene from a contaminated growth medium into living unmodified roots of maize and wheat over a 56-day period. The degradation of anthracene was also directly observed within the cortex cells of both species. The power of this technique is that neither the plant nor the compound require altering (staining or sectioning) to visualize them, meaning they are in their natural form throughout the experiment.

Time trends of atmospheric PBDEs inferred from archived U.K. herbage.

Aerial portions of vegetation receive the bulk of their burden of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) from the atmosphere. Vegetation can therefore be a useful indicator of the changing atmospheric burden of POPs. Samples of archived pasture, collected from Rothamsted Experimental Station in the United Kingdom between 1930 and 2004, were analyzed for a range of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs).

Real-time visualization and quantification of PAH photodegradation on and within plant leaves.

Vegetation plays a key role in the environmental cycling and fate of many organic chemicals. A compound's location on or within leaves will affect its persistence and significance; retention in surface compartments (i.e.

Absorption of decabromodiphenyl ether and other organohalogen chemicals by grey seals (Halichoerus grypus).

An input-output balance study was performed for polybrominated diphenyl ethers, polychlorinated biphenyls and some organochlorine pesticides on three captive, juvenile grey seals (Halichoerus grypus). The animals were fed a diet of herring for six months, during the last three months of which this study was performed. A supplement of decabromodiphenyl ether was included in the diet during the second month of the study.