Evaluation of the toxic potential of coffee wastewater on seeds, roots and meristematic cells of Lactuca sativa L.

Coffee wastewater (CWW) is an effluent produced through wet processing of coffee containing high concentration of organic matter, nutrients, salts and also agrochemicals. It is released directly into the argillaceous soil or into decantation tanks for later disposal into soils, by fertigation, subsurface infiltration or superficial draining. However, this practice is not followed by the monitoring the toxicity potential of this effluent.

Mutagenic potential of fine wastes from dimension stone industry.

The industrial treatment of dimension stones, such as marbles and granites, includes a stage of plate polishing, in which resins and abrasives are used, producing a fine grained waste with high moisture content. These wastes pass through decantation tanks in order to separate the solid and liquid phases. Until now, there is no knowledge about the mutagenic effects that this effluent can cause to organisms exposed to it.

Profile of micronucleus frequencies and nuclear abnormalities in different species of electric fishes (Gymnotiformes) from the Eastern Amazon.

The frequency of spontaneous micronucleus (MN) formation in fish species needs to be determined to evaluate their usefulness for genotoxic biomonitoring. The definition of a good bioindicator takes into account the current knowledge of its metabolic traits as well as other factors including its feeding behavior and relationship to the environment. In this study, we compared the basal frequencies of micronucleated erythrocytes and nuclear abnormalities (NA) among different species of the fish Order Gymnotiformes (Rhamphichthys marmoratus, Steatogenys elegans, Sternopygus macrurus, Parapteronotus hasemani, Gymnotus mamiraua, Gymnotus arapaima, Brachyhypopomus beebei, Brachyhypopomus n.

Morphological and histochemical characterization of gill filaments of the Brazilian endemic bivalve Diplodon expansus (Küster, 1856) (Mollusca, Bivalvia, Hyriidae).

This study presents the morphological description and histochemical characterization of gill filaments of the Brazilian endemic bivalve Diplodon expansus, aiming to broaden the morphological knowledge of this species and establish the structure of the gills that will serve as control in histopathological studies applied to biomonitoring. The gill filaments are divided into three zones: frontal, intermediate, and abfrontal. In the center of the filament, haemocytes circulate through the haemolymph vessel, which is internally lined by endothelium.

The use of histological, histochemical and ultramorphological techniques to detect gill alterations in Oreochromis niloticus reared in treated polluted waters.

Fish gills are constituted by primary filaments and secondary lamellae, which are formed, basically, by three different cell types: pillar cells, respiratory cells and erythrocytes that circulate in the lamellae interior. This respiratory organ is very appreciated in environmental studies since it is constantly in contact with the water, accomplishing exchanges; besides this, it presents a high adaptation capacity. In this work, some fishes were reared in polluted waters treated by the flotation method (treated group) and compared with others that were reared in clean waters (control group).

Ultramorphological characteristics of Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera, Calliphoridae) eggs and its eclosion.

Chrysomya blowflies are originally from Africa and Australasia and were introduced in the American Continent, probably as a sheep parasite, in the 1970s. These flies are extremely important for medical-sanitary purposes and are useful to forensic entomology being used as an indicative of decomposition time in human corpses. The morphology of the larval and pupal stages of some species has been already studied by different authors demonstrating that it is possible to identify them in premature stages.

The significance of changes in Mytella falcata (Orbigny, 1842) gill filaments chronically exposed to polluted environments.

The impact of pollutants in an organism can be observed by changes in functional complexity at different levels. Bivalve gills are suitable for histopathological analysis because of their structure and function. This study aimed at examining the morphology of Mytella falcata gill filaments from three sites in the Santos estuary (São Paulo, Brazil) with different levels of environmental degradation to identify possible changes in gill structure and discuss the significance of these alterations.

Fine structure of Mytella falcata (Bivalvia) gill filaments.

Bivalve filter feeders are sessile animals that live in constant contact with water and its pollutants. Their gill is an organ highly exposed to these conditions due to its large surface and its involvement in gas exchanges and feeding. The bivalve Mytella falcata is found in estuaries of Latin America, on the Atlantic as well as the Pacific Coast.