Co-exposure soil studies of pollutants are necessary for an appropriate ecological risk assessment. Here, we examined the effects of two-component mixtures of metal oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs or goethite NPs) with the insecticide chlorpyrifos (CPF) under laboratory conditions in short-term artificial soil assays using Eisenia andrei earthworms. We characterized NPs and their mixtures by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, dynamic light scattering and zeta potential, and evaluated effects on metal accumulation, oxidative stress enzymes, and neurotoxicity related biomarkers in single and combined toxicity assays.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeonicotinoids (NNTs) are a class of insecticides proposed to be safe for pest control in urban, suburban, and agricultural applications. However, little is known about their developmental effects after repeated low-dose exposures during gestation. Here, we tested a dose considered subthreshold for maternal toxicity in rats (6 mg/kg/day) by assessing several morphological, biochemical, and neurobehavioral features in preterm fetuses and developing pups after maternal administration of the NTT acetamiprid (ACP) dissolved in the drinking water during gestational days (GD) 2-19.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA novel assay technique that involves quantification of lysozyme (Lys) through machine learning is put forward here. This article reports the tendency of the well- documented Ellington group anti-Lys aptamer, to produce aggregates when exposed to Lys. This property of apta-aggregation has been exploited here to develop an assay that quantifies the Lys using texture and area parameters from a photograph of the elliptical aggregate mass through machine learning.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLead (Pb) is an environmental and industrial contaminant that still represents a public health problem. In this paper, we investigated the effect of Pb on proliferation, lipid peroxidation and the number of micronucleated cells in exponentially growing 3T3-L1 fibroblasts, a cell line previously used to evaluate different environmental contaminants. We found that Pb (10 μM or higher) was able to inhibit proliferation of exponentially growing cells after 24-h treatment, which was evaluated by the MTT assay and cell counting in Neubauer chamber, but cell survival was not affected according to the trypan blue exclusion assay.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe effects of mixtures of nanoparticles (NPs) and other chemicals have been poorly studied in terrestrial invertebrates. In this study, we investigated the effects of binary mixtures of goethite (α-FeOOH) NPs and metallic (Cd and Pb) or organic (chlorpyrifos, CPF) contaminants in Eisenia andrei earthworms. We used the filter paper contact test to evaluate (i) the uptake of NPs in organisms exposed to the mixtures of NPs+Metals and NPs+CPF and (ii) the potential effects of the mixture of NPs+CPF on the CPF-induced inhibition of the biomarker enzymes acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and carboxylesterases (CES).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe Global Horizon Scanning Project (GHSP) is an innovative initiative that aims to identify important global environmental quality research needs. Here we report 20 key research questions from Latin America (LA). Members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) LA and other scientists from LA were asked to submit research questions that would represent priority needs to address in the region.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGlyphosate-based products are the leading post-emergent agricultural herbicides in the world, particularly in association with glyphosate tolerant crops. However, studies on the effects of glyphosate-based formulations on terrestrial receptors are scarce. This study was conducted to evaluate the comparative toxicity of two glyphosate-based products: Roundup FG (monoammonium salt, 72% acid equivalent, glyphosate-A) and Mon 8750 (monoammonium salt, 85.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFContamination by 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) is a global environmental problem at sites of former explosive production, handling, or storage, and could have deleterious consequences for human and ecological health. We investigated its sublethal effects to Eisenia fetida, using two nonspecific biomarkers. In coelomocytes of earthworms exposed 24, 48, or 72 h, we evaluated DNA damage (comet assay) and neutral red retention time (NRRT), using the filter paper contact test.
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