Non-invasive biomonitoring of polar bear feces can be used to estimate concentrations of metals of concern in traditional food.

The Arctic faces increasing exposure to environmental chemicals such as metals, posing health risks to humans and wildlife. Biomonitoring of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) can be used to quantify chemicals in the environment and in traditional foods consumed by the Inuit. However, typically, these samples are collected through invasive or terminal methods.

Polycyclic aromatic compounds in a northern freshwater ecosystem: Patterns, sources, and the influences of environmental factors.

Polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) - a large group of organic chemicals naturally present in petroleum deposits (i.e., petrogenic) or released into the environment by incomplete combustion of organic materials (i.

Mercury deposition to lake sediments near historic gold mines in northern Canada.

Mercury (Hg) contamination in aquatic systems can lead to adverse human and environmental health outcomes. Yellowknife, a city in Canada's Northwest Territories, is a historic mining community, with two large gold mines (Giant Mine and Con Mine) that used Hg amalgamation methods to extract gold between ∼1938 and 1960. We analyzed dated sediment cores from 20 small lakes to investigate the spatial and temporal Hg deposition patterns within 50 km of Giant Mine.

Site-specific spatiotemporal occurrence and molecular congener distributions of naphthenic acids in Athabasca oil sands wetlands of Alberta, Canada.

The Athabasca oil sands region (AOSR) of Alberta, Canada is notable for its considerable unconventional petroleum extraction projects, where bitumen is extracted from naturally-occurring oil sands ore. The large scale of these heavy crude oil developments raises concerns because of their potential to distribute and/or otherwise influence the occurrence, behaviour, and fate of environmental contaminants. Naphthenic acids (NAs) are one such contaminant class of concern in the AOSR, so studies have examined the occurrence and molecular profiles of NAs in the region.

Geospatial pattern of topsoil pollution and multi-endpoint toxicity in the petrochemical area of Augusta-Priolo (eastern Sicily, Italy).

The present study was aimed at identifying geospatial patterns of pollutants including concentrations and toxicity as complex environmental mixtures, in topsoil samples close to petrochemical facilities in the heavily industrialized area of Augusta and Priolo in south-eastern Sicily (Italy). Elemental analysis of soil was conducted by ICP-MS for 23 metals and 16 rare earth elements (REEs). Organic analyses were primarily focused on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (16 parent homologs) and total aliphatic hydrocarbons (C10 - C40).

The skin is no barrier to mixtures: Air pollutant mixtures and reported psoriasis or eczema in the Personalized Environment and Genes Study (PEGS).

Background: Autoimmune (AI) diseases appear to be a product of genetic predisposition and environmental triggers. Disruption of the skin barrier causes exacerbation of psoriasis/eczema. Oxidative stress is a mechanistic pathway for pathogenesis of the disease and is also a primary mechanism for the detrimental effects of air pollution.

A geospatial modeling approach to quantifying the risk of exposure to environmental chemical mixtures via a common molecular target.

In the real world, individuals are exposed to chemicals from sources that vary over space and time. However, traditional risk assessments based on in vivo animal studies typically use a chemical-by-chemical approach and apical disease endpoints. New approach methodologies (NAMs) in toxicology, such as in vitro high-throughput (HTS) assays generated in Tox21 and ToxCast, can more readily provide mechanistic chemical hazard information for chemicals with no existing data than in vivo methods.

Integrating Multiscale Geospatial Environmental Data into Large Population Health Studies: Challenges and Opportunities.

Quantifying the exposome is key to understanding how the environment impacts human health and disease. However, accurately, and cost-effectively quantifying exposure in large population health studies remains a major challenge. Geospatial technologies offer one mechanism to integrate high-dimensional environmental data into epidemiology studies, but can present several challenges.

Paleotoxicity of petrogenic and pyrogenic hydrocarbon mixtures in sediment cores from the Athabasca oil sands region, Alberta (Canada).

Despite the economic benefits of the oil and gas industry in Northern Alberta, significant concerns exist regarding the impacts of increased oil production on the environment and human health. Several studies have highlighted increases in the concentrations of polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) and other hydrocarbons in the atmosphere, water, soil and sediments, plants, wildlife and fish in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) as a result of oil sands industrial activity. Sediment cores can provide information on the temporal trends of contaminants to the environment and provide important baseline information when monitoring data are absent.

Mixed-method evaluation of a community-based postpartum support program: a study protocol.

Introduction: Becoming a parent is one of the most significant events an individual will experience in their lifetime. The postpartum period can be a difficult time, especially for mothers, who may require extra support during this challenging time. The proposed study seeks to understand the issue of postpartum support for mothers and their families.

Geospatial analysis of the patterns of chemical exposures among biota in the Canadian Oil Sands Region.

Understanding the patterns of chemical exposure among biota across a landscape is challenging due to the spatial heterogeneity and complexity of the sources, pathways, and fate of the different chemicals. While spatially-driven relationships between contaminant sources and biota body burdens of a single chemical are commonly modelled, there has been little effort on modelling chemical mixtures across multiple wildlife species in the Canadian Oil Sands region. In this study, we used spatial principal components analysis (sPCA) to assess spatial patterns of the body burdens of 22 metals and Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs) in 492 individual wildlife, including fur-bearing mammals, colonial waterbirds, and amphibians collected from the Canadian Oil Sands region in Canada.

The Gut Microbial Community Structure of the North American River Otter (Lontra canadensis) in the Alberta Oil Sands Region in Canada: Relationship with Local Environmental Variables and Metal Body Burden.

The Alberta Oil Sands Region in Canada is home to one of the largest oil bitumen deposits in the world. The North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) is a top predator with a small home range and is sensitive to disturbances; it has been designated as a sentinel species for the potential impacts of the natural resource exploitation on freshwater ecosystems in the Alberta Oil Sands Region. With an increasing interest in noninvasive biomarkers, recent studies suggest that gut microbiota can be used as a potential biomarker of early biological effects on aquatic wildlife.

Spatial patterns of the exposure-response relationship between mercury and cortisol in the fur of river otter (Lontra canadensis).

Fur has been validated as a useful biomarker medium for chemical exposures and biological responses in wildlife. Mercury (Hg) is known to act as an endocrine disruptor by altering brain neurochemistry. In this study, we investigated the spatial patterns of relationships between total Hg (THg) and cortisol in the fur of river otter (Lontra canadensis).

Determining the effects of past gold mining using a sediment palaeotoxicity model.

Ore processing techniques used in Yellowknife's largest mining operation, Giant Mine, is responsible for the atmospheric release of approximately 20,000 t of particulate arsenic trioxide and other heavy metal(loids). This rapid deposition of heavy metal(loids) may have caused ecological disturbances to aquatic food webs. Here we use Pb and Cs dated lake sediment cores from 20 lakes within a 40 km radius of Yellowknife to examine the spatial-temporal distribution of arsenic, antimony and lead.

Relationships between mercury concentrations in fur and stomach contents of river otter (Lontra canadensis) and mink (Neovison vison) in Northern Alberta Canada and their applications as proxies for environmental factors determining mercury bioavailability.

The fur of piscivorous animals such as river otter (Lontra canadensis) and mink (Neovison vison) has been proposed to be used as a biomarker medium to assess mercury (Hg) exposure, but the relationship with dietary and environmental Hg exposure has not been fully characterized. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between fur total mercury (THg) and stomach content THg in river otter and mink, and their relationships with environmental factors. THg concentrations were measured in fur and stomach contents of river otter (n = 35) and mink (n = 30) collected from northern Alberta, Canada between 2014 and 2017.

The Use of Geographic Information Systems for Spatial Ecological Risk Assessments: An Example from the Athabasca Oil Sands Area in Canada.

There is an acknowledged need in ecotoxicology for methods that integrate spatial analyses in risk assessment. This has resulted in the emergence of landscape ecotoxicology, a subdiscipline of ecotoxicology. However, landscape ecotoxicology has yet to become common practice in risk assessment due to the underdevelopment of techniques and a lack of standardized methods.

Distribution of organic and inorganic mercury across the pelts of Canadian river otter (Lontra canadensis).

Fur is a common biomarker of environmental mercury (Hg) exposure. Further, there are well-established relationships between total mercury (THg) in fur and organs. However, these models assumed that THg is uniformly distributed across the fur in a pelt.

High selenium exposure lowers the odds ratios for hypertension, stroke, and myocardial infarction associated with mercury exposure among Inuit in Canada.

Background: Selenium (Se) has been reported to protect against the neurotoxicity of mercury (Hg). However, the effect of Se against Hg on cardiovascular diseases remains unclear. Inuit living in the Arctic have high exposure to both Se and Hg through their marine mammal and fish rich traditional diet.

Predictive meta-regressions relating mercury tissue concentrations of freshwater piscivorous mammals.

Mercury (Hg) is a pollutant of global concern. Sentinel species such as river otter (Lontra canadensis) and mink (Neovison vison) are often used to monitor environmental concentrations in freshwater ecosystems. Tissue total Hg (THg) concentrations are frequently used as biomarkers of exposure.

Applications of geographic information systems in public health: A geospatial approach to analyzing MMR immunization uptake in Alberta.

Objective: This study evaluates the temporal, spatial, and spatio-temporal variation of immunization rates for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) immunization in the province of Alberta. The study uses yearly immunization rate data for Health Zones and Local Geographic Areas (2004-2012), which were obtained from Alberta Health's Interactive Health Data Application (IHDA).

Methods: Spatial analyses include a global spatial analysis, Moran's I, and local indicators of spatial association (LISA) analysis - Getis and Ord's G* - to identify clusters of high or low immunization rates.