Development of a protocol to measure iron-55 in solid matrices in the environment.

The development of metrology of iron-55 in low-level radioactivity in environmental solid matrices was realised for conducting radioecological studies. A protocol was developed based on the adaptation of existing methods for the purification of iron-55 with selective chromatographic resin, which was then measured with liquid scintillation. The loss attached treatment chemical steps were quantified with elemental iron by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES).

Unexpected lack of deleterious effects of uranium on physiological systems following a chronic oral intake in adult rat.

Uranium level in drinking water is usually in the range of microgram-per-liter, but this value may be as much as 100 to 1000 times higher in some areas, which may raise question about the health consequences for human populations living in these areas. Our purpose was to improve knowledge of chemical effects of uranium following chronic ingestion. Experiments were performed on rats contaminated for 9 months via drinking water containing depleted uranium (0.

(210)Po and (210)Pb in the tissues of the deep-sea hydrothermal vent mussel Bathymodiolus azoricus from the Menez Gwen field (Mid-Atlantic Ridge).

The hydrothermal deep-sea vent fauna is naturally exposed to a highly specific environment enriched in potentially toxic species such as sulfides, metals and natural radionuclides due to the convective seawater circulation inside the oceanic crust and its interaction with basaltic or ultramafic host rocks. However, data on radionuclides in biota from such environment are very limited. An investigation was carried out on tissue partitioning of (210)Po and (210)Pb, two natural radionuclides within the (238)U decay chain, in Bathymodiolus azoricus specimens from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (Menez Gwen field).

High levels of natural radioactivity in biota from deep-sea hydrothermal vents: a preliminary communication.

Hydrothermal deep-sea vent fauna is naturally exposed to a peculiar environment enriched in potentially toxic species such as sulphides, heavy metals and natural radionuclides. It is now well established that some of the organisms present in such an environment accumulate metals during their lifespan. Though only few radionuclide measurements are available, it seems likely that hydrothermal vent communities are exposed to high natural radiation doses.