Prioritising anticancer drugs for environmental monitoring and risk assessment purposes.

Anticancer drugs routinely used in chemotherapy enter wastewater through the excretion of the non-metabolised drug following administration to patients. This study considers the consumption and subsequent behaviour and occurrence of these chemicals in aquatic systems, with the aim of prioritising a selection of these drugs which are likely to persist in the environment and hence be considered for environmental screening programmes. Accurate consumption data were compiled from a hospital survey in NW England and combined with urinary excretion rates derived from clinical studies.

Land atmosphere feedbacks and their role in the water resources of the Ganges basin.

The northern Indian subcontinent has frequently been identified as a hotspot for land atmosphere interactions. It is also a region with the highest concentration of irrigated land and highest (and increasing) population density in the world. The available water in the region with which to grow food depends on the Asian monsoon, groundwater and melt from Himalayan snows.

Life-history effects of arsenic toxicity in clades of the earthworm Lumbricus rubellus.

Exposures of Lumbricus rubellus to a series of arsenic concentrations in soil were used to assess life-stage (juvenile, adult) and genotype specific sensitivities, to calculate population growth rate (λ) and to assess patterns of As accumulation. Significant mortality was seen in juveniles at 125 mg/kg As, while growth and maturation was affected from 36 mg/kg and above. In adults, cocoon production at the highest concentration (125 mg/kg) was significantly reduced.

Parasitoid secretions provoke ant warfare.

Insect social parasites are extreme specialists that typically use mimicry or stealth to enter ant colonies to exploit the rich, but fiercely protected, resources within their nests. Here we show how a parasitic wasp (parasitoid) contrives to reach its host, itself an endangered species of social parasite that lives inside the brood chambers of ant nests, by releasing semiochemicals to induce in-fighting between worker ants, locking the colony in combat and leaving it underprotected. Four of these chemicals are new to biology and have the potential to control pest species by inducing different agonistic behaviours in ants.

Total phosphorus content of river sediments in relationship to calcium, iron and organic matter concentrations.

Data on the total concentrations of phosphorus, calcium, iron and organic matter in surface bed-sediments taken from rivers in the Thames catchment (Wey, Blackwater, Thame and Kennet), the River Swale in Yorkshire (data excludes the organic matter content) as well as the headwaters of the Great Ouse, are collated and compared. Total concentrations of phosphorus, iron and calcium range from 1.7-649, 12-8,333 and 9-4,605 micromol g(-1) (dry weight), respectively, with organic matter in the range of 0.

Gloomy predictions - modelling photoautotrophy in low-light environments.

How plants gather their resources, harvest solar energy and convert raw materials into an increased biomass is one of the enduring fascinations of biological science. Just about every step has been charted by biochemists and few processes have escaped the determination of a rate constant by physiologists. Even the molecular biologist is busy identifying the genes that govern the processes of synthesis and assembly.