scholarly journals Ecotoxicity testing of airborne particulate matter—comparison of sample preparation techniques for the Vibrio fischeri assay

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nora Kováts ◽  
Katalin Hubai ◽  
Tsend-Ayush Sainnokhoi ◽  
András Hoffer ◽  
Gábor Teke
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Organic Solvents ◽  
Direct Contact ◽  
Vibrio Fischeri ◽  
Water Extract ◽  
Airborne Particulate Matter ◽  
Airborne Particulate ◽  
Contact Test ◽  
Extraction Procedures ◽  
Direct Contact Test

AbstractThe bioassay based on the bioluminescence inhibition of the marine bacterium Vibrio fischeri has been the most widely used test for the assessment of airborne particulate matter ecotoxicity. Most studies available use an extract of the solid sample, either made with water or organic solvents. As an alternative, a whole-aerosol test is also available where test bacteria are in actual contact with contaminated particles. In our study, different extraction procedures were compared to this direct contact test based on the V. fischeri assay and analytical measurements. The lowest PAH content and the highest EC50 were determined in water extract, while the highest PAH amount and lowest EC50 were measured in dichloromethane, hexane, and dimethyl-sulphoxide extracts. EC50 of the direct contact test was comparable to that of the methanol extract. Our results suggest that the sensitivity of the direct contact test equals to that of extraction procedures using organic solvents, moreover, it is mimicking an environmentally realistic exposure route.

scholarly journals Assessing Ecotoxicity of Size-fractionated Airborne Particulate Matter

2019 ◽  
Vol 99 ◽  
pp. 04010
Author(s):  
Bettina Eck-Varanka ◽  
Katalin Hubai ◽  
Eszter Horváth ◽  
Nora Kováts ◽  
Gábor Teke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Ultrafine Particles ◽  
Vibrio Fischeri ◽  
Airborne Particulate Matter ◽  
Submicron Particles ◽  
Size Distributions ◽  
Airborne Particulate ◽  
Toxic Response ◽  
Toxic Materials ◽  
Bioluminescence Inhibition

Particulate matter (PM) is grouped as coarse, fine, and ultrafine particles (UFPs) with aerodynamic diameters of 2.5 to 10 μm (PM10), <2.5 μm (PM2.5), and <0.1 μm (PM0.1), respectively. The course and fine fractions have been well characterised from numerous aspects, including potential environmental hazard. However, more and more studies are targeted to the UFP fraction, as they bind relatively higher concentrations of potentially toxic materials and they might penetrate through cell biological barriers, posing higher risk to the biota. In our study, ecotoxic potential of size-fractionated urban aerosol was evaluated, using the kinetic version of the Vibrio fischeri bioluminescence inhibition bioassay. The kinetic protocol makes it possible to avoid false ecotoxicity readings which might appear in case of coloured and/or turbid samples. Our results showed that all PM fractions elucidated significant toxic response, highest toxicity was experienced in the range of 0.25/0.5μm and 0.5/1 μm (with the EC50s of 7.07 and 7.8%). Ecotoxicity in general followed the typical pattern of number size distributions of submicron particles experienced in Europe.

scholarly journals The Impact of Bushfire Smoke on Cattle—A Review

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 848
Author(s):  
Benjamin Eid ◽  
David Beggs ◽  
Peter Mansell
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Prolonged Exposure ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Airborne Particulate Matter ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Airborne Particulate ◽  
Primary Mechanism ◽  
Background Mortality ◽  
Fire Front ◽  
The Impact

In 2019–2020, a particularly bad bushfire season in Australia resulted in cattle being exposed to prolonged periods of smoke haze and reduced air quality. Bushfire smoke contains many harmful pollutants, and impacts on regions far from the fire front, with smoke haze persisting for weeks. Particulate matter (PM) is one of the major components of bushfire smoke known to have a negative impact on human health. However, little has been reported about the potential effects that bushfire smoke has on cattle exposed to smoke haze for extended periods. We explored the current literature to investigate evidence for likely effects on cattle from prolonged exposure to smoke generated from bushfires in Australia. We conducted a search for papers related to the impacts of smoke on cattle. Initial searching returned no relevant articles through either CAB Direct or PubMed databases, whilst Google Scholar provided a small number of results. The search was then expanded to look at two sub-questions: the type of pollution that is found in bushfire smoke, and the reported effects of both humans and cattle being exposed to these types of pollutants. The primary mechanism for damage due to bushfire smoke is due to small airborne particulate matter (PM). Although evidence demonstrates that PM from bushfire smoke has a measurable impact on both human mortality and cardiorespiratory morbidities, there is little evidence regarding the impact of chronic bushfire smoke exposure in cattle. We hypothesize that cattle are not severely affected by chronic exposure to smoke haze, as evidenced by the lack of reports. This may be because cattle do not tend to suffer from the co-morbidities that, in the human population, seem to be made worse by smoke and pollution. Further, small changes to background mortality rates or transient morbidity may also go unreported.

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