scholarly journals Accumulation of heavy metals and antioxidant defense system in the gametophyte of Didymodon rigidulus Hedw. in areas with high traffic loads

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 51-60
Author(s):  
A. I. Polishchuk ◽  
◽  
H. L. Antonyak ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Metal Accumulation ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Thiobarbituric Acid ◽  
Antioxidant Defense System ◽  
Control Area ◽  
Lipid Hydroperoxides ◽  
Traffic Loads ◽  
Rail Traffic

Background. Various modes of transport are among the main sources of environmental pollution with heavy metals and other pollutants. Bryophytes are known to accumulate heavy metals; however, metabolic changes in mosses under conditions of metal accumulation have not been extensively studied. The aim of this article was to analyze the accumulation of heavy metals, the process of lipid peroxidation (LPO) and the activity of enzymes of the antioxidant system in Didymodon rigidulus Hedw. moss collected in urban areas with an intense load created by road and railway transport. Materials and Methods. Gametophyte shoots were collected at three sampling sites in the city of Lviv (Ukraine). Site 1 was selected in a park zone, which was considered a control one; sites 2 and 3 were selected in areas with heavy road and rail traffic, respectively. Concentrations of chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), and zinc (Zn) in the moss material were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The levels of LPO products, namely lipid hydroperoxides and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), as well as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase activities, were determined by standard methods. The results were processed using the methods of variation statistics. Results. Moss D. rigidulus growing in the park area (site 1) accumulated metals in the following order of decreasing concentration: Zn> Cr> Ni> Pb. Gametophyte shoots of D. rigidulus collected at site 2 accumulated higher levels of Pb, Zn and Ni (by 2.27, 1.78 and 1.45 times, respectively), and at site 3, higher levels of Pb and Zn (by 1.8 and 1.67 times, respectively) compared to gametophytes collected in the park zone. In the moss samples from these sites, no significant differences in the Cr content were found as compared to the control. Concentration of lipid hydroperoxides in the moss sampled at sites 2 and 3 was 4.26 and 3.75 times higher, respectively, compared to the control, and TBARS production was more intense in plant material from site 2 than from the control site. SOD and catalase activities were considerably increased in D. rigidulus moss from site 2 compared with those from the control area; however, the activity of both enzymes in the moss samples from site 3 did not significantly exceed the control levels. Conclusions. Both road and rail traffic loads contribute to the accumulation of heavy metals, especially Zn and Pb, in D. rigidulus moss growing in the surrounding areas. Under such conditions, LPO process is stimulated, which is more pronounced in moss growing in area with heavy road traffic. The increased activity of antioxidant enzymes (SOD and catalase) in moss growing in this area can play an important role in protecting bryophyte cells against metal-induced oxidative stress under conditions of intense metal accumulation.

scholarly journals Biochemical Responses of Medicinal Plant Tussilago farfara L. to Elevated Heavy Metal Concentrations in Soils of Urban Areas

Toxics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 171
Author(s):  
Alexander Petukhov ◽  
Tatyana Kremleva ◽  
Galina Petukhova ◽  
Nikolay Khritokhin
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Metal Accumulation ◽  
Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry ◽  
Heavy Metal Accumulation ◽  
Biochemical Responses ◽  
Tussilago Farfara ◽  
Metal Contents ◽  
Metal Fractions

This study was conducted in Tyumen (Russian Federation) to establish the effects of heavy metals’ (Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Cd) accumulation in soil and coltsfoot, as well as plants’ biochemical responses to such an accumulation. The mobile and acid-soluble heavy metal fractions in soils, and the heavy metal contents in plants, were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, and Pb concentrations in soils exceeded background values. Pb content at the battery manufacturing plant was above the maximum permitted concentration. The percentages of the mobile heavy metal fractions decreased in the following order: Mn > Zn > Cu > Fe. The greatest heavy metal accumulation in soils and plants was found at the battery manufacturing and metallurgical plants examined in our study. Heavy metals’ accumulation in the aboveground part of Tussilago farfara decreased in the following order: Fe > Zn > Cu > Mn > Pb > Cd. The accumulation of heavy metals stimulated the synthesis of photosynthetic pigments by 6–30%. Heavy metals provoked oxidative stress in cells, increasing the concentration of lipid peroxidation in products by up to 80%. Plant phenolics and flavonoids in the urban area of our study decreased compared to those in the control by 1.05, reaching up to 6.5 times. The change in coltsfoot catalase activity both increased and declined. Biochemical responses and heavy metal accumulation in coltsfoot from urban areas limit its use for medicinal purposes.

Accumulation Sequences of Heavy Metals in Poplar Tree-Rings in Kaifeng City, China

2011 ◽  
Vol 347-353 ◽  
pp. 2308-2312
Author(s):  
Hai Jing Duan ◽  
Zhi Qi Tong ◽  
Jian Hua Ma
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Tree Rings ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Control Area ◽  
Icp Ms ◽  
Kaifeng City ◽  
And Control ◽  
Increasing Trends ◽  
Poplar Tree ◽  
Cu And Zn

Sixteen tree-rings of Polar (P. Euramericana) were collected in the different function districts of Kaifeng City, China. Concentrations of Cu and Zn in the xylem of tree-rings from 1990 to 2009 were measured using F-AAS, and that of Co using ICP-MS. The results show that concentrations of Cu and Zn in tree-rings in the control area do not vary significantly in the period from 1990 to 2009 and much lower than that in urban areas. The accumulation sequences of Zn in tree-rings in different urban districts appear increasing trends in the period, and that of Cu present waved rising trends. The sequences of Co in tree-rings both in urban and control area had no significant change in the period. Copper and Zinc are the typical anthropogenic metals, and Co is a natural source metal. We can understand the heavy metal pollution changes in urban area from their accumulation sequences in tree-rings.

scholarly journals DETERMINATION OF DIVERSE ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION LEVEL FROM SELECTED AREAS OF RAWALPINDI, PAKISTAN

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
S. Pervez ◽  
M. S. Siddique ◽  
H. Y. Abdullah ◽  
A. Zahra ◽  
N. K. Khanzada ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Noise Level ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Winter Season ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Sound Level ◽  
Pollution Level ◽  
Coal Consumption

Anthropogenic contaminants arising from both stationary (power plants, industries and residential heating) and mobile sources (road traffic) can harm ambient air quality in urban areas. Depending upon their physical state, these pollutants are classified as liquid and vapor phases and are subsequently transported to the Earth’s surface through dry and wet deposition. After the deposition of these pollutants onto the surface of earth various health effects caused by these pollutants occurred like cardiovascular diseases and hypertension. In this study four different locations/sites were selected from the Rawalpindi city depending upon the population, traffic rush and industries to examine the noise level, concentration of carbon dioxide and heavy metals. Air sampler was used for the collection of air sample to analyze the heavy metal concentration, Quest electronic sound meter for measuring sound level and SIBATA for CO2 measurement. The study findings revealed that noise level was higher at all selected locations as described by WHO limit (70 dB) being highest at Industrial area due to heavy machinery and lowest at green area. Concentration of all four heavy metals were high as compared with the prescribed limits. CO2 level reaches up to 300 ppm because of coal consumption during the winter season. The threshold values of all these selected parameters well above the prescribed limits defined by the authorities so to combat with this situation we should move towards more energy efficient fuels, proper maintenance of vehicles and machineries, traffic management and installation of noise barriers in industries as well as installation of catalytic convertors in vehicles to stop further air pollution.

Considerations on Ambient Levels of Ozone Concentrations and Relationship with NOx in an Urban Environment

2017 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 824-829
Author(s):  
Cornel Ianache ◽  
Laurentiu Predescu ◽  
Mirela Predescu ◽  
Dumitru Dumitru
Keyword(s):  
Nitrogen Oxides ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Distinct Pattern ◽  
Weekend Effect ◽  
Monitoring Site ◽  
Ground Level Ozone ◽  
Ozone Concentrations

The serious air pollution problem has determined public concerns, worldwide. One of the main challenges for countries all over the world is caused by the elevated levels of ground-level ozone (O3) concentrations and its anthropogenic precursors. Ploiesti city, as one of the major urban area of Romania, is facing the same situation. This research aims to investigate spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of O3 in relationship with nitrogen oxides (NOx) using statistical analysis methods. Hourly O3 and NOx measurements were collected during 2014 year in Ploiesti. The results obtained showed that the ozone spatial distribution was non-normal for each month in 2014. The diurnal cycle of ground-level ozone concentrations showed a mid-day peak, while NOx diurnal variations presented 2 daily peaks, one in the morning (7:00 a.m.) and one in the afternoon (between 5:00 and 7:00 p.m.). In addition, it was observed a distinct pattern of weekly variations for O3 and NOx. Like in many other urban areas, the results indicated the presence of the �ozone weekend effect� in Ploiesti during the 2014 year, ozone concentrations being slightly higher on weekends compared to weekdays. For the same monitoring site, the nitrogen oxides were less prevalent on Saturdays and Sundays, probably due to reducing of road traffic and other pollution-generating activities on weekends than during the week.

scholarly journals Challenges and Opportunities in Early Stage Planning of Transport Infrastructure Projects: Environmental Aspects in the Strategic Choice of Measures Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1295
Author(s):  
Sofia Eckersten ◽  
Berit Balfors ◽  
Ulrika Gunnarsson-Östling
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Strategic Choice ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Infrastructure Projects ◽  
Environmental Aspects ◽  
Transport Planning

The Strategic Choice of Measures (SCM) approach aims to integrate different perspectives and identify measures to adapt new infrastructure projects to their local context at an early stage of Swedish transport planning. SCM is a loosely structured framework for collaboration between actors from, e.g., municipalities and the Swedish Transport Administration, in order to facilitate the coordination of transport planning and land use planning. This paper aims to explore the consideration of environmental aspects in early-stage transport planning by analyzing the SCM approach. An explorative research approach is applied based on literature studies, semi-structured interviews, and a focus group interview. The result shows that in the SCM process, environmental aspects such as noise and air pollution generated by road traffic in urban areas, engage the actors, whereas aspects related to landscape and water were perceived as poorly addressed and received less attention. The consideration of environmental aspects in the SCM process is affected by the local and national authorities’ different interests and the competences involved. To consolidate environmental aspects in early transport planning, these aspects need to be explicitly addressed in the SCM guidelines and the link between the SCM and preceding and following planning stages needs to be strengthened.

scholarly journals Heavy metal levels in cattle egrets (Bubulcus ibis) foraging in some abattoirs in Lagos State metropolis

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elijah Abakpa Adegbe ◽  
Oluwaseyi Oluwabukola Babajide ◽  
Lois Riyo Maina ◽  
Shola Elijah Adeniji
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Metal Accumulation ◽  
Heavy Metal Contamination ◽  
Heavy Metal Accumulation ◽  
Bubulcus Ibis ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Metal Levels ◽  
Lagos State ◽  
The Mean

Abstract Background Heavy metal accumulation in the ecosystem constitutes a potential toxic effect which is hazardous to human health. Increasing environmental pollution has necessitated the use of cattle egrets to evaluate the levels of heavy metal contamination, to establish their use in biomonitoring of heavy metals and to provide data for monitoring pollution in the environment. Results The present study assessed the utilization of Bubulcus ibis in monitoring pollution in five abattoirs, namely Agege, Bariga, Kara, Itire and Idi-Araba, all situated in Lagos State. The concentration of five (5) heavy metals, cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) was determined in the liver, muscle and feather of Bubulcus ibis using the atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The trend of metal accumulation was in the order: Zn > Cu > Pb > Cd > Ni for all the sampled tissues. The mean tissue concentrations of the metals were significantly different (p < 0.05) among the sites. The highest levels of metal concentration were reported in the liver in all the locations. Mean concentration of Cd in Kara (0.003 ± 0.00058) was significantly (p < 0.05) higher than those found at Agege (0.0013 ± 0.00058) and Idi-Araba (0.001 ± 0.001). A significant difference (p < 0.05) was also observed between the mean concentrations of Cu in Bariga (0.01 ± 0.001) and Idi-Araba (0.003 ± 0.001). Conclusion All the studied heavy metals were present in the liver, muscle and feathers of the cattle egrets. The contamination levels were ascertained from the study which indicated that cattle egrets are useful in biomonitoring studies and the generated data will serve as baseline data which could be compared with data from other locations for monitoring heavy metal pollution.

scholarly journals Understanding Spatial Variability of NO2 in Urban Areas Using Spatial Modelling and Data Fusion Approaches

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 179
Author(s):  
Said Munir ◽  
Martin Mayfield ◽  
Daniel Coca
Keyword(s):  
Data Fusion ◽  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Dispersion Model ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Spatial Modelling ◽  
City Centre ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
The City

Small-scale spatial variability in NO2 concentrations is analysed with the help of pollution maps. Maps of NO2 estimated by the Airviro dispersion model and land use regression (LUR) model are fused with measured NO2 concentrations from low-cost sensors (LCS), reference sensors and diffusion tubes. In this study, geostatistical universal kriging was employed for fusing (integrating) model estimations with measured NO2 concentrations. The results showed that the data fusion approach was capable of estimating realistic NO2 concentration maps that inherited spatial patterns of the pollutant from the model estimations and adjusted the modelled values using the measured concentrations. Maps produced by the fusion of NO2-LCS with NO2-LUR produced better results, with r-value 0.96 and RMSE 9.09. Data fusion adds value to both measured and estimated concentrations: the measured data are improved by predicting spatiotemporal gaps, whereas the modelled data are improved by constraining them with observed data. Hotspots of NO2 were shown in the city centre, eastern parts of the city towards the motorway (M1) and on some major roads. Air quality standards were exceeded at several locations in Sheffield, where annual mean NO2 levels were higher than 40 µg/m3. Road traffic was considered to be the dominant emission source of NO2 in Sheffield.

scholarly journals Effects of road traffic on photosynthetic pigments and heavy metal accumulation in tree species of Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ufere N. Uka ◽  
Ebenezer J. D. Belford ◽  
Florence A. Elebe
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Photosynthetic Pigments ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Metal Accumulation ◽  
Mangifera Indica ◽  
Polluted Site ◽  
Vehicular Pollution ◽  
Terminalia Catappa ◽  
Polyalthia Longifolia

AbstractThis study was undertaken to examine changes in the content of pigments and accumulation of metals from vehicular pollution in selected species of roadside trees under vehicular pollution. A major arterial road with heavy vehicle emissions in the Kumasi Metropolis was designated as the polluted site, while Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Campus was designated as the control site. Four tree species (Terminalia catappa, Mangifera indica, Ficus platyphylla and Polyalthia longifolia) selected for the study were well distributed and abundant in the polluted and control sites. Photosynthetic pigments and levels of heavy metals (Pb, Cu, Cd and zinc) were assessed in their leaves. Chlorophyll and carotenoid contents were determined by absorption spectrometry, while the metal accumulation index (MAI) was used to determine the total metal accumulation capacity of the tree species. We observed a reduction in photosynthetic pigments in the leaf samples from the polluted site. Ficus platyphylla had the maximum reduction in total chlorophyll (49.34%), whereas Terminalia catappa recorded the lowest reduction (33.88%). Similarly, the largest decrease (31.58%) of carotenoid content was found in Terminalia catappa trees and the lowest in Polyalthia longifolia (16.67%). The Polyalthia longifolia, Ficus platyphylla and Terminalia catappa leaf samples collected at the polluted site recorded a higher ratio of chlorophyll a/b. Heavy metal (Cu, Pb, Zn and Cd) accumulation in leaf samples was higher in the polluted site than in the control, as expected. The highest metal MAI value was recorded in Mangifera indica (5.35) followed by Polyalthia longifolia with 4.30. The findings from this study specifically demonstrate that air contamination induced by vehicles decreases the level of photosynthetic pigments in trees subjected to roadside emissions. It is clear that both chlorophyll a/b and chlorophyll/carotenoid ratios will act as very useful stress-level markers. Elevated heavy metal levels in the tree species along arterial roadsides indicate that they serve as heavy metals sink. The change in MAI resulting from different pollution burden is an indication that the removal capabilities of the tree species differ from each other. We therefore suggest M. indica and P. longifolia as potential species to be used in air pollution reduction plans in the city.

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