The Environmental Pollutant Bromophenols Interfere With Sulfotransferase That Mediates Endocrine Hormones

Bromophenols (BPs), known as an important environmental contaminant, can cause endocrine disruption and other chronic toxicity. The study aimed to investigate the potential inhibitory capability of BPs on four human sulfotransferase isoforms (SULT1A1, SULT1A3, SULT1B1 and SULT1E1) and interpret how to interfere with endocrine hormone metabolism. P-nitrophenol(PNP) was utilized as a nonselective probe substrate, and recombinant SULT isoforms were utilized as the enzyme resources. PNP and its metabolite PNP-sulfate were analyzed using a UPLC-UV detecting system. SULT1A1 and SULT1B1 were demonstrated to be the most vulnerable SULT isoforms towards BPs’ inhibition. To determine the inhibition kinetics, 2,4,6-TBP and SULT1A3 were selected as the representative BPs and SULT isoform respectively. The competitive inhibition of 2,4,6-TBP on SULT1A3. The fitting equation was y=90.065x+1466.7, and the inhibition kinetic parameter (Ki) was 16.28 µM. In vitro-in vivo extrapolation (IVIVE) showed that the threshold concentration of 2,4,6-TBP to induce inhibition of SULT1A3 was 1.628 µM. In silico docking, the method utilized indicated that more hydrogen bonds formation contributed to the stronger inhibition of 3,5-DBP than 3-BP. In conclusion, our study gave the full description of the inhibition of BPs towards four SULT isoforms, which may provide a new perspective on the toxicity mechanism of BPs and further explain the interference of BPs on endocrine hormone metabolism.

Deranged hembiosynthetic pathway in gasoline dispensers in Nigeria: Implications for risk of myeloproliferative disorders and chemoprevention

Objectives: There is increasing exposure to petrochemicals, including benzene, particularly in the low and medium-income countries. Benzene is a component of many petrochemicals and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant. Phenol is one of its principal metabolites and serves as a biomarker of exposure to benzene. The mechanism of its toxicity is incompletely elucidated. Benzene’s interaction with key micronutrients; copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn) in the haemopoietic system has only been poorly explored, particularly in the developing countries where their status is variable and uncertain, with attendant intense exposure to petrochemicals. Material and Methods: Two groups of 50 gasoline dispensers (GDs) and 50 non-occupationally exposed participants were selected from Oye Local Government Area, Nigeria. The duration of occupational exposure was 2–10 years. Serum levels of Cu, Fe, and Zn were determined using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry while heme and phenol were determined by standard spectrophotometry. Results: Phenol was significantly higher in GDs (P = 0.000), compared to controls (P < 0.05). The micronutrients, Cu, Fe, and Zn were all significantly decreased in GDs compared to controls (P = 0.000 in all cases). Phenol and Fe demonstrated significant inverse correlation (r = −0.557, P = 0.00), while heme and Zn also exhibited inverse correlation respectively to phenol (r = −0.38, P = 0.01; r = −0.37, P = 0.01). Conclusion: These data suggest intense perturbation of the haemopoietic system in GDs; likely from altered xenobiotic metabolism requiring heme in cytochrome P450; cell cycle dysregulation, where Zn is pivotal, p53 suppression also dependent on Zn and oxidative stress all converging in haemopoietic dysregulation. Importantly, depression of these micronutrients implies potentiation of myelotoxicity and risk of myeloproliferation, probably arising from alterations in transcription, differentiation errors, genome instability, and derangement in cell signal transduction moderated by Zn; accentuating risk of myeloproliferation; suggesting a role for these micronutrients in chemoprevention. Understanding these events may be important in risk assessment, policy formulation, regulatory measures and chemoprevention in GDs and the general population.

THE EFFECT OF OLIVE WASTES FOR POULTRY FEED ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF BROILERS: A review

The increasing demand for animal products has increased the demand of feed ingredients around the world. However, the decrease in natural resources, cultivated lands, and resulted in continuous supply of feed ingredients. For this reason, studies on alternative feed ingredients are the main interest of scientists. Olive industry by products are one of the major environmental pollutant and these by-products could be potential alternative feed ingredients for livestock /poultry industry. Studies have reported that the reuse of olive by-products in broiler feeding has an impact on environmental, economic and growth performance. Current review will provide the information that olive industry by-products can be used efficiently in broiler feeding. It will also contribute to the elimination of environmental problems caused by the breakdown of such wastes in the environment. However, maintaining the nutritional value, preservation methods and feed incorporation level in order to include these unconventional feed sources in the diet of farm animals is another problem that needs to be studied. This study will provide the evidence that olive industry by-products not only will increase the growth performance of broilers, but increase the olive industry profit and reduce environmental pollution. Keywords: leaves, olive, pomace, pulp, waste recycling.

Photo-Degradation of Orange G as an Environmental Pollutant with TiO2-ZnO Composite Material

The increasing water pollution is a great concern as millions of people don't have access to pure water in Bangladesh. A considerable number of people are dying of contaminated water each year not only in Bangladesh but all over the world. Many industries, tanneries, companies, etc. are emitting lots of environmentally hazardous materials into the surrounding water. Many of these pollutants are industrial dyes. The dyes loss from the industrial water during dyeing operation damage the esthetic merit of surface water. They minimize light penetration, hamper aquatic lives and hinder photosynthesis. Some dyes may also have toxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic characteristics. The purpose of this research is to get rid of the pollutant dye Orange G before the water is contaminated. A method named photo-degradation using different light sources is used to mineralize Orange G dye with composite materials including TiO2-ZnO. This composite was prepared by the hydrothermal method. The photocatalytic behavior of the prepared composite TiO2-ZnO helps in minimizing the effect of this dye to save the water from contamination. The composite compoundwas studied by experimenting on photo-degradation with Orange G under different light sources such as visible light, UV light, and sunlight. The photo-degradation percentage was found to maximum of 79.60 in the presence of sunlight. The percentages of photo-degradation under UV light and visible light were 48.0 and 18.40 respectively.

A Study on the Impact of Unconventional (and Conventional) Drilling on Housing Prices in Central Oklahoma

Shale energy development activity may benefit some aspects of a regional economy (such as increased jobs or tax revenue); however, there may also be negative impacts to the local environment, such as noise and underground water contamination. We study the impact of unconventional drilling activity on housing price in an area of the country with a long history of crude oil production. A prospective home buyer may want to avoid a place near sites that have been drilled using unconventional drill technologies such as horizontal fracturing. Adopting a hedonic price model, we estimate the impact of distance to and density of unconventional drilling on housing prices in two central counties in Oklahoma during the period 2001–2016. We also apply a semiparametric approach to deal with the possibility that the relationship between an environmental pollutant source and housing price is nonlinear. The empirical results are consistent in terms of physical housing characteristics and locational aspects in all cases, with drilling activity having only a minimal effect in benchmark models. Further, the semiparametric estimation results support the findings that drilling activity has only limited impacts on local housing prices.

Role of microRNAs in response to cadmium chloride in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most fatal and aggressive malignancies with a 5-year survival rate less than 9%. Early detection is particularly difficult due to the lack of symptoms even in advanced stages. microRNAs (miRs/miRNAs) are small (~ 18–24 nucleotides), endogenous, non-coding RNAs, which are involved in the pathogenesis of several malignancies including PDAC. Alterations of miR expressions can lead to apoptosis, angiogenesis, and metastasis. The role of environmental pollutants such as cadmium (Cd) in PDAC has been suggested but not fully understood. This study underlines the role of miRs (miR-221, miR-155, miR-126) in response to cadmium chloride (CdCl2) in vitro. Lethal concentration (LC50) values for CdCl2 resulted in a toxicity series of AsPC-1 > HPNE > BxPC-3 > Panc-1 = Panc-10.5. Following the treatment with CdCl2, miR-221 and miR-155 were significantly overexpressed, whereas miR-126 was downregulated. An increase in epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) via the dysregulation of mesenchymal markers such as Wnt-11, E-cadherin, Snail, and Zeb1 was also observed. Hence, this study has provided evidence to suggest that the environmental pollutant Cd can have a significant role in the development of PDAC, suggesting a significant correlation between miRs and Cd exposure during PDAC progression. Further studies are needed to investigate the precise role of miRs in PDAC progression as well as the role of Cd and other environmental pollutants.

Combined Toxicity of Xenobiotics Bisphenol A and Heavy Metals on Zebrafish Embryos (Danio rerio)

Environmental pollutants may cause adverse effects on the immune system of aquatic organisms. This study revealed that combination of environmental pollutants and Bisphenol A(BPA) could cause an acute inflammatory response in zebrafish larvae as shown by body alterations, which may imply a common immunotoxicity mechanism for most environmental pollutants. In the present study we evaluated the toxicity after co-exposure of BPA and Cd or Cr (III) in zebrafish embryos and larvae, and the oxidative stress pathway involved. Evaluation of lethal and developmental endpoints such as hatching, edema, malformations, abnormal heart rate and survival rate were evaluated after 96 h of exposure. Combination of BPA at 10 μM with Cd or Cr at 0.5 μM exposure induce malformations at 96 hpf in zebrafish larvae, as well as significantly increases oxidative stress and induce apoptosis on larvae. Our study suggested how environmental pollutant showed a synergistic effect at common not-effective doses, promoting decrease of antioxidant defense and contrasted fish development.

Occurrence of microplastics in the sediments of Baseco Port area at Manila Bay, Philippines

Microplastic in marine sediments is nowadays considered an environmental pollutant. Seaports are particularly susceptible to microplastic pollution through series of human activities occurring in these areas. In the Philippines, research on microplastics is still limited and there is still no study determining the occurrence of microplastics in the harbour of Manila Bay, Philippines. Hence, this work conducted a preliminary investigation of microplastics in the sediments of Baseco Port area, Manila Bay. Nine stations within the study region were sampled. The types of microplastics found are fragments, foam, fiber, film, pellet, and filament with an average size measurement of 1.6±1.4 mm. Results from this study suggest that anthropogenic impacts are most likely the dominant sources of accumulation and distribution of microplastics in the sediments of Baseco port. This study provides preliminary assessment of microplastics contamination in the area that may serve as important reference for further studies.