Teeth of the red fox Vulpes vulpes (L., 1758) as a bioindicator in studies on fluoride pollution

An examination was made of fluoride content in the mandibular first molars of the permanent teeth of the red fox Vulpes vulpes living in north-west (NW) Poland. The teeth were first dried to a constant weight at 105°C and then ashed. Fluorides were determined potentiometrically, and their concentrations were expressed in dry weight (DW) and ash. The results were used to perform an indirect estimation of fluoride pollution in the examined region of Poland. The collected specimens (n = 35) were classified into one of the three age categories: immature (im, 6–12 months), subadult (subad, from 12 to 20 months) and adult (ad, >20 months). The mean concentrations (geometric mean) of fluoride were similar in the im and subad groups (230 and 296 mg/kg DW and 297 and 385 mg/kg ash, respectively), and significantly smaller than in the ad group (504 and 654 mg/kg, respectively, in DW and ash). Basing on other reports that the ∼400 mg/kg DW concentration of fluoride in bones in the long-lived wild mammals generally reflects the geochemical background, it was found that 57% of the foxes in NW Poland exceeded this value by 9% to 170%. This indirectly reflects a moderate fluoride contamination in the tested region

Cadmium, lead and mercury in human kidneys

The development of civilization and economic activities affect the increase in the number and variety of xenobiotics, including some heavy metals in the environment. Hence, human is constantly exposed to many harmful substances in air, water, soil and food. It is well known that cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) are the most toxic socalled heavy metals (density ¤4.5 g/cm3) [1]. The critical organs accumulating these metals are kidneys, which are involved in the detoxification process. The concentration of metals in the kidneys is affected by environmental factors, such as smoking, diet, or amalgam dental fillings (mercury), and some biological factors – as age and gender. Recently, research was conducted on the impact of the Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) on the concentration of these metals in kidneys. Patients with kidney cancer accumulate less cadmium than healthy ones. Therefore it is very important to monitor the concentrations of highly toxic metals in the excretory organ, particularly in patients with nephrological disorders.Rozwój cywilizacji i działalności gospodarczej wpływają na wzrost ilości i różnorodności ksenobiotyków, w tym pewnych metali ciężkich, w środowisku. Dlatego człowiek stale narażony jest na kontakt z wieloma szkodliwymi substancjami znajdującymi się w powietrzu, wodzie, glebie i pożywieniu. Z tak zwanych metali ciężkich (o gęstości ¤4,5 g/cm3) za najbardziej toksyczne uznaje się kadm (Cd), ołów (Pb) i rtęć (Hg), które nazywane są „trójką metali śmierci” [1]. Narządem krytycznym kumulującym te metale są nerki, które w dużym stopniu biorą udział w procesie detoksykacji. Na stężenie metali w nerkach mają wpływ czynniki środowiskowe, takie jak palenie tytoniu, dieta czy posiadanie amalgamatowych wypełnień stomatologicznych (rtęć), a także czynniki biologiczne – wiek i płeć. Od niedawna prowadzone są także badania o wpływie raka jasnokomórkowego na stężenie tych metali w nerce. Okazuje się, że nerki osób z nowotworem tego narządu w mniejszym stopniu kumulują kadm, niż nerki osób zdrowych. Istotne jest zatem poznanie i dalsze monitorowanie stężeń wybitnie toksycznych metali w tym narządzie wydalniczym, szczególnie u osób z rozpoznanymi schorzeniami nefrologicznymi, łącznie z tymi, które doprowadziły do usunięcia nerki

Cadmium, lead and mercury in human kidneys

The development of civilization and economic activities affect the increase in the number and variety of xenobiotics, including some heavy metals in the environment. Hence, human is constantly exposed to many harmful substances in air, water, soil and food. It is well known that cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) are the most toxic socalled heavy metals (density ¤4.5 g/cm3) [1]. The critical organs accumulating these metals are kidneys, which are involved in the detoxification process. The concentration of metals in the kidneys is affected by environmental factors, such as smoking, diet, or amalgam dental fillings (mercury), and some biological factors – as age and gender. Recently, research was conducted on the impact of the Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) on the concentration of these metals in kidneys. Patients with kidney cancer accumulate less cadmium than healthy ones. Therefore it is very important to monitor the concentrations of highly toxic metals in the excretory organ, particularly in patients with nephrological disorder

Fluorosis in humans and animals

Fluorine compounds occur quite commonly in nature. They are exist in water, in soil, in geological decks, in living organisms. On human and animal bodies can influence moderately preferably or more often unfavorably. The deficiency or excess of this element results in undesirable effects in hard tissue, nervous tissue and other organs. Due to adverse effect of this element to a living organism it comes to fluorosis. The aim of the study was to determine the influence of the toxic effect of fluoride compounds on the human and other vertebrate animals depending on the time and dosage F- and the type of tissue and / or organ on the basis of the scientific literature. On the basis of the available publications, it was revealed that F- toxicity substantially depends on time and dose exposure on these element. Chronic fluorosis, more often than acute is observed in human and animals. Biological factors (including species differences) susceptibility, metabolic activity of tissue and environmental factors can accumulate, which increases probability of F- toxicity for living organisms.Związki fluoru w przyrodzie występują dość powszechnie. Obecne są w wodzie, w glebie, w głębokich pokładach geologicznych i żywych organizmach. Na człowieka i zwierzęta mogą oddziaływać w umiarkowany sposób korzystnie lub znacznie częściej niekorzystnie. Zarówno niedobór, jak i nadmiar fluorków powoduje niepożądane efekty w tkankach twardych, tkance nerwowej i innych narządach. W wyniku niekorzystnego oddziaływania tego pierwiastka na organizm żywy dochodzi do fluorozy. Celem pracy było określenie toksycznego efektu oddziaływania związków fluoru na organizm człowieka i innych zwierząt kręgowych w zależności od czasu i ilości dawki pobieranych F- oraz rodzaju tkanki i/lub narządu kumulującego F- na podstawie dostępnego piśmiennictwa naukowego. Na podstawie przeanalizowanych publikacji stwierdzono, że toksyczność F- w znacznym stopniu zależy od czasu ekspozycji i dawki narażenia na ten pierwiastek. U ludzi i zwierząt częściej obserwuje się fluorozę przewlekłą niż ostrą. Czynniki biologiczne (w tym różnice gatunkowe), wrażliwość i aktywność metaboliczna tkanek oraz czynniki środowiskowe mogą się kumulować, co zwiększa prawdopodobieństw

Effect of environmental parameters on the concentration of nickel (Ni) in bones of the hip joint from patients with osteoarthritis

Introduction. Bone trace elements levels including nickel (Ni) depend on biological and environmental factors: age, gender, remodeling state, exposure to occupational and environmental pollution, smoking, diet, and surgical implants. Objective. The aim of this study was to determine Ni concentrations in bones of femur heads obtained from patients with osteoarthritis. Materials and method. A total of 111 samples of hip joint bones (cartilage, cancellous bone and compact bone) collected from patients from north-western Poland were examined. Ni concentration was determined by ICP-AES (atomic absorption spectrophotometry). Results. It was found that differences in Ni concentrations were statistically significant between cartilage and compact bone. Cartilage Ni concentrations were higher in patients with fractured femur neck than patients with osteoarthritis. Furthermore, higher Ni levels were also found in samples obtained from smokers compared to nonsmokers. In cancellous bone, higher Ni concentrations were found in samples from patients who had received implants than those without them. Moreover, higher Ni concentrations in cancellous bone were found in patients occupationally exposed to heavy metals than in those not exposed. Conclusions. The bone tissue reflects long-term exposure to Ni and may be used as a bioindicator to study the process of Ni accumulation in the human body

Selected Metal Concentration in Maternal and Cord Blood

Essential and non-essential elements deficiencies may lead to various birth complications. The aim of this paper was to determine calcium (Ca), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), phosphorus (P), lead (Pb), strontium (Sr), and zinc (Zn) concentrations in maternal blood and cord blood. Whole blood and cord blood samples collected from pregnant women (n = 136) were analyzed for the concentration of the elements by spectrophotometric atomic absorption in inductively coupled argon plasma (ICP-OES). The results showed that Ca, Pb, and Sr concentrations were similar in maternal and cord blood, while Fe and K levels were higher in cord blood than in maternal blood. The cord blood Cu, Na, and Zn concentrations were lower than those in maternal blood, suggesting transplacental transfer of these elements were limited. Moreover, checking the influence of studied elements on the anthropometric parameters of the newborns, we found that the highest number of associations was between Cu in cord blood. Due to the fact that the pregnant women were healthy, and the newborns were without any disorders, we suggest that the values obtained in our study are normal values of studied elements in whole blood and cord blood in patients from Poland