Bacterial quality and depuration of the green mussel Perna viridis from natural beds

Green mussel (Perna viridis) and sea water from their natural beds on the coastal areas of Porto Novo were studied between April and August 1996 for their bacterial quality. Water samples from the beds were also analysed for their physico-chemical parameters. The total bacterial count of mussels from natural beds as well as bed waters ranged 10³ organisms per gram of mussel meat suspension and per milliliter of sea water. The faecal coliforms were found to be within the permissible limits. Pathogenic bacteria such as Salmonella spp., Streptococcus spp. and Staphylococcus spp. were absent. The variations in pH, temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen of the seawater samples were insignificant. The mussels were subjected to depuration by different methods among which chlorination was found to be most effective

Study of cardiovascular responses to isometric hand grip test in medical students with hypertensive parents

Background: Hypertension is one of the most powerful risk factors for cardiovascular disease. This biggest health challenge has to be detected early so that preventive measures can be taken for the susceptible population. Increased cardiovascular stress responsivity with sustained isometric muscle contraction is associated with cardiovascular disease. So this isometric handgrip exercise is a simple, non-invasive screening test to assess the risk of development of hypertension in future. Aim and objective of the study was to identify the chance of inheritance of hypertension in medical students of hypertensive parents. Methods: After getting ethical committee approval, in this cross sectional study, 50 medical students of Government Sivagangai Medical college with normotensive and hypertensive parents were selected. Heart rate (bpm) and blood pressure (mmHg) before, immediately and 5 minutes after isometric hand grip exercise using hand grip dyanamometer in both the groups. Results: Statistical analysis of the values among the participants was done by student t-test using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) version 11.0.and the results were compared between the study and control groups. A ‘p’ value of <0.05 is considered significant. Cardiovascular responses are found to be significantly higher in study group (p<0.001). Conclusions: Early and regular screening of the students with hypertensive parents is necessary to prevent cardiovascular complications in future by emphasizing the life style modifications

A web GIS based study for managing mangroves of Krishna Delta, Andhra Pradesh, India

Mangroves are one among the most productive ecosystem which provide a wide range of services to the coastal people, which includes the provision of food and timber products and coastal defense services by reducing risk from coastal hazards. Several research found that mangrove forests have been degraded throughout the world since 80s onwards due to anthropogenic factors and India is no exception for the same. The current study was conducted in the Krishna’s wetland, which is located in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh (AP), South India, India. The Mangroves of Krishna is second largest mangrove ecosystem in AP, fifth in East coast, eighth in India and it is rich in biodiversity but highly vulnerable because of anthropogenic and natural factors which makes this study area very scared. Information on Krishna mangroves and their geospatial information are owned by different institutions to build this geospatial dataset as open to access everyone. The WebGIS is a latest advancement and hybrid of GIS and Internet technologies for the dissemination of the geospatial datasets and its variations through the web. The main objective of the current study is to develop and demonstrate a WebGIS using open source software and integrate geospatial datasets of the mangroves of Krishna into WebGIS platform and to analyse and assess areas that are degraded by influenced parameters and in need of sustainable management.The result revealed that the area of mangroves in Krishna was decreased from 2,454 ha in 1990 to 1,363 ha in 2000 to 1,339 ha in 2011. On the other hand the areas of mangroves in the Krishna delta were increased to about 678 ha from 1990 to 2000 and 2,230 ha from 2000 to 2011. It may be pointed out that the variation in mangrove covers in the study area due to land use conversion for different purposes and mangroves provides coastal defense services by reduce risk of coastal hazards. It is may be concluded that this WebGIS study is very useful and unique because it is sharing data through internet to everyone as it save money, time and data duplication, which are needed to different stakeholders such as researchers, decision makers, planners for the sustainable management of mangrove ecosystem

Editorial: Obesogens in the XXI century: Emerging health challenges

The global prevalence of overweight and obesity has risen dramatically in recent decades. Obesity is a major public health problem, recognized by the World Health Organization as one of the most important public health challenges of the 21st century (1). Therefore, preventing obesity is a public health priority for adults, children, and adolescents. This is especially important because overweight and obese children are likely to remain obese into adulthood and are more likely to develop non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease at a younger age. Several factors are thought to be involved in the obesity pandemic, but in recent years the focus has been on exposure to specific environmental pollutants, the obesogens. The obesogen hypothesis was postulated in 2006 by Grün and Blumberg (2). The authors found that tributyltin could induce adipogenesis in vitro and in vivo. This “simple” finding was a huge breakthrough in Endocrinology and Metabolism. In these almost two decades, a significant body of evidence was gathered, and currently, obesogens have been considered key actors in the obesity epidemic

Simultaneous determination of dechloranes, polybrominated diphenyl ethers and novel brominated flame retardants in food and serum

A sensitive method for the simultaneous quantification of dechloranes, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) has been developed for gas chromatography (GC) coupled to tandem mass spectrometry operating in electron capture negative ionization (ECNI) mode. The major advance has been achieved by combining selected ion monitoring (SIM) and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) modes in well-defined time windows, to determine dechloranes, PBDEs and NBFRs at picogram per gram level in one single analysis in complex matrix biological samples. From the chromatographic point of view, efforts were devoted to study several injection modes using multimode inlet (MMI) in order to obtain low instrumental detection limits, necessary for trace compounds such as Dechlorane Plus (DP) isomers. Method performance was also evaluated: calibration curves were linear from 20 fg μL−1 to 100 pg μL−1 for the studied compounds, with method detection limits at levels of 50 fg g−1 for DPs. Repeatability and reproducibility, expressed as relative standard deviation, were better than 5% even in solvent vent mode for the injection of standards. The application to a wide range of complex samples (including food, human and animal serum samples) indicated a sensitive and reliable way to quantify at the picogram per gram level 4 halogenated norbornenes (HNs), Dechlorane Plus (anti-DP and syn-DP) and 2 of their homologues (Dechlorane-602 and Dechlorane-603), 11 PBDE congeners (no. 28, 47, 49, 66, 85, 99, 100, 153, 154, 183 and 209) and 5 novel BFRs, i.e. decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy)ethane (BTBPE), hexabromobenzene (HBB), 2,3,4,5-tetrabromo-ethylhexyl-benzoate (TBB) and tetrabromophthalate (TBPH).The authors acknowledge the financial support of Universitat Jaume I (UJI-A2016-01) and Generalitat Valenciana (research group of excellence PROMETEO/2009/054 and PROMETEO II 2014/023 and Collaborative Research on Environment and Food-Safety (ISIC/2012/016)). Carlos Sales acknowledges the COST Action ES1307 for the STSM grant which made possible his stay at the Toxicological Centre of Antwerp. Dr. Giulia Poma and Dr. Govindan Malarvannan acknowledge the University of Antwerp for their postdoctoral fellowships

Evaluation of environmental quality of mediterranean coastal lagoons using persistent organic pollutants and metals in thick-lipped grey mullet

The evaluation of past and present anthropogenic impacts affecting the ecological quality status of transitional ecosystems is crucial from the perspective of protecting them from further deterioration, and to evaluate remediation and restoration measures. Contamination patterns of thick-lipped grey mullet from two Mediterranean coastal lagoons within a protected area in Italy were assessed and compared in order to evaluate their overall quality status and to collect information that can provide useful feedback on management choices aimed at enhancing environmental quality and biodiversity conservation. The quality status of the two lagoons was evaluated by an environmental assessment methodology based on indicators of direct and indirect human pressures, while a broad range of analyses were carried out to determine the presence and concentration of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and metals in fish muscle tissue. A good quality status resulted for both lagoons, and an overall limited anthropogenic impact in the surrounding area. This could account for POPs and metal contamination levels found in mullet, although limited, and relating to their patterns. The overlap of results achieved with the two evaluation approaches can provide support for management choices in Mediterranean lagoon environments, especially for those committed to the protection and conservation of biodiversity

High levels of mercury and low levels of persistent organic pollutants in a tropical seabird in French Guiana, the Magnificent frigatebird, Fregata magnificens

In the present study, trace elements and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were quantified from Magnificent frigatebirds (Fregata magnificens) breeding at a southern Atlantic island. Stable isotope ratio of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) were also measured to infer the role of foraging habitat on the contamination. For another group from the same colony, GPS tracks were recorded to identify potential foraging areas where the birds may get contaminated. Fourteen trace elements were targeted as well as a total of 40 individual POPs, including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). The concentration of Hg in the blood was up to 6 times higher in adults (5.81 ± 1.27 μg g−1 dw.) than in nestlings (0.99 ± 0.23 μg g−1 dw.). A similar pattern was found for POPs. ∑PCBs was the prevalent group both in adults (median 673, range 336–2801 pg g−1 ww.) and nestlings (median 41, range 19–232 pg g−1 ww.), followed by the sum of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes and metabolites (∑DDTs), showing a median value of 220 (range 75–2342 pg g−1 ww.) in adults and 25 (range 13–206 pg g−1 ww.) in nestlings. The isotope data suggested that the accumulation of trace elements and POPs between adults and nestlings could be due to parental foraging in two different areas during incubation and chick rearing, respectively, or due to a shift in the feeding strategies along the breeding season. In conclusion, our work showed high Hg concentration in frigatebirds compared to non-contaminated seabird populations, while other trace elements showed lower values within the expected range in other seabird species. Finally, POP exposure was found generally lower than that previously measured in other seabird specie

Persistent organic pollutant levels in human visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue in obese individuals - Depot differences and dysmetabolism implications

Background: The role of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) with endocrine disrupting activity in the aetiology of obesity and other metabolic dysfunctions has been recently highlighted. Adipose tissue (AT) is a common site of POPs accumulation where they can induce adverse effects on human health. Objectives: To evaluate the presence of POPs in human visceral (vAT) and subcutaneous (scAT) adipose tissue in a sample of Portuguese obese patients that underwent bariatric surgery, and assess their putative association with metabolic disruption preoperatively, as well as with subsequent body mass index (BMI) reduction. Methods: AT samples (n=189) from obese patients (BMI ≥35) were collected and the levels of 13 POPs were determined by gas chromatography with electron-capture detection (GC-ECD). Anthropometric and biochemical data were collected at the time of surgery. BMI variation was evaluated after 12 months and adipocyte size was measured in AT samples. Results: Our data confirm that POPs are pervasive in this obese population (96.3% of detection on both tissues), their abundance increasing with age (RS=0.310, p<0.01) and duration of obesity (RS=0.170, p<0.05). We observed a difference in AT depot POPs storage capability, with higher levels of ΣPOPs in vAT (213.9±204.2 compared to 155.1±147.4 ng/g of fat, p<0.001), extremely relevant when evaluating their metabolic impact. Furthermore, there was a positive correlation between POP levels and the presence of metabolic syndrome components, namely dysglycaemia and hypertension, and more importantly with cardiovascular risk (RS=0.277, p<0.01), with relevance for vAT (RS=0.315, p<0.01). Finally, we observed an interesting relation of higher POP levels with lower weight loss in older patients. Conclusion: Our sample of obese subjects allowed us to highlight the importance of POPs stored in AT on the development of metabolic dysfunction in a context of obesity, shifting the focus to their metabolic effects and not only for their recognition as environmental obesogens