Mercury Contents in the Liver, Kidneys and Hair of Domestic Cats from the Warsaw Metropolitan Area

Mercury is a highly toxic element subject to bioaccumulation, increasing its harmful effects on living organisms over time. In the present study, total mercury contents were determined in the liver, kidneys and hair of cats from Warsaw and its suburban areas. The study took into account the influence of the age, sex and living conditions of the animals. Samples were obtained between 2014 and 2016, and mercury contents were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). The average mercury concentrations in the tissues studied were 0.025, 0.026 and 0.030 mg∙kg−1 in the hair, kidneys and livers of the individuals tested, respectively. Higher values were recorded in animals from the city area, and an increase in this metal with the age of the cats was also found. The average contents of mercury in the tissues studied were within the range of the recommended reference values, which in this case indicates low environmental exposure of animals to mercury

The Total Mercury Concentration in Organs of Eurasian Magpies (Pica pica) and Common Woodpigeons (Columba palumbus) from the Warsaw Municipal Area

Mercury is a toxic element widely distributed in the natural environment, affecting animals’ health. It is released into the environment from both natural and anthropogenic sources. The present study analyzed the mercury concentrations in liver, kidney, heart and muscle tissue in two species of birds from the Warsaw area, which were used as bioindicators of local environmental pollution with this metal. The mercury content in the examined samples was determined using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) utilizing automatic mercury analyzer type AMA 254. The highest mercury content was found in the body of Eurasian magpies, in which it was 0.025; 0.021; 0.006; 0.0037 and 0.029 mg kg−1 of tissue wet weight for kidney, liver, heart, thigh muscles and pectoral muscles, respectively. In the case of common woodpigeons, the content of this metal was significantly lower, amounting to 0.007; 0.005; 0.002; 0.001 and 0.001 mg∙kg−1 wet weight for kidney, liver, heart, thigh muscles and pectoral muscles, respectively. In light of data from the available literature, the values obtained should be considered low, not causing a risk to animal health. The results obtained indicate low environmental exposure to this element

The Total Mercury Concentration in Organs of Eurasian Magpies (<i>Pica pica</i>) and Common Woodpigeons (<i>Columba palumbus</i>) from the Warsaw Municipal Area

Mercury is a toxic element widely distributed in the natural environment, affecting animals’ health. It is released into the environment from both natural and anthropogenic sources. The present study analyzed the mercury concentrations in liver, kidney, heart and muscle tissue in two species of birds from the Warsaw area, which were used as bioindicators of local environmental pollution with this metal. The mercury content in the examined samples was determined using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) utilizing automatic mercury analyzer type AMA 254. The highest mercury content was found in the body of Eurasian magpies, in which it was 0.025; 0.021; 0.006; 0.0037 and 0.029 mg kg−1 of tissue wet weight for kidney, liver, heart, thigh muscles and pectoral muscles, respectively. In the case of common woodpigeons, the content of this metal was significantly lower, amounting to 0.007; 0.005; 0.002; 0.001 and 0.001 mg∙kg−1 wet weight for kidney, liver, heart, thigh muscles and pectoral muscles, respectively. In light of data from the available literature, the values obtained should be considered low, not causing a risk to animal health. The results obtained indicate low environmental exposure to this element

Concentrations of zinc, cadmium and lead in the hoof horn of the European bison (Bison bonasus bonasus) / Zawartość cynku, kadmu i ołowiu w ścianie rogowej racicy żubra Europejskiego (Bison bonasus bonasus)

Celem pracy była ocena zawartości cynku, kadmu i ołowiu w ścianie rogu racicy żubra pochodzącego z Puszczy Białowieskiej. Materiałem badawczym były próby racic pobrane od zwierząt podczas corocznej eliminacji. Zwierzęta podzielono na grupy w zależności od płci (samce i samice). Zawartość metali określano za pomocą spektrometrii mas z jonizacją w plazmie indukcyjnie sprzężonej (ICP-MS). Średnie stężenia metali w ścianie racicy wynosiły: 114,1; 0,15 i 0,45 mg·kg-1 suchej masy odpowiednio dla cynku, kadmu i ołowiu. Stwierdzono statystycznie istotną zależność (p ≤ 0,05) między zawartością cynku i ołowiu w badanym materiale. Nie odnotowano różnic statystycznych w zawartości metali w zależności od płci zwierząt. Można stwierdzić, że zawartość cynku, kadmu i ołowiu w ścianie rogowej racicy żubrów z terenu Puszczy Białowieskiej znajduje się w zakresie wartości referencyjnych ustalonych dla okrywy włosowej innych gatunków zwierząt kopytnyc

Application of the Two-Dimensional Entropy Measures in the Infrared Thermography-Based Detection of Rider: Horse Bodyweight Ratio in Horseback Riding

As obesity is a serious problem in the human population, overloading of the horse’s thoracolumbar region often affects sport and school horses. The advances in using infrared thermography (IRT) to assess the horse’s back overload will shortly integrate the IRT-based rider-horse fit into everyday equine practice. This study aimed to evaluate the applicability of entropy measures to select the most informative measures and color components, and the accuracy of rider:horse bodyweight ratio detection. Twelve horses were ridden by each of the six riders assigned to the light, moderate, and heavy groups. Thermal images were taken pre- and post-exercise. For each thermal image, two-dimensional sample (SampEn), fuzzy (FuzzEn), permutation (PermEn), dispersion (DispEn), and distribution (DistEn) entropies were measured in the withers and the thoracic spine areas. Among 40 returned measures, 30 entropy measures were exercise-dependent, whereas 8 entropy measures were bodyweight ratio-dependent. Moreover, three entropy measures demonstrated similarities to entropy-related gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) texture features, confirming the higher irregularity and complexity of thermal image texture when horses worked under heavy riders. An application of DispEn to red color components enables identification of the light and heavy rider groups with higher accuracy than the previously used entropy-related GLCM texture features

Cytocompatibility of Graphene Monolayer and Its Impact on Focal Cell Adhesion, Mitochondrial Morphology and Activity in BALB/3T3 Fibroblasts

This study investigates the effect of graphene scaffold on morphology, viability, cytoskeleton, focal contacts, mitochondrial network morphology and activity in BALB/3T3 fibroblasts and provides new data on biocompatibility of the “graphene-family nanomaterials”. We used graphene monolayer applied onto glass cover slide by electrochemical delamination method and regular glass cover slide, as a reference. The morphology of fibroblasts growing on graphene was unaltered, and the cell viability was 95% compared to control cells on non-coated glass slide. There was no significant difference in the cell size (spreading) between both groups studied. Graphene platform significantly increased BALB/3T3 cell mitochondrial activity (WST-8 test) compared to glass substrate. To demonstrate the variability in focal contacts pattern, the effect of graphene on vinculin was examined, which revealed a significant increase in focal contact size comparing to control-glass slide. There was no disruption in mitochondrial network morphology, which was branched and well connected in relation to the control group. Evaluation of the JC-1 red/green fluorescence intensity ratio revealed similar levels of mitochondrial membrane potential in cells growing on graphene-coated and uncoated slides. These results indicate that graphene monolayer scaffold is cytocompatible with connective tissue cells examined and could be beneficial for tissue engineering therapy

Graphene monolayer as an appropriate substrate for mesenchymal stem cells support in regenerative medicine

235-243Synergistic effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and graphene monolayer is still a less discussed topic but crucial in the context of creating a graphene skin dressing. Moreover, capturing early changes in the cytoskeleton may prove to be a valuable indicator of cell condition after direct contact with the biomaterial. In this context, here, we investigated the response of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSCs) to graphene monolayer as a scaffold, based on cytoskeleton architecture. Three main components of the cytoskeleton — microfilaments, intermediate filaments and microtubules were characterized as well as analyzed its entire cell morphology (focal adhesions). Based on microscopic analysis and cell area measurements, it can be stated that graphene did not cause a damage or disturbance of any cytoskeleton members and linker proteins (plectin, vinculin) and gap junction protein (connexin 43). hBM-MSCs growing on the graphene monolayer were more spread than cells growing on the glass but without any other significant difference. This suggested that graphene substrate as a monolayer could be a structural reinforcement for MSCs cultivation without affecting their cytoskeleton, which determines cell integrity, connections and migration, all important cell properties in the process of skin wound healing

Cytocompatibility of Graphene Monolayer and Its Impact on Focal Cell Adhesion, Mitochondrial Morphology and Activity in BALB/3T3 Fibroblasts

This study investigates the effect of graphene scaffold on morphology, viability, cytoskeleton, focal contacts, mitochondrial network morphology and activity in BALB/3T3 fibroblasts and provides new data on biocompatibility of the “graphene-family nanomaterials”. We used graphene monolayer applied onto glass cover slide by electrochemical delamination method and regular glass cover slide, as a reference. The morphology of fibroblasts growing on graphene was unaltered, and the cell viability was 95% compared to control cells on non-coated glass slide. There was no significant difference in the cell size (spreading) between both groups studied. Graphene platform significantly increased BALB/3T3 cell mitochondrial activity (WST-8 test) compared to glass substrate. To demonstrate the variability in focal contacts pattern, the effect of graphene on vinculin was examined, which revealed a significant increase in focal contact size comparing to control-glass slide. There was no disruption in mitochondrial network morphology, which was branched and well connected in relation to the control group. Evaluation of the JC-1 red/green fluorescence intensity ratio revealed similar levels of mitochondrial membrane potential in cells growing on graphene-coated and uncoated slides. These results indicate that graphene monolayer scaffold is cytocompatible with connective tissue cells examined and could be beneficial for tissue engineering therapy