RESUMEN
To establish the use of eggs as biomonitoring tools for maternal body burdens, we investigated the mother-to-egg ratio of 56 PCB, 12 OCP and 34 PBDE unique compounds from maternal plasma into replicate egg yolk and albumen samples in the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) as a case study of a threatened migratory marine species. We applied robust Regression on Order Statistics to fully account for the information in both censored and uncensored data. Our results added new insights into the use of yolk as a suitable biomonitoring matrix; the difference between yolk and albumen which were previously analysed as a homogeneous mixture; and the value of accounting for censored data. Overall, compound-specific mother-to-egg ratios need to be considered when translating yolk levels back to maternal pollution burdens, and when assessing the risk to the subsequent generations of turtle embryos.
Asunto(s)
Contaminantes Ambientales , Bifenilos Policlorados , Tortugas , Animales , Contaminantes Ambientales/análisis , Yema de Huevo , Bifenilos Policlorados/análisis , Monitoreo BiológicoRESUMEN
Knowledge of spatial variation in pollutant profiles among sea turtle nesting locations is limited. This poses challenges in identifying processes shaping this variability and sets constraints to the conservation management of sea turtles and their use as biomonitoring tools for environmental pollutants. We aimed to increase understanding of the spatial variation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), organochlorine pesticide (OCP) and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) compounds among nesting beaches. We link the spatial variation to turtle migration patterns and the persistence of these pollutants. Specifically, using gas chromatography, we confirmed maternal transfer of a large number of compounds (nâ¯=â¯68 out of 69) among 104 eggs collected from 21 nests across three nesting beaches within the Yucatán Peninsula, one of the world's most important rookeries for hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata). High variation in PAH profiles was observed among beaches, using multivariate correspondence analysis and univariate Peto-Prentice tests, reflecting local acquisition during recent migration movements. Diagnostic PAH ratios reflected petrogenic origins in Celestún, the beach closest to petroleum industries in the Gulf of Mexico. By contrast, pollution profiles of OCPs and PCBs showed high similarity among beaches, reflecting the long-term accumulation of these pollutants at regional scales. Therefore, spatial planning of protected areas and the use of turtle eggs in biomonitoring needs to account for the spatial variation in pollution profiles among nesting beaches.
Asunto(s)
Yema de Huevo/química , Monitoreo del Ambiente , Tortugas , Contaminantes Químicos del Agua/análisis , Animales , Golfo de México , Bifenilos Policlorados/análisisRESUMEN
This article for the first time reports a large set of monitoring results for formaldehyde exposure during grossing activities in health care anatomic pathology laboratories, and compares the effectiveness of different local exhaust ventilation systems on the exposure. To control the confounding effects from grossing work load, sampling duration, and the sizes of specimens grossed, only 15-min short-term personal exposure samples collected during large tissue specimen grossing were used for the comparison of the effectiveness of these local exhaust systems. While we also collected long-term 8-hr time weighted average samples, these are not treated in this analysis. The systems examined were canopy receiving hoods, slot exhausts, and commercially available pre-manufactured backdraft grossing stations, both recirculating and ducted exhaust types. Out of over 2,000 personal short-term air samples, 307 samples from 163 surveys met the data selection criteria. Over a third of the data were less than the analytical laboratory limits of detection. Using the robust maximum likelihood estimation method for multiple limits of detection, the mean and geometric mean of the dataset for each type of local exhaust system were found to be less than the short-term personal exposure regulatory limit of 2 ppm. Nonparametric Wilcoxon rank-sum pairwise tests of five types of engineering controls showed a statistically significant difference among these controls, with the most effective being the manufactured backdraft grossing stations ducted to the outside, and the least effective being canopy exhaust systems and manufactured filtered recirculating grossing stations. Finally, exposure with each of the major engineering control types was rated by the American Industrial Hygiene Association exposure control rating scheme.