Humane acute testing with tadpoles for risk assessment of chemicals: Avoidance instead of lethality.

In spite of the sensitivity of amphibians to contamination, data from fish have been commonly used to predict the effects of chemicals on aquatic life stages. However, recent studies have highlighted that toxicity data derived from fish species may not protect all the aquatic life stages of amphibians. For pesticide toxicity assessment (PTA), EFSA has highlighted that more information on lethal toxicity for the aquatic life stages of amphibians is still needed to reduce uncertainties. The current review aims to propose a test with amphibians based on spatial avoidance, as a more humane alternative method to the lethality tests for chemicals. A review of lethal toxicity tests carried out with amphibians in the period between 2018 and 2021 is presented, then we discuss the suitability of using fish toxicity data as a surrogate to predict the effects on more sensitive amphibian groups. The possible differences in sensitivity to chemicals may justify the need to develop further tests with amphibian embryos and larvae in order to reduce uncertainties. A new test is proposed focused on the avoidance behaviour of organisms fleeing from contamination to replace lethal tests. As avoidance indicates the threshold at which organisms will flee from contamination, a reduction in the population density, or its disappearance, at the local scale due to emigration is expected, with ecological consequences analogous to mortality. Avoidance tests provide an ethical advantage over lethal tests as they respect the concepts of the 3 Rs (mainly Refinement), reducing the suffering of the organisms.

Feeding exposure and feeding behaviour as relevant approaches in the assessment of the effects of micro(nano)plastics to early life stages of amphibians.

The sedimentation of micro and nanosized plastics is of considerable environmental relevance and the need to assess its sublethal effects to biota increasingly recognized. In their majority, as bottom, non-selective grazers, independent-feeding young life stages of amphibians, an already severely endangered worldwide group, may be particularly vulnerable to sedimented plastics. Alongside, they may be good model organisms for the assessment of the effects of micro(nano)plastics (MNPs) through ingestion. However, to our knowledge, few studies have assessed amphibians' exposure to MNPs through contaminated food or its effects in feeding behaviour assays. The available studies reveal a lack of consistent methodology: organisms, food type, media of exposure, or exposure conditions (temperature and light) in the assessment of effects. This perspective article, will address major differences found in the available studies, identifying type, size and concentrations of the polymers tested, species, and observed effects, aiming to highlight the importance of feeding exposure assays when attempting to evaluate the effect of MNPs in amphibians.

Engineered nanomaterials for (waste)water treatment - A scientometric assessment and sustainability aspects.

Application of nanomaterials for the treatment of effluents originated from various industrial and non-industrial sources, has been rapidly developed in recent decades. In this situation, there is a need for conclusive studies to identify the current status of the knowledge in this field and to promote the commercialization of such technologies by providing recommendations for future studies. In the present manuscript, a scientometric assessment on the progress made in this field has been performed and the results have been organized and discussed in terms of science statistics, research hotspots and trends, as well as the relevant sustainability aspects. Based on a set of keywords, identified through a pre-literature analysis, a total of 6539 documents were retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS) database and analyzed to achieve the main goals of this study. The results demonstrate that the studies in this field have been initiated since the beginning of the 2000s but were mainly performed in lab and pilot scales. Also, China and Iran were identified as the most contributing countries in this scientific area in terms of the number of publications. Among various types of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), there has been especial attention for the application of iron-based nanomaterials as well as carbonaceous structures (such as graphene oxide and biochar). Besides, there are not still strong collaborations formed among researchers in this area worldwide. Regarding the research hotspots, the synthesis of green and sustainable nanomaterials (e.g., biosynthesis approaches) has received attention in recent years. The results can also demonstrate that the most widely studied pathway for the removal of pollutants from (waste)waters involves the adsorption of the pollutants using ENMs. Treatment of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) as well as exploring the mechanisms involved in the treatment of contaminated (waste)waters using ENMs and the possible by-products are considered the current trends in the literature. Regarding the sustainability aspects of ENMs for (waste)water treatment, the results achieved in this study calls for in-depth sustainability studies, which consider parameters such as economic, environmental, and social aspects of nanomaterials utilization for (waste)water treatment purposes, besides the technical parameters, to push transferring such technologies from lab and pilot scales to large and real-scale applications.

Application of a standard risk assessment scheme to a North Africa contaminated site (Sfax, Tunisia) -Tier 1.

Phosphorus is a critical element to agriculture, consequently global phosphate rock demand will remain rising to feed a growing world population. The beneficiation of phosphorous ore gives rise to several tons of a waste by-product [phosphogypsum (PG)] which valorisation is limited, within other reasons, by the risks posed to environment and human health. Although threatening, the accumulation in stacks is the only procedure so far practiced by several countries as a means to get rid of this industrial externality. As part of a NATO Science for Peace Project (SfP 983311) this study describes the application of an environmental risk assessment (ERA) framework, to assess the risks posed by a PG stack to the surrounding soils, in Sfax, Republic of Tunisia. The ERA followed a weight of evidence approach, supported by two lines of evidence (LoE): the chemical (ChemLoE) and the ecotoxicological (EcotoxLoE). Integrated risks point for risk values greater than 0.5 in soils collected in PG stack surrounding area. Soil salinization, has likely contributed to the exacerbation of risks, as well as to the lack of consistency between both LoEs. This study highlights the need of rethinking the weight given to each LoE in ERA, in areas where soil salinization is a reality.

Validity of fish, birds and mammals as surrogates for amphibians and reptiles in pesticide toxicity assessment.

Amphibians and reptiles are the two most endangered groups of vertebrates. Environmental pollution by pesticides is recognised as one of the major factors threatening populations of these groups. However, the effects of pesticides on amphibians and reptiles have been studied for few substances, which is partly related to the fact that these animals are not included in the mandatory toxicity testing conducted as part of environmental risk assessments of pesticides. Whether risks of pesticides to amphibians and reptiles are addressed by surrogate taxa used in risk assessment is currently under debate. In order to develop a scientifically sound and robust risk assessment scheme, information needs to be gathered to examine whether fish, birds and mammals are valid surrogates for amphibians and reptiles. We updated a systematic review of scientific literature that was recently published compiling toxicity data on amphibians and reptiles. The outcome of this review was analysed with the purposes to (1) compare endpoints from amphibians and reptiles with the available information from fish, birds and mammals, and (2) develop species sensitivity distributions (SSDs) for those substances tested in at least six amphibian species (no substances were found tested in at least six reptile species) to identify a candidate amphibian model species to be used as surrogate in risk assessment. A positive correlation was found between toxicity recorded on fish and amphibians, the former revealing, in general, to be more sensitive than the latter to waterborne pollutants. In the terrestrial environment, although birds and mammals were more sensitive than amphibians and reptiles to at least 60% of tested substances, just a few weak significant correlations were observed. As a general rule, homoeothermic vertebrates are not good surrogates for reptiles and terrestrial amphibians in pesticide risk assessment. However, some chemical-dependent trends were detected, with pyrethroids and organochlorine insecticides being more toxic to amphibians or reptiles than to birds or mammals. These trends could ultimately help in decisions about protection provided by surrogate taxa for specific groups of substances, and also to determine when risk assessment of pesticides needs to pay special consideration to amphibians and reptiles. The outcome of this review reflects that there is still much information needed to reduce uncertainties and extract relevant conclusions on the overall protection of amphibians and reptiles by surrogate vertebrates.

Mutagenicity assessment of aerosols in emissions from domestic combustion processes.

Domestic biofuel combustion is one of the major sources of regional and local air pollution, mainly regarding particulate matter and organic compounds, during winter periods. Mutagenic and carcinogenic activity potentials of the ambient particulate matter have been associated with the fraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and their oxygenated (OPAH) and nitrogenated (NPAH) derivatives. This study aimed at assessing the mutagenicity potential of the fraction of this polycyclic aromatic compound in particles (PM10) from domestic combustion by using the Ames assays with Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100. Seven biofuels, including four types of pellets and three agro-fuels (olive pit, almond shell and shell of pine nuts), were tested in an automatic pellet stove, and two types of wood (Pinus pinaster, maritime pine, and Eucalyptus globulus, eucalypt) were burned in a traditional wood stove. For this latter appliance, two combustion phases­Devolatilisation and flaming/smouldering­Were characterised separately. A direct-acting mutagenic effect for the devolatilisation phase of pine combustion and for both phases of eucalypt combustion was found. Almond shell revealed a weak direct-acting mutagenic effect, while one type of pellets, made of recycled wastes, and pine (devolatilisation) presented a cytotoxic effect towards strain TA100. Compared to the manually fired appliance, the automatic pellet stove promoted lower polyaromatic mutagenic emissions. For this device, only two of the studied biofuels presented a weak mutagenic or cytotoxic potential.

Mutagenicity assessment of aerosols in emissions from domestic combustion processes.

Domestic biofuel combustion is one of the major sources of regional and local air pollution, mainly regarding particulate matter and organic compounds, during winter periods. Mutagenic and carcinogenic activity potentials of the ambient particulate matter have been associated with the fraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and their oxygenated (OPAH) and nitrogenated (NPAH) derivatives. This study aimed at assessing the mutagenicity potential of the fraction of this polycyclic aromatic compound in particles (PM10) from domestic combustion by using the Ames assays with Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100. Seven biofuels, including four types of pellets and three agro-fuels (olive pit, almond shell and shell of pine nuts), were tested in an automatic pellet stove, and two types of wood (Pinus pinaster, maritime pine, and Eucalyptus globulus, eucalypt) were burned in a traditional wood stove. For this latter appliance, two combustion phases-devolatilisation and flaming/smouldering-were characterised separately. A direct-acting mutagenic effect for the devolatilisation phase of pine combustion and for both phases of eucalypt combustion was found. Almond shell revealed a weak direct-acting mutagenic effect, while one type of pellets, made of recycled wastes, and pine (devolatilisation) presented a cytotoxic effect towards strain TA100. Compared to the manually fired appliance, the automatic pellet stove promoted lower polyaromatic mutagenic emissions. For this device, only two of the studied biofuels presented a weak mutagenic or cytotoxic potential.

Development and validation of an experimental life support system for assessing the effects of global climate change and environmental contamination on estuarine and coastal marine benthic communities.

An experimental life support system (ELSS) was constructed to study the interactive effects of multiple stressors on coastal and estuarine benthic communities, specifically perturbations driven by global climate change and anthropogenic environmental contamination. The ELSS allows researchers to control salinity, pH, temperature, ultraviolet radiation (UVR), tidal rhythms and exposure to selected contaminants. Unlike most microcosms previously described, our system enables true independent replication (including randomization). In addition to this, it can be assembled using commercially available materials and equipment, thereby facilitating the replication of identical experimental setups in different geographical locations. Here, we validate the reproducibility and environmental quality of the system by comparing chemical and biological parameters recorded in our ELSS with those prevalent in the natural environment. Water, sediment microbial community and ragworm (the polychaete Hediste diversicolor) samples were obtained from four microcosms after 57 days of operation. In general, average concentrations of dissolved inorganic nutrients (NO3 (-) ; NH4 (+) and PO4 (-3) ) in the water column of the ELSS experimental control units were within the range of concentrations recorded in the natural environment. While some shifts in bacterial community composition were observed between in situ and ELSS sediment samples, the relative abundance of most metabolically active bacterial taxa appeared to be stable. In addition, ELSS operation did not significantly affect survival, oxidative stress and neurological biomarkers of the model organism Hediste diversicolor. The validation data indicate that this system can be used to assess independent or interactive effects of climate change and environmental contamination on benthic communities. Researchers will be able to simulate the effects of these stressors on processes driven by microbial communities, sediment and seawater chemistry and to evaluate potential consequences to sediment toxicity using model organisms such as Hediste diversicolor.

Testing hypotheses on the resistance to metals by Daphnia longispina: differential acclimation, endpoints association, and fitness costs.

Pollution by metals may lead to an increased tolerance in the exposed population through adaptive microevolution, with resistant genotypes becoming more abundant than in reference sites. This work investigated the outcomes associated with selection for resistance by testing three hypotheses to assess the following: Do resistant versus sensitive clonal lineages of Daphnia longispina differentially acclimate to metals during a long-term sublethal exposure, is there a significant correlation between lethal and sublethal responses, and does resistance to metals entail costs to fitness under uncontaminated conditions? No evidence of acclimation was observed. The median effective dilutions of acid mine drainage for reproduction were similar for successive broods within clones during long-term exposures. Lethal and sublethal responses were not correlated, indicating that mechanisms regulating the two types of response were more than likely different. Finally, fitness costs associated with the resistance to lethal levels of metals were not detected, but resistance to sublethal levels of Cu was found to be correlated with a lower intrinsic growth rate under control conditions.

Integrated ecological risk assessment of pesticides in tropical ecosystems: a case study with carbofuran in Brazil.

The aim of the present study is to contribute an ecologically relevant assessment of the ecotoxicological effects of pesticide applications in agricultural areas in the tropics, using an integrated approach with information gathered from soil and aquatic compartments. Carbofuran, an insecticide/nematicide used widely on sugarcane crops, was selected as a model substance. To evaluate the toxic effects of pesticide spraying for soil biota, as well as the potential indirect effects on aquatic biota resulting from surface runoff and/or leaching, field and laboratory (using a cost-effective simulator of pesticide applications) trials were performed. Standard ecotoxicological tests were performed with soil (Eisenia andrei, Folsomia candida, and Enchytraeus crypticus) and aquatic (Ceriodaphnia silvestrii) organisms, using serial dilutions of soil, eluate, leachate, and runoff samples. Among soil organisms, sensitivity was found to be E. crypticus < E. andrei < F. candida. Among the aqueous extracts, mortality of C. silvestrii was extreme in runoff samples, whereas eluates were by far the least toxic samples. A generally higher toxicity was found in the bioassays performed with samples from the field trial, indicating the need for improvements in the laboratory simulator. However, the tool developed proved to be valuable in evaluating the toxic effects of pesticide spraying in soils and the potential risks for aquatic compartments.

Optical fiber based methodology for assessment of thiocyanate in seawater.

A new methodology for the assessment of thiocyanate (SCN(-)) is proposed based on optical fiber (OF) detection coupled to a liquid chromatography system (LC). The developed methodology showed an adequate performance for the analysis of SCN(-) comparable to a high performance liquid chromatography with UV detector (HPLC-UV) methodology: a detection limit of 3 µg L(-1), a linear range from 4 to 400 µg L(-1), and an analytical time of less than 6 min. The OF based methodology was of compact design and easy operation. This simple system has the potential to be used as a sensing approach for SCN(-) in seawater.

O coral cênico cidadãos cantantes: um espaço de encontro entre a música e a saúde / The theatrical choral singing citizens: a place of encounter between music and health

Este artigo relata a experiência do Coral Cênico Cidadãos Cantantes, criado em 1992 como desdobramento das atividades dos Centros de Convivência e Cooperativa da Secretaria de Saúde do Município de São Paulo, com apoio da Associação SOS Saúde Mental, Ecologia e Cultura. O Coral possui uma composição heterogênea, reunindo portadores de sofrimento mental, pessoas em situação de vulnerabilidade e pessoas da população em geral, interessados na construção artística, tendo como local de trabalho as dependências da Galeria Olido da Secretaria Municipal de Cultura de São Paulo. Desde 2006 o Coral estabelece parceria com o Laboratório de Estudos e Pesquisa Arte e Corpo em Terapia Ocupacional. A prática do Coral recupera o sentido da arte como um atributo humano capaz de transformar atitudes, lugares de saber, lugares de existência e, por conseqüência, capaz de alterar a qualidade de vida. A ferramenta de trabalho dos Cidadãos Cantantes é a promoção de encontros nos quais se possa cantar buscando a harmonização das dissonâncias para afinar diferenças e sustentando uma experimentação na interface entre canto coral, arte e saúde na contemporaneidade. A prática musical em grupos que apresentam esse perfil mostra-se, não só possível, como instigadora, para se pensar novas possibilidades para o canto coral, além de propor novos agenciamentos relacionais e territoriais.

This article presents the experience of the Theatrical Choral Singing Citizens, created in 1992 as an extension of the activities developed at the Convivence and Cooperative Centers of the Health Secretary of São Paulo, and supported by the NGO "SOS Mental Health, Ecology and Culture". The Choral is a heterogeneous group formed by interest on artistic construction, which gather people suffering from mental illness, people in vulnerability, and others from general population, having been established as a workplace Galeria Olido, in São Paulo. From 2006, the Choral has worked in a partnership with the Laboratory of Studies and Research in Art, Body and Occupational Therapy. This practice recovers the sense of art as a human attribute capable of transforming attitudes, knowledge spaces, and existential spaces in orther to alter one's quality of life. The Coral's tool is the promotion of encounters in which the singers could harmonize dissonances and tune differences, supporting an experience on the interface between choral singing, art and health on contemporaneity. Musical practice in groups who present this profile installs itself, therefore, not only as possible, but instigative in fomenting new possibilities for choral music, new establishment of relations and territories.