Reduction in Placental Metal and Metalloid in Preeclampsia: A Case-Control Study.

Preeclampsia is a primary placental disorder, with impaired placental vascularization leading to uteroplacental hypoperfusion. We aimed to investigate differences in metal and metalloid content between the placentas of women with preeclampsia and healthy controls. This was a case-control study in 63 women with preeclampsia and 113 healthy women. Clinical data were obtained from medical records. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to measure the placental metals and metalloids content. Compared with healthy control subjects, preeclampsia was associated with a significantly lower concentration of essential elements (magnesium, calcium, iron, copper, zinc, and selenium) in the placental tissue. After multivariable adjustment, an interquartile range (IQR) increase in selenium concentration was associated with a reduced risk of preeclampsia with an OR of 0.50 (95% CI: 0.33-0.77). The joint effects of multiple selected metals and metalloids were associated with a reduced risk of preeclampsia. The lower placental magnesium, chromium, iron, zinc, and selenium concentrations of preeclampsia cases indicate a potential link to its pathogenesis. It also provides an intriguing avenue for future research in revealing the underlying mechanisms and potential intervention strategies for preeclampsia.

One-step simultaneous biomass synthesis of iron nanoparticles using tea extracts for the removal of metal(loid)s in acid mine drainage.

Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) contains various metal/metalloid ions such as Fe, Cu, and As, which all impact seriously on mine ecosystems. Currently, the commonly used chemical methods for treating AMD may cause secondary pollution to appear in the environment. In this study, one-step simultaneous biomass synthesis of iron nanoparticles (Fe NPs) using tea extracts for the removal of heavy metals/metalloids in AMD is proposed. Characterizations revealed that the Fe NPs presented severely agglomerated particles with an average particle size of 119.80 ± 4.94 nm, on which various AMD-derived metal(loid)s, including As, Cu, and Ni, were uniformly dispersed. The biomolecules participating in the reaction in the tea extract were identified as polyphenols, organic acids, and sugars, which acted as complexing agents, reducing agents, covering/stabilizing agents, and promoted electron transfer. Meanwhile, the best reaction conditions (reaction time = 3.0 h, volume ratio of AMD and tea extract = 1.0:1.5, concentration of extract = 60 g/L, and T = 303 K) were obtained. Finally, the simultaneous formation of Fe NPs and their removal of heavy metals/metalloids from AMD was proposed, mainly involving the formation of Fe NPs and adsorption, co-precipitation, and reduction processes of heavy metals/metalloids.

A heavy burden: Metal exposure across the land-ocean continuum in an adaptable carnivore.

Urbanisation and associated anthropogenic activities release large quantities of toxic metals and metalloids into the environment, where they may bioaccumulate and threaten both wildlife and human health. In highly transformed landscapes, terrestrial carnivores may be at increased risk of exposure through biomagnification. We quantified metallic element and metalloid exposure in blood of caracals (Caracal caracal), an adaptable felid inhabiting the rapidly urbanising, coastal metropole of Cape Town, South Africa. Using redundancy analysis and mixed-effect models, we explored the influence of demography, landscape use, and diet on the concentration of 11 metals and metalloids. Although species-specific toxic thresholds are lacking, arsenic (As) and chromium (Cr) were present at potentially sublethal levels in several individuals. Increased use of human-transformed landscapes, particularly urban areas, roads, and vineyards, was significantly associated with increased exposure to aluminium (Al), cobalt (Co) and lead (Pb). Foraging closer to the coast and within aquatic food webs was associated with increased levels of mercury (Hg), selenium (Se) and arsenic, where regular predation on seabirds and waterbirds likely facilitates transfer of metals from aquatic to terrestrial food webs. Further, several elements were linked to lower haemoglobin levels (chromium, mercury, manganese, and zinc) and elevated levels of infection-fighting cells (mercury and selenium). Our results highlight the importance of anthropogenic activities as major environmental sources of metal contamination in terrestrial wildlife, including exposure across the land-ocean continuum. These findings contribute towards the growing evidence suggesting cities are particularly toxic areas for wildlife. Co-exposure to a suite of metal pollutants may threaten the long-term health and persistence of Cape Town's caracal population in unexpected ways, particularly when interacting with additional known pollutant and pathogen exposure. The caracal is a valuable sentinel for assessing metal exposure and can be used in pollution monitoring programmes to mitigate exposure and promote biodiversity conservation in human-dominated landscapes.

Risk assessment of metal(loid)s in tea from seven producing provinces in China.

To evaluate metal(loid) contamination in tea leaves and assess health risks of tea drinking in China, metal(loid) concentrations in tea leaves from major tea-producing provinces were determined. Nine metal(loid)s (Al, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd and Pb) were measured in a total of 217 tea samples representing five tea varieties (black tea, dark tea, green tea, oolong tea and white tea) from seven major tea-producing provinces of China (Fujian, Guangdong, Henan, Hunan, Jiangsu, Yunnan and Zhejiang). The results indicated that tea samples from Hunan Province had the highest metal(loid) concentrations, likely due its high prevalence of heavy industrial activities and soil pollution. The concentrations of As and Pb in dark tea were markedly higher than those in other tea varieties. A strong Spearman correlation coefficient (0.78, P < 0.001) of As and Pb in all the tea varieties has also been found, indicating their similar sources. Human health risk assessment for the nine analyzed metal(loid)s indicated that co-exposure to these metal(loids) may not cause significant health risks (hazard index [HI] > 1 suggests considerable health risks). Among the five tea varieties, metal(loids)s in dark and green tea induced relatively higher health risks, with 90th percentile HI values approached 0.8. Co (53.6 %-84.5 %) and Al (3.33 %-15.8 %) made the highest contributions to the HI of the selected tea commodities. Thus, public and regulatory agencies should reduce excessive Co and Al accumulation in these tea varieties during cultivation and production processes.

MRTCM: A comprehensive dataset for probabilistic risk assessment of metals and metalloids in traditional Chinese medicine.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is still considered a global complementary or alternative medical system, but exogenous hazardous contaminants remain in TCM even after decocting. Besides, it is time-consuming to conduct a risk assessment of trace elements in TCMs with a non-automatic approach due to the wide variety of TCMs. Here, we present MRTCM, a cloud-computing infrastructure for automating the probabilistic risk assessment of metals and metalloids in TCM. MRTCM includes a consumption database and a pollutant database involving forty million rows of consumption data and fourteen types of TCM potentially toxic elements concentrations. The algorithm of probabilistic risk assessment was also packaged in MRTCM to assess the risks of eight elements with Monte Carlo simulation. The results demonstrated that 96.64% and 99.46% had no non-carcinogenic risk (hazard indices (HI) were < 1.0) for animal and herbal medicines consumers, respectively. After twenty years of exposure, less than 1% of the total carcinogenic risk (CRt) was > 10-4 for TCM consumers, indicating that they are at potential risk for carcinogenicity. Sensitivity analysis revealed that annual consumption and concentration were the main variables affecting the assessment results. Ultimately, a priority management list of TCMs was also generated, indicating that more attention should be paid to the non-carcinogenic risks of As, Mn, and Hg and the carcinogenic risks of As and Cr in Pheretima and Cr in Arcae Conch. In general, MRTCM could significantly enhance the efficiency of risk assessment in TCM and provide reasonable guidance for policymakers to optimize risk management.

Toxic Metals and Metalloids in Infant Formulas Marketed in Brazil, and Child Health Risks According to the Target Hazard Quotients and Target Cancer Risk.

Children are highly vulnerable to chemical exposure. Thus, metal and metalloid in infant formulas are a concern, although studies in this regard are still relatively scarce. Thus, the presence of aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, tin, mercury, lead, and uranium was investigated in infant formulas marketed in Brazil by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and the Target Hazard Quotients (THQ) and Target Cancer Risk (TCR) were calculated in to assess the potential risk of toxicity for children who consume these products continuously. Aluminum ranging from 0.432 ± 0.049 to 1.241 ± 0.113 mg·kg-1, arsenic from 0.012 ± 0.009 to 0.034 ± 0.006 mg·kg-1, and tin from 0.007 ± 0.003 to 0.095 ± 0.024 mg·kg-1 were the major elements, while cadmium and uranium were present at the lowest concentrations. According to the THQ, arsenic contents in infant formulas showed a THQ > 1, indicating potential health risk concerns for newborns or children. Minimal carcinogenic risks were observed for the elements considered carcinogenic. Metabolic and nutritional interactions are also discussed. This study indicates the need to improve infant formula surveillance concerning contamination by potentially toxic and carcinogenic elements.

Pollution and edaphic factors shape bacterial community structure and functionality in historically contaminated soils.

Studies about biodegradation potential in soils often refer to artificially contaminated and simplified systems, overlooking the complexity associated with contaminated sites in a real context. This work aims to provide a holistic view on microbiome assembly and functional diversity in the model site SIN Brescia-Caffaro (Italy), characterized by historical and uneven contamination by organic and inorganic compounds. Here, physical and chemical analyses and microbiota characterization were applied on one-hundred-twenty-seven soil samples to unravel the environmental factors driving bacterial community assembly and biodegradation potential in three former agricultural fields. Chemical analyses showed a patchy distribution of metals, metalloids and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and allowed soil categorization according to depth and area of collections. Likewise, the bacterial community structure, described by molecular fingerprinting and 16S rRNA gene analyses, was significantly different according to collection site and depth. Pollutant concentrations (i.e., hexachloro-biphenyls, arsenic and mercury), nitrogen content and parameters related to soil texture were identified as main drivers of microbiota assembly, being significantly correlated to bacterial community composition. Moreover, bacteria putatively involved in the aerobic degradation of PCBs were enriched over the total bacterial community in topsoils, where the highest activity was recorded using fluorescein hydrolysis as proxy. Metataxonomic analyses revealed the presence of bacteria having metabolic pathways related to PCB degradation and tolerance to heavy metals and metalloids in the topsoil samples collected in all areas. Overall, the provided dissection of soil microbiota structure and its degradation potential in the SIN Brescia-Caffaro can contribute to target specific areas for rhizoremediation implementation. Metagenomics studies could be implemented in the future to understand if specific degradative pathways are present in historically polluted sites characterized by the co-occurrence of multiple classes of contaminants.

Bioaccumulation of potentially toxic elements from the soils surrounding a legacy uranium mine in Brazil.

It is important to understand the environmental fate and potential risks posed by metals and metalloids around mines and in legacy mining areas. In order to assess the bioavailable concentrations of several potentially toxic elements (PTEs: As, Pb, Cd, Ni, Cu, Cr, Mn, Zn, Ba, U) and rare earth elements (REEs: La to Lu), a multi-method evaluation of their concentrations/fractionation/speciation in soils was related to their biouptake in corn, for a region surrounding a legacy U mine in Brazil. Chemical fractions of the PTE and REE in soils were determined using the BCR (Community Bureau of Reference) sequential extraction procedure; a single extraction with Ca(NO3)2 and the diffusion gradient in thin films (DGT) technique. All techniques were better correlated to the metals accumulated by the crops as compared to total metal concentrations. Ba, Cu, Mn and Zn were shown to have high mobility and high bioaccumulation factors in the corn. Concentrations of U, As, Cd, and Pb were above threshold concentrations and strongly correlated, suggesting that they had a similar anthropogenic source. Geospatial modeling agreed with results from principal component analysis, indicating multiple sources for the contamination. Results highlighted the need for multi-method approaches when evaluating the long-term risks posed by PTEs and REEs in agricultural soils.

Toxic metal(loid)s contamination and potential human health risk assessment in the vicinity of century-old copper smelter, Karabash, Russia.

Active smelters release high concentration of multiple toxic metal(loid)s into the environment, degrading the soil cover and posing high risks to human health. The present study investigates Cu along with other metal(loids) such as As, Cd, Hg, Co, Mn, Pb and Zn in the soil collected from the vicinity of Cu smelter, Karabash, Russia, and potential health risks to local children and adults were assessed. The average concentrations of Cu, Zn, Pb, As, Cd, and Hg in the exposed soil were 2698, 1050, 702, 392, 9 and 2 mg kg-1, respectively, which was significantly (p < 0.05) much higher than reference soil: Cu(107), As(18), Cd(0.3), Hg(0.2), Pb(54) and Zn(125) mg kg-1. The enrichment factor (EF) for Cu, Hg, Pb and Zn showed significant enrichment, whereas very high enrichment was recorded for As (20.0) and Cd (27.6) suggesting the soil was severely affected by smelting activities. The pollution load index was tenfold higher than the acceptable level of one, whereas potential ecological risk factor showed very high potential risks of Cd and Hg, along with a considerable ecological risk of As and Cu. Very high ecological risk index of 1810 indicates severe degradation of environmental ecosystem. The results of EF, Pearson correlation and principle component analysis were complementary and suggest the anthropogenic source of contamination for Cu, As, Pb, Hg and Cd. The present result suggests As > Pb > Cu in the exposed soil were the major contributors for the health risks and account for 81%, 12% and 5%, and 77%, 12% and 8% of hazard quotient for children and adults, respectively. Noticeably, the health risks to local children dwelling in the vicinity of Cu smelter were 12 and 20 times higher than to adult and the acceptable level of one, respectively. Therefore, in order to reduce the health risk due to metal(loid)s, mitigation measures are needed to remediate the pollution of the exposed soil.

Metal(loid)s (As, Hg, Se, Pb and Cd) in paddy soil: Bioavailability and potential risk to human health.

Rice is one of the principal staple foods, essential for safeguarding the global food and nutritional security, but due to different natural and anthropogenic sources, it also acts as one of the biggest reservoirs of potentially toxic metal(loids) like As, Hg, Se, Pb and Cd. This review summarizes mobilization, translocation and speciation mechanism of these metal(loids) in soil-plant continuum as well as available cost-effective remediation measures and future research needs to eliminate the long-term risk to human health. High concentrations of these elements not only cause toxicity problems in plants, but also in animals that consume them and gradual deposition of these elements leads to the risk of bioaccumulation. The extensive occurrence of contaminated rice grains globally poses substantial public health risk and merits immediate action. People living in hotspots of contamination are exposed to higher health risks, however, rice import/export among different countries make the problem of global concern. Accumulation of As, Hg, Se, Pb and Cd in rice grains can be reduced by reducing their bioavailability, and controlling their uptake by rice plants. The contaminated soils can be reclaimed by phytoremediation, bioremediation, chemical amendments and mechanical measures; however these methods are either too expensive and/or too slow. Integration of innovative agronomic practices like crop establishment methods and improved irrigation and nutrient management practices are important steps to help mitigate the accumulation in soil as well as plant parts. Adoption of transgenic techniques for development of rice cultivars with low accumulation in edible plant parts could be a realistic option that would permit rice cultivation in soils with high bioavailability of these metal(loid)s.

Assessment of metal and metalloid contamination in soils trough compositional data: the old Mortórios uranium mine area, central Portugal.

Soils from the old Mortórios uranium mine area were studied to look for contamination, as they are close to two villages, up to 3 km away, and used for agriculture. They are mainly contaminated in U and As and constitute an ecological threat. This study attempts to outline the degree to which soils have been affected by the old mining activities through the computation of significant hot clusters, Traditional geostatistical approaches commonly use raw data (concentrations) accepting that the analyzed elements represent the soil's entirety. However, in geochemical studies these elements are just a fraction of the total soil composition. Thus, considering compositional data is pivotal. The spatial characterization, considering raw and compositional data together, allowed a broad discussion about not only the concentrations' spatial distribution, but also a better understanding on the possibility of trends of "relative enrichment" and, furthermore an insight in U and As fate. The highest proportions (compositional data) on U (up to 33%), As (up to 35%) and Th (up to 13%) are reached in the south-southeast segment. However, the highest concentrations (raw data) occur in north and northwest of the studied area, pointing out to a "relative enrichment" toward the south-southeast zone. The Mondego Sul area is mainly contaminated in U and As, but also in Co, Cu, Pb and Sb. The Mortórios area is less contaminated than the Mondego Sul area.

Metals and metalloids in traditional medicines (Ayurvedic medicines, nutraceuticals and traditional Chinese medicines).

Traditional medicine (TM) including Ayurvedic medicines, traditional Chinese medicines and nutraceuticals are popular across the globe as dietary supplements and traditional and alternative medicines. Health risks from these remedies continue to present serious concerns, with occurrences of poisoning by metals and metalloids present at concentrations above acceptable regulatory standards. This review overviews the prevalence of TM use, cases of metal and metalloid poisoning following TM consumption, and forms of TM contamination and adulteration. The review summarises regulations by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other relevant bodies. Finally, the review recommends how to protect consumers.

Characterization and screening of metals, metalloids and biomarkers in crude oil by ICP-MS/OES, and GC-MS techniques after digestion by microwave-induced combustion.

A method for digestion of light and medium Iraqi crude oils (Basrah and Khanaken oils) using microwave-induced combustion (MIC) in closed vessels is described for the determination of Hg, Au, Cu, Al, Ca, Co, K, Mg, Si and Sr by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and Mo, Ti, Mn, Li, Se-1 , Rb, Ag, Ba, Pb, As, Cd, Cr, Fe, Ni, V and Zn by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Upon using MIC it was possible to obtain lower limits of detection by ICP-MS and also by ICP-OES compared with those obtained by microwave-assisted digestion. The MIC was the best choice with regard to the possibility of using dilute nitric acid as an absorbing solution, which is important to minimize the interference encountered by ICP-MS and ICP-OES.The physicochemical parameters and some contaminants of crude oil samples were analyzed to classify and assess the quality of the crude oils. This study determines the viability of the use of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy as an alternativee to traditional petroleum geochemical methods for crude oil characterization. The infrared fingerprints agree with the results obtained from GC-MS analysis.

Heavy Metal and Metalloid Contamination Assessments of Soil around an Abandoned Uranium Tailings Pond and the Contaminations' Spatial Distribution and Variability.

To investigate the heavy metal and metalloid contamination of soil around a Huanan uranium tailings pond, abandoned in 1998, we defined a study area of 41.25 km² by a natural boundary and targeted 5 elements' (U, Mn, As, Pb, Cr) single contamination and comprehensive pollution as the assessment contents. First, we collected 205 samples and evaluated them with the contamination factor (CF) method aiming at judging whether the single target element concentration exceeded the local background value and environmental quality standard. We obtained CF1 (the background value of a certain target element as the baseline value) and CF2 (the environmental quality standard for soils as the baseline value). Second, we evaluated the ecological risk of the key pollutant U with the risk assessment code (RAC) method, taking the 27 samples whose CF2 > 1 as examples and concluded that the environmental risk of U was relatively high and should arouse concern. Third, we selected comprehensive pollution index (CPI) to assess the compound pollution degree of five target elements. Fourth, we constructed the U contamination and CPI's continuous distribution maps with spatial interpolation, from which we worked out the sizes and positions of slightly, moderately and strongly polluted zones. Finally, we analyzed the spatial variability of U and CPI with the aid of a geostatistical variogram. We deduced that the spatial variation of uranium was in close relationship with local topography, and probably precipitation was the driving force of U contamination diffusion, whereas CPI exhibited weak spatial dependence with random characteristics. The above work showed that 3.14 km² soil near the pond was fairly seriously polluted, and the other 4 elements' single contaminations were less serious, but the 5 target elements' cumulative pollution could not be ignored; there were other potential pollution sources besides the uranium tailings pond. Some emergency measures should be taken to treat U pollution, and bioremediation is recommended, taking account into U's high bioavailability. Further, special alerts should be implemented to identify the other pollution sources.

Assessment of Trace Metal and Metalloid Accumulation and Human Health Risk from Vegetables Consumption through Spinach and Coriander Specimens Irrigated with Wastewater.

This study focused on evaluating the metal and metalloid contamination and associated risks in the two vegetables crops, coriander (Coriandrum sativum) and spinach (Spinacia oleracea) treated with three water regimes, canal water, groundwater and municipal wastewater. These vegetables are widely consumed by people and are also used in traditional medicine for treating various disorders. Metal and metalloid accumulation (Zn, Pb, Se, Cu, As, Mo, Fe, Ni) was found higher in vegetables treated with wastewater. Wastewater treated soil had high pollution load index. Fe, Zn, As and Pb had higher values in water, soil and vegetables as compared to other studied metals. Overall, metal correlation for soil and vegetables was significant and positive except for Fe and Cu in spinach. The highest value for daily metal intake was estimated for Fe while Se had the lowest value for the same index. It was thus concluded that trace metal and metalloid accumulation was a major health concern for the public consuming these vegetables.

Metals and metalloids in Little Penguin (Eudyptula minor) prey, blood and faeces.

Piscivorous species like the Little Penguin (Eudyptula minor) are particularly at risk of being negatively impacted by pollution due to their heightened exposure through aquatic food chains. Therefore, determining the concentration of heavy metals in the fish prey of seabirds is an essential component of assessing such risk. In this study, we report on arsenic, cadmium, mercury, lead and selenium concentrations in three fish species, which are known to comprise a substantial part of the diet of Little Penguins at the urban colony of St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia. Metal concentrations in the fish sampled were generally within the expected limits, however, arsenic and mercury were higher than reported elsewhere. Anchovy (Engraulis australis) and sandy sprat (Hyperlophus vittatus) contained higher Hg concentrations than pilchard (Sardinops sagax), while sandy sprat and pilchard contained more selenium. We present these findings together with metal concentrations in Little Penguin blood and faeces, sampled within weeks of the fish collection. Mercury concentrations were highest in the blood, while faeces and fish prey species contained similar concentrations of arsenic and lead, suggesting faeces as a primary route of detoxification for these elements. We also investigated paired blood - faecal samples and found a correlation for selenium only. Preliminary data from stable isotope ratios in penguin blood indicate that changes in penguin blood mercury concentrations cannot be explained by trophic changes in their diet alone, suggesting a variation of bioavailable Hg within this semi-enclosed bay.

Potential impact of flowback water from hydraulic fracturing on agricultural soil quality: Metal/metalloid bioaccessibility, Microtox bioassay, and enzyme activities.

Hydraulic fracturing has advanced the development of shale gas extraction, while inadvertent spills of flowback water may pose a risk to the surrounding environment due to its high salt content, metals/metalloids (As, Se, Fe and Sr), and organic additives. This study investigated the potential impact of flowback water on four representative soils from shale gas regions in Northeast China using synthetic flowback solutions. The compositions of the solutions were representative of flowback water arising at different stages after fracturing well establishment. The effects of solution composition of flowback water on soil ecosystem were assessed in terms of metal mobility and bioaccessibility, as well as biological endpoints using Microtox bioassay (Vibrio fischeri) and enzyme activity tests. After one-month artificial aging of the soils with various flowback solutions, the mobility and bioaccessibility of As(V) and Se(VI) decreased as the ionic strength of the flowback solutions increased. The results inferred a stronger binding affinity of As(V) and Se(VI) with the soils. Nevertheless, the soil toxicity to Vibrio fischeri only presented a moderate increase after aging, while dehydrogenase and phosphomonoesterase activities were significantly suppressed with increasing ionic strength of flowback solutions. On the contrary, polyacrylamide in the flowback solutions led to higher dehydrogenase activity. These results indicated that soil enzyme activities were sensitive to the composition of flowback solutions. A preliminary human health risk assessment related to As(V) suggested a low level of cancer risk through exposure via ingestion, while holistic assessment of environmental implications is required.

Toxic metals in ayurvedic preparations from a public health lead poisoning cluster investigation.

Background Herbal formulations, traditional medicine, and complementary and alternative medicine are used by the majority of the world's population. Toxicity associated with use of Ayurvedic products due to metal content is an increasingly recognized potential public health problem. Objectives Report on toxic metals content of Ayurvedic products obtained during an investigation of lead poisoning among users of Ayurvedic medicine. Methods Samples of Ayurvedic formulations were analyzed for metals and metalloids following established US. Environmental Protection Agency methods. Results Lead was found in 65% of 252 Ayurvedic medicine samples with mercury and arsenic found in 38 and 32% of samples, respectively. Almost half of samples containing mercury, 36% of samples containing lead and 39% of samples containing arsenic had concentrations of those metals per pill that exceeded, up to several thousand times, the recommended daily intake values for pharmaceutical impurities. Conclusions Lack of regulations regarding manufacturing and content or purity of Ayurvedic and other herbal formulations poses a significant global public health problem.

The heron that laid the golden egg: metals and metalloids in ibis, darter, cormorant, heron, and egret eggs from the Vaal River catchment, South Africa.

Metal pollution issues are afforded the highest priority in developing countries. Only one previous study has addressed metals in African bird eggs. We determined the concentration of metals and metalloids in bird eggs from four sites in the Vaal River catchment (VRC) of South Africa to provide data on the current situation. We analysed 16 pools of 77 heron, ibis, darter, egret, and cormorant eggs for 18 metals and metalloids using ICP-MS. We found high concentrations of gold (Au), uranium (U), thallium (Tl), and platinum (Pt) in Grey Heron eggs from Baberspan. Great white egrets from Bloemhof Dam had high concentrations of mercury (Hg). Multivariate analyses revealed strong associations between Au and U, and between palladium (Pd) and Pt. The toxic reference value (TRV) for Hg was exceeded in seven pools. Selenium exceeded its TRV in one pool; in the same pool, copper (Cu) reached its TRV. Compared with other studies, VRC bird eggs had high concentrations of contaminants. Based on these high concentrations, human health might be at risk as Grey Herons and humans share similar food and are therefore exposed to the same contaminants.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi community structure, abundance and species richness changes in soil by different levels of heavy metal and metalloid concentration.

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) play major roles in ecosystem functioning such as carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling, and plant growth promotion. It is important to know how this ecologically important soil microbial player is affected by soil abiotic factors particularly heavy metal and metalloid (HMM). The objective of this study was to understand the impact of soil HMM concentration on AMF abundance and community structure in the contaminated sites of South Korea. Soil samples were collected from the vicinity of an abandoned smelter and the samples were subjected to three complementary methods such as spore morphology, terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) for diversity analysis. Spore density was found to be significantly higher in highly contaminated soil compared to less contaminated soil. Spore morphological study revealed that Glomeraceae family was more abundant followed by Acaulosporaceae and Gigasporaceae in the vicinity of the smelter. T-RFLP and DGGE analysis confirmed the dominance of Funneliformis mosseae and Rhizophagus intraradices in all the study sites. Claroideoglomus claroideum, Funneliformis caledonium, Rhizophagus clarus and Funneliformis constrictum were found to be sensitive to high concentration of soil HMM. Richness and diversity of Glomeraceae family increased with significant increase in soil arsenic, cadmium and zinc concentrations. Our results revealed that the soil HMM has a vital impact on AMF community structure, especially with Glomeraceae family abundance, richness and diversity.