Effects of the Antiparasitic Drug Moxidectin in Cattle Dung on Zooplankton and Benthic Invertebrates and its Accumulation in a Water-Sediment System.

Two anthelmintic macrocyclic lactones-ivermectin and moxidectin-have revolutionized parasite control in cattle. These drugs are only partly metabolized by livestock, and the main route of excretion is via feces. In seasonally inundated floodplains, cattle feces come into direct contact with surface water. Important differences in pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics between these drugs may bear on their ecotoxicology in aquatic ecosystems. Moxidectin strongly binds to organic matter and thereby may be consumed in aquatic food webs, but there is a scarcity of data on toxicity to freshwater invertebrates. The objectives of this work were to determine the effect of moxidectin spiked in cattle dung on survival and growth of three representative aquatic invertebrates: the zooplankton Ceriodaphnia dubia, the amphipod Hyalella curvispina, and the snail Pomacea canaliculata. Moxidectin-laced dung was added in microcosms and concentrations were measured in water, sediment + dung, roots of the aquatic plant Salvinia biloba, and the aforementioned invertebrates. The influence of moxidectin on nutrient concentrations was also evaluated. Dung was spiked with moxidectin to attain concentrations of 750, 375 and 250 µg kg-1 dung fresh weight, approximating those found in cattle dung at days 2, 3, and 5 following subcutaneous injection. Concentrations of moxidectin in dung during the first week of excretion were lethally toxic for the tested invertebrate taxa. The persistence of moxidectin in the sediment + dung and the uptake of the drug in roots of S. biloba increase its potential exposure to aquatic food webs. Moxidectin also reduced the rate of release of soluble reactive phosphorus to the water.

The Application of Chironomid Pupal Exuvial Technique (CPET) for Ecological Analysis in a Neotropical Large River System.

This field ecological study, based on the chironomid pupal exuvial technique (CPET), is new for the Paraná River and proposes an efficient tool to be used in future ecological approaches and biomonitoring. Drifting of pupal exuviae in a river-floodplain system of the Middle Paraná River floodplain was represented by 34 Chironomidae taxa, being the characteristic association obtained from the CPET: Lopescladius, Onconeura, Paralauterborniella, Polypedilum, and Harnischia complex. Diversity, richness, dominance, total density, and density of dominant taxa were different between the longitudinal and lateral dimensions but not between hydrologic phases, with a greater diversity and richness in the main channel of the river and higher density and dominance in floodplain habitats. The species turnover is the dominant process in structuring studied assemblages in spatial and temporal analysis, increasing in the floodplain habitats and in low-water phase. The results obtained showed that drifting exuviae in the longitudinal axis were coming from different assemblages and environments of a wider area (regional), while exuviae recorded in the connections of the floodplain environments in the lateral dimension could reflect the local assemblages. We demonstrated the ecological value of CPET studies to interpret the attributes of Chironomidae assemblage in river-floodplain systems of large rivers in an integrated way.

Aquatic toxicity of ivermectin in cattle dung assessed using microcosms.

Ivermectin (IVM) is a parasiticide widely used for livestock. It is a semisynthetic derivative of avermectin, a macrocyclic lactone produced by Streptomyces avermitilis. This drug is only partly metabolized by livestock; considerable amounts of parent drug are excreted mostly via feces. To simulate exposure of aquatic invertebrates and macrophytes to direct excretion of cattle dung into surface waters, a microcosm experiment with IVM spiked in cattle dung was conducted. The objectives of this study were to characterize accumulation of IVM in water, sediment+dung, roots of the floating fern Salvinia and the zooplankton Ceriodaphnia dubia, the amphipod Hyalella and the apple snail Pomacea; to determine the effect of this drug spiked in cattle dung on life-history traits of these invertebrates; and to evaluate the influence of IVM on aquatic nutrient cycling. Dung was spiked with IVM to attain concentrations of 1150, 458, 50 and 22µgkg-1dung fresh weight, approximating those found in cattle dung at days 3, 7, 16 and 29 following subcutaneous injection. Concentrations found in dung during the first week of excretion were lethally toxic to Ceriodaphnia dubia and Hyalella, whereas no mortality was observed in Pomacea. Concentrations of IVM in roots, sediment + dung and Pomacea increased significantly from the lowest to the highest treatment level. The effect of this drug on decomposition and release of nutrients from dung would have negative consequences for nutrient cycling in water. Increasing concentrations in sediment + dung with days of the experiment suggested that toxic concentrations would persist for an extended period in the water-sediment system. IVM represents an ecological risk for aquatic ecosystems, underscoring the need for livestock management strategies to limit its entry into water bodies.

Photoelastic sphenoscopic analysis of crystals.

Birefringent crystals are at the basis of various devices used in many fields, from high energy physics to biomedical imaging for cancer detection. Since crystals are the main elements of those devices, a great attention is paid on their quality and properties. Here, we present a methodology for the photoelastic analysis of birefringent crystals, based on a modified polariscope. Polariscopes using conoscopic observation are used to evaluate crystals residual stresses in a precise but time consuming way; in our methodology, the light beam shape, which impinges on the crystal surface, has been changed from a solid cone (conoscopy) to a wedge (sphenoscopy). Since the polarized and coherent light is focused on a line rather than on a spot, this allows a faster analysis which leads to the observation, at a glance, of a spatial distribution of stress along a line. Three samples of lead tungstate crystals have been observed using this technique, and the obtained results are compared with the conoscopic observation. The samples have been tested both in unloaded condition and in a loaded configuration induced by means of a four points bending device, which allows to induce a known stress distribution in the crystal. The obtained results confirm, in a reliable manner, the sensitivity of the methodology to the crystal structure and stress.

A photoelastic measurement system for residual stress analysis in scintillating crystals by conoscopic imaging.

The assessment of the stress state of scintillating crystals is an important issue for producers as well as users of such materials, because residual stress may arise during growth process. In this paper, a measurement system, based on the use of a photoelastic, conoscopic optical setup, is proposed for the assessment of stress state in scintillating crystals. Local stress values can be measured on the crystal in order to observe their spatial distribution. With the proposed system, it is possible to vary the dimensions of the inspected measurement volume. It has been validated with reference to a known stress state induced in a birefringent crystal sample and it has been tested for the case of loaded and unloaded samples, showing sub-millimetric spatial resolution and stress uncertainty ≤0.25 MPa. The proposed measurement system is a valid method for the inspection of scintillating crystals required by producers and users of such materials.