High iron accumulation in hair and nail of people living in iron affected areas of Assam, India.

Human populace of Assam, India repeatedly exposed to high concentration of iron in groundwater results in adverse health effects like hemochromatosis, liver cirrhosis and siderosis. In the present study, human hair and nail analysis were carried out to establish a possible relationship between iron toxicity and its deposition among the residents. Nail and hair iron concentrations ranged from 28.2 to 1046µgg(-1) (n=114) and 26.5-838 (n=108)µgg(-1) levels, respectively, among all the study participants. The iron content of the groundwater (421-5340µgL(-1)) (n=64) used for drinking purposes was positively correlated with both nail (r=0.788, p<0.0001) and hair (r=0.709, p<0.0001) iron concentrations. Age- and sex-matched controls corresponding to each group were selected from population residing in other parts of the country where groundwater does not have excess iron. All the study groups included population drinking iron-contaminated water above the WHO/BIS limit (>300µgL(-1)) for 5 years (Group 1), for more than 5-10 years (Group 2) and for more than 10 years (Group 3). Results suggested that the participants consuming groundwater exceeding the WHO limit of iron had significantly more iron accumulation than those using groundwater containing ≤300µgL(-1) iron (p<0.01). There was statistically higher concentration of iron in the nail samples than the hair samples in all the study groups (p<0.01). There was a positive correlation in iron concentration and the residence time of the participants (p<0.01). Iron levels in the male participants were significantly higher than the female participants in the present study (p<0.01). The current findings are sufficiently compelling to warrant more extensive study of iron exposure through drinking water and adverse effects to the human in the areas where iron concentration is high.

Iron-rich drinking water and ascorbic acid supplementation improved hemolytic anemia in experimental Wistar rats.

Anemia is a frequent problem in both the primary and secondary health care programs. In contrast, most areas of northeast India are vulnerable to iron toxicity. In the present study, we documented the effect of administration of iron rich water on hemolytic anemia in a Wistar rats' animal model. Hemolytic anemia was induced by phenyl hydrazine through intraperitoneal route and diagnosed by the lowering of blood hemoglobin. After inducing the hemolytic anemia, 24 Wistar rats (n = 6 in four groups) were randomly assigned to 1 mg/l, 5 mg/l, and 10 mg/l ferric oxide iron along with 1 mg/ml ascorbic acid administered through drinking water; a control group was treated with iron-free water. The hematological and biochemical parameters, iron levels in liver, spleen, and kidney were estimated after 30 d of treatment. In the group treated with 5 mg/l iron and ascorbic acid, a significant increase of serum iron and ferritin, and a decrease of TIBC (total iron binding capacity) were observed without changes in other biochemical parameters and histopathological findings. However, in the group treated with 10 mg/l iron and ascorbic acid, hematological changes with significantly higher values for white blood cell count, serum glutamic phospho transaminase, serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, glucose, splenic, and liver iron content, indicate potential toxicity at this supplementation level. Data suggest that the optimum concentration of iron (5 mg/l) and ascorbic acid solution may improve anemic conditions and may be therapeutically beneficial in the treatment of iron deficiency anemia without any negative impact, while 10 mg/l in drinking water seems to be the threshold for the initiation of toxicity.

Removal of fluoride from water using iron oxide-hydroxide nanoparticles.

A novel and facile method for the synthesis of uniform stoichiometric powder form of non-magnetic iron oxide-hydroxide nanoparticles with spherical morphology and its application for defluoridation of drinking water is reported. X-ray powder diffraction analysis (XRD), BET surface area, FTIR, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images were used to characterize nanoscale iron oxide-hydroxide. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image revealed the formation of iron oxide-hydroxide nanoparticles with spherical morphology. The iron oxide-hydroxide nanoparticles showed an excellent ability to remove fluoride (F-) from contaminated water over a wide range of pH. The influences of temperature, stirring speed, pH, adsorbent dose and contact time were studied. The equilibrium data were tested with various isotherm models and finally, a calculation procedure was reported for the calculation of adsorbent requirement. The fluoride adsorbed nanoparticles was regenerated upto 70% using sodium hydroxide or hydrochloric acid solution. The iron oxide-hydroxide nanoparticles can be used as an effective and replicable adsorbent media for defluoridation of water in presence of competing anions like chloride, iodate, iodide and sulphate.

Groundwater arsenic contamination in Brahmaputra river basin: a water quality assessment in Golaghat (Assam), India.

Distribution of arsenic (As) and its compound and related toxicology are serious concerns nowadays. Millions of individuals worldwide are suffering from arsenic toxic effect due to drinking of As-contaminated groundwater. The Bengal delta plain, which is formed by the Ganga-Padma-Meghna-Brahmaputra river basin, covering several districts of West Bengal, India, and Bangladesh is considered as the worst As-affected alluvial basin. The present study was carried out to examine As contamination in the state of Assam, an adjoining region of the West Bengal and Bangladesh borders. Two hundred twenty-two groundwater samples were collected from shallow and deep tubewells of six blocks of Golaghat district (Assam). Along with total As, examination of concentration levels of other key parameters, viz., Fe, Mn, Ca, Na, K, and Mg with pH, total hardness, and SO[Formula: see text], was also carried out. In respect to the permissible limit formulated by the World Health Organization (WHO; As 0.01 ppm, Fe 1.0 ppm, and Mn 0.3 ppm for potable water), the present study showed that out of the 222 groundwater samples, 67%, 76.4%, and 28.5% were found contaminated with higher metal contents (for total As, Fe, and Mn, respectively). The most badly affected area was the Gamariguri block, where 100% of the samples had As and Fe concentrations above the WHO drinking water guideline values. In this block, the highest As and Fe concentrations were recorded 0.128 and 5.9 ppm, respectively. Tubewell water of depth 180±10 ft found to be more contaminated by As and Fe with 78% and 83% of the samples were tainted with higher concentration of such toxic metals, respectively. A strong significant correlation was observed between As and Fe (0.697 at p<0.01), suggesting a possible reductive dissolution of As-Fe-bearing minerals for the mobilization of As in the groundwater of the region.

Arsenic (III) adsorption on iron acetate coated activated alumina: thermodynamic, kinetics and equilibrium approach.

The adsorption potential of iron acetate coated activated alumina (IACAA) for removal of arsenic [As (III)] as arsenite by batch sorption technique is described. IACAA was characterized by XRD, FTIR, EDAX and SEM instruments. Percentage adsorption on IACAA was determined as a function of pH, contact time and adsorbent dose. The study revealed that the removal of As (III) was best achieved at pH =7.4. The initial As (III) concentration (0.45 mg/L) came down to less than 0.01 mg/L at contact time 90 min with adsorbent dose of 1 g/100 mL. The sorption was reasonably explained with Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. The thermodynamic parameters such as ΔG0, ΔH0, ΔS0 and Ea were calculated in order to understand the nature of sorption process. The sorption process was found to be controlled by pseudo-second order and intraparticle diffusion models.