Evaluation of the Acute Toxicity of Prochloraz-manganese Chloride Complex to Environmental Species

[Objectives] This study was conducted to evaluate the toxicity risk of prochloraz-manganese chloride complex to environmental organisms. [Methods] The acute toxicity tests of prochloraz-manganese chloride complex on 8 common environmental organisms, such as Coturnix coturnix japonica, Apis mellifera L., Eisenia foetida, Bombyx mori, Trichogramma japonicum, Brachydanio rerio, Daphnia magna Straus and Scenedesmus obliquus were carried out. [Results] Prochloraz-manganese chloride complex to D. magna EC50(48 h): 1.11 mg a.i./L, with a 95% confidence limit of 1.00-1.26 mg a.i./L;B. rerio LC50(96 h): 2.84 mg a.i./L, with a 95 % Confidence limit of 2.43-3.48 mg a.i./L;S. obliquus ErC50(72 h): 1.88×10^-2 mg a.i./L, with a 95% confidence limit of 1.70×10^-2-2.16×10^-2 mg a.i./L;C. coturnix LD50(168 h): 1.01×10^3 mg a.i./kg body weight, with a 95% confidence limit of 7.87×10^2-1.27×10^3 mg a.i./kg body weight;T. japonicum LR50(24 h): 2.53×10^-3 mg a.i./cm^2, with a 95% confidence limit of 2.14×10^-3-2.99×10^-3 mg a.i./cm^2;B. mori LC50(96 h): 2.03×10^2 mg a.i./L, with a 95% confidence limit of 1.79×10^2-2.30×10^2 mg a.i./L;A. mellifera(peroral) LD50(48 h)>100 μg a.i./bee;A. mellifera(contact) LD50(48 h)>100 μg a.i./bee;E. foetida LC50(14 d)>1.00×10^2 mg a.i./kg dry soil. According to the Guidance for Evaluating and Calculating Degradation Kinetics in Environmental Media for Pesticide Registration, prochloraz-manganese chloride complex had low toxicity to A. mellifera, C. coturnix, B. mori and E. foetida, medium toxicity to D. magna and B. rerio, and high toxicity and low risk to S. obliquus and T. japonicum. [Conclusions] This study provides a data basis for the toxicity and environmental safety evaluation of the agent.

Special Issue on "Response of Polar Organisms and Natural Environment to Global Changes"

High altitude and high latitude regions on Earth are experiencing rapid changes in climate, with impacts on polar organisms and the environment. The persistent cold and sometimes inhospitable conditions create unique ecosystems and habitats for polar organisms.

Inviting Contributions to a Special Issue on "Response of Polar Organisms and Natural Environment to Global Changes"

Dear Colleagues, We would like to invite you to submit manuscripts to a special issue of the journal Advances in Polar Science （APS） on ＂Response of Polar Organisms and Natural Environment to Global Changes＂.

Significance of adverse outcome pathways in biomarker-based environmental risk assessment in aquatic organisms

In environmental risk assessments（ERA）, biomarkers have been widely used as an early warning signal of environmental contamination. However, biomarker responses have limitation due to its low relevance to adverse outcomes（e.g., fluctuations in community structure, decreases in population size, and other similar ecobiologically relevant indicators of community structure and function）. To mitigate these limitations, the concept of adverse outcome pathways（AOPs） was developed. An AOP is an analytical, sequentially progressive pathway that links a molecular initiating event（MIE） to an adverse outcome. Recently, AOPs have been recognized as a potential informational tool by which the implications of molecular biomarkers in ERA can be better understood. To demonstrate the utility of AOPs in biomarker-based ERA, here we discuss a series of three different biological repercussions caused by exposure to benzo（a）pyrene（Ba P）, silver nanoparticles（Ag NPs）, and selenium（Se）. Using mainly aquatic invertebrates and selected vertebrates as model species, we focus on the development of the AOP concept. Aquatic organisms are suitable bioindicator species whose entire lifespans can be observed over a short period; moreover, these species can be studied on the molecular and population levels.Also, interspecific differences between aquatic organisms are important to consider in an AOP framework, since these differences are an integral part of the natural environment.The development of an environmental pollutant-mediated AOP may enable a better understanding of the effects of environmental pollutants in different scenarios in the diverse community of an ecosystem.

Identifying the influence of urbanization on soil organic matter content and p H from soil magnetic characteristics

Soil magnetic characteristics are correlated with soil p H and organic matter content. Analyzing soil magnetic characteristics, organic matter content and p H can indirectly evaluate soil pollution caused by human activities. This study analyzed the soil magnetic characteristics, organic matter content and p H in surface soil samples from different land use types in Shihezi city, a newly and rapidly developing oasis city in Xinjiang of China. The aims of this study were to explore the possible relationships among the soil magnetic parameters and thereby improve the understanding of influence of urbanization on soil properties. Eighty surface soil samples at the depth of 0–10 cm were collected from 29 July to 4 August 2013. The results showed that the magnetic minerals in surface soil were dominated by ferromagnetic minerals. Spatially, the magnetic susceptibility（χLF）, anhysteretic remanent magnetization susceptibility（χARM）, saturation isothermal remanent magnetization（SIRM） and ＂soft＂ isothermal remanent magnetization（SOFT） were found to be most dominant in the new northern urban area B（N-B）, followed by built-up areas（U）, suburban agricultural land（F）, and then the new northern urban area A（N-A）. The values of χLF, χARM, SIRM and SOFT were higher in the areas with high intensities of human activities and around the main roads. Meanwhile, the property ＂hard＂ isothermal remanent magnetization（HIRM） followed the order of U〉N-B〉F〉N-A. Built-up areas had an average p H value of 7.93, which was much higher than that in the new northern urban areas as well as in suburban agricultural land, due to the increased urban pollutant emissions. The average value of soil organic matter content in the whole study area was 34.69 g/kg, and the values in the new northern urban areas were much higher than those in the suburban agricultural land and built-up areas. For suburban agricultural land, soil organic matter content was significantly negatively correlated with χLF, and had no correlation with other magnetic parameters, since the soil was frequently ploughed. In the new northern urban areas（N-A and N-B）, there were significant positive correlations of soil organic matter contents with χARM, SIRM, SOFT and HIRM, because natural grasslands were not frequently turned over. For the built-up areas, soil organic matter contents were significantly positively correlated with χLF, χARM, SIRM and SOFT, but not significantly correlated with frequency-dependent susceptibility（χFD, expressed as a percentage） and HIRM, because the soil was not frequently turned over or influenced by human activities. The results showed that soil magnetic characteristics are related to the soil turnover time.

The Organizations’Psychological Environment Traits Modification When Adopting an Ethics and Compliance Program

Ethics and compliance programs have a direct linkage to key tenets of employee behaviors.The employee behaviors are building blocks of the organizations’psychological environment traits.They are characterized by role identity,self-awareness,motivation,and misconduct.It is crucial to unravel the diversity of the perspectives of the programs to design an appropriate framework of the relationship between ethics and compliance and organizational psychology.According to Weinstein(2019),“Compliance is a fundamental pillar of any corporate operation and culture,and it should be based upon the principles of transparency,impartiality,responsibility,integrity,professionalism and ethics”.While“Ethics goes beyond what the law requires.It involves doing the right thing and following both the spirit and not just the letter of the law”.The founding facets of effective ethics and compliance are culture,leaders,and risks management.Policies and procedures that integrate these factors reduce the risks of non-compliance.The organization psychological environment aligns with key characteristics of the workplace such as physical setting,culture,and job characteristics.Aspects such as noise,heat,and lighting measures may considerably impact concentration,thus affecting psychological well-being.According to Ruiz-Palomino,Martínez-Cañas,and Fontrodona(2013,p.173),ethical culture directly impacts an individual’s emotional and well-being,which characterizes organizational psychology.Culture and ethics influence perceived corporate support and social exchange,which trigger ethics and compliance.

Ecological and toxicological assessments of anthropogenic contaminants based on environmental metabolomics

There has long been a great concern with growing anthropogenic contaminants and their ecological and toxicological effects on living organisms and the surrounding environment for decades.Metabolomics,a functional readout of cellular activity,can capture organismal responses to various contaminant-related stressors,acquiring direct signatures to illustrate the environmental behaviours of anthropogenic contaminants better.This review entails the application of metabolomics to profile metabolic responses of environmental organisms,e.g.animals(rodents,fish,crustacean and earthworms)and microorganisms(bacteria,yeast and microalgae)to different anthropogenic contaminants,including heavy metals,nanomaterials,pesticides,pharmaceutical and personal products,persistent organic pollutants,and assesses their ecotoxicological impacts with regard to literature published in the recent five years.Contaminant-induced metabolism alteration and up/down-regulation of metabolic pathways are revealed in typical organisms.The obtained insights of variations in global metabolism provide a distinct understanding of how anthropogenic contaminants exert influences on specific metabolic pathways on living organisms.Thus with a novel ecotechnique of environmental metabolomics,risk assessments of anthropogenic contaminants are profoundly demonstrated.

Interactions between engineered nanoparticles and dissolved organic matter: A review on mechanisms and environmental effects

Dissolved organic matter（DOM） is ubiquitous in the environment and has high reactivity.Once engineered nanoparticles（ENPs） are released into natural systems, interactions of DOM with ENPs may significantly affect the fate and transport of ENPs, as well as the bioavailability and toxicity of ENPs to organisms. However, because of the complexity of DOM and the shortage of useful characterization methods, large knowledge gaps exist in our understanding of the interactions between DOM and ENPs. In this article, we systematically reviewed the interactions between DOM and ENPs, discussed the effects of DOM on the environmental behavior of ENPs, and described the changes in bioavailability and toxicity of ENPs caused by DOM. Critical evaluations of published references suggest further need for assessing and predicting the influences of DOM on the transport,transformation, bioavailability, and toxicity of ENPs in the environment.

New insights into disruption of iron homeostasis by environmental pollutants

Among the numerous health conditions environmental pollutants can cause, chronic exposure to pollutants including persistent organic pollutants（POPs） and heavy metals has been shown to disturb a specific biological homeostatic process, the iron metabolism in human body. Disorders of iron metabolism are among the common diseases of humans and encompass a broad spectrum of diseases with different clinical manifestations, ranging from anemia to iron overload, and possibly to neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.Hepcidin–ferroportin（FPN） signaling is one of the key mechanisms responsible for iron supply, utilization, recycling, and storage, and recent studies demonstrated that exposure to environmental pollutants including POPs and heavy metals could lead to disruption of the hepcidin–FPN axis along with disordered systemic iron homeostasis and diseases. This article introduces and highlights the accompanying review article by Drs. Xu and Liu in this journal, which elaborates in detail the adverse effects of environmental pollutants on iron metabolism, and the mechanisms responsible for these toxicological outcomes. It also points out the knowledge gaps still existing in this subject matter. Research that will fill these gaps will improve our understanding of the issue and provide useful information to prevent or treat diseases induced by environmental pollutants.

Historical record of effects of human activities on absolute and relative concentrations of Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) in Lake Chao,China

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons（PAHs）are attracting concern because of their potential toxicity,posing serious threats to health of humans and ecosystems（Kim et al.,2013;Zhao et al.,2016）.Generally,similar to other contaminants＇behaviors（Wu et al.,2001;Zhang et al.,2007,2008;Lu et al.,2009）,PAHs result from natural organic matter and activities of humans,the latter＇s contribution usually outweighing the inputs from other sources（Fernández et al.,2000;Srogi,2007）.