Organochlorine pesticide residues in human fat in Great Britain

In order to assess the trend in the body load of organochlorine pesticide residues in Great Britain, between July 1965 and June 1967 samples of fat were taken during routine necropsies on 247 subjects over 3 years old and on 44 stillborn or premature babies and infants below the age of 3. The levels of the three main pesticides, B.H.C., dieldrin, and D.D.T., were lower than those found in an earlier survey carried out in 1963 and 1964. No marked differences were observed in levels throughout Britain, but the levels in man were higher than those in women. Britain compares favourably with other countries in which similar surveys have been done.

DDT residues and declining reproduction in the Bermuda petrel

Residues of DDT [1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane] averaging 6.44 parts per million in eggs and chicks of the carnivorous Bermuda petrel indicate widespread contamination of an oceanic food chain that is remote from applications of DDT. Reproduction by the petrel has declined during the last 10 years at the annual rate of 3.25 percent; if the decline continues, reproduction will fail completely by 1978. Concentrations of residues are similar to those in certain terrestrial carnivorous birds whose productivity is also declining. Various considerations implicate contamination by insecticides as a probable major cause of the decline.

Dietary intake of pesticide chemicals. Calculated daily consumption of pesticides with foods are discussed and compared with currently accepted values

Residues of chlorinated organic pesticide chemicals were commonly found in all diet samples and all food classes within samples except beverages at a daily intake of 0.0014 mg per kilogram of body weight. Meat, fish, and poultry were the major source of pesticide residues and, when combined with dairy products, account for more than half of the intake of chlorinated organic pesticide chemicals. Fruits, garden fruits, and grain foods each accounted for about 10 percent of the intake of chlorinated pesticides. The DDT, its two analogs, dieldrin, lindane, and heptachlor epoxide account for 85 percent of the total intake of chlorinated pesticides. A single pesticide, DDT, accounts for one-third of the total. There was no statistically significant change in frequency or quantities of these compounds during this study. Frequency and quantities of the 14 additional chlorinated pesticides were too low to be meaningful.

DDT residues in an east coast estuary: a case of biological concentration of a persistent insecticide

DDT residues in the soil of an extensive salt marsh on the south shore of Long Island averaged more than 13 pounds per acre (15 kilograms per hectare); the maximum was 32 pounds per acre (36 kilograms per hectare). A systematic sampling of various organisms from the vicinity showed concentrations of DDT increasing with trophic level through more than three orders of magnitude from 0.04 part per million in plankton to 75 parts per million in a ring-billed gull. Highest concentrations occurred in scavenging and carnivorous fish and birds, although birds had 10 to 100 times more than fish. These concentrations approach those in animals dying from DDT poisoning, which suggests that many natural populations in this area are now being affected, possibly limited, by DDT residues. Similar concentrations have been reported elsewhere in North America.

Chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides: degradation by microbes

In culture, most of the actinomycetes and filamentous fungi tested degraded PCNB; several actinomycetes dechlorinated DDT to DDD, but no microorganism degraded dieldrin. Streptomyces aureofaciens degraded PCNB to pentachloroaniline.