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Linšak Ž, Gobin I, Linšak DT, Broznić D. Effects of Long-Term Lead Exposure on Antioxidant Enzyme Defense System in Organs of Brown Hare (Lepus europaeus Pallas) as a Bioindicator of Environmental Pollution in Croatia. Biol Trace Elem Res 2022; 200:5091-5103. [PMID: 34981425 DOI: 10.1007/s12011-021-03090-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 12/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
In Croatia, Podravina is a well-known lead-polluted region due to the intensive exploitation of natural gas, a highly developed agricultural industry, and a traffic hub with several heavily traveled roads. It represents a natural environment with a great variety of wildlife, especially hares (Lepus europaeus Pallas), which may serve as an indicator for environmental quality assessment. This study was conducted to estimate the bioaccumulation of lead in hare liver, kidney, muscle, and brain during long-term exposure and its impact on the oxidative status of the organism and to investigate a possible lead exchange ionic mechanism in the brain. In the organs of two hare groups (experimental from polluted area and control from the island of Krk), Ca, Fe, Mg, Na, lead concentrations, and antioxidant enzyme defense system were analyzed. The accumulation of lead was highest in the brain (3.7-fold higher compared to the control group) and lowest in the liver (1.6-fold higher compared to the control group). Kendall-Tau and multiple regression analysis showed that the increased lead content caused a stronger exchange of Ca and Na ions in the brain. We proposed that lead either mobilizes intracellular cation stores or causes competitive displacement of Ca from the binding site in intoxicated cells. A linear predictive model for cell intoxication by lead was proposed, where GPx and SOD were predominantly influenced by long-term lead exposure. The presented results showed that long-term lead exposure in hares negatively affected their oxidative status and caused the strongest toxicity in the brain and muscles, making their survival and/or population vulnerable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Željko Linšak
- Department for Health Ecology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia
- Teaching Institute of Public Health of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Rijeka, Croatia
| | - Ivana Gobin
- Department for Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia
| | - Dijana Tomić Linšak
- Department for Health Ecology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia.
- Teaching Institute of Public Health of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Rijeka, Croatia.
| | - Dalibor Broznić
- Department for Medical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Clinical Chemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia
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Effects of Low-Level Organic Mercury Exposure on Oxidative Stress Profile. Processes (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/pr10112388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: The fish-based diet is known for its potential health benefits, but it is less known for its association with mercury (Hg) exposure, which, in turn, can lead to neurological and cardiovascular diseases through the exacerbation of oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlations between Hg blood concentration and specific biomarkers for oxidative stress. Methods: We present a cross-sectional, analytical, observational study, including primary quantitative data obtained from 67 patients who presented with unspecific complaints and had high levels of blood Hg. Oxidative stress markers, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), malondialdehyde (MLD), lymphocyte glutathione (GSH-Ly), selenium (Se), and vitamin D were determined. Results: We found positive, strong correlations between Hg levels and SOD (r = 0.88, p < 0.0001), GPx (r = 0.92, p < 0.0001), and MLD (r = 0.94, p < 0.0001). We also found inverted correlations between GSH-Ly and vitamin D and Hg blood levels (r = −0.86, r = −0.91, respectively, both with p < 0.0001). Se had a weak correlation with Hg plasma levels, but this did not reach statistical significance (r = −0.2, p > 0.05). Conclusions: Thus, we can conclude that low-level Hg exposure can be an inductor of oxidative stress.
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Lazarus M, Orct T, Sekovanić A, Skoko B, Petrinec B, Zgorelec Ž, Kisić I, Prevendar Crnić A, Jurasović J, Srebočan E. Spatio-temporal monitoring of mercury and other stable metal(loid)s and radionuclides in a Croatian terrestrial ecosystem around a natural gas treatment plant. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2022; 194:481. [PMID: 35668141 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-022-10140-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The natural gas industry bears a certain contamination risk to human and biota due to, among others, mercury, arsenic, and naturally occurring radioactive material content in gas. We tracked multiple stabile metal(loid)s and radionuclides within the natural gas treatment plant Molve, Croatia, ecosystem during the last decade through a comprehensive monitoring of soil, earthworms, moss, livestock (blood, milk, hair, urine, and feces from cows), and wildlife animals (brain, muscle, liver, and kidney of European hare and pheasant). The level of mercury and other stable metal(loid)s has shown temporal variation, but without an obvious trend. The found spatial differences in soil and earthworms were based on the differing soil characteristics of the sampled locations and exceeded the maximal allowable concentration of arsenic and zinc for agricultural soil. The status of essential copper, selenium, and zinc in cows, hares, and pheasants inclined towards deficiency. The measured stable metal(loid) levels in soil and animal samples were generally in the same range of values reported in earlier decades from the same area or non-polluted areas across Europe. The consumption of local cow and game products (e.g., milk, meat) can be considered safe for human health, although game offal is advised to be avoided as a food item due to the low risk of lead and cadmium's adverse effects. Although the activity concentrations of some radionuclides in moss were higher than reported for pristine areas, transfer from soil to moss was assessed as average (except for lead-210). Radiological risk to human and biota around the gas treatment plant Molve was estimated as negligible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maja Lazarus
- Analytical Toxicology and Mineral Metabolism Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska c. 2, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Tatjana Orct
- Analytical Toxicology and Mineral Metabolism Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska c. 2, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Ankica Sekovanić
- Radiation Protection Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska c. 2, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Božena Skoko
- Radiation Protection Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska c. 2, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Branko Petrinec
- Radiation Protection Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska c. 2, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Željka Zgorelec
- Department of General Agronomy, Division of Agroecology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Ivica Kisić
- Department of General Agronomy, Division of Agroecology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Andreja Prevendar Crnić
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Heinzelova 55, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Jasna Jurasović
- Analytical Toxicology and Mineral Metabolism Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska c. 2, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Emil Srebočan
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Heinzelova 55, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia
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Soleja N, Jairajpuri MA, Queen A, Mohsin M. Genetically encoded FRET-based optical sensor for Hg 2+ detection and intracellular imaging in living cells. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 2019; 46:1669-1683. [PMID: 31531745 DOI: 10.1007/s10295-019-02235-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2019] [Accepted: 09/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Due to the potential toxicity of mercury, there is an immediate need to understand its uptake, transport and flux within living cells. Conventional techniques used to analyze Hg2+ are invasive, involve high cost and are less sensitive. In the present study, a highly efficient genetically encoded mercury FRET sensor (MerFS) was developed to measure the cellular dynamics of Hg2+ at trace level in real time. To construct MerFS, the periplasmic mercury-binding protein MerP was sandwiched between enhanced cyan fluorescent protein (ECFP) and venus. MerFS is pH stable, offers a measurable fluorescent signal and binds to Hg2+ with high sensitivity and selectivity. Mutant MerFS-51 binds with an apparent affinity (Kd) of 5.09 × 10-7 M, thus providing a detection range for Hg2+ quantification between 0.210 µM and 1.196 µM. Furthermore, MerFS-51 was targeted to Escherichia coli (E. coli), yeast and human embryonic kidney (HEK)-293T cells that allowed dynamic measurement of intracellular Hg2+ concentration with a highly responsive saturation curve, proving its potential application in cellular systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neha Soleja
- Department of Biosciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025, India
| | | | - Aarfa Queen
- Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025, India
| | - Mohd Mohsin
- Department of Biosciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025, India.
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Chen Z, Chen M, Jiang M. Hydrogen sulfide alleviates mercury toxicity by sequestering it in roots or regulating reactive oxygen species productions in rice seedlings. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY : PPB 2017; 111:179-192. [PMID: 27940269 DOI: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2016.11.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2016] [Revised: 11/30/2016] [Accepted: 11/30/2016] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Soil mercury (Hg) contamination is a major factor that affects agricultural yield and food security. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) plays multifunctional roles in mediating a variety of responses to abiotic stresses. The effects of exogenous H2S on rice (Oryza sativa var 'Nipponbare') growth and metabolism under mercuric chloride (HgCl2) stress were investigated in this study. Either 100 or 200 μM sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS, a donor of H2S) pretreatment improved the transcription of bZIP60, a membrane-associated transcription factor, and then enhanced the expressions of non-protein thiols (NPT) and metallothioneins (OsMT-1) to sequester Hg in roots and thus inhibit Hg transport to shoots. Meanwhile, H2S promoted seedlings growth significantly even in the presences of Hg and superoxide dismutase (SOD, EC 1.15.1.1) or catalase (CAT, EC 1.11.1.6) inhibitors, diethyldithiocarbamate (DDC) or 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (AT). H2S might act as an antioxidant to inhibit or scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) productions for maintaining the lower MDA and H2O2 levels, and thereby preventing oxidative damages. All these results indicated H2S effectively alleviated Hg toxicity by sequestering it in roots or by regulating ROS in seedlings and then thus significantly promoted rice growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Chen
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, College of Life Sciences, Taizhou University, No.1139 Shifu Road, Taizhou 318000, People's Republic of China.
| | - Moshun Chen
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, College of Life Sciences, Taizhou University, No.1139 Shifu Road, Taizhou 318000, People's Republic of China
| | - Ming Jiang
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, College of Life Sciences, Taizhou University, No.1139 Shifu Road, Taizhou 318000, People's Republic of China
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Costantini D, Smith S, Killen SS, Nielsen J, Steffensen JF. The Greenland shark: A new challenge for the oxidative stress theory of ageing? Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2016; 203:227-232. [PMID: 27717642 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2016.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2016] [Revised: 09/22/2016] [Accepted: 09/30/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The free radical theory of ageing predicts that long-lived species should be more resistant to oxidative damage than short-lived species. Although many studies support this theory, recent studies found notable exceptions that challenge the generality of this theory. In this study, we have analysed the oxidative status of the Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus), which has recently been found as the longest living vertebrate animal known to science with a lifespan of at least 272years. As compared to other species, the Greenland shark had body mass-corrected values of muscle glutathione peroxidase and red blood cells protein carbonyls (metric of protein oxidative damage) above 75 percentile and below 25 percentile, respectively. None of the biochemical metrics of oxidative status measured in either skeletal muscle or red blood cells were correlated with maximum lifespan of species. We propose that the values of metrics of oxidative status we measured might be linked to ecological features (e.g., adaptation to cold waters and deep dives) of this shark species rather to its lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Costantini
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK.
| | - Shona Smith
- Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Shaun S Killen
- Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Julius Nielsen
- Marine Biological Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Strandpromenaden 5, DK-3000 Helsingør, Denmark
| | - John F Steffensen
- Marine Biological Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Strandpromenaden 5, DK-3000 Helsingør, Denmark
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Spirić Z, Vučković I, Stafilov T, Kušan V, Bačeva K. Biomonitoring of air pollution with mercury in Croatia by using moss species and CV-AAS. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2014; 186:4357-4366. [PMID: 24733436 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-014-3704-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2013] [Accepted: 03/05/2014] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Moss samples from four dominant species (Hypnum cupressiforme, Pleurozium schreberi, Homalothecium sericeum and Brachythecium rutabulum) were collected during the summer and autumn of 2010 from 121 sampling sites evenly distributed over the territory of Croatia. Samples were totally digested by using microwave digestion system, whilst mercury was analysed by using cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometry (CV-AAS). Descriptive statistics were done from analyses of mercury in all moss samples. The content of mercury ranged from 0.010 to 0.145 mg kg(-1) with a median value of 0.043 mg kg(-1). Hg distribution map shows the sites of the country with higher levels of this element. High contents of Hg were found in moss samples collected from the regions of Podravina and Istria as a result of anthropogenic pollution. Comparison of median values and ranges with those found in moss samples in 2006 shows slight reduction of mercury air pollution. When compared to the results obtained from recent studies conducted in Slovenia, Macedonia and especially in Norway-which serves as a reference considering the fact that it is a pristine area-mercury air pollution in Croatia is insignificant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zdravko Spirić
- OIKON Ltd, Institute for Applied Ecology, Trg senjskih uskoka 1-2, 10020, Zagreb, Croatia
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