PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Contamination”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed2000

Influence of petroleum hydrocarbon contamination on microalgae and microbial activities in a long-term contaminated soil.

Petroleum hydrocarbons are widespread environmental pollutants. Although biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons has been the subject of numerous investigations, information on their toxicity to microorganisms in soil is limited, with virtually no work conducted on soil algae. We carried out a screening experiment for total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) and their toxicity to soil algal populations, microbial biomass, and soil enzymes (dehydrogenase and urease) in a long-term TPH-polluted site with reference to an adjacent unpolluted site. Microbial biomass, soil enzyme activity, and microalgae declined in medium to high-level (5,200-21,430 mg kg(-1) soil) TPH-polluted soils, whereas low-level (<2,120 mg kg(-1) soil) pollution stimulated the algal populations and showed no effect on microbial biomass and enzymes. However, inhibition of all the tested parameters was more severe in soil considered to have medium-level pollution than in soils that were highly polluted. This result could not be explained by chemical analysis alone. Of particular interest was an observed shift in the species composition of algae in polluted soils with elimination of sensitive species in the medium to high polluted soils. Also, an algal growth inhibition test carried out using aqueous eluates prepared from polluted soils supported these results. Given the sensitivity of algae to synthetic pollutants, alteration in the algal species composition can serve as a useful bioindicator of pollution. The results of this experiment suggest that chemical analysis alone is not adequate for toxicological estimations and should be used in conjunction with bioassays. Furthermore, changes in species composition of algae proved to be more sensitive than microbial biomass and soil enzyme activity measurements.

Biomass↗
PubMed1995

Geltape method for measurement of work related surface contamination with cobalt containing dust: correlation between surface contamination and airborne exposure.

OBJECTIVES: The geltape method is a new method for optical measurement of total amount of dust on surfaces. The objectives were to study the potential applicability of this method to measurements of work related cobalt exposure during painting of plates with cobalt dye. METHODS: Consecutive series of work related geltape prints were taken from surfaces inside and outside the ventilation cabins of two plate painters during two full working days. The amount of dust picked up by the geltapes was measured optically with a field monitor. Also, personal air samples were collected on filters at the different work processes. In the laboratory the contents of cobalt on the geltape prints and the filters were measured with inductive coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy. RESULTS: The key results were: (a) when the geltape prints were taken from surfaces inside the cabins the optically measured area of the geltapes covered with total dust (area (%)) correlated well with the chemically measured amount of cobalt present on the geltapes. Linear correlation coefficient (R2) was 0.91 for geltape prints taken on the floor and 0.94 for prints taken on the ceiling; (b) the cumulative airborne cobalt exposure, calculated from data on work related exposure by personal sampling, correlated with the area (%) of geltape prints taken from the ceiling of the cabin (R2 = 0.98); (c) the geltape method could be used to distinguish both between work processes with different levels of cobalt exposure, and between plate painters subjected to significant differences in airborne cobalt exposure. CONCLUSION: The geltape method could produce measures of the work related exposures as well as whole day exposure for cobalt. The geltape results correlated with measurements of personal airborne cobalt exposure. In this industry the profile of exposure is well-defined in time, and it seems reasonable to apply this fast and low cost method in routine exposure surveillance to obtain a more detailed description of the exposure than can be obtained by the use of airborne measurements only.

Cobalt↗