Eutrophic status influences the impact of pesticide mixtures and predation on Daphnia pulex populations

Pesticides, nutrients, and ecological stressors such as competition or predation co‐occur in freshwater ecosystems impacted by agriculture. The extent to which combinations of these stressors affect aquatic populations and the role of nutrients availability in modulating these responses requires further understanding. In this study, we assessed how pesticides affecting different taxonomic groups and predation influence the response of Daphnia pulex populations under different trophic conditions. An outdoor experiment was designed following a factorial design, with the insecticide chlorpyrifos, the herbicide diuron, and the predation by Notonecta sp. individuals as key stressors. The single impact of each of these stressors, and their binary and tertiary combinations, was evaluated on D. pulex abundance and population structure under mesotrophic and eutrophic conditions for 21 days. Data were analyzed using generalized linear mixed models estimated by means of a novel Bayesian shrinkage technique. Our study shows a significant influence of each of the evaluated stressors on D. pulex abundance; however, the impacts of the herbicide and predation were lower under eutrophic conditions as compared to the mesotrophic ones. We found that binary stressor interactions were generally additive in the mesotrophic scenario, except for the herbicide–predation combination, which resulted in synergistic effects. The impacts of the binary stressor combinations in the eutrophic scenario were classified as antagonistic, except for the insecticide–herbicide combination, which was additive. The tertiary interaction resulted in significant effects on some sampling dates; however, these were rather antagonistic and resembled the most important binary stressor combination in each trophic scenario. Our study shows that the impact of pesticides on freshwater populations depends on the predation pressure, and demonstrates that the combined effect of pesticides and ecological stressors is influenced by the food availability and organism fitness related to the trophic status of freshwater ecosystems.     

Toxicity of Binary Mixtures of Enantiomers in Chiral Organophosphorus Insecticides: The Significance of Joint Effects Between Enantiomers

The existence of enantiomer‐enriched mixtures of chiral pesticides in the environment is overwhelmingly positive. However, interactions between enantiomers have not been considered so far in risk assessments. Here, we chose three organophosphorus pesticides as representative chiral pesticides to investigate the possible interaction mode between each pair of enantiomers both in in vivo and in vitro. Data show that the enantiomers of methamidophos and profenofos have a simple additive effect, <zaq;1> whereas fensulfothion acts as an antagonist in AChE‐inhibition model. In contrast, enantiomers of methamidophos and fensulfothion had an additive effect in an acute toxicity test against Daphnia magna. A synergistic effect was observed in the joint toxicity of the profenofos enantiomers. The ability for enantiospecific biodegradation in the in vivo model contributed to the different interaction observed between the in vitro and in vivo models. Moreover, binding affinities were suspected as another reason for the different mode of action of mixture enantiomers. Our study recommends using a joint research model to treat chiral compounds in the real environment. Chirality 25:787–792, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Effect of a plant growth regulator prohexadione-calcium on insect pests of apple and pear

The effect of prohexadione-calcium, a plant growth regulator that inhibits gibberellin metabolism, on Cacopsylla pyricoloa (Foerster) in pear trees, and Choristoneura rosaceana (Harris) and Aphis spireacola Patch, in apple trees was studied. C. pyricoloa and A. spireacola populations were significantly reduced in prohexadione-calcium-treated pear and apple, respectively. Insecticide control of both pests with imidacloprid was synergized in treatments with prohexadione-calcium. In apples treated with prohexadione-calcium, there was a significant reduction in the number of C. rosaceana shelters per tree and amount of fruit injury at harvest attributable to the C. rosaceana. There was an additive effect when tebufenozide was used to control C. rosaceana in trees treated with prohexadione-calcium. Prohexadione-calcium significantly reduced vegetative growth in both pears and apples. Synergistic and additive treatment effects of prohexadione-calcium and pesticides used in this study may be due to better penetration and coverage of pesticides due to reduced foliar growth or to changes in the nutritional quality of the host plants.     

Mixture Effects of Estrogenic Pesticides at the Human Estrogen Receptor α and β

Consumers of fruits and vegetables are frequently exposed to small amounts of hormonally active pesticides, some of them sharing a common mode of action such as the activation of the human estrogen receptor α (hERα) or β (hERβ). Therefore, it is of particular importance to evaluate risks emanating from chemical mixtures, in which the individual pesticides are present at human-relevant concentrations, below their corresponding maximum residue levels. Binary and ternary iso-effective mixtures of estrogenic pesticides at effect concentrations eliciting a 1 or 10% effect in the presence or absence of 17β-estradiol were tested experimentally at the hERα in the yeast-based estrogen screen (YES) assay as well as in the human U2-OS cell-based ERα chemical-activated luciferase gene expression (ERα CALUX) assay and at the hERβ in the ERβ CALUX assay. The outcome was then compared to predictions calculated by means of concentration addition. In most cases, additive effects were observed with the tested combinations in all three test systems, an observation that supports the need to expand the risk assessment of pesticides and consider cumulative risk assessment. An additional testing of mixture effects at the hERβ showed that most test substances being active at the hERα could also elicit additive effects at the hERβ, but the hERβ was less sensitive. In conclusion, effects of the same ligands at the hERα and the hERβ could influence the estrogenic outcome under physiological conditions.     

Human IgE antibody to the carbohydrate-containing third domain of chicken ovomucoid

Two kinds of the third domain, either with or without a carbohydrate chain, were prepared from chicken ovomucoid. The immunoreactivity of the domain preparations to human IgE antibody directed against ovomucoid was examined by using the sera from patients of egg allergy. About 30% of the serum antibody to ovomucoid reacted with the carbohydrate-containing domain, whereas little or no antibody with reactivity to the carbohydrate-free domain was detected, suggesting that the carbohydrate chain attached to the third domain played an important role in antigenic determinants of the carbohydrate-containing third domain against the human IgE antibody.     

植物-微生物联合修复毒死蜱污染的土壤

本试验以毒死蜱污染土壤为研究材料,利用降解菌DSP-A分别与高丹草、紫花苜蓿、多花黑麦草进行联合修复,探讨了植物-微生物联合修复毒死蜱污染土壤的效果,以及影响联合修复的因素,结果表明,植物．微生物联合修复的效果优于单一的植物修复及单一的微生物修复效果。与DSP—A菌群较合适的植物是高丹草,该组合对毒死蜱的降解率达到96．44％,其次是多花黑麦草。研究了微生物数量、植株密度以及土壤湿度对联合修复效果的影响,结果表明,DSP．A菌菌液稀释倍数越大,联合修复的效果越差。植株密度对联合修复的影响,主要表现为对植物根系生长的影响。植株密度越大,对生存环境的竞争越激烈,植物根系的生长越不好。除了紫花苜蓿外,高丹草和多花黑麦草根系的生长均受到影响。高丹草种植密度为12株／盆时,与DSP—A菌的联合修复效果最好,多花黑麦草则为10株／盆。土壤湿度是影响联合修复的重要因素,不仅影响植物的生长,对微生物的生长也有影响。土壤湿度过大,造成土壤的含氧量降低,不利于植物根系和好氧细菌的生长,从而影响土壤中农药的降解。土壤湿度过小,容易造成植株缺水,根系生长和微生物的生长。高丹草与DSP．A菌、多花黑麦草与DSP—A菌联合修复最适浇水量都为20mL／d,紫花苜蓿与DSP—A菌联合修复最适浇水量都为15mL／d。     

Biochemical changes of the liver in rats with a combined lesion from 89Sr and 131I

The results of the biochemical changes induced by 89Sr and 131I in a rat liver after their separate and combined administration within a wide range of doses are presented. Administered in a combination the radionuclides produced the additive effect when estimated by some indices, and more than additive, according to other tests.     

The structure, growth and formation of bones in toxic exposure of the body to pesticides and antioxidant therapy]

In the experiment performed on 175 white male rats by means of a complex of morphological, biochemical and biomechanical methods peculiarities of structure, growth, outline formation and mineralization of the skeletal bones have been investigated under a toxic lesion of the organism with pesticides (chlorophose and keltan) and at a simultaneous administration of antioxidants of various groups (tocopherol, ionol, sodium selenit). Osteotoxic effect of the pesticides, manifested as an inhibition of bone growth, as a disbalance of mineral saturation and their composition, as a decrease in indices of firmness is leveled by means of therapeutic doses of the antioxidants. The stabilizing effect of the antioxidant applied correlates to the manifestation of the pesticides osteotoxic effect, to the ability of their cumulation in the organism and is directly connected with the supposed mechanism of damaging effect to the organism and/or cell. The expressiveness of the toxic effect of the chemical poison, in its turn, is defined not only by the dose, mechanism and duration of the effect, but by age peculiarities of the organism and by functional state of its reactivity. When the poisons are applied for a long time, in order to level their osteotoxic effect, a multiple increase of therapeutic doses of the antioxidants and a combined potentiation of their effect are necessary.     

The impact of two pesticides on olfactory-mediated endocrine function in mature male Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) parr

Short-term exposure of the olfactory epithelium of mature male Atlantic salmon parr to either the pesticide simazine (concentrations 1.0 and 2.0 microg l(-1)) or the pesticide atrazine (concentration 1.0 microg l(-1)) significantly reduced the olfactory response to the female priming pheromone, prostaglandin F(2alpha). In addition, the reproductive priming effect of the pheromone on the levels of expressible milt was also reduced after exposure to the individual pesticides (simazine 0.1, 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 microg l(-1) and atrazine 0.5 and 2.0 microg l(-1)). When the olfactory epithelium was exposed to a mixture of simazine and atrazine, (concentrations of 0.5:0.5 and 1.0:1.0 microg l(-1)), there was no significant reduction in the olfactory response when compared to the single pesticides at equivalent concentrations. In addition, exposure to a mixture of simazine and atrazine had no synergistic effect on the priming response, and plasma levels of testosterone, 11-ketotestosterone and 17,20beta-dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one were similar in the groups of male parr exposed to the individual pesticides. Although the levels of expressible milt were reduced in all groups, there were no significant differences between the different pesticide treatments. The results of the study suggest that the two s-triazine pesticides have an additive and not a synergistic impact on olfactory-mediated endocrine function in mature male salmon parr.     

芽孢杆菌与杀菌剂复配防治植物病害的研究进展

芽孢杆菌属包含多种植物病原物的拮抗菌,可广泛用于植物病害防治.然而单独利用生防菌进行生物防治常由于环境因素影响而无法达到较好的防治效果,可通过与低剂量杀菌剂复配使用来提高防治效率.本文对生防芽孢杆菌与杀菌剂复配使用进行植物病害综合防治的研究现状、防效、研究方法等进行综述,芽孢杆菌与杀菌剂复配使用不仅保障了防治效果,还大...     

Ontogenesis of intestine morphology and intestinal disaccharidases in chickens (Gallus gallus) fed contrasting purified diets

Two groups of growing posthatching Cornish x Rock cross chickens were fed with either a carbohydrate-containing (52.5%) or a carbohydrate-free diet. At 36 days after hatching some of the chicks in each group were shifted to the opposite diet. Chickens fed on a carbohydrate-containing diet grew faster and achieved higher asymptotic masses than chickens fed on a carbohydrate-free diet. Chickens fed on a carbohydrate-free diet had longer intestines and larger intestinal areas than chickens of the same mass fed on a carbohydrate-containing diet. In both groups sucrase and maltase activity (standardized by either intestinal area or mass) increased from day 1 to approximately day 17. After day 17, chickens fed on a carbohydrate-containing diet exhibited 1.8 and 1.9 times higher sucrase and maltase activities per unit intestinal area, respectively, than chickens fed on a carbohydrate-free diet. Analysis of covariance was used to estimate the contribution of sucrase and the sucrase-independent maltases to maltase activity, and to estimate the effect of diet on the sucrase-independent maltases. Sucrase contributed 80% and 75% of the maltase activity in carbohydrate and carbohydrate-free fed chickens, respectively. Chickens shifted from a carbohydrate-free to a carbohydrate diet converged in gross intestinal morphology and intestinal sucrase and maltase levels with carbohydrate-fed chickens within 8 days. Chickens shifted from carbohydrate to carbohydrate-free diets, in contrast, did not show appreciable changes in intestinal length and after 8 days had not reduced levels of sucrase and maltase to those of chickens fed on the carbohydrate-free diet. A comparison of integrated maltase intestinal activity with published data on glucose uptake showed that the ratio of maltose hydrolysis to glucose uptake seemed to be about 7 and to remain relatively invariant during ontogeny. Because so little is known about the interaction between hydrolysis and uptake in vivo, it is difficult to determine if this relatively high ratio represents excess hydrolytic capacity or if it is needed to provide high lumenal glucose concentrations that maximize uptake.Abbreviations m body mass - K _m Michaelis constant - K _m ^* apparent Michaelis constant - GI gastro-intestinal     

Quantitative evaluation of the effectiveness of exposure of the joints to 239Pu and tributyl phosphate by the degree of leukopenia in rats

The efficiency of the combined effect of 239Pu and tributyl phosphate was estimated by the severity of leucopenia in Wistar rats using the regression method and comparing the value of the actual change with the expected one. It was shown that the additive effect of the two agents delivered simultaneously was only exceeded when their doses were the largest that is, approximate the acute levels. With levels ranging from subacute effective to minimum effective ones the additivity diminished.     

Role of glucocorticoids and resident liver macrophages in induction of tyrosine aminotransferase

Administration of cortisol to an animal induces tyrosine aminotransferase (TAT) in the liver. A similar effect was observed after stimulation of resident liver macrophages (Kupffer cells) by dextran sulfate. Actinomycin D completely blocks enzyme induction both by cortisol and dextran sulfate, whereas their combined effect gives an additive result. In primary culture of hepatocytes, dextran sulfate inhibits TAT activity, but conditioned macrophage medium reliably increases enzyme activity in hepatocytes. However, incubation of isolated macrophages in the presence of dextran sulfate and such medium transfer into hepatocyte culture results in even more pronounced increase in TAT activity. In a combined culture of hepatocytes and non-parenchymal liver cells, reproducing intercellular interactions in vitro, cortisol and non-parenchymal cells exhibit an additive effect on TAT activity. These results show that liver macrophages release a factor of unknown nature launching the mechanism of TAT induction independently of cortisol, a classic TAT inducer.     

Effect of Bacillus thuringiensis on Habrobracon hebetor during combined biological control of Plodia interpunctella

Abstract  The suitability of combining microbial pesticides and an insect parasitoid for pest management of stored cereal in China was evaluated using laboratory assays. For this purpose, interactions between Bacillus thuringiensis ( Bt ), Bt -intoxicated host larvae and the parasitoid Habrobracon hebetor (Say) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) were tested against Plodia interpunctella Hübner (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) . Bt or H. hebetor alone caused 41.67% and 35.35% P. interpunctella larval mortality respectively. The Bt –parasitoid combined treatment significantly increased mortality of P. interpunctella (86%). Progeny development of H. hebetor was dependent upon its susceptibility to Bt . Fewer parasitoids emerged from Bt –parasitoid combined treatment than in non- Bt treatments. However, since Bt did not prevent parasitoid development, a combined treatment with Bt and parasitoid release could produce better protection against P. interpunctella than either treatments when used singly, because their lethal effects were additive to each other.     

Effect of various aminoalkylenephosphonic compounds on the accumulation of radioactive beryllium in rats

In experiments on rats it was shown that 10 aminoalkylenephosphonic compounds accelerate the excretion of beryllium -7 from a rat body. After the combined application of ethylene diamine-N-N'- bisisopropylidenephosphonic and diethylene triaminepentamethylenephosphonic acids, under similar irradiation conditions, an additive effect was obtained.     

The histochemistry of complex carbohydrates in the epithelium lining the ventral prostate of the rat

Summary In the epithelium lining the ventral prostate of the rat, complex carbohydrate-containing structures have been studied by means of both light and electron microscopic histochemical methods. According to light microscopy, the free surface and granules of different sizes in the distal cytoplasm of the epithelial cells were found to exhibit positive reactions for complex carbohydrates with 1,2-glycol and acidic groups and sialic acid residues. In addition, secretory substances within the glandular lumen were shown to exhibit positive reactions for similar groups and saccharide residues of complex carbohydrates. In electron microscopy, the surface coat of the plasma membrane, certain elements of the Golgi apparatus and lysosomal dense bodies were found to exhibit positive reactions for glycoproteins with 1,2-glycol groupings. The histophysiological significances of the carbohydrate-containing structures have been discussed with special reference to the known physiological functions of the prostate in the rat.     

The effect of the anabolic agent,clenbuterol, on overloaded rat skeletal muscle

The dietary administration of clenbuterol to young male rats has been shown to produce a muscle specific hypertrophic growth response. This paper demonstrates that the combined effect of drug treatment and hypertrophic stimulus induced by tenotomy produced an additive effect on muscle growth. This effect was demonstrated in terms of both muscle composition (protein and RNA) and fibre size.     

The induction of reciprocal translocations in mouse germ cells by chemicals and ionizing radiations. II. Combined effects of mitomycin C or thio-tepa with two doses of gamma-rays

The combined effects of mitomycin C (MMC) and thio-tepa (TT) with gamma-ray doses of 5 and 9 Gy on mouse stem cells were studied using the spermatocyte test. Both chemicals induced very low yields of translocations after single treatments. In combined treatments with a dose of 5 Gy, a subadditive effect of MMC and an additive effect of TT were found. Combined with a dose of 9 Gy the compounds potentiated the effect of radiations. Up to now, most of the chemicals tested have shown additive effects when combined with doses of the ascending part of the dose-response curve and potentiating effects when combined with doses of its descending part. This has been considered additional confirmation of the concept that depletion of any kind of spermatogonia is sufficient to modify the genetic response of stem cells. However, the subadditive and additive responses found could be considered evidence that common biological mechanisms can modulate the response to combined treatments of chemicals and ionizing radiations.     

Resveratrol and 4-hydroxynonenal act in concert to increase glutamate cysteine ligase expression and glutathione in human bronchial epithelial cells

Resveratrol has been shown to protect against oxidative stress through modulating antioxidant capacity. In this study, we investigated resveratrol-mediated induction of glutathione (GSH) and glutamate cysteine ligase (GCL), and the combined effect of resveratrol and 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE) on GSH synthesis in cultured HBE1 human bronchial epithelial cells. Resveratrol increased GSH and the mRNA contents of both the catalytic (GCLC) and modulatory subunit (GCLM) of GCL. Combined HNE and resveratrol treatment increased GSH content and GCL mRNAs to a greater extent than either compound did alone. Compared to individual agent, combining exposure to HNE and resveratrol also showed more protection against cell death caused by oxidative stress. These effects of combined exposure were additive rather than synergistic. In addition, Nrf2 silencing significantly decreased the combined effect of HNE and resveratrol on GCL induction. Our data suggest that resveratrol increases GSH and GCL gene expression and that there is an additive effect on GSH synthesis between resveratrol and HNE. The results also reveal that Nrf2-EpRE signaling was involved in the combined effects.     

Effect of lipid hydroperoxides on the yield of chromosome aberrations in irradiated cells

The combined effect of linoleic acid hydroperoxide and gamma-radiation on Ehrlich ascites tumor cells was not additive with regard to the formation of chromosome aberrations. When cells were preincubated in the presence of a subliminal hydroperoxide dose of 2.10(-5) M the number of aberrant cells increased after irradiation.