One of the major challenges in environmental science is monitoring and assessing the risk of complex environmental mixtures. In vitro bioassays with limited key toxicological end points have been shown to be suitable to evaluate mixtures of organic pollutants in wastewater and recycled water. Omics approaches such as transcriptomics can monitor biological effects at the genome scale. However, few studies have applied omics approach in the assessment of mixtures of organic micropollutants. Here, an omics approach was developed for profiling bioactivity of 10 water samples ranging from wastewater to drinking water in human cells by a reduced human transcriptome (RHT) approach and dose-response modeling. Transcriptional expression of 1200 selected genes were measured by an Ampliseq technology in two cell lines, HepG2 and MCF7, that were exposed to eight serial dilutions of each sample. Concentration-effect models were used to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and to calculate effect concentrations (ECs) of DEGs, which could be ranked to investigate low dose response. Furthermore, molecular pathways disrupted by different samples were evaluated by Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis. The ability of RHT for representing bioactivity utilizing both HepG2 and MCF7 was shown to be comparable to the results of previous in vitro bioassays. Finally, the relative potencies of the mixtures indicated by RHT analysis were consistent with the chemical profiles of the samples. RHT analysis with human cells provides an efficient and cost-effective approach to benchmarking mixture of micropollutants and may offer novel insight into the assessment of mixture toxicity in water.

•Six genes were uniquely responsive to acutely toxic extracts of OSPW.•Gene enrichment analysis demonstrated a role for oxidative stress, protein and DNA damage.•Roles of sulphur- and nitrogen-containing chemicals in acute toxicities of extracts of OSPW.Oil sands process-affected water (OSPW) is generated during extraction of bitumen in the surface-mining oil sands industry in Alberta, Canada, and is acutely and chronically toxic to aquatic organisms. It is known that dissolved organic compounds in OSPW are responsible for most toxic effects, but knowledge of the specific mechanism(s) of toxicity, is limited. Using bioassay-based effects-directed analysis, the dissolved organic fraction of OSPW has previously been fractionated, ultimately producing refined samples of dissolved organic chemicals in OSPW, each with distinct chemical profiles. Using the Escherichia coli K-12 strain MG1655 gene reporter live cell array, the present study investigated relationships between toxic potencies of each fraction, expression of genes and characterization of chemicals in each of five acutely toxic and one non-toxic extract of OSPW derived by use of effects-directed analysis. Effects on expressions of genes related to response to oxidative stress, protein stress and DNA damage were indicative of exposure to acutely toxic extracts of OSPW. Additionally, six genes were uniquely responsive to acutely toxic extracts of OSPW. Evidence presented supports a role for sulphur- and nitrogen-containing chemical classes in the toxicity of extracts of OSPW.Download high-res image (182KB)Download full-size image

Phthalate esters (PAEs) are known to be transferred to hands by contact with surfaces, however, little is known about the associations between masses on hand wipes and the frequency or duration of touching surfaces, especially surfaces in office environments. Relationships between PAEs on hands and multiple surfaces in offices were investigated. Wipes of hands, computers, and mobile phones as well as dust on furniture were collected from 55 offices in China. Positive associations were found between masses of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), dibutyl phthalate (DnBP), benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), and di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP) on wipes of hands and wipes of keyboards of computers. When workers used keyboards with polymer covers (dust covers), masses of these lipophilic PAEs on hands were significantly correlated with masses on keyboards rather than dust on furniture. For workers who used keyboards without polymer covers, masses on hands were related to masses in dust on furniture. Use of polymer covers containing PAEs and less washing of hands could increase the extent of exposure via hand to body of office workers, which could further result in as much as 10-fold greater hazard. Thus, more hand washing and less use of polymer products containing PAEs were recommended for office workers to reduce exposure.

Communities of zooplankton can be adversely affected by contamination resulting from human activities. Yet understanding the influence of water quality on zooplankton under field-conditions is hindered by traditional labor-intensive approaches that are prone to incomplete or uncertain taxonomic determinations. Here, for the first time, an eco-genomic approach, based on genetic diversity in the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) region of DNA of zooplankton was used to develop a site-specific, water quality criterion (WQC) for ammonia (NH3). Ammonia has been recognized as a primary stressor in the catchment of the large, eutrophic Tai Lake, China. Nutrients, especially NH3 and nitrite (NO3–) had more significant effects on structure of the zooplankton community than did other environmental factors. Abundances of rotifers increased along a gradient of increasing concentrations of total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), while abundances of copepods and cladocera decreased. A novel, rapid, species sensitivity distribution (SSD) approach based on operational taxonomic units (OTUs) was established to develop a WQC for NH3. The WQC based on OTUs was consistent with the WQC based on the traditional morphology taxonomy approach. This genetics-based SSD approach could be a useful tool for monitoring for status and trends in species composition and deriving ecological criteria and an efficient biomonitoring tool to protect local aquatic ecosystems in virtually any aquatic ecosystem.

•LCA is a promising tool for assessment of complex environmental mixtures.•Oil pollution can modulate several toxic response pathways, such as DNA damage and antibiotic responses in LCA.•Hebei Spirit oil spill incident (Yellow Sea, 2007) still influences some locations along the western coastline of Korea.Oil is a complex mixture of numerous compounds. Therefore, oil spills near shore can cause various adverse effects on coastal ecosystems. However, most toxicological assessments conducted on oil spill sites have focused on limited modes of toxic actions. In the present study, we utilized the Escherichia coli (E. coli) live cell array system (LCA) to identify novel modes of toxicities of the oil spill-affected sediments. For this purpose, sediment samples were collected from an area heavily polluted by Hebei Spirit oil spill (HSOS) incident of 2007. A total of 93 E. coli reporter genes were used to study responses to the chemicals in the mixture. E. coli K12 strains were exposed to extracts of oil or the sediment, and changes in gene expression were measured. Exposure to extracts of crude and weathered oil resulted in decreased expression in ∼30% of tested genes. However, changes in expression observed after exposure to sediment extracts varied. Sediment extracts containing large concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) caused down-regulation of >70% of the genes, while extracts containing lesser total concentrations of PAHs exhibited different trends: genes involved in drug resistance were generally up-regulated, while genes responsive to DNA damage were up-regulated in only two extracts. Results suggest that oil pollution can modulate several toxic response pathways related to DNA repair and antibiotic responses. Results from LCA obtained from the sediment and oil samples were different from those observed in the H4IIE-luc assay. Toxicological implications of such observations deserve further examination. Overall, LCA is a promising tool for screening samples and identifying potential modes of toxicities of environmental samples associated with oil spills.

Hydroxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (OH-PBDEs) are analogs of PBDEs with hundreds of possible structures and are frequently detected in the environment. However, the in vivo evidence on the toxicity of OH-PBDEs is still very limited. Here, the developmental toxicity of 6-OH-BDE47, a predominant congener of OH-PBDEs detected in the environment, in chicken embryos was assessed using a toxicogenomic approach. Fertilized chicken eggs were dosed via in ovo administration of 0.006 to 0.474 nmol 6-OH-BDE47/g egg followed by 18 days of incubation. Significant embryo lethality (LD50 = 1.940 nmol/g egg) and increased hepatic somatic index (HSI) were caused by 6-OH-BDE47 exposure. The functional enrichment of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was associated with oxidative phosphorylation, generation of precursor metabolites and energy, and electron transport chains, which suggest that 6-OH-BDE47 exposure may disrupt the embryo development by altering the function of energy production in mitochondria. Moreover, aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR)-mediated responses including up-regulation of CYP1A4 were observed in the livers of embryos exposed to 6-OH-BDE47. Overall, this study confirmed the embryo lethality by 6-OH-BDE47 and further improved the mechanistic understanding of OH-PBDEs-caused toxicity. Ecological risk assessment via application of both no-observed-effect level (NOEL) and the sensitive NOTEL (transcriptional NOEL) suggested that OH-PBDEs might cause ecological risk to wild birds.

Increasing production and applications of nano zinc oxide particles (nano-ZnO) enhances the probability of its exposure in occupational and environmental settings, but toxicity studies are still limited. Taking the free Zn ion (Zn2+) as a control, cytotoxicity of a commercially available nano-ZnO was assessed with a 6-h exposure in Escherichia coli (E. coli). The fitted dose-cytotoxicity curve for ZnCl2 was significantly sharper than that from nano-ZnO. Then, a genome-wide gene expression profile following exposure to nano-ZnO was conducted by use of a live cell reporter assay system with library of 1820 modified green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing promoter reporter vectors constructed from E. coli K12 strains, which resulted in 387 significantly altered genes in bacterial (p < 0.001). These altered genes were enriched into ten biological processing and two cell components (p < 0.05) terms through statistical hypergeometric testing, strongly suggesting that exposure to nano-ZnO would result a great disturbance on the functional gene product synthesis processing, such as translation, gene expression, RNA modification, and structural constituent of ribosome. The pattern of expression of 37 genes altered by nano-ZnO (fold change>2) was different from the profile following exposure to 6 mg/L of free zinc ion. The result indicates that these two Zn forms might cause toxicity to bacterial in different modes of action. Our results underscore the importance of understanding the adverse effects elicited by nano-ZnO after entering aquatic environment.

Organophosphorus pesticides (OPs) are significant stressors in the aquatic ecosystem of lakes due to their extensive use in agriculture. To understand the potential ecotoxicological risk of OPs, we examined the occurrence, distribution, and sources of 12 selected OPs in surface and core sediment samples collected around Chaohu Lake, one of the most eutrophic lakes in Eastern China.Eighteen surface sediments and four sediment cores were sampled from an important inflowing river and four main river estuaries around Chaohu Lake, respectively. All samples were analyzed for 12 selected OPs using a gas chromatograph equipped with a mass spectrometer.The results show that two thirds of the selected OPs were frequently detected around the lake, with detection frequencies of more than 60 %. Dichlorvos was the predominant OP, comprising 89.6 % of the total concentration of the 12 OPs (defined as Σ12OP) in all samples. Σ12OP in surface sediment and in core sediments ranged from 0.50 to 6.45 and 0.27 to 23.33 ng g−1 dry weight, respectively. High concentrations of Σ12OP were found in estuaries of rivers flowing from agricultural lands, indicating that the selected OPs were mostly due to cultivation, and the vertical distribution of OPs in core sediments clearly showed the application history of OPs over the past few decades. The intercorrelation between OPs was likely affected by their sources, degradation rates, and deposition pathways. The poor correlation between OPs and total organic carbon (TOC) in the core sediments of Chaohu Lake might be ascribed to multiple sources of the TOC in Chaohu Lake.Despite previous studies demonstrated that most OPs were not detectable in bottom sediments due to their high water solubilities and reduced persistence, in the present study, we found that most of the selected OPs were frequently detected in bottom sediment samples collected around Chaohu Lake, which have been identified with long-term eutrophication, suggesting that the OPs likely migrated from the water to the bottom sediment due to the occurrence of massive amounts of phytoplankton. Therefore, the environmental behavior and fate of OPs in a eutrophic lake require more attention given their ecotoxicity.

Thyroid hormone is essential for the development of humans. However, some synthetic chemicals with thyroid disrupting potentials are detectable in drinking water. This study investigated the presence of thyroid active chemicals and their toxicity potential in drinking water from five cities in eastern China by use of an in vitro CV-1 cell-based reporter gene assay. Waters were examined from several phases of drinking water processing, including source water, finished water from waterworks, tap water, and boiled tap water. To identify the responsible compounds, concentrations and toxic equivalents of a list of phthalate esters were quantitatively determined. None of the extracts exhibited thyroid receptor (TR) agonist activity. Most of the water samples exhibited TR antagonistic activities. None of the boiled water displayed the TR antagonistic activity. Dibutyl phthalate accounted for 84.0–98.1% of the antagonist equivalents in water sources, while diisobutyl phthalate, di-n-octyl phthalate and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate also contributed. Approximately 90% of phthalate esters and TR antagonistic activities were removable by waterworks treatment processes, including filtration, coagulation, aerobic biodegradation, chlorination, and ozonation. Boiling water effectively removed phthalate esters from tap water. Thus, this process was recommended to local residents to reduce certain potential thyroid related risks through drinking water.

•Years of field observations showed dynamics between blooms of phytoplankton and HOCs.•Biomass contributes to increasing the exposure of persistent HOCs in sediments.•Biomass enhances degradation and transformation of degradable HOCs in sediments.•Blooms of phytoplankton influence concentrations of HOCs in freshwater snails.•The influence of biomass on the disruption of HOCs should be included in models.Blooms of phytoplankton, which are common in freshwater ecosystems, might not only affect quality of water but also influence biogeochemical processing of pollutants. Based on three years of field observations in sediments of Tai Lake, China, concentrations of organochlorine (OC) pesticides and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in areas where blooms occurred were 2.4 and 3.4 times greater than concentrations in areas without blooms. Concentrations of octylphenol (OP), nonylphenol (NP) and bisphenol A (BPA) in areas where blooms did not occur were 3.8, 4.4 and 2.6 times greater than concentrations in areas where blooms did occur. To explain the differences, simultaneous, seasonally determinations of the water-sediment-phytoplankton-snails disequilibria were determined empirically. Greater sinking and lesser diffusion were shown to be probable drivers of the burial of δ-HCH, 4-ring and 5-ring PAHs in surface sediments of areas in which blooms occurred, being as much as 0.58, 38 and 45 g month−1. Large biodegradation and low burial was shown to be the probable reason of the inverse proportion of NP, OP and BPA in both water and sediment to biomass which might be due to the enhanced metabolic capacity of bacterial community associated with algae blooms. These phenomena further influence the persistent hydrophobic organic chemicals in the snail species (Bellamya quadrata) being greater in winter but lesser in summer, which is probably due to the positive relationship with the concentrations in sediment when snails were dormant and with the concentrations in water after dormancy. Thus, in Tai Lake, the fate and distribution of persistent and biodegradable contaminants in sediments and snails is influenced by blooms of phytoplankton, which should be included in models of environmental fates of contaminants.