Research Publications (Food Safety)

This study developed a quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) procedure for determining seven pyrethroid pesticide residues in tea, cucumber, and tomato via high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS). The overall average recoveries of the seven pyrethroids were 72%–104% (relative standard deviation (RSD); 2.0%–16.1%, 89%–109% (RSD; 0.7%–17.3%), 82%–110% (RSD; 1.6%–17.1%) for tea, cucumber and tomato, respectively.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are released into the environment from a wide range of sources. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of the PCBs extracted from the Zhanjiang mangrove sediments on the immune function of zebrafish.

Risk assessment of soil metal pollution based on total metal contents might give overestimates by neglecting the bioaccessibility of the pollutants to soil biota. Physiologically-based extraction tests (PBET) are in vitro methods for evaluation of bioaccessibility of soil pollutants.

Sewage contaminated with toxic metals is being naturally treated in ponds at East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW) for fish cultivation traditionally. From the aquatic phase, these metals get settled on sediment and undergo partitioning. Some fractions are available and may accumulate in the cultivated products. The present study highlights the degree of partition of heavy metals Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd) and Chromium (Cr) in these pond sediments.

In the present study, Prunus Dulcis L. Peels was modified with ethylenedinitrilo tetraacetic acid and used as the sorbent for the preconcentration of Cd(II) ions from aqueous media. To characterize the sorbent, scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer and Fourier transform infrared spectrometer analysis were used. The optimum preconcentration conditions such as pH, eluent type, sample volume, sample flow rate and foreign ions effect were determined.

We collected the farmland soil and the sediment, carried out sample speciation detection and distribution analyses, explored environmental self-purification on the distribution of Cd and As of agricultural sources. There were significant differences between total Cd and total As and between speciation distribution in the orders of magnitude.

Long-term exposure to heavy metals from high geological background area may lead to varieties of diseases. Therefore, risk assessment from agricultural products in these areas was crucial to ensure the health of customers. However, the effects of geological background on distributions of heavy metals and their accumulation in plant remain unclear.

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/furans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs) were examined in chicken egg and soil samples collected from Dong Nai Province, southern Vietnam. PCDD/F and DL-PCB levels in egg samples ranged from 5.74 to 1320 (median 350) and from 120 to 51,200 (median 1470) pg/g lipid weight (lw), respectively. Toxic equivalents to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TEQ) in egg samples ranged from 0.817 to 245 (median 10.8) pg TEQ/g lw.

The gastropod Rapana venosa is an edible mollusk suitable for biomonitoring of sea shelf contamination. In this work, the contents of five elements (Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Pb) in foot and in the rest of soft tissues of this mollusk were quantified, and the element contents in the edible foot were found below the maximum permissible levels set in several national and transnational regulations.

In order to explore the utilization of Eucalyptus sawdust (C) and develop its remediation potential in cadmium and arsenic contaminated soil, Eucalyptus sawdust were modified by FeCl3 and NaOH coprecipitation (MC). Characterization technology and pot experiment were used to explore the adsorption mechanism of cadmium and arsenic by MC and the effect of soil remediation.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the distribution of arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) in soils around an antimony smelter at Qinglong together with the soil pollution levels and potential ecological risk. The results show that (1) total concentrations of As (23 ~ 539 mg/kg) and Sb (19.7 ~ 5681 mg kg−1) were higher than the Guizhou province-level background values (As, 20; Sb, 2.24), especially Sb.

Organism tolerance thresholds for emerging contaminants are vital to the development of water quality criteria. Acute (96-h) and chronic (10-day) effects thresholds for neonicotinoid pesticides clothianidin and thiamethoxam, and the carbamate pesticide methomyl were developed for the midge Chironomus dilutus to support criteria development using the UC Davis Method.

Urban freshwaters containing arsenic are facing an increasing problem of eutrophication. This study evaluated the spatial distribution, ecological risk, and origin of As in surface sediments obtained from Caohai Lake, a typical hypertrophic urban lake in China. It revealed that the total As concentration in surface sediments decreased gradually from north to south, consisted with the lake eutrophication status.

Agriculture’s global challenge to feed an estimated 7.7 billion people is further exacerbated by less available cropland for production and rapidly changing climate patterns. Pesticides are often utilized to minimize crop losses due to pest infestations; however, problems arise when these chemicals are transported off production acreage, either by storm or irrigation events, and into nearby water bodies.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of drought stress on cadmium (Cd) and zinc (Zn) accumulation in Chromolaena odorata grown in an artificially contaminated nutrient solution for 15 days. Polyethylene glycol (5% PEG) was used as a drought stressor. The presence of PEG did not affect the chlorophyll content and photochemical efficiency, while drought stress induced by PEG caused a decrease in water content in the plant tissues.

Agriculture’s global challenge to feed an estimated 7.7 billion people is further exacerbated by less available cropland for production and rapidly changing climate patterns. Pesticides are often utilized to minimize crop losses due to pest infestations; however, problems arise when these chemicals are transported off production acreage, either by storm or irrigation events, and into nearby water bodies.

This study aimed to assess ecological and health risk of heavy metals (HMs) in the 35 topsoils in southeastern Iran. Ecological and health risks were assessed based on the EPA method. The order of the HMs followed as: Zn > Cr>Cu>Pb>As>Cd. All samples, except As and Cu, had the moderate enrichment and low to moderate pollution, respectively. The As in both regions and Cu in the city was classified in the lack to minimal enrichment and no pollution category.

This study assessed how the Sonchus asper L.—Zea mays intercropping influenced the plant Cd level, as well as the organic acid (low molecular mass) types and concentrations in root secretions, which was accomplished by conducting pot experiments with soil that was collected from a farmland surrounding a mining area.

Glyphosate is the most used herbicide in the world. Unfortunately, contamination of water bodies by this herbicide has been reported. A severe concern has been triggered given its detrimental impact on the environment and wildlife. The American horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) is a benthic arthropod that inhabits the Yucatan Peninsula in Southeast Mexico. This study evaluates the glyphosate concentration in 34 recently dead specimens of L.

This study aimed to investigate the testicular function of Mugil cephalus that inhabit Wadi El-Rayan lakes. Testes of fish inhabiting the upper lake (site 2) and the lower lake (site 3) of Wadi El-Rayan showed significant decreases in gonadosomatic index, high accumulation levels of six metals, and eight organochlorine pesticide residues.

Glycine max (L.) Merr. (soybean) has been mentioned as a potential accumulator of hazardous metals, such as Pb. The main route of human exposure to heavy metals is consumption. This study evaluates Pb accumulation in soybean at different growth stages. The aim was to determine the period of the crop development when absorption and distribution mostly occur. Soybean plants were grown in control and Pb-polluted soils in a greenhouse experiment.

The mixed application of pesticides and foliar fertilizer has been widely used in the production of cucumber, however, their effects on plant growth and pesticide dissipation are still unclear. In this study, the effects of mixed application of pymetrozine, tebuconazole and foliar fertilizer on the cucumber plant growth and pesticide dissipation were investigated simultaneously.

Both soil heavy metals and the influencing factors are related to spatial location and are spatially heterogeneous. However, the global linear regression model assumes the regression coefficients to be spatially stationary throughout the study region and is unable to account for the spatially varying relationships between soil heavy metals and influencing factors.

Phosphatic clays, one type of phosphorite industry wastes, could induce environmental issues and geological disasters when they are piled in the open air. Previous research demonstrated that phosphatic clays usually exhibit poor performance in heavy metal immobilization mostly due to low phosphate content. Thus, phosphatic clays could not be applied in practical heavy metal remediation without pretreatment.

Wastewater reclamation facilities are known sources of emerging contaminants associated with human health and sanitation. This study evaluated the contribution of trace organic contaminants to a previously unmonitored river by water resource reclamation facilities. Six sampling events were conducted on the Reedy River in South Carolina.