Oxidative stress and defence mechanisms of the freshwater cladoceran Daphnia longispina exposed to UV radiation

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the occurrence of oxidative stress in the cladoceran Daphnia longispina exposed to UV-A and UV-B radiation. The activity of antioxidant enzymes and lipid peroxidation markers is investigated and the protective action of ascorbic acid determined. Results show differences in the lethality radioinduced by UV-A and UV-B. Both UV-A and UV-B exposure cause an important increase in malonaldehyde (MDA) concentration and catalase activity. Ascorbic acid addition reduces the MDA concentration, indicating that the oxidative stress caused by either UV-A or UV-B radiation can be controlled by antioxidants. The increase of the antioxidant enzymes may be a response mechanism to oxidative stress.     

UV released factors induce antioxidant defense in A375 cells

UV light leads to release of different secretory factors from irradiated cells of which some of them have been characterized. We have reported earlier that cells exposed to the supernatant medium from irradiated cells were resistant to killing by some genotoxic agents. In this study, we present our finding that demonstrates DNA damage induced by UV or H(2)O(2) is lowered on prior exposure to the UV released factors (UVRF). Production of ROS in cells and lipid peroxidation was also lowered. It was found that treatment of unexposed cells with UVRF present in the supernatant medium altered the antioxidant defense activity in cells. Significant was the increase in catalase (CAT) and Cu-Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, whereas glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and reduced glutathione (GSH) levels remained unaffected. Cells exposed to UVRF prior to UV or H(2)O(2) treatment also experienced such upregulation; however, the remarkable increase in the GPx activity exhibited by these cells was not observed in cells exposed to H(2)O(2) or UV alone. It appears that exposure to UVRF tinkered with antioxidant defense in cells to facilitate its proliferation upon assault by an agent that can produce oxidative damage.     

Determination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in freshwater fishes from a river polluted by e-wastes

Analytical method using mass spectrometric techniques was applied for the determination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in freshwater fishes. Fish samples collected from Nanyang River contaminated by the recycling electron-wastes (e-wastes) materials were prepared by using Soxhlet extraction and multiple-step column chromatographic clean-up. PBDEs were determined by gas chromatography (GC) coupled with ion trap mass spectrometry (for mono- to hepta-BDEs) and quadrupole mass spectrometry (for BDE-209). The method performance was evaluated with the recovery of ¹³C-labeled internal standards and with the analysis of certified reference biota. The obtained recoveries ranged from 75 to 125% with a relative standard deviation of lower than 10% for 16 PBDE congeners. The total PBDE (ΣPBDE) concentrations in fishes showed the following trend: grass carp < mud carp < crucian carp < silver carp < carp. ΣPBDE concentrations in the abdomen, back and tail muscles of carp ranged from 766, 458 and 530 ng/g w.w., and 53, 52, 45 ng/g w.w. in grass carp, respectively. The ΣPBDE concentrations in abdomen muscles were no significantly higher than in back and tail muscles in carp, crucian carp, grass carp and mud carp. PBDE congener concentrations in muscles correlated well with their lipid content. BDE-47 and BDE-28 were the most abundant congeners followed by BDE-17, BDE-15, BDE-66, BDE-154 and BDE-153 in fishes collected from Guiyu.     

Analysis,levels and seasonal variation of cyanotoxins in freshwater ecosystems

Nutrient over-enrichment in freshwater environments, together with the on-going climate change, favour the toxin-producing cyanobacteria bloom. Human health hazard may arise from drinking contaminated water. Additionally, cyanobacterial blooms affect other economic areas such as tourism, recreation, commercial fishery, water management and monitoring. Nowadays there is a scarcity of information on seasonal variations of cyanotoxins in various regions. Understanding of historical trends and seasonal variation patters is a foundation for forecasting and will help to develop effective water management strategies.This review gives an overview of cyanotoxins' analysis and levels in freshwater environments with particular emphasis on seasonal variations in Europe. Recent analytical approaches are discussed and the seasonal patterns for three major European climate zones (Mediterranean, continental, and Atlantic) were distinguished. Additionally, data from multi-year studies showed a tendency of increasing cyanotoxins' levels.     

Effects of UV radiation on motility, photo-orientation and pigmentation in a freshwater Cryptomonas

The effects of UV radiation on photo-orientation, motility and pigmentation have been studied in a freshwater Cryptomonas species. The cells show a pronounced diaphototactic orientation which is affected by UV radiation at 50 mW m-2 within about 90 min. Both the average velocity of the swimming cells and the percentage of motile cells within the population decrease within about the same exposure time. UV radiation also bleaches the cellular pigments.     

Photoimmunology: the mechanisms involved in immune modulation by UV radiation

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) may be the most prevalent agent that man encounters in his environment. As a result, certain biological adaptations take advantage of the beneficial effects of UVR exposure, e.g. the photoactivation steps involved in vitamin D metabolism. In this regard, UVR plays an important role in maintaining our good health; however, it must be noted that UVR is potentially the most harmful naturally occurring agent in our environment. Thus, it appears that several mechanisms have evolved to protect us against the detrimental effects of UVR overexposure. Although epidermal melaninization or "tanning" may be the most obvious example of these processes, we would argue that adoptive mechanisms within the immune system also provide protection against UVR-induced skin damage. It is now known that UVR affects the distribution and functional activities of various immunocompetent cells within the skin, as well as modifying the production of inflammatory and hematopoietically active cytokines. This review will focus on the known mechanisms involved in the immune modulatory effects of UVR and how adoptive immune responses to UVR-induced skin damage contribute to specific pathological processes.     

Temperature effects on survival and DNA repair in four freshwater cladoceran Daphnia species exposed to UV radiation

The biological responses of four freshwater daphniid species, Daphnia middendorffiana, D. pulicaria, D. pulex and D. parvula, to a single acute dose of ultraviolet B radiation (UVB) were compared. In addition to survival, we compared the induction of DNA damage (i.e. cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers) between species as well as the ability to repair this damage in the presence or absence of photoreactivating light. All four species showed high levels of shielding against DNA damage when compared to damage induced in purified DNA dosimeters at the same time and dose. Significant variation in survival was observed between species depending on temperature and light conditions. Contrary to our expectations, all species showed significantly higher survival and light-dependent DNA damage removal rates at 10 degrees C compared to 20 degrees C, suggesting that the enhanced rate of photoenzymatic repair (PER) at the lower temperature contributed significantly to the recovery of these organisms from UVB. PER was highly effective in promoting survival of three of the four species at 10 degrees C, but at 20 degrees C it was only partially effective in two species, and ineffective in two others. None of the species showed significant dark repair at 20 degrees C and only D. pulicaria showed a significant capacity at 10 degrees C. Two species, D. middendorffiana and D. pulex, showed some short-term survival at 10 degrees C in absence of PER despite their inability to repair any appreciable amount of DNA damage in the dark. All species died rapidly at 20 degrees C in absence of PER, as predicted from complete or near-absence of nucleotide excision repair (NER). Overall, the protective effects of tissue structure and pigmentation were similar in all Daphnia species tested and greatly mitigated the absorption of UVB by DNA and its damaging effects. Surprisingly, the visibly melanotic D. middendorffiana was not better shielded from DNA damage than the three non-melanotic species, and in fact suffered the highest damage rates. Melanin content in this species was not temperature dependent under the experimental growth conditions, and so did not contribute to temperature-dependent responses. It is evident that different species within the same genus have developed diverse biological responses to UVB. Our data strongly suggest that DNA damage is lethal to Daphnia and that photoenzymatic repair is the primary mechanism for removing these lesions. In the absence of light, few species are capable of removing any DNA damage. Surprisingly, the single species in which significant excision repair was detected did so only at reduced temperature. This temperature-dependence of excision repair is striking and may reflect adaptations of certain organisms to stress in a complex and changing environment.     

Interspecific Variation in the Repair of UV Damaged DNA in the Genus Xiphophorus as a Factor in the Decline of the Rio Grande Platyfish

The fish genus Xiphophorus consists of 26 species distributed along the eastern slopes of mountain ranges extending from northern Mexico to Belize and Nicaragua. We analyzed light‐dependent repair of UV‐induced DNA damage in at least two species from each of the four monophyletic Xiphophorus groups. We found that the northern platyfish had significantly reduced photoenzymatic repair compared to the other three groups, including the northern swordtails, southern platyfish and southern swordtails. All of the species of the northern platyfish, including the Marbled (meyeri), Northern (gordoni) and Monterrey Platyfish (couchianus) are the northernmost species in the genus and are the only three species in the genus that are currently found on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Satellite data from the past 30 years (1979–2008) correlate greater increases in shorter wavelength UVB with higher latitudes within the Xiphophorus range. We suggest that, combined with other consequences of human population growth, anthropogenic deozonation resulting in a disproportionate increase in UVB in temperate latitudes may be a contributing factor in the decline and extirpation of the northern platyfish.     

Photosensitized oxidation of cholesterol in biological systems: reaction pathways, cytotoxic effects and defense mechanisms.

Cholesterol resembles other unsaturated lipids in being susceptible to peroxidative degradation when exposed to a sensitizing agent, exciting light of suitable wavelength and molecular oxygen. Selected hydroperoxides of cholesterol can be used as relatively convenient and reliable indicators of primary photochemical mechanisms, allowing a distinction to be made between free radical-mediated and singlet oxygen-mediated reactions. When generated in cell membranes, hydroperoxides of cholesterol and other lipids can have deleterious effects on membrane structure and function. Such damage may be exacerbated if these photoproducts undergo one-electron reduction to oxyl radicals which in turn initiate chain peroxidation reactions. Cells can resist these effects by using a membrane-based glutathione peroxidase to catalyze the two-electron reduction and detoxification of lipid hydroperoxides. Recent advances in our understanding of cholesterol photo-oxidation from the standpoints of (a) mechanistic information, (b) cytotoxicity and (c) cytoprotection are discussed in this article.     

Analysis of HO2 and OH formation mechanisms using FM and UV spectroscopy in dimethyl ether oxidation

Product formation pathways in the photolytically initiated oxidation of CH3OCH3 have been investigated as a function of temperature (298-600 K) and pressure (20-90 Torr) through the detection of HO2 and OH using Near-infrared frequency modulation spectroscopy, as well as the detection of CH3OCH2O2 using UV absorption spectroscopy. The reaction was initiated by pulsed photolysis with a mixture of Cl2, O2, and CH3OCH3. The HO2 and OH yield is obtained by comparison with an established reference mixture, including CH3OH. The CH3OCH2O2 yield is also obtained through the procedure of estimating the CH3OCH2O2/HO2 ratio from their UV absorption. A notable finding is that the OH yield is 1 order of magnitude larger than those known in C2 and C3 alkanes, increasing from 10% to 40% with increasing temperature. The HO2 yield increases gradually until 500 K and sharply up to 40% over 500 K. The CH3OCH2O2 profile has a prompt rise, followed by a gradual decay whose time constant is consistent with slow HO2 formation. To predict species profiles and yields, simple chlorine-initiated oxidation model of DME under low-pressure condition was constructed based on the existing model and the new reaction pathways, which were derived from this study. To model rapid OH formation, OH direct formation from CH3OCH2 + O2 was required. We have also proposed that a new HCO formation pathway via QOOH isomerization to HOQO species and OH + CH3OCH2O2 --> HO2 + CH3OCH2O are to be considered, to account for the fast and slow HO2 formations, as well as the total yield. The constructed model including these new pathways has successfully predicted experimental results throughout the entire temperature and pressure ranges investigated. It was revealed that the HO2 formation mechanism changes at 500 K, i.e., HCO + O2 via HCHO + OH and the above proposed direct HCO formation dominates over 500 K, while a series of reactions following CH3OCH2O2 self-reaction and OH + CH3OCH2O2 reaction mainly contribute below 500 K. The pressure dependent rate constant of the CH3OCH2 thermal decomposition reaction has been separately measured since it has large negative sensitivity for HO2 formation and is essential to eliminate the ambiguity in the CH3OCH2 + O2 mechanism at higher temperature.     

Presence of rhodopsin and porphyropsin in the eyes of 164 fishes, representing marine, diadromous, coastal and freshwater species--a qualitative and comparative study

There are two types of visual pigments in fish eyes; most marine fishes have rhodopsin, while most freshwater fishes have porphyropsin. The biochemical basis for this dichotomy is the nature of the chromophores, retinal (A1) and 3-dehydroretinal (A2), each of which is bound by an opsin. In order to study the regional distribution of these visual pigments, we performed a new survey of the visual pigment chromophores in the eyes of many species of fish. Fish eyes from 164 species were used to examine their chromophores by high-performance liquid chromatography--44 species of freshwater fish, 20 of peripheral freshwater fish (coastal species), 10 of diadromous fish and 90 of seawater fish (marine species) were studied. The eyes of freshwater fish, limb freshwater fish and diadromous fish had both A1 and A2 chromophores, whereas those of marine fish possessed only A1 chromophores. Our results are similar to those of previous studies; however, we made a new finding that fish which live in freshwater possessed A1 if living near the sea and A2 if living far from the sea if they possessed only one type of chromophore.     

The effects of UV radiation A and B on diurnal variation in photosynthesis in three taxonomically and ecologically diverse microbial mats

Photosynthetic primary production, the basis of most global food chains, is inhibited by UV radiation. Evaluating UV inhibition is therefore important for assessing the role of natural levels of UV radiation in regulating ecosystem behavior as well as the potential impact of stratospheric ozone depletion on global ecosystems. As both photosynthesis and UV fluxes are subject to diurnal variations, we examined the diurnal variability of the effect of UV radiation on photosynthesis in three diverse algal mats. In one of the mats (Cyanidium caldarium) a small mean decrease in primary productivity over the whole day occurred when both UVA and UVB were screened out. In two of the mats (Lyngbya aestuarii and Zygogonium sp.) we found a mean increase in the total primary productivity over the day when UVB alone was screened and a further increase when UVA and UVB were both screened out. Variations in the effects of UV radiation were found at different times of the day. This diurnal variability may be because even under the same solar radiation flux, there are different factors that may control photosynthetic rate, including nutritional status and other physiological processes in the cell. The results show the importance of assessing the complete diurnal productivity. For some of the time points the increase in the mean was still within the standard deviations in primary productivity, illustrating the difficulty in dissecting UV effects from other natural variations.     

UV absorption spectra,kinetics, and mechanisms of the self reaction of CF3O2 radicals in the gas phase at 295 K

The ultraviolet absorption spectrum and the self reaction kinetics of CF₃O₂ radicals have been studied in the gas phase at 298 K using the pulse radiolysis technique. Long pathlength Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was used to identify and quantify reaction products. Absorption cross sections were quantified over the wavelength range 215–270 nm. The measured cross section at 230 nm was; Errors represent statistical (2σ) together with our estimate of potential systematic errors. The absorption cross section data were then used to derive the observed self reaction rate constant for reaction (1), defined as ?d[CF₃O₂]/dt = 2k _obs[CF₃O₂]² k_lobs = (3.6 ± 0.9) × 10^?12 cm³ molecule^?1 s^?1. The only carbon containing product observed by FTIR spectroscopy was CF₃OOOCF₃. Consideration of the loss of CF₃O₂ radicals to form the trioxide CF₃OOOCF₃ allows derivation of the true bimolecular rate constant for reaction (1); k₁ = (1.8 ± 0.5) × 10^?12 cm³ molecule^?1 s^?1. These results are discussed with respect to previous studies of the absorption spectra of peroxy radicals, the kinetics, and mechanisms of their self reaction. © John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Chemical monitoring and temporal variation in levels of endocrine disrupting chemicals (priority phenols and phthalate esters) from selected wastewater treatment plant and freshwater systems in Republic of South Africa

This study presents a quantitative estimation of the simultaneous analysis of 11 priority phenols and six phthalate esters in surface water from five rivers collected from the upstream and downstream of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) that emptied their final effluents into the rivers. In addition, influents and effluents from the WWTPs were collected on a quarterly basis between April 2010 and March 2011. Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden stream was used as a control site. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) was used for identification and quantification using N-methyl-N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (MTBSTFA). Chemical analysis by GC–MS revealed the presence of DEP, POH, PCP, DEHP, DBP, BBP, 2,4-DMP and 2-NP as the most abundant congeners. Zandvliet WWTP showed to be the most polluted as it receives wastewater from the largest informal settlement in the city. Generally, concentration ranged from below detection limit (LOD) for most of the congeners to 34.520 mg l^? 1 for DBP at Zandvliet WWTP. Also, statistical analysis showed correlation between levels of analytes in effluent and downstream water samples, an indication of pollution from the WWTP. From the monitoring exercise, data obtained for most compounds analyzed showed that the congeners are effectively removed (approximately 80 to 100%) with the exception of 2-nitro phenol that was poorly removed. The production of 2,4-DMP is also noteworthy in the final effluent of all the investigated treatment plants.     

Chain versus dimer contacts in crystalline 5-(4-[N-tert-butyl-N-aminoxyl]phenyl)pyrimidine radicals: Choices among competing intermolecular exchange mechanisms

5-(4-[N-Tert-butyl-N-aminoxyl]phenyl)pyrimidine crystallographically exhibits alternating chains and in-plane dimers involving two distinct molecular geometries, plus dimeric stacking of only one of the forms. Its magnetic behavior is neither fully spin pairing nor chain-like, but rather shows low temperature spin pairing for half of molecules in the unit cell with J/k = (−)130 J/mol, consistent with dominating exchange behavior of the dimerically π-stacked form. The other molecules in the unit cell behave in an essentially paramagnetic manner.     

Concerted rearrangement versus heterolytic cleavage in anionic [2,3]- and [3,3]-sigmatropic shifts. A DFT study of relationships among anion stabilities,mechanisms, and rates

The anionic [2,3] sigmatropic Wittig rearrangements of deprotonated 4-hetera-1-pentenes and the anionic [3,3] sigmatropic Cope rearrangements of 3-substituted-1,5-hexadienes were explored by using density functional theory calculations. While the deprotonated anionic 3-hydroxy-1,5 hexadiene (2a), 3-thiohydroxy-1,5-hexadiene (2c), and 3-formamidyl-1,5-hexadiene (2d) Cope substrates undergo concerted rearrangements, the deprotonated anionic 3-amino-1,5-hexadiene (2b) and 3-methyl-1,5-hexadiene (2e) Cope substrates follow nonconcerted cleavage/recombination pathways. We have also found that the gas-phase Wittig (1a), aza-Wittig (1b), and carba-Wittig (1c) reactions proceed via nonconcerted cleavage/recombination pathways. These results are compared with previous results on the Cope rearrangements of deprotonated anionic 3-hydroxy-1,5-hexadiene and 3-amino-1,5-hexadiene anions. A previously established model that heterolytic and homolytic bond dissociation energies can be used to predict how anionic amino- and oxy-Cope substrates will react is generalized to account for the reactivity of other Cope substrates as well as for the Wittig rearrangements. There is also a relationship between the basicity of the anionic substituent in the Cope rearrangement and the reaction pathway: the more basic the substituent anion, the less stable it is, and the more likely it is that cleavage will occur. A first step toward studying these reactions in solution was also taken by calculating energetics for some of the rearrangements with a lithium counterion present.