Carl A. Bache

Residues of Total Mercury and Methylmercuric Salts in Lake Trout as a Function of Age

An analysis of the concentrations of total mercury and methylmercuric salts in lake trout of precisely known ages from 1 to 12 years has been carried out. The concentrations of both total mercury and methylmercury increased with the age of the fish. The proportion of methylmercury to total mercury also increased with age.

Dietary selenium protection of methylmercury intoxication of Japanese quail

SummarySelenium, as sodium selenite, added at 5 ppm to purified diets of Japanese quail protected against methylmercury intoxication. Selenium fed simultaneously with methylmercury to quail for 9 weeks gave complete protection. However, feeding selenium with methylmercury for 4 weeks, followed by a diet containing only methylmercury, delayed the onset of methylmercury intoxication for 1–2 weeks as compared to quail not pretreated with selenium. On diets which contained 20 ppm of methylmercury but no selenium, over 90% mortality was observed for young quail within 2 weeks, and mature quail within 4 weeks. Methylmercury residues in liver, kidney, and brain are higher in male than female quail. High methylmercury content of these organs, or in produced eggs, does not indicate that birds will show evidence of methylmercury toxicosis.

Determination of Organophosphorus Insecticide Residues Using the Emission Spectrometric Detector.

Emission spectroscopy is an old technique for the analysis of metals and some nonmetallic elements. The sample to be analyzed is excited using a spark, direct current arc, flame, or other means. Photons are emitted when electrons in the excited species of the sample return to a lower energy state. This emitted quantized energy may then be measured photographically, oscilloscopically, or by automatic recording. The frequency of radiation can provide a high degree of specificity for characterizing the species and radiation intensity is used for quantitative analysis.

National survey of elements and other constituents in municipal sewage sludges

Fifty-nine elements, poly chlorinated biphenyls, volatile N-nitrosamines and gamma emission were determined in 30 sewage sludges from 23 American cities using several analytical methods. Relatively high concentrations of toxic metals were found in sludges from specific municipal plants. The pH and levels of calcium and iron in certain of the sludges appeared to reflect the addition of lime, ferric chloride and/or spent pickle liquor during sewage treatment. Of 15 sludges analyzed, the carcinogen, N-nitrosodimethylamine was detected in 14 and various other N-nitrosamines in 12 of them. Based on present federal guidelines, only 7 of the 30 municipal sludges analyzed would be considered suitable for land application owing to their elevated content of one or more heavy metals.

Polychlorinated biphenyl residues: accumulation in Cayuga Lake trout with age.

The concentration of polychlorinated biphenyls was shown to progressively increase with maturity in a series of lake trout. The presence of these compounds was determined by column chromatographic isolation, specific detector gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. The relation between fish age and the concentration of polychlorinated biphenyls was highly significant.

Eggshell thinning in Japanese quail fed mercuric chloride

The eggs produced by developing Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) fed 1 to 8 parts of mercury per million as mercuric chloride for 10 weeks have thinned shells. Total amounts of mercury in tissues were quite proportional to the dosage and were higher in males than in females. Methylation of mercury was not observed.

Elemental analysis of honey as an indicator of pollution. Forty-seven elements in honeys produced near highway, industrial, and mining areas.

Nineteen samples of honey taken from grocery shelves, near zinc mines, adjacent to an industrial area, and near a major highway, and one sample collected in 1899 were subjected to spark source mass spectrometry to determine the concentration of most of 47 elements in the honey. Certain samples of honey produced by bees in the vicinity of the New York State Thruway appeared to contain elevated levels of certain elements known to be emitted by traffic, such as aluminum, barium, calcuim, copper, magnesium, nickel, palladium, and silicon, but the true source of these elements was uncertain. Honey that had come into contact with metal containers in processing contained the greatest amounts of zinc and tin.

Analytical survey of elements and other constituents in Central New York state sewage sludges

Thirty-nine elements, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile N-nitrosamines and gamma emission were determined by several instrumental methods in sewage sludges from 24 communities in Central New York. Relatively high concentrations of certain elements or PCBs were found in sludges from specific communities. For example, antimony and certain rare earth elements used in glass manufacture were found at elevated levels in sludge from Corning, New York. Various volatile N-nitrosamines were found in all of the sludges in trace amounts. Gamma emission levels were relatively low in all sludges. One-third of the sludges would be classified as unsuitable for agricultural land application based on presently suggested federal guidelines for acceptable heavy metal or PCB concentrations in sludges. The question of the application of sludge to agricultural land is discussed.

Heavy metal residues in plants cultivated on and in small mammals indigenous to old orchard soils

Six vegetables and millet were grown on the site of an old orchard which had received heavy applications of lead arsenate and organic mercury fungicides for many years. Carrots and millet absorbed about 7 ppm (dry weight) of lead, the other crops containing smaller concentrations. Concentrations of arsenic and mercury showed only modest increases in crops grown on the orchard soil as compared to controls. Lead concentrations in kidney, liver, and bone tissue of meadow voles trapped in two old orchards were markedly higher (up to 300 ppm in bone) than control animals (up to 33 ppm). Intranuclear inclusion bodies diagnostic of lead poisoning were found in the renal epithelial cells of the proximal convoluted tubules in voles from lead arsenate treated orchards.

Concentrations of metals in grasses in the vicinity of a municipal refuse incinerator

There is currently much public opposition to the construction of municipal refuse incinerators in the United States owing to health concerns about emitted toxicants. In this study, 19 elements and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were determined in grasses sampled upwind and downwind from a municipal refuse incinerator which had no emission control devices. Concentrations of Cd, Mo, Hg, Zn, Fe, and Pb were generally highest immediately adjacent to the incinerator. Foliar concentration of the metals, Cd, Mo, Zn, Fe, and Pb was inversely related to the logarithm of the distance downwind from the incinerator. Foliar concentration of Hg decreased linearly with distance downwind. Polychlorinated biphenyls were not detectable in any of the grass samples possibly due to their thermal destruction during incineration or greater dispersion because of their higher vapor pressure. The metal concentration in plants in the vicinity of such incinerators will be affected by the composition of the refuse, incinerator design and stack height, combustion operating conditions, emission control devices, the nature of the plant surface, the water solubility of deposited metal-containing particulates, prevailing weather conditions and root uptake of such metals by plants.