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1.
This work presents a solid phase extraction (SPE) method for simultaneous preconcentration of trace elements in water samples prior to their ICP-OES determination. Dowex 50W-x8 and Chelex-100 resins were used as SPE sorbent materials for preconcentration of trace Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb and Zn. The optimum sample pH, eluent concentration and sample flow rates were found to 6, 3.0 mol L−1 and 3.0 mL min−1, respectively. In terms of multi-element preconcentration capabilities, Dowex 50W-x8 appeared to be a better sorbent. The recoveries for all the tested analytes were >95%. However, Chelex-100 showed a better performance in terms of recovery (>95%) towards Cu, Fe and Zn. Under optimized conditions using Dowex 50W-x8, the relative standard deviations for different metals were <3%. The limits of detection and limits of quantification ranged from 0.01–0.39 μg L−1 and 0.05–0.1.3 μg L−1, respectively. The accuracy of the preconcentration method was confirmed by spike recovery test and the analysis of certified reference materials. The SPE method was applied for preconcentration of the analyte ions in tap water, bottled water and wastewater samples. 相似文献
2.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2009,58(6-12):575-586
Irgarol 1051 (2-methythiol-4-tert-butylamino-6-cyclopropylamino-s-triazine) is an algaecide commonly used in antifouling paints. It undergoes photodegradation which yields M1 (2-methylthio-4-tert-butylamino-6-amino-s-triazine) as its major and most stable degradant. Elevated levels of both Irgarol and M1 have been detected in coastal waters worldwide; however, ecotoxicity effects of M1 to various marine autotrophs such as cyanobacteria are still largely unknown. This study firstly examined and compared the 96 h toxicities of Irgarol and M1 to the cyanobacterium Chroococcus minor and two marine diatom species, Skeletonema costatum and Thalassiosira pseudonana. Our results suggested that Irgarol was consistently more toxic to all of the three species than M1 (96 h EC50 values: C. minor, 7.71 μg L−1 Irgarol vs. >200 μg L−1 M1; S. costatum, 0.29 μg L−1 Irgarol vs. 11.32 μg L−1 M1; and T. pseudonana, 0.41 μg L−1 Irgarol vs. 16.50 μg L−1 M1). Secondly, we conducted a meta-analysis of currently available data on toxicities of Irgarol and M1 to both freshwater and marine primary producers based on species sensitivity distributions (SSDs). Interestingly, freshwater autotrophs are more sensitive to Irgarol than their marine counterparts. For marine autotrophs, microalgae are generally more sensitive to Irgarol than macroalgae and cyanobacteria. With very limited available data on M1 (i.e. five species), M1 might be less toxic than Irgarol; nonetheless this finding warrants further confirmation with additional data on other autotrophic species. 相似文献
3.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2012,65(12):2857-2859
Baseline Hg concentration in bycatch fish from the SE Gulf of California were determined in muscle and liver of 19 species. Levels of Hg in muscle were compared with legal limits of this element in national and international legislation. Considering all fish species, mean concentrations in liver (2.458 ± 1.997 μg g−1) were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than in muscle (0.993 ± 0.670 μg g−1). The sequence of averaged Hg concentrations in most ichthyofauna was liver > muscle. Highest level of Hg in muscle (2.556 μg g−1) and liver (7.515 μg g−1) corresponded to Diapterus peruvianus and Ophioscion strabo, respectively. Considering muscle samples, none of the species had levels of Hg above the limit (1.0 μg g−1 wet weight) in the Mexican legislation; with respect to the Japanese (0.4 μg g−1 wet weight) and British (0.3 μg g−1 wet weight) legislations, 26.3% and 31.6% of the species respectively, were above the corresponding limits. 相似文献
4.
《Limnologica》2017
The study analyses the long-term biophysical and demographic changes in Dal lake, located in the heart of Srinagar city, Kashmir India, using a repository of historical, remote sensing, socio-economic and water quality data supported by the extensive field observations. The lake faces multiple pressures from the unplanned urbanization, high population growth, nutrient load from intensive agriculture and tourism. The data showed that the lake has shrunk from 31 km2 in 1859–24 km2 in 2013. Significant changes were observed in the land use and land cover (LULC) within the lake (1859–2013) and in the vicinity of the lake (1962–2013). Analysis of the demographic data indicates that the human population within the lake has shown more than double the national growth rate. Additionally, 7 important water quality parameters from 82 well distributed sites across the lake were analyzed and compared with the past data to determine the historical changes in the water quality from 1971 to 2014. The changes in the LULC and demography have adversely affected the pollution status of this pristine lake. Ortho-phosphate phosphorous concentration has increased from 16.75 μg L−1 in 1977–45.78 μg L−1 in 2014 and that of the nitrate-nitrogen from 365 μg L−1 to 557 μg L−1, indicating nutrient enrichment of the lake over the years. Built-up area within the lake has increased 40 times since 1859, which, together with the changes in the population and settlements, have led to the high discharge of untreated nutrient-rich sewage into the lake. Similarly the expansion of floating gardens within the lake and agriculture lands in the catchment has contributed to the increased nutrient load into the lake due to the increasing use of fertilizers. The information about the existing land cover, demography and water quality was integrated and analyzed in GIS environment to identify the trophic status of the lake. The analysis indicated that 32% of the lake falls under sever degradation, 48% under medium degradation while as 20% of the lake waters are relatively clean. It is believed that the results provide improved knowledge and insights about the lake health and causal factors of its degradation necessary for effectively restoring its ecological and hydrological functionality. 相似文献
5.
In this study, remediation results of trace metals in natural water and treated water using three functionalized nanofiber mats of cellulose and chitosan are reported. The nanofiber materials, packed in mini-columns, were employed for the remediation of five toxic trace metals (Cd, Pb, Cu, Cr and Ni) from natural water samples. Trace metals in real water samples were undetectable as the concentrations were lower than the instrument’s detection limits of 0.27 × 10−3 (Cd) and 4.2 × 10−2 (Pb) μg mL−1, respectively. However, after percolation through the functionalised biosorbents in cartridges, detectability of the metal ions was enhanced. The starting volume of the natural water sample was 100 mL, which was passed through a column containing the nanofibers sorbent and the retained metals eluted with 5 mL of 2.0 M nitric acid. The eluate was analyzed for metals concentrations. An enrichment factor of 20 for the metals was realized as a result of the pre-concentration procedure applied to handle the determination of the metals at trace levels. The order of remediation of the studied metals using the nanofibers was as follows: chitosan/PAM-g-furan-2,5-dione < cellulose-g-furan-2,5-dione < cellulose-g-oxolane-2,5-dione. The modified biopolymer nanofibers were able to adsorb trace metals from the river water and treated water, thereby confirming their capability of water purification. These materials are proposed as useful tools and innovative approach for improving the quality of drinking for those consumers in small scale households. 相似文献
6.
《Limnologica》2016
Nanoparticle contamination in freshwater habitat leads to the drastic reduction in the population of freshwater micro crustaceans. Both Ceriodaphnia cornuta and Moina micrura were considered as the potential biological bio-tracers of freshwater ecosystem. This study describes the chemical synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) using zinc nitrate as the starting material. The physico-chemical characterization of ZnO NPs was made by UV–Vis spectroscopy, X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infra Red (FTIR) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). ZnO NPs elicited 100% and 76% mortality of freshwater crustaceans, Ceriodaphnia cornuta and Moina micrura at 160 μg L−1 respectively. The accumulation of ZnO NPs in the intestine and loss of antennae and carapace were clearly visualized through light microscopy. The exposure of C. cornuta and M. micrura neonates at 160 μg L−1 of ZnO NPs showed abnormal swimming behaviour after 12 h. However, chitosan significantly reduced the mortality and enhanced the survival of C. cornuta and M. micrura at 100 μg ml−1. This study concludes the protective effect of chitosan against the hazardous effect of ZnO NPs in C. cornuta and M. micrura. 相似文献
7.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2012,64(5-12):523-527
Concentrations of trace metals (Zn, Cr, Cu, V, Cd and Pb), total organic carbon (TOC), black carbon (BC) and their granulometry were examined in 25 surface sediment samples from the northern Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea and adjacent areas. Trace metal concentrations in the sediments varied from 21.06–168.21 mg kg−1 for Zn, 8.91–46.94 mg kg−1 for Cr, 2.69–49.39 mg kg−1 for Cu, 32.46–185.54 mg kg−1 for V, 0.09–0.92 mg kg−1 for Cd, and 0.95–15.25 mg kg−1 for Pb. The geoaccumulation index (Igeo) indicated that trace metal contamination (Zn and Cd) existed in some stations of the study area. The distribution of grain size plays an important role in influencing the distribution of trace metals (Zn, Cr, Cu, V, and Pb) in sediments from the Chukchi Sea and adjacent areas. 相似文献
8.
Landfill leachates that contain persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are a big threat to groundwater systems and are projected to have hazardous effects in the long term if proper management strategies of the landfills are not put in place by those responsible. Monitoring the levels of POPs in landfill leachates is very crucial. This work presents an amperometric biosensor for determination of selected POPs in landfill leachates. The biosensor is based on kinetic inhibition of horseradish peroxidase (HRP). The enzyme was immobilised by electrostatic attachment on a polyaniline-modified Pt electrode surface. Selected POPs inhibited HRP enzyme activity and the decrease in the enzyme activity was used to determine these environmental pollutants. Selected polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were the analytes of choice because they are commonly found in South Africa water systems. Limits of detection for the amperometric biosensor were established as 0.014, 0.018, 0.022, 0.016 and 0.019 μg l−1 for BDE-100, PBB-1, PCB-1, PCB-28 and PCB-101, respectively. The HRP biosensor system gave different linear ranges for; BDE-100 (0.424–25.8 μg l−1), PBB-1 (0.862–13.4 μg l−1), PCB-1 (0.930–18.1 μg l−1), PCB-28 (0.730–15.7 μg l−1) and PCB-101 (0.930–27.1 μg l−1). Inhibition studies on HRP biosensor response toward the reduction of H2O2 in the absence and presence of the selected POPs were carried out to investigate the inhibition kinetics and its mechanism. The results obtained indicated that the inhibition mechanism was competitive for PBDEs and non-competitive for biphenyls (PCBs and PBBs). The application of the biosensor was tested on wastewater samples obtained from landfill leachate for determination of selected POPs. The leachate samples were found to contain PCB-28 (0.28 ± 0.03 μg l−1) and PCB-101 (0.31 ± 0.02 μg l−1). The samples were also analysed by GC–MS as a cross-check method and the two sets of results were in close agreement. 相似文献
9.
Contamination with As, Cd and Hg, their spatial and temporal distribution are reported from the coastal wetland sediments of the northern Beibu Gulf, South China Sea. The content of As, Cd, Hg and TOC in surface sediments is 8.1 ± 5.8 μg g?1, 0.08 ± 0.14 μg g?1, 0.034 ± 0.028 μg g?1 and 0.45 ± 0.39%, respectively. The mean sedimentation rates are 0.93–1.37 cm year?1 during 1920s to 2008 determined by 210Pb and 137Cs dating in three cores. The vertical profiles of As, Cd and Hg content in the cores retrieved from Qin and Nanliu River estuaries show increasing trends during 1985–2008 due to anthropogenic impact caused by local economic development. Locally the surface sediments have potential ecological risk of As to benthos according to the NOAA sediment quality guidelines. 相似文献
10.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2012,65(12):2867-2870
The discharge of sewage into the Antarctic marine environments by scientific stations has resulted in local changes in these pristine sites. To assess the distribution and concentration of sewage indicators from the Brazilian Antarctic station, sediments were sampled during the 2009/10 austral summer at four points (water depth of 20 and 60 m). Concentrations of faecal sterols and linear alkylbenzenes (LABs) ranged from <0.01 to 0.17 μg g−1 and <1.0 to 46.5 ng g−1 dry weight, respectively. Maximum concentration of faecal sterols was similar to the value previously calculated as the background level for this area (0.19 μg g−1), and it is lower than the concentration observed in previous studies (1997–2008), whereas the LABs concentrations remained practically constant (35 ng g−1). Despite the low concentrations of sewage markers, the permanent human activities in the region require monitoring programs to determine continuing trends and prevent the increase of anthropogenic impacts. 相似文献
11.
The demand for clean water is on the increase as the population increases. One of the ways to address the water shortage is to treat the polluted water through removal of the contaminants. The use of adsorbents for pollutant removal is one of the promising methods. Seaweed is an aquatic plant and its sorption ability for selected metals in water was investigated in this study. We report the performance of the seaweed (Caulerpa serrulata) before and after modification with ethylenediamine (EDA), on adsorption of copper, lead and cadmium in aqueous solution. The adsorption capacities for Cu, Cd and Pb were 5.27 mg g−1, 2.12 mg g−1 and 2.16 mg g−1, respectively, with the EDA-modified seaweed, and 3.29 mg g−1, 4.57 mg g−1 and 1.06 mg g−1, with the unmodified weed, respectively. The pH for maximum adsorption was found to be within the range of pH 4–pH 6. In a separate investigation, it was found that 0.1 g of dried seaweed leached 20 mg of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) using 100 ml of distilled-deionised water. The resulting solution was green. The leaching phenomenon contributes to secondary pollution. Modification of the seaweed with EDA reduced the DOC content by half (50%) and also removed the green colouration. Kinetic studies showed that the adsorbent was able to take up to 95% of the metals (in synthetic standard solutions) in less than 10 min. The adsorbed metals were then stripped using a solution of 0.5 M HNO3 indicating that the adsorbent can be regenerated. In addition, the study revealed that modification improved the thermal stability of the adsorbent such that even when the temperature was raised to 1000 °C, more than 80% (compared to <50% for unmodified weed) of the modified adsorbent was not degraded, indicating that modification had a significant influence on the thermal stability of seaweed. The modified seaweed has been shown to have great potential for the removal of metals and DOC in polluted water. The modified adsorbent can therefore be applied for the removal of metals in polluted waters hence suitable for treatment of water for domestic consumption at a point of use. 相似文献
12.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2014,78(1-2):172-176
A fungus, Aureobasidium pullulans, was isolated from marine biofilm and identified. A bioassay-guided fractionation procedure was developed to isolate and purify antifouling compounds from A. pullulans HN. The procedure was: fermentation broth—aeration and addition of sodium thiosulfate–graduated pH and liquid–liquid extraction—SPE purification—GC–MS analysis. Firstly, the fermentation broth was tested for its toxicity. Then it was treated with aeration and addition of sodium thiosulfate, and its toxicity was almost not changed. Lastly, antifouling compounds were extracted at different pH, the extract had high toxicity at pH 2 but almost no toxicity at pH 10, which suggested the toxicants should be fatty acids. The EC50 of the extract against Skeletonema costatum was 90.9 μg ml−1, and its LC50 against Balanus amphitrete larvae was 22.2 μg ml−1. After purified by HLB SPE column, the EC50 of the extract against S. costatum was 49.4 μg ml−1. The myristic and palmitic acids were found as the main toxicants by GC–MS. 相似文献
13.
《Limnologica》2015
To investigate the interaction between cyanobacteria and heterotrophic bacteria under gradients of glucose and nitrate, a cyanobacterial strain of Microcystis aeruginosa was grown in microcosms with and without a freshwater bacterial mixture, which was collected from Lake Taihu. Concentrations of glucose (1350, 975, 600, 300, 150, and 37.5 μmol C L−1) and nitrate (150, 300, and 9000 μmol N L−1) were used in a range of combinations giving 9 different treatments of glucose:nitrate. In the microcosm without the bacterial mixture, M. aeruginosa abundance gradually increased with days in all treatments. However, M. aeruginosa had much lower density in some treatments with the bacterial mixture. The difference in M. aeruginosa growth could be explained by competition with bacteria in the cultures in which these were added. The abundance of M. aeruginosa and bacteria when grown together was nearly equal and the number of the bacterial species was highest in the treatment with 300 μmol C L−1 and 150 μmol N L−1. Our results suggest that at this glucose:nitrate ratio M. aeruginosa and the bacterial mixture maintain a balance, and bacteria maintain diversity. In conclusion, we propose that dissolved organic carbon and nitrate availability fundamentally affects the structure as well as stoichiometry of pelagic associations. 相似文献
14.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2009,58(6-12):349-356
This study examined the phosphorus retention and release characteristics of sediments in the eutrophic Mai Po Marshes in Hong Kong. Results of chemical fractionation show that the sum of inorganic P pools exceeded 50% of the total sediment P content, with the redox-sensitive iron-bound P (Fe(OOH) ≈ P) being the dominant P fraction. Given the considerable average Fe(OOH) ≈ P concentration of 912 μg g−1, Mai Po sediments demonstrated a great potential to release bioavailable P under low sediment redox potentials. This was further supported by the high mean anaerobic P flux of 31.8 mg m−2 d−1 recorded in Mai Po sediment cores, indicating the role of bottom sediments as a net P source. Although sediments in Mai Po had appreciable Langmuir adsorption maxima (1642–3582 mg kg−1), the high zero equilibrium P concentrations (0.02–0.51 mg L−1) obtained suggest that sediment sorption processes would contribute to sustaining the eutrophic conditions in overlying water column even with a further reduction in external P load. Concerted efforts should be made to reduce internal loading of P, especially under reducing conditions, to complement the implementation of zero discharge policy for Deep Bay for effective eutrophication abatement and long-term water quality improvement in the Mai Po Marshes. 相似文献
15.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2008,56(10-12):459-468
Marabasco is a tropical river-estuary system comprising the Marabasco river and the Barra de Navidad Lagoon. The river is impacted by the Peña Colorada iron mine, which produces 3.5 million tons of pellets per year. Thirteen surface sediment samples were collected in May 2005 (dry season) in order to establish background levels of Al, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the system and to ascertain the potential mobility of metals in the sediments. Analyses were carried out in the fraction finer than 63 μm, and labile metals extracted according the BCR procedure. Certified reference materials were used for validation of methods.Total concentrations of Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn were in the range of 0.05–0.34, 6–95, 0.7–31, 9–26, 2–18, and 53–179 mg kg−1, respectively; Al and Fe ranges of 24–127, and 26–69 mg g−1 correspondingly. Cadmium was found to be significantly labile in the sediments (20–100%), followed by Co (0–35%), Ni (3–16%) and Zn (0–25%), whereas the labile fraction for Cu, Fe and Pb was almost negligible (<4%).According with the total metal concentrations, background levels and normalised enrichment factors (NEF) of the metals studied, the impact of the Peña Colorada iron mine on the Marabasco system is lower than expected when compared with other similar World systems influenced by mining activities. 相似文献
16.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2012,65(12):2720-2724
Thallium(I) has been added to cultures of the marine macroalga, Ulva lactuca, for a period of 48 h and the accumulation of the metal and its effects on the photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (PS II) measured. Thallium elicited a measurable toxic response above concentrations of 10 μg L−1 in both coastal seawater (salinity 33) and estuarine water (salinity 20). The accumulation of Tl was defined by a linear relationship with aqueous Tl and accumulation factors of about 900 mL g−1 in both media. Thallium accumulated by U. lactuca that was resistant to an EDTA extraction and, by operational definition, internalised, exceeded 90% in both cases. Accumulation and toxicity of Tl in the presence of a ∼105-fold excess of its biogeochemical analogue, potassium, suggests that Tl has a high intrinsic phytotoxicity and that its mode of action involves permeation of the cell membrane as Tl+ through NaCl–KCl co-transporter sites rather than (or in addition to) transport through K+ ion channels. 相似文献
17.
《Limnologica》2017
Soda lakes and pans represent saline ecosystems with unique chemical composition, occurring on all continents. The purpose of this study was to identify and characterise the main environmental gradients and trophic state that prevail in the soda pans (n = 84) of the Carpathian Basin in Central Europe. Underwater light conditions, dissolved organic matter, phosphorus and chlorophyll a were investigated in 84 pans during 2009–2010. Besides, water temperature was measured hourly with an automatic sensor throughout one year in a selected pan. The pans were very shallow (median depth: 15 cm), and their extremely high turbidity (Secchi depth median: 3 cm, min: 0.5 cm) was caused by high concentrations of inorganic suspended solids (median: 0.4 g L−1, max: 16 g L−1), which was the dominant (>50%) contributing factor to the vertical attenuation coefficient in 67 pans (80%). All pans were polyhumic (median DOC: 47 mg L−1), and total phosphorus concentration was also extremely high (median: 2 mg L−1, max: 32 mg L−1). The daily water temperature maximum (44 °C) and fluctuation maximum (28 °C) were extremely high during summertime. The combination of environmental boundaries: shallowness, daily water temperature fluctuation, intermittent hydroperiod, high turbidity, polyhumic organic carbon concentration, high alkalinity and hypertrophy represent a unique extreme aquatic ecosystem. 相似文献
18.
《Limnologica》2017
Currently, nanotechnology has gained much interest due to the unique properties of nanomaterials in science and technology. Different types of metallic nanoparticles are routinely synthesized. However, their release into the aquatic environments is a major ecotoxicological concern. In this scenario, it is important to study the potential impact of engineered nanoparticle in aquatic organisms especially freshwater microcrustaceans, such as Ceriodaphnia cornuta. In this study, ZnO NPs were synthesized using the aqueous leaf extracts of Musa paradisiaca and physico-chemically characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infra red (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). UV–Vis spectroscopy recorded the absorbance peak of ZnO NPs at 338 nm. XRD analysis showed the various Bragg’s reflection peaks at 100, 002, 101, 102, 110, 103, 200, 112, 201, 004 and 202 lattice planes. FTIR spectroscopy outlined sharp intense peaks at 3416 cm−1, 1388 and 1416 cm−1. SEM showed the spherical shape of ZnO NPs with mean particle size of 23.3 nm. AFM confirmed the spherical shape, nanosize and 3D topography of NPs. The ecotoxicity of ZnO NPs was tested on the freshwater crustacean C. cornuta. ZnO NPs were comparatively less toxic than zinc acetate. ZnO NPs caused 42% mortality of C. cornuta at 50 μg mL−1. However, 80% mortality was observed at 50 μg mL−1 of zinc acetate after 24 h. Light and confocal laser scanning microscopic images evidenced the uptake and accumulation of ZnO NPs in the gut of C. cornuta at 50 μg mL−1 after 24 h. Structural deformities were observed on C. cornuta after treatment with 50 μg mL−1 of ZnO NPs. Overall, this study describes the potential impact of the biologically synthesized ZnO NPs in comparison with zinc acetate in the freshwater crustacean C. cornuta. 相似文献
19.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2009,58(6-12):632-636
The intertidal copeopod Tigriopus japonicus, which is abundant and widely distributed along the coasts of Western Pacific, has been suggested to be a good marine ecotoxicity testing organism. In this study, a series of experiments were conducted to investigate the reproducibility and variability of copper (Cu) sensitivity of T. japonicus so as to evaluate its potential to serve as an appropriate test species. To understand the seasonal variation of Cu sensitivity, individuals of T. japonicus were collected from the field in summer and winter, and subjected to standard 96 h acute (static renewal) toxicity tests. 96 h-LC50 values of T. japonicus collected from the two seasons were marginally different (p = 0.05), with an overall coefficient of variation (CV) of 33%. Most importantly, our results indicated that chronic Cu sensitivity of T. japonicus was highly reproducible. The CVs of intrinsic rates of increase in the population of the control and Cu treatment (10 μg Cu l−1) groups were only 10–11% between 10 runs of a standardised complete life-cycle test. Moreover, different Cu(II) salts generally resulted in a similar 96 h-LC50 value while Cu(I) chloride was consistently slightly less toxic than Cu(II) salts. Given such a high reproducibility of toxic responses, it is advocated to use T. japonicus as a routine testing organism. 相似文献
20.
《Marine pollution bulletin》2014,78(1-2):218-223
The Antarctic region is one of the best preserved environments in the world. However, human activities such as the input of sewage result in the alteration of this pristine site. We report baseline values of faecal sterols in Admiralty Bay, Antarctica. Four sediment cores were collected during the 2006/2007 austral summer at the Ezcurra (THP and BAR), Mackelar (REF) and Martel (BTP) inlets. Concentrations of faecal sterols (coprostanol + epicoprostanol) were <0.16 μg g−1, suggesting no sewage contamination and probable “biogenic” contributions for these compounds. Baseline values, calculated using the mean concentration of faecal sterols in core layers for THP, BAR, REF and BTP, were 0.04 ± 0.02, 0.03 ± 0.01, 0.07 ± 0.01 and 0.04 ± 0.02 μg g−1, respectively. These results established as natural contributions of faecal sterols, suggesting that these markers can be useful indicators of human-derived faecal input and contributing to monitoring programs to prevent anthropogenic impacts. 相似文献