The fate of aniline, a representative of arylamine pollutants derived from the manufacture of dyes, coal liquefaction, and pesticide degradation, was comprehensively evaluated by use of unpolluted and polluted pond water as model environments. Evaporation plus autoxidation proved to be minor elimination mechanisms, removing ca. 1% of the added aniline per day. Instantaneous binding to humic components of a 0. 1 % sewage sludge inoculum removed 4%. Biodegradation of aniline in pond water was accelerated by the sewage sludge inoculum. A substantial portion of the degraded aniline carbon was mineralized to CO2 within a 1-week period, and microbial biomass was formed as a result of aniline utilization. Biodegradation was clearly the most significant removal mechanism of polluting aniline from pond water. A gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis of biodegradation intermediates revealed that the major pathway of aniline biodegradation in pond water involved oxidative deamination to catechol, which was further metabolized through cis,cis-muconic, beta-ketoadipic, levulinic, and succinic acid intermediates to CO2. Minor biodegradation pathways involved reversible acylation to acetanilide and formanilide, whereas N-oxidation resulted in small amounts of oligomeric condensation products.

A presença de resíduos de antibióticos em leite pode ter efeitos adversos para a saúde pública e para a indústria de laticínios. O objetivo desse estudo foi verificar a presença de resíduos de antibióticos pelo kit Charm-test™ (principalmente β-lactâmicos e sulfonamidas) em 210 amostras de leite cru, coletadas em quatro regiões produtoras de leite no Brasil: 47 em Viçosa-MG, 50 em Pelotas-RS, 63 em Londrina-PR e 50 em Botucatu-SP. Resíduos de antibióticos foram detectados em 24 amostras (11,4%), sendo 13 (20,6%) da região de Londrina-PR, 4 (8,0%) da região de Botucatu-SP, 4 (8,5%) da região de Viçosa-MG, e 3 (6,0%) da região de Pelotas-RS. Apesar dos resultados obtidos serem considerados qualitativos, ficou evidente que resíduos de antibióticos podem ser considerados perigos químicos presentes no leite produzido no Brasil. Palavras-chave: antibióticos; leite; Charm-test™. Abstract Antimicrobial residues present in milk can have many adverse effects for public health and for the dairy industry. The aim of this study is to evaluate the presence of antibiotics using the Charm-test™ kit (β-lactams and sulfonamides, mainly) in 210 raw milk samples collected in four different milk-producing areas in Brazil: 47 in Viçosa-MG, 50 in Pelotas-RS, 63 in Londrina-PR and 50 in Botucatu-SP. Antibiotic residues were detected in 24 samples (11.4%). Among them, 13 (20.6%) were from Londrina-PR, 4 (8.0%) from Botucatu-SP, 4 (8.5%) from Viçosa-MG, and 3 (6.0%) from Pelotas-RS. Despite being qualitative results only, it is evident that antibiotics may be an important chemical hazard in milk produced in Brazil. Qualidade e segurança alimentar têm recebido cada vez mais atenção da população mundial, especialmente em relação a perigos microbiológicos e químicos presentes em alimentos. Apesar de microrganismos patogênicos serem os agentes mais relacionados a enfermidades veiculadas por alimentos 1,16 , a presença de resíduos de substâncias químicas também é muito comum em todo o mundo. Em leite, antibióticos são resíduos químicos detectados com bastante freqüência, tanto no Brasil como em outros países 9,12,14,15,18. A principal fonte de resíduos de antibióticos em leite é originada do manejo inadequado de drogas no controle de mastites 12. Essas substâncias são eliminadas pelo leite durante seus períodos de carência, sendo necessário o descarte dessa produção. Dessa forma, a conscientização dos produtores é fundamental para prevenção de resíduos desses medicamentos em leite 11,20. Antibióticos do grupo dos β-lactâmicos são os mais utilizados para tratamento de doenças em rebanhos leiteiros, sendo assim os mais freqüentemente detectados no leite 10,19. A presença de resíduos de antibióticos em leite pode causar vários efeitos indesejáveis, como seleção de cepas bacterianas resistentes, no ambiente e no consumidor, hipersensibilidade e possível choque anafilático em indivíduos alérgicos a essas substâncias, desequilíbrio da flora intestinal, além de efeito teratogênico 1,8,15,18,19,20. Aproximadamente 5 a 10% da população é hipersensível...

One aspect of the use of antibiotics in animal agriculture, which to date has received modest attention, concerns the effects of antibiotics excreted by animals upon the environment. The persistence of 7 antibiotics that are commonly used in feeds was studied in a typical agricultural soil. The antibiotics studied were bacitracin (BAC), penicillin (PEN), streptomycin (STR), tylosin (TYL), bambermycins (BAM), erythromycin (ERY), and chlortetracycline (CTC). The level incorporated into the soil with feces was 5.6 μg antibiotic/g soil. After incubation in soil for 30 days at 30°C, 44% of CTC and 23% of BAC remained; however, no detectable amounts of TYL, ERY, BAM, STR, and PEN remained. At 20°C, 88% of CTC, 33% of BAC, and 25% of ERY remained after 30 days; however, no STR, BAM, TYL, and PEN could be found. At 4°C, essentially all of the CTC, ERY, and BAM; 23% of BAC; and 40% of TYL remained after 30 days; however, PEN and STR were undetectable.

No abstract

Two experiments were conducted comparing pelleted recycled newspaper (PN) to wheat straw (S) and kiln-dried pine wood shavings (WS) as an animal bedding material. Adult horses housed 20 to 21 h/d in boxstalls served as the animal model for comparisons. In Exp. 1 eight boxstalls, each housing one horse, were each bedded with two types of PN (0.32 and 0.64 x 2.54 cm), S, and WS over four 5-d periods (replicated 4 x 4 Latin square). Initial amounts of bedding materials surpassed most commercial conditions, but stalls were cleaned daily of feces only and additional clean bedding was added as needed to maintain animal cleanliness, thus challenging the bedding properties of each material. In Exp. 2 nine boxstalls were bedded with PN (0.32 x 2.54 cm), S, and WS over three 14-d periods (three 3 x 3 Latin squares) during summer and autumn. Feces and wet spots were removed daily and clean bedding was added to reestablish working volume and simulate commercial conditions. In Exp. 1 and 2 daily additions of clean bedding varied (P < 0.05) with material (S > WS > PN). The higher water-holding capacity of PN and WS contributed to fewer bedding replacements. Usage of each material was greater (P < 0.05) during the autumn; PN had the greatest increase. Type of material and season also influenced bedding environment. Bedding pH increased (P < 0.05) with use and was highest in PN and lowest in S. Higher concentrations of breathable NH3 N were present in stalls bedded with PN and during autumn. Higher pH of used PN and decreased ventilation due to closed doors and windows during autumn were contributing factors. Season, type of bedding, and duration of its use affected (P < 0.05) numbers as well as species of microorganisms present in the breathing zone, nasal cavity, and on the leg of the horse. Clean and used WS contained greater (P < 0.05) quantities of particle fines, but with 5 d of use, particle fines in PN also increased. Quantities of breathable dust during cleaning of stalls varied (P < 0.05) with material and duration of its use; dust peaked at d 7 with PN but continued to decrease with S and to increase with WS through d 14. These data indicate that management of bedding materials varies with type of material and season of year. Use of PN as a bedding material has high potential.