Non-destructive pollution exposure assessment by means of wood mice hair

Radiolead210Pb and210Po/210Pb activity ratios in dogs' hair

“…Shedding could be an important factor that influences heavy metals concentrations. [14] But domestic animals change their coat very irregular and widely spread on time because of stable temperature conditions and heating seasons at owners' homes, [31] and the concentrations changes could not be noticeable during population comparisons.…”

“…[15] As a consequence, hair may reflect tissue metal concentration and serve as a noninvasive proxy for body metal burden. [12,16] Some studies demonstrated [14,15] significant linear relationships among hair, kidney and liver for Pb in the insectivorous Wood Mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus). Also positive linear relationships between hair and liver for Pb in the European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) were found, insectivorous as well.…”

“…[13] The hair consists of 45% Carbon, 7% Hydrogen, 28% Oxygen, 15% Nitrogen and 5% Sulphur; under normal conditions hair contains 20-220 ppm Fe, 10-20 ppm Cu, 190 ppm Zn and 0.6 ppm I, the water content is about 12% at room temperature and is predominantly composed of keratin, a protein rich in cystine sulfhydryl (thiol) groups with binding affinity for various metals. [11,14] In the case of dogs, a single follicle may produce two types of hair: short down hair and long guard hair. Each hair shaft is continuously in contact with the bloodstream at the hair root, and thus may incorporate metals circulating in the blood during growth.…”

Domestic cat (Felis catus) as a bioindicator of environmental lead contamination / Kot domowy (Felis catus) jako bioindykator zanieczyszczenia środowiska ołowiem

“…The analysis of chemical composition of hair may be the source of knowledge about the organism exposure not only for a period of a few months or even years but also for the time directly preceding the examination which can provide the information about a strong poisoning [Dunnett, Lees 2003]. Hair is mainly built of keratin which is a protein rich in sulfhydryl groups that are able to bind heavy metals [Beernaert et al 2007, McLean et al 2009]. They get into the hair through blood vessels supplying hair follicles and also with secretion of the sebaceous and sweat glands.…”

“…It was noted that in small omnivorous mammals and predators, the content of heavy metals mainly depends on their environmental concentration but the weight and body size do not significantly affect the disused parameter. Higher values are noted in animals living in the vicinity of foundries or other industrial plants [Beernaert et al 2007, McLean et al 2009]. While investigating the content of heavy metals in animals of the dog family free living in Brazil, Curi et al [2012] observed that the mean value of lead in the coat of crab-eating fox amounted to 2.45 mg • kg −1 .…”