No description available.

USEPA regulations of Disinfection By-Products (DBPs) require water suppliers to be in compliance with maximum contaminant levels set by the agency’s Stage 2 DBP Rule. Controlling watershed sources of byproduct precursors are of interest to water suppliers. By-product formation potential and DOC (dissolved organic carbon) character were evaluated at eight sites on four dates (n=32). All sites are within Springfield Water and Sewer Commission’s Cobble Mountain Reservoir watershed (Blandford and Granville, Ma). The goal was to investigate how DBPFP (DBP formation potential) changes in relation to landscape driven changes in DOC chemical characteristics. Analysis was performed on raw water samples using UV-Visible Spectroscopy. 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (NMR), and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) were performed on solid phase extractable (SPE-C18) hydrophobic DOC. Changes in DBPFP are related to landscape changes in hydrophobic DOC characteristics. On three of the four sample dates (n=24) DBPFP was positively correlated to the E2:E3 ratio (R2=.37), SUVA (R2=.72), percent aromatic resonance (R2=.60), and percent carbohydrate resonance (R2=.44). DBPFP on three sample dates (n=24) was negatively correlated to percent aliphatic resonance (R2=.48). DOC aromaticity, SUVA and specific formation potential were lowest in headwater streams and increased with distance downstream. Substantial reductions in DOC concentration are seen upon reservoir export. For most parameters headwater in-stream variability was greater than inter-stream variability. Differences among headwater streams of different forest type are not distinguishable in our small sample size (n=12). Only slight differences in specific formation potential were observed among two different depth samples in Cobble Mountain Reservoir. Our results have implications for watershed management practices in the drinking water supply industry of New England.

No description available.

Thesis (Masters of Environmental Health)--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / In the Western Cape, South Africa and other regions globally, grape pomace (GP) is one of the abundant agro-waste from the winery industry. This study reports on the hyper-extraction of fermentable sugars from GP treated with white rot fungi (WRF) Phanerochaete chrysosporium BKMF 1767 to facilitate improved biovalorisation for total reducing sugars (TRS) extraction in conjunction with Nepenthes mirabilis digestive fluids. TRS were quantified using the 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid (DNS) reagent method. The free readily dissolvable sugars from the GP recorded for the bio-treated (BT) samples was 206.39 ± 0.06 mg/L and for the untreated (UT) samples was 271.05 ± 0.02 mg/L. Overall, the TRS yield for the Bio-treated (BT) and untreated (UT) samples was recorded as 205.68 ± 0.09 and 380.93 ± 0.14 mg/L, respectively, using hot water pretreatment (HWP) with 2266.00 ± 0.73 (BT) and 2850.68 ± 0.31 mg/L (UT), respectively, for dilute acid pretreatment (DAP); with 2068.49 ± 6.02 (BT) and 2969.61 ± 8.054 mg/L (UT) respectively, using the cellulase pretreatment (CP) method. Using the HWP as a reference, the relative increases imparted by the biotreatment was higher (51%) for DAP and low (33%) for CP. The combination of conventional used pre-treatment methods (hot water pretreatment, dilute acid pre-treatment, and cellulase pre-treatment) in a single pot system was also done while monitoring the total residual phenolics (TRPCs) in the samples. Furthermore, powder X-ray diffraction (pXRD) were used to measure the crystallinity index (CrI) and functional groups of pre- and post-pretreated GP to ascertain the efficiency of the pre-treatment methods, with quantification of lignin, holocellulose, and ash. Overall, the TRS yield for N. mirabilis pre-treated agro-waste was 951 mg/L ± 4.666 mg/L, with biomass having a lower CrI of 33%, and 62% residual lignin content. Furthermore, reduced TRPCs were observed in hydrolysate, suggesting limited inhibitory by-product formation during N. mirabilis pre-treatment

Disinfection by-products (DBPs) are a major group of water contaminants and their role in causing adverse health outcomes, including adverse pregnancy outcomes, endocrine disruption, respiratory related adverse health outcomes and cancer has been subject to extensive epidemiological and toxicological research and review. Determination of safe exposure to DBPs, particularly within drinking water supplies, has been a topic of extensive debate, with a wide range of acceptable levels set across the industrialized world. The focus of the research in this thesis was on two of the main health outcomes associated with DBP exposure, namely adverse pregnancy outcomes and asthma related symptoms. To assess adverse pregnancy outcomes in Perth, an extensive classification quantification of the major DBPs in Perth drinking water was conducted. A registrybased prevalence study was carried out to assess birth defects in relation to high, medium and low DBP areas (defined by the water sampling and analysis). It was found that women living in high THM areas are 22% (odds ratio (OR) 1.22, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.01-1.48) more likely of having a baby with any birth defect. High exposure was also strongly associated with an increased risk of having a baby with a cardiovascular defect (62% increased risk). Low birth weight and prematurity were also assessed; however these outcomes were not associated with an increased risk through an increase in exposure. Following on from this analysis, a population risk assessment model was developed for DBPs in high exposure environments. This involved a three step process: (i) Firstly a questionnaire-based validation and reliability study was used to assess water consumption patterns of a population of pregnant women in Perth. (ii) Secondly a prediction model for teratogenic burden of DBPs in Perth was developed, related to the exposure patterns of the population of pregnant women involved in the validation and reliability study. (iii) Finally, combining the information collected in (i) and (ii), along with the regression slope estimates for birth weight from the prevalence study (defined in Section 2.2.1), a dose-response model for THMs and birth weight was developed. Predictive simulations for birth weights at given THM levels were then conducted. It was estimated that pregnant women in Perth are exposed to between 0.3 – 4.10 µg/day ingested TTHM, and of this, the more toxic brominated forms accounted for between 0.27 – 3.69 µg/day. Based on a dose-response model used, birthweights calculated for the ‘hypothetical’ exposures ranged from 3403.2g for the highest exposure to 3503.5g in the lowest exposure, which is a difference of over 100g. Although the resulting reduction in birth weight is not extreme, there is still a significant reduction in birth weight present as exposure to TTHMs increases. This is the first doseresponse model to be developed to assess an adverse pregnancy outcome based on pregnant women exposure data, and will be a useful tool for assessing varying exposures throughout not only Australia but also throughout the industrialised world, where DBP exposure is highly prevalent.

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1948 R5 / Master of Science

Pacific whiting and its by-products were good raw materials for high quality fish sauce production. Heat stable and salt activated enzymes were responsible for autolytic activity in Pacific whiting and by-products. According to temperature profiles of raw materials at various salt concentrations, two fermentation temperatures, 35°C and 50°C, were selected and compared at 25% salt under static atmospheric condition. Higher yields and faster production rate were obtained from samples incubated at 50°C. Therefore, the apparent optimum condition for fish sauce fermentation using Pacific whiting and its by-products was at 50°C with 25% salt under static atmospheric condition. All physicochemical characteristics, except color and browning color, reached the level of commercial fish sauce within 20 days. Nitrogen contents in all samples reached the level of commercial fish sauce (16.3 g-N/mL) within 112 days. Predominant microorganisms found during fermentation were Staphylococcus, Bacillus and Micrococcus. Alpha-amino acid content appeared to be identified as a good parameter to estimate total nitrogen content during fermentation (adjusted R²=0.84). Soluble solid was a good index for protein degradation in fermentation (adjusted R²=0.71). Proteolytic activity in Pacific whiting and its by-products were investigated using hemoglobin as substrate. Specific substrates and specific inhibitors were also used to classify the types of enzymes responsible for protein degradation in fish sauce fermentation. Serine proteases, cathepsin L-like enzymes and metalloproteases were active at 50°C in whole fish. However, trypsin-like enzymes, and cathepsin L-like enzymes were responsible for protein degradation in by-products at 50°C. At 35°, whole fish was degraded by serine proteases, cathepsin B-like enzymes, trypsin-like enzymes, and metalloproteases. Cysteine proteases were mainly responsible for the degradation of proteins in by-products, and serine proteases and trypsin-like enzymes had a minor role in hydrolyzing of by-products during fermentation. / Graduation date: 2000

Aquaculture is growing rapidly worldwide and is projected to become the major source of fish used for human consumption. A major factor that limits aquaculture reaching its full potential is an adequate supply of the raw materials necessary for formulated fish feeds. The dependence of modern aquaculture on fishmeal obtained from wild fisheries is not environmentally sustainable and replacements for fishmeal must be found. Some animal by-products are viable replacements for fishmeal, and can provide sufficent nutrition for high growth rates, but little is known about the potential of animal by-products to adversely affect fish health. The objectives of these experiments were to determine if animal by-products used in fish feeds impair immune response or alter bone physiology in cultured juvenile rainbow trout. Four animal by-product containing diets (poultry meat meal (PMM)/ PMM plus feathermeal / PMM plus bloodmeal) and two reference diets (fishmeal or soya) were evaluated to determine their effect on innate immune response, the ability of fish to cope with normal husbandry stressors, and bone physiology. PMM was then selected due to its favourable amino acid profile and high digestibility and assessed to determine if the high levels of fishmeal replacement that may be required in the future, impact the health of rainbow trout. Due to the lack of reliable indicators of bone quality and quantity in salmonids the effects of exercise and phosphorus deficiency in rainbow trout were also examined. Relative to the fishmeal control diet, fish fed diets with PMM [(PMM) 50% crude protein, by substitution], PMM plus two percent blood meal, or PMM plus five percent feather meal, did not have an impaired innate immunity (lysozyme, alternative complement, phagocytosis, intracellular respiratory burst, differential counts of peripheral blood leukocytes) or changes in bone physiology as assessed by dynamic bone histomorphometry. Higher levels of PMM (0-70% digestible protein, by substitution) caused a reduction in apparent net mineral retention of phosphorus and calcium (P<0.001), a lower vertebral bone mineral content (P<0.001) and reduced vertebral mechanical properties (compressive extension (P=0.04), Young’s Modulus (P=0.03)), but fish growth was not affected. Exercise influenced bone modelling, with exercised animals having a reduced bone area and trabecular thickness (P=0.01), increased autocentrum width (P=0.04), and higher bone mineral content (P= 0.02); however, bone mechanical properties were unaffected. Induction of genes (receptor activator nuclear factor kappa beta and osteoprotogenerin), involved in the resorption of mineralised tissue, was not observed in fish fed phosphorus deficient diets although scales were evidenced to be an important source of labile minerals. Overall our results indicate that low level replacement of fish meal by poultry meat meal, and blends of poultry meat meal with blood or feathermeal do not affect fish innate immune response, bone physiology, or growth however the greatly elevated levels of poultry meat meal that may be required in future salmonid aquafeeds could increase the risk of spinal malformations. Thus the category 3 animal by products tested are valuable fishmeal replacements for aquaculture based on the endpoints measured in this study.