%0 Journal Article %J Environ Toxicol Chem %D 2012 %T An approach for calculating a confidence interval from a single aquatic sample for monitoring hydrophobic organic contaminants. %A Matzke, Melissa M %A Sarah E Allan %A Kim A Anderson %A Katrina M Waters %K Confidence Intervals %K Environmental Monitoring %K Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions %K Pilot Projects %K Polycyclic Hydrocarbons, Aromatic %K Water Pollutants, Chemical %K Water Pollution, Chemical %X

The use of passive sampling devices (PSDs) for monitoring hydrophobic organic contaminants in aquatic environments can entail logistical constraints that often limit a comprehensive statistical sampling plan, thus resulting in a restricted number of samples. The present study demonstrates an approach for using the results of a pilot study designed to estimate sampling variability, which in turn can be used as variance estimates for confidence intervals for future nā€‰=ā€‰1 PSD samples of the same aquatic system. Sets of three to five PSDs were deployed in the Portland Harbor Superfund site for three sampling periods over the course of two years. The PSD filters were extracted and, as a composite sample, analyzed for 33 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon compounds. The between-sample and within-sample variances were calculated to characterize sources of variability in the environment and sampling methodology. A method for calculating a statistically reliable and defensible confidence interval for the mean of a single aquatic passive sampler observation (i.e., nā€‰=ā€‰1) using an estimate of sample variance derived from a pilot study is presented. Coverage probabilities are explored over a range of variance values using a Monte Carlo simulation.

%B Environ Toxicol Chem %V 31 %P 2888-92 %8 12/2012 %G eng %N 12 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22997050?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1002/etc.2014 %0 Journal Article %J Environ Toxicol Chem %D 2012 %T Bridging environmental mixtures and toxic effects. %A Sarah E Allan %A Brian W Smith %A Robyn L Tanguay %A Kim A Anderson %K Biological Assay %K Environmental Monitoring %K Polycyclic Hydrocarbons, Aromatic %K Rivers %K Water Pollutants, Chemical %X

Biological Response Indicator Devices Gauging Environmental Stressors (BRIDGES) is a bioanalytical tool that combines passive sampling with the embryonic zebrafish developmental toxicity bioassay to provide a quantitative measure of the toxicity of bioavailable complex mixtures. Passive sampling devices (PSDs), which sequester and concentrate bioavailable organic contaminants from the environment, were deployed in the Willamette and Columbia Rivers within and outside of the Portland Harbor Superfund site in Portland, OR, USA. Six sampling events were conducted in the summer and fall of 2009 and 2010. Passive sampling device extracts were analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds and screened for 1,201 chemicals of concern using deconvolution-reporting software. The developmental toxicity of the extracts was analyzed using the embryonic zebrafish bioassay. The BRIDGES tool provided site-specific, temporally resolved information about environmental contaminant mixtures and their toxicity. Multivariate modeling approaches were applied to paired chemical and toxic effects data sets to help unravel chemistry-toxicity associations. Modeling elucidated spatial and temporal trends in PAH concentrations and the toxicity of the samples and identified a subset of PAH analytes that were the most highly correlated with observed toxicity. Although the present study highlights the complexity of discerning specific bioactive compounds in complex mixtures, it demonstrates methods for associating toxic effects with chemical characteristics of environmental samples.

%B Environ Toxicol Chem %V 31 %P 2877-87 %8 12/2012 %G eng %N 12 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23001962?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1002/etc.2018 %0 Journal Article %J Environ Sci Technol %D 2012 %T Impact of the deepwater horizon oil spill on bioavailable polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Gulf of Mexico coastal waters. %A Sarah E Allan %A Brian W Smith %A Kim A Anderson %K Environmental Monitoring %K Gulf of Mexico %K Petroleum Pollution %K Polycyclic Hydrocarbons, Aromatic %K Water Pollutants, Chemical %X

An estimated 4.1 million barrels of oil and 2.1 million gallons of dispersants were released into the Gulf of Mexico during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. There is a continued need for information about the impacts and long-term effects of the disaster on the Gulf of Mexico. The objectives of this study were to assess bioavailable polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the coastal waters of four Gulf Coast states that were impacted by the spill. For over a year, beginning in May 2010, passive sampling devices were used to monitor the bioavailable concentration of PAHs. Prior to shoreline oiling, baseline data were obtained at all the study sites, allowing for direct before and after comparisons of PAH contamination. Significant increases in bioavailable PAHs were seen following the oil spill, however, preoiling levels were observed at all sites by March 2011. A return to elevated PAH concentrations, accompanied by a chemical fingerprint similar to that observed while the site was being impacted by the spill, was observed in Alabama in summer 2011. Chemical forensic modeling demonstrated that elevated PAH concentrations are associated with distinctive chemical profiles.

%B Environ Sci Technol %V 46 %P 2033-9 %8 02/2012 %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22321043?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1021/es202942q %0 Journal Article %J Chemosphere %D 2011 %T Estimating risk at a Superfund site using passive sampling devices as biological surrogates in human health risk models. %A Sarah E Allan %A Gregory J Sower %A Kim A Anderson %K Animals %K Environmental Monitoring %K Fishes %K Humans %K Models, Statistical %K Neoplasms %K Oregon %K Polycyclic Hydrocarbons, Aromatic %K Public Health %K Risk Assessment %K Rivers %K Time Factors %K Water Pollutants, Chemical %X

Passive sampling devices (PSDs) sequester the freely dissolved fraction of lipophilic contaminants, mimicking passive chemical uptake and accumulation by biomembranes and lipid tissues. Public Health Assessments that inform the public about health risks from exposure to contaminants through consumption of resident fish are generally based on tissue data, which can be difficult to obtain and requires destructive sampling. The purpose of this study is to apply PSD data in a Public Health Assessment to demonstrate that PSDs can be used as a biological surrogate to evaluate potential human health risks and elucidate spatio-temporal variations in risk. PSDs were used to measure polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the Willamette River; upriver, downriver and within the Portland Harbor Superfund megasite for 3 years during wet and dry seasons. Based on an existing Public Health Assessment for this area, concentrations of PAHs in PSDs were substituted for fish tissue concentrations. PSD measured PAH concentrations captured the magnitude, range and variability of PAH concentrations reported for fish/shellfish from Portland Harbor. Using PSD results in place of fish data revealed an unacceptable risk level for cancer in all seasons but no unacceptable risk for non-cancer endpoints. Estimated cancer risk varied by several orders of magnitude based on season and location. Sites near coal tar contamination demonstrated the highest risk, particularly during the dry season and remediation activities. Incorporating PSD data into Public Health Assessments provides specific spatial and temporal contaminant exposure information that can assist public health professionals in evaluating human health risks.

%B Chemosphere %V 85 %P 920-7 %8 10/2011 %G eng %N 6 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21741671?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2011.06.051 %0 Journal Article %J Chemosphere %D 2010 %T Exploiting lipid-free tubing passive samplers and embryonic zebrafish to link site specific contaminant mixtures to biological responses. %A Hillwalker, Wendy E %A Sarah E Allan %A Robyn L Tanguay %A Kim A Anderson %K Animals %K Embryo, Nonmammalian %K Embryonic Development %K Environmental Monitoring %K Lipids %K Rivers %K Water Pollutants, Chemical %K Zebrafish %X

The Biological Response Indicator Devices Gauging Environmental Stressors (BRIDGES) bio-analytical tool was developed in response to the need for a quantitative technology for assessing the toxicity of environmentally relevant contaminant mixtures. This tool combines passive samplers with the embryonic zebrafish model. When applied in an urban river it effectively linked site specific, bioavailable contaminant mixtures to multiple biological responses. Embryonic zebrafish exposed to extracts from lipid-free passive samplers that were deployed at five locations, within and outside of the Portland Harbor Superfund Megasite, displayed different responses. Six of the eighteen biological responses observed in 941 exposed zebrafish were significantly different between sites. This demonstrates the sensitivity of the bio-analytical tool for detecting spatially distinct toxicity in aquatic systems; bridging environmental exposure to biological response.

%B Chemosphere %V 79 %P 1-7 %8 03/2010 %G eng %N 1 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20172587?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.02.001