Environmental Heavy Metal Pollution And Effects On Child Mental Development

Heavy metals can be emitted into environment by both natural and anthropogenic sources, mainly mining and industrial activity. Human exposure occurs through all environmental media. Infants are more susceptible to the adverse effects of exposure. Increasing attention is now being paid to the mental development of children exposed to heavy metals. The purpose of this book is to evaluate the existing knowledge on intellectual impairment in children exposed to heavy metals in their living environment and to identify the research needs in order to obtain a clearer picture of the situation in countries and regions at risk, in which the economy is closely related to metallurgy and heavy metals emission, and to recommend a strategy for human protection. In greater detail the main objectives could be formulated as follows: to review the principal sources of single, and complex mixtures of, heavy metal pollutants in the environment; to identify suitable methodology for chemical analyses in the environment and in humans; to evaluate the existing methods for measuring mental impairment, including their reliability and validity; to recommend a standard testing protocol to be used in future research; to assess the future role of environmental heavy metal pollution in countries and regions at risk and its effects on children’s neurological development; to recommend a prevention strategy for protecting children’s health and development.

Heavy Metals in the Environment: Impact, Assessment, and Remediation synthesizes both fundamental concepts of heavy metal pollutants and state-of-the-art techniques and technologies for assessment and remediation. The book discusses the sources, origin and health risk assessment of heavy metals as well as the application of GIS, remote sensing and multivariate techniques in the assessment of heavy metals. The various contamination indices like contamination factor, geoaccumulation index, enrichment factor, and pollution index ecological risk index are also included to provide further context on the state of heavy metals in the environment. Covering a variety of approaches, techniques, and scenarios, this book is a key resource for environmental scientists and policymakers working to address environmental pollutants. Covers state-of-the-art techniques for the assessment and remediation of heavy metals Presents the interdisciplinary impacts of heavy metals, including human health, ecosystems and water quality Includes various contamination indices, such as contamination factor, geoaccumulation index, enrichment factor, pollution index and ecological risk index

This Research Topic is part of the Aquatic Physiology, Environmental Pollution, Nanotoxicology and Phytoremediation series: Aquatic Physiology, Environmental Pollution, Nanotoxicology and Phytoremediation, Volume II Environmental pollution as a result of increasing industrialization is a major problem worldwide. The toxicity of the chemicals, hazards, radiation, and environmental stressor to the aquatic fauna was studied. Although, recently, the excess levels of wastes discharged in water caused severe toxicity in aquatic environments and their fauna, still there is some shortage in the nanotoxicology and phytoremediation studies. So, the aim of this Research Topic is to create some knowledge about the environmental pollution and remediation in aquatic environment in collaboration with experts in physiology, biochemistry, endocrinology, morpho-histology of aquatic fauna. The relation between physiology and other research fields is strong enough as all researchers in biology field use some extent physiological parameters to evaluate the organisms’ health status in normal and stressful conditions. In addition, physiology with endocrinology and neurology can provide a contribution on the endocrine stress response of aquatic vertebrates and regulate the responses of vertebrates to stressors. Whilst the physiology of most aquatic animals has been well studied, not many articles provide sufficient data that helps understanding the common bases of the stress response after exposure to environmental pollutants and mechanisms of action. Such approach needs to be taken both in terms of comparative responses among vertebrates but also among classes or orders within groups of vertebrates. Another aspect that has not been sufficiently approached so far is physiological stress response in relation to immunity, growth, reproduction or behavior and embryology of the aquatic organisms, which expands the knowledge on the interactions between physiological systems to build an overall stress response.

The current exposure of human populations to toxic metals makes the prevention and control of such exposures crucial. Biomarkers are undoubtably recognized as vital tools to achieve these goals. This book is for researchers, toxicologists, physicians, pharmacologists and those working in governmental regulatory agencies and other public health fields. The first part of this book covers general aspects of biomarkers of toxic metals, while parts 2 and 3 cover biomarkers of xenobiotic metals and essential metals with potential for toxicity, respectively. In part 4, novel approaches to metal biomarkers are focused.

​This book provides a comprehensive information on basic and applied concepts of microbesial strategies adopted for the improvement of vegetables grown in various production systems. The beneficial role of soil microbes including plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), nitrogen fixers, and phosphate-solubilizing bacteria in the improvement of vegetables grown both in normal and contaminated soils is discussed. The role of PGPR in tomato production is dealt separately. The impact of heavy metals on different vegetables and abatement of metal toxicity following metal tolerant PGPR and their consequential impact on vegetables grown in metal polluted soil is discussed. Moreover, recent advances in the management of vegetable diseases employing PGPR are addressed. This volume is therefore of special interest to both academics, professionals and practitioners working in the field of vegetable farming/horticulture, microbiology and plant protection sciences.

This edited book details the plant-assisted remediation methods, which involves the interaction of plant roots with associated rhizospheric microorganisms for the remediation of soil and water contaminated with high levels of heavy metals, pesticides, radionuclides, agricultural by-products, municipal wastes, industrial solvents, petroleum hydrocarbons, organic compounds, and various other contaminants. Each chapter highlights and compares the beneficial and economical alternatives of phytoremediation to currently practiced soil, water, and air removal. This book covers state-of-the-art approaches in phytoremediation contributed by leading and eminent scientists from across the world. Phytoremediation approaches for environmental sustainability dealing the readers with a cutting-edge of multidisciplinary understanding in the principal and practical approaches of phytoremediation from laboratory research to field application. This book is of interest to researchers, teachers, environmental scientists, environmental engineers, environmentalists, and policy makers. Also, the book serves as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of environmental microbiology, biotechnology, eco-toxicology, environmental remediation, waste management, and environmental sciences as well as the general audience.

The compliance of this book is helpful for academicians, researchers, students, as well as other people seeking the relevant material in current trends of studies on the topic of environmental degradation.

Environmental health practitioners worldwide are frequently presented with issues that require further investigating and acting upon so that exposed populations can be protected from ill-health consequences. These environmental factors can be broadly classified according to their relation to air, water or food contamination. However, there are also work-related, occupational health exposures that need to be considered as a subset of this dynamic academic field. This book presents a review of the current practice and emerging research in the three broadly defined domains, but also provides reference for new emerging technologies, health effects associated with particular exposures and environmental justice issues. The contributing authors themselves display a range of backgrounds and they present a developing as well as a developed world perspective. This book will assist environmental health professionals to develop best practice protocols for monitoring a range of environmental exposure scenarios.