Department of Biodiversity Studies and Bioeducation, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Łódź, Banacha 1/3, 90-237, Łódź, Poland.
Department of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Łódź, Banacha 12/16, 90-237, Łódź, Poland.
Arch Environ Contam Toxicol. 2018 Feb;74(2):330-338. doi: 10.1007/s00244-017-0470-1. Epub 2017 Oct 25.
Game animals, such as the roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), have long been used as bioindicators of environmental contamination. Most ecotoxicological research on ungulates has focused on trace element content in soft tissues and antlers. Also, only fragmentary information exists about whether and how trace element concentrations vary with the age of wild-living animals and whether these age-related patterns are similar for different types of tissues. The purpose of this study was to measure concentrations of seven trace metals (barium, copper, iron, lead, manganese, strontium, zinc) and fluoride in bone and teeth of roe deer and to determine whether significant variation is evident with individual age. For this purpose, we collected permanent molars and fragments of mandible bone from more than 130 female roe deer in Central Poland. We found that concentrations of four trace elements (barium, manganese, zinc, and fluoride) in teeth of deer showed positive linear relationships with individual age. No such trends were recorded for trace element content in bone. We suggest that these striking differences in age-related patterns of trace element bioaccumulation between bone and permanent teeth of roe deer might be explained by higher turnover rate and constant remodelling of bone tissue. The results suggest that analysis of permanent teeth may be useful for assessing throughout-life intoxication by environmental pollution in the roe deer and possibly in other mammal species. Our study reinforces the need to carefully account for age-related variation in ecotoxicological research on wild-living animals.
猎物种群，如狍子（Capreolus capreolus），长期以来一直被用作环境污染的生物指标。大多数关于有蹄类动物的生态毒理学研究都集中在软组织和鹿角中的微量元素含量上。此外，关于野生动物的年龄与微量元素浓度的变化以及这些年龄相关的模式是否相似等问题，只有零碎的信息。本研究的目的是测量狍子骨骼和牙齿中的七种痕量金属（钡、铜、铁、铅、锰、锶、锌）和氟化物的浓度，并确定个体年龄是否存在明显变化。为此，我们从波兰中部的 130 多只雌性狍子身上收集了恒磨牙和下颌骨碎片。我们发现，牙齿中四种痕量元素（钡、锰、锌和氟化物）的浓度与个体年龄呈正线性关系。骨骼中痕量元素的含量没有这种趋势。我们认为，这些在骨骼和恒磨牙中痕量元素生物积累的年龄相关模式之间的明显差异可能是由于骨组织的更高周转率和不断的重塑。研究结果表明，分析恒磨牙可能有助于评估环境污染对狍子和其他哺乳动物物种的终生中毒情况。我们的研究强调了在野生动物的生态毒理学研究中，需要仔细考虑年龄相关的变化。
