Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of Milan, 20133 Milan, Italy.
Chemistry Department, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy.
J Hazard Mater. 2024 Oct 5;478:135497. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.135497. Epub 2024 Aug 13.
The use of sewage sludge as a soil improver has been promoted in agroecosystems. However, sludges can contain toxic trace elements because of suboptimal wastewater treatment. Nonetheless, field studies investigating the negative effects of these practices on pollinators are lacking. We collected honeybees from an area where sewage sludge use is widespread, and one where it is precluded. Trace elements in soils and bees were quantified. Cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, and nickel were investigated because they were the least correlated elements to each other and are known to be toxic. Their levels were related to oxidative stress and energy biomarkers, midgut epithelial health, body size and wing asymmetry of honeybees. We found increased carbohydrate content in sites with higher cadmium levels, increased histological damage to the midgut epithelium in the sewage sludge area, and the presence of dark spherites in the epithelium of bees collected from the sites with the highest lead levels. Finally, we found that honeybees with the highest lead content were smaller, and that wing fluctuating asymmetry increased in sites with increasing levels of mercury. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive study of the concentration and effects on honeybees of trace elements potentially deriving from soil amendment practices.
将污水污泥用作土壤改良剂已在农业生态系统中得到推广。然而，由于废水处理不理想，污泥可能含有有毒微量元素。尽管如此，缺乏研究这些实践对传粉媒介负面影响的田间研究。我们从一个广泛使用污水污泥的地区和一个禁止使用的地区采集了蜜蜂。对土壤和蜜蜂中的微量元素进行了定量分析。选择研究镉、铬、铅、汞和镍，因为它们是彼此相关性最小的元素，而且已知具有毒性。它们的水平与氧化应激和能量生物标志物、中肠上皮健康、蜜蜂的体型和翅膀不对称性有关。我们发现，镉含量较高的地方碳水化合物含量增加，在污水污泥区中，中肠上皮的组织损伤增加，而在铅含量最高的地方采集的蜜蜂的上皮中存在黑色小球体。最后，我们发现，体内铅含量最高的蜜蜂体型较小，而随着汞含量的增加，翅膀波动的不对称性也增加了。据我们所知，这是首次全面研究土壤改良实践中潜在源自微量元素对蜜蜂的浓度和影响的研究。
