Thursday, October 1, 2015
Biomagnification Case Study
Biomagnification Case Study
Mercury is introduced into bodies of water through the byproducts of most coal and sewage plants. It often goes through some chemical reactions in bodies of water, and turns into methylmercury, a highly toxic chemical that is absorbed at up to six times the rate of inorganic Mercury. Methylmercury is so dangerous because it is able to cross barriers within the bodies that most toxins cannot pass, such as blood to brain and placental barriers. This effects an organisms mental state, and can be transferred to an organism's offspring in-utero.
Phytoplankton are the first organisms to absorb the methylmercury. This builds in concentration as filter feeders such as clams and shrimp. Small Fish eat these, and bigger fish eat them, as well as herons and otters, with the amount of methylmercury becoming more and more potent. Eventually, the negative effects are seen in eagles and bears. Then humans.
There are a few options as to how to clean up the problem, but one of the most interesting is using engineered microbes that eat methylmercury. While this works in laboratories, this has a surprisingly small impact in the open environment. Apparently genetically engineered bacteria just aren't suited well to the world, and end up dying or being consumed by naturally occurring bacteria. The best way to combat Mercury in the environment is to simply find cleaner ways of burning fossil fuels and more green ways of processing sewage. This is a problem that should be solved at the source.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/a7176/how-microbes-will-clean-up-our-messes/
https://www.ec.gc.ca/mercure-mercury/default.asp?lang=En&n=D721AC1F-1
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ReplyDeleteI would Mark this assingment as complete.
ReplyDeleteI marked this as complete because it followed all the bullet points the assinment said had to be completed if a 100 were to be assigined. This assingment featured a mention of at least one toxin (methylmercury), and how it spreads through the enviroment (coal and sewage processing). It demonstrated how it moved through the food chain (starting at Plankton, than to Shrimp, than to larger fish such as herons, than fish eating birds, and finally to Humans). The paragraph details a clean up effort (with engineered bacteria that eat the mercury), and also says that the better solution is more likly to be found at the source of the problem insted of though roundabout efforts. Lastly the paragraph included a worked cited page (https://www.ec.gc.ca/mercure-mercury/default.asp?lang=En&n=D721AC1F-1). Following that the paragraph floowed all the directions put fourth I believe there assignment deserves a 100.
Question: Is there any particular reason these Engineered Bacteria do not survive long (aside form being eaten by other bacteria), if so are there any ways of desigining more resistant, agressive, or quicker breeding bacteria that could also continue to eat this mercury fir the future.?