A MODIFIED INDEX FOR LEAD IN BIOLOGICAL MONITORING

抄録

Biological monitoring using wildlife is a useful method for investigating the degree of environmental pollution. However, data obtained from wildlife cannot always be used for monitoring in some cases. One reason is that it is difficult to establish wildlife controls that are not contaminated. A new index was established for cadmium in our previous reports. Given that lead (Pb) is known to be one of the important elements involved in health problems in humans, the establishment of a similar index for Pb is also important. We selected 98 data points from 37 previous publications regarding Pb contents in wildlife samples. There was a significant correlation between the Pb contents of the kidney and liver. The above index was confirmed using previously published references including those that described Pb-contaminated birds. The data on contaminated birds deviated from the index of Pb, while the data from non-contaminated samples was observed to lie within the index. Thus, this index of Pb can be used to determine the Pb pollution status of animals and may be useful for biological monitoring.