Environmental toxicology

Lectures: 

1. The role of environmental toxicology, environmental toxicology in risk-based environ-mental management, the basics of environmental toxicology, the effects of toxic sub-stances and the measurement of the effects.
2. Classification of environmental toxicity methods: generally applicable methods to water, soil, sediment, methods suitable to pure chemical substances, test organisms. Measure-ment and study endpoints for measurement of the effects of chemical substances and contaminated environmental elements. Interpretation of test results. Dose-response rela-tionship.
3. Single species laboratory ecotoxicity tests. Methods for the testing of the terrestrial envi-ronment.
4. Single species laboratory ecotoxicity tests. Methods for the testing of the aquatic envi-ronment.
5. Multispecies ecotoxicity tests: microcosms, mesocosms, field studies.
6. Evaluation, interpretation and utilisation of environmental toxicity results in the integrat-ed assessment of contaminated sites, in integrated environmental monitoring, in the gen-eral risk assessment of chemical substances, in the derivation of environmental quality criteria and limit values, in the local and site-specific risk assessment of contaminated sites and generally in environmental management.Qualitative and quantitative risk evalu-ation.
7. Human health risk assessment. Alternatives to animal tests. Emerging pollutants. Envi-ronmental risk assessment of contaminated sites: methods, examples, case studies.

Laboratory practices:

1. Testorganisms for the testing of water toxicity. The most common test methods include the alga test, single-cell protozoon (pl. Tetrahymena pyriformis) test, plant test (duck-weed), and animal tests (freshwater shell-covered crustacean, Ostracoda, water flea). Counting of cells and organisms by microscope.
2. Folsomia candida (Collembola, insect) mortality test. Plant root and shoot elongation in-hibition test. Terrestrial plants represent one of the most important trophic levels, the producers. They can be used for ecotoxicity testing of waters and soils polluted with tox-ic substances. Folsomia candia (Collembola), the ancient springtail insect can be used for testing soils contaminated with organic contaminants.
3. Aliivibrio fischeri (bacteria) bioluminescence inhibition test. Aliivibrio fischeri is a marine bacterium that emits light under favourable conditions. Light emission is inhibited in the presence of toxic substances, which can be detected by a luminometer.