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environmental contamination Flashcards

(48 cards)

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1
Q

how are natural systems degraded ?

A

pollution, erosion, use of resources and species extinction

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2
Q

what does backround level mean ?

A

the concentration of a substance in an environmental medium (air, water, or soil) that occurs naturally or is not the result of human activities

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3
Q

what impacts do air pollutants have ?

A

cuase the greenhouse effect
ozone depletion
acidification
smog formation
human health
ecosystem health

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4
Q

what are some sources of air pollutants ?

A

routine emissions from stationary sources e.g. factories
accidental releases e.g. spillages
mobile sources e.g. cars
forest fires

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5
Q

what are the 6 criteria air pollutants ?

A

nitrogen dioxide
ozone
carbon monoxide
lead
particulate matter
sulfur dioxide

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6
Q

what is nitrogen dioxide ?

A

this is a brownish gas which irritates the respiratory system and originates from combustion (nitrogen in the air is oxidised)

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7
Q

what is ozone ?

A

this is a primary constituent of urban smog

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8
Q

what is carbon monoxide ?

A

this reduces blood’s ability to carry oxygen
and is a product of incomplete combustion

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9
Q

what is lead ?

A

this causes learning disabilities in children
it is toxic to the liver, kidney and blood forming organs
tetraethyl lead used to be in petrol

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10
Q

what effects does particulate matter do to us ?

A

it can cause respiratory disorders

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11
Q

what is sulfur dioxide ?

A

this is formed when fuel (coal,oil) containing sulfur is burned and metal smelting
it is a precursor to acid rain

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12
Q

what are some of the risks that come with water pollution ?

A

pollutant runoff from agricultural lands
stormwater flows from cities - sanitary sewers overflow and release raw sewage to streets and waterbodies
loss of habitats (wetlands)
fish becoming contaminated by the remaining discharges and sources of toxic substances

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13
Q

what is meant by the term “point sources “ ?

A

these are direct discharges to a single point

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14
Q

what are examples of point sources ?

A

discharges from sewage treatment plants, injection wells, and some industrial sources

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15
Q

what is meant by the term “non-point sources “ ?

A

these diffuse across a broad area and their contamination cannot be traced to a single point

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16
Q

what are some examples of non-point sources ?

A

runoff off excess fertilizers, herbicides and insecticides from agricultural lands and residential areas
oil,grease and toxic chemicals from urban runoff and energy production
sediment from construction sites, crop and forest lands
eroding stream banks

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17
Q

what are the three categories of pollutants ?

A

biological-infectious agents
heavy metals
organic compounds

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18
Q

what are heavy metals ?

A

metals with a high atomic mass

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19
Q

what are some examples of heavy metals ?

A

arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, nickel, platinum, selenium, silver and vanadium

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20
Q

where are heavy metals used ?

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A

heavy metals are used in industrial processes and by-products of mining, smelting, fossil fuel burning

21
Q

problems with heavy metals …

Study These Flashcards
A

they can have a direct physiological effect or can concentrate in fatty tissue

22
Q

what are synthetic organic materials ?

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A

these have a carbon based molecular structure
they often contain chlorine
they are soluble in fat and accumulate in tissue
they are manufactured as pesticides, herbicides, insecticides or as insulator oil

23
Q

what tests are within a complete blood count ?

Study These Flashcards
A

white blood cell counts
rbc counts
haemoglobin
platelet count
mean corpuscular volume
mean corupuscular haemoglobin
mean platelet volume

24
Q

what specimens are tested ?

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A

whole blood, serum or plasma - the most common specimen is serum which is collected in a tube with no anticoagulant so that the blood will clot
urine-concentrations of molecules in urine will vary greatly depending on how much water is diluting the urine
cerebrospinal fluid
fecal matter (not very common)
sputum
hair
sweat
amniotic fluids

25
what is actually measured ?
its usually the concentration of a certain chemical in a certain place (serum, urine) this chemical is known as the analyte a lower/higher level could indicate the presence of a disease
26
what are some examples of electrolytes and simple ions ?
sodium potassium bicarbonate chloride calcium phosphate iron,zinc, magnesium ...
27
what are examples of small molecule analytes ?
glucose, cholestrol, urea, creatinine, carbon dioxide, bilirubin and vitamins
28
what are some examples of protein analytes ?
total protein albumin specific enzymes proteins of the immune system signalling proteins such as hormones
29
biochemical and chemical tests which give us information can help with :
diagnosis prognosis screening monitoring drug prescription
30
what does diagnosis depend on ?
the patients history and the clinical symptoms and examination you can give a diagnosis and biochemical or chemical tests can confirm this you could also give a short list of diagnoses which tests can help you to choose from
31
what does prognosis depend on ?
the prognosis for any condition will depend on the age and general health of the patient as well as the disease they are suffering from test can indicate the likely outcome of a known disease stae . e.g. high levels of a protein called psa gives an indication that prostate cancer is malignant and likely to spread
32
what is screening ?
the detection of disease at sub-clinical levels (when symptoms have not been presented ) the tests must be sensitive and fairly cheap
33
when monitoring a patient we can ...
use quantitive test to give info on the progress of disease and the response to treatment e.g. monitoring glucose levels in diabetic patients
34
when prescribing drugs...
some tests can be used to prescribe the right drugs or the right amount of drugs . the tests can show if toxic side effects would occur , or if the drug is unlikely to work on the patient the tests generally involve measuuring the conc of the drug in the serum
35
what 4 things makes a good test :
accurate-values close to the truth precise-gives the same answer every time specific-does not give false positives sensitive-does not give false negatives
36
proteins can be used as markers of disease ...
a range of different enzymes are checked regularly since changing levels of them are associated with disease. alkaline phosphatase, transminases, gamma glutamy transferase, creatinine kinase and amylase are all regularly tested
37
what is alkaline phosphatase (alp) ?
this occurs at high concentrations in the liver, bone, placenta and intestine the levels of alp in plasma can be increased by - some bone diseases (rickets), hepatic conditions and pregnancy
38
what is AST ?
aspartate transminase is widely disributed in body tissues increased plasma levels are normally due to liver problems, higher levels for acute hepatitis, lower for chronic hepatitis pancreatitis can also be indicated
39
what is CK ?
creatinine kinase increases in plasma with : sever exercise skeletal muscle damage muscular dystrophy myocardial infarction and epilepsy
40
what are the risl factors for cancer ?
lifestyle (smoking, bad diet, obesity) exposure to radiation exposure to carcinogenic chemicals viruses genetic predesposition most cancers have no clear cause
41
what is a tumour ?
is a dense collection of cells created when cell division goes out of control and cells divide when they should not.
42
benign tumour cells ...
grow only locally and cannot be spread by invasion or metastasis
43
malignant cells ...
invade neighboring tissues, enter blood vessels, and metastasize to different sites
44
what are the characteristics of cancer cells ?
proliferate in the absence of any "go" signal they ignore stop signals ]they divide an unlimited number of times ignore apoptosis messages angiogenesis invasion and metastasis
45
what is apoptosis ?
a type of cell death. the body uses this to get rid of any unneeded or abnormal cells
46
what is angiogenesis ?
the natural process where new blood vessels form from pre existing ones
47
what are oncogenes ?
when these genes are abnormally expressed or mutated, they contribute to cancer by producing growth factors without any stimulus
48
what is a tumour supressor gene ?
these code for proteins that stop cells from dividing. if these do not function properly then the "brakes are off". most cancers involve a mutation to p53

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