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Minerals
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Medical Geology
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Medical Geology

A special issue of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Mineralogy and Biogeochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 January 2019) | Viewed by 15015

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Carla Patinha

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Geosciences, Campus Universitário de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Interests: soil quality indicators; selective chemical extraction; bioaccessibility
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Nuno Durães

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Geosciences & GEOBIOTEC Research Unit, Campus Universitário de Santiago, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Interests: environmental geochemistry; potential toxic elements; mining environmnetal impacts; acid mine water; biogeochemistry; mineralogy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Medical Geology is an interdisciplinary branch of earth sciences that is dedicated to the study of the relationship between geological materials and/or earth processes and their impacts on the health of humans and animals. The high levels of elements or other compounds contained in geological materials (soils, rocks, dusts, waters, etc.), or even their redistribution/introduction in the environment by anthropogenic activities, can harm or benefit human health. Inversely, and not less important, are the cases where nature shows deficits of certain essential elements or compounds, which may hinder the normal development of people or even potentiate the onset of diseases. Nowadays, it is essential to understand the influence of environmental factors on the geographical distribution of health problems. Population health depends not only on the present, but also on the past lived environmental conditions, as well as the exposure period. This Special Issue seeks case studies regarding either benefits or adverse effects originating from geogenic sources or due to human action in these sources. In addition, this Special Issue provides a great opportunity to report recent and updated research involving a multitude of disciplines and expertise in an attempt to find relationships between the environment and health.

Dr. Carla Patinha
Dr. Nuno Durães
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • potentially harmful elements
  • essential elements
  • bioaccessibility and bioavailability
  • soils
  • dust
  • water
  • peloids and thermal waters
  • geophagia
  • human and animal health
  • risk assessments
  • environmental and human risk criteria
  • diseases

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 1492 KiB  
Article
Measuring Copper, Lead and Zinc Concentrations and Oral Bioaccessibility as Part of the Soils in Scottish Schools Project
by Christine M. Davidson, Craig Duncan, Cameron MacNab, Bethany Pringle, Stuart J. Stables and Debbie Willison
Minerals 2019, 9(3), 173; https://doi.org/10.3390/min9030173 - 11 Mar 2019
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3564
Abstract
Determination of potentially toxic elements in soils with which children have regular contact can provide valuable information to support health risk assessment. It is also important to engage schoolchildren with soil science so that they become well-informed citizens. The Soils in Scottish Schools [...] Read more.
Determination of potentially toxic elements in soils with which children have regular contact can provide valuable information to support health risk assessment. It is also important to engage schoolchildren with soil science so that they become well-informed citizens. The Soils in Scottish Schools project involved pupils across Scotland in the collection of soil from school grounds for determination of copper, lead and zinc. Samples were subjected to microwave-assisted aqua-regia digestion to determine pseudototal analyte concentrations. The simplified bioaccessibility extraction test was applied to estimate bioaccessibility. Analysis was performed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Pseudototal analyte concentrations varied widely: Cu 15.6–220 mg∙kg−1; Pb 24.6–479 mg∙kg−1 and Zn 52.5–860 mg∙kg−1. Higher concentrations were measured in urban areas, which were historically home to heavy manufacturing industries, with lower concentrations in soils from more rural schools. Bioaccessible analyte concentrations also varied widely (Cu 3.94–126 mg∙kg−1; Pb 6.29–216 mg∙kg−1 and Zn 4.38–549 mg∙kg−1) and followed similar trends to pseudototal concentrations. None of the elements studied posed a significant health risk to children through accidental soil ingestion whilst at play during breaks in the school day, although the relatively high bioaccessible levels of lead at some locations are worthy of further investigation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medical Geology)
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17 pages, 2975 KiB  
Article
Multivariate Analysis for Assessing Sources, and Potential Risks of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Lisbon Urban Soils
by Anabela Cachada, Ana Claudia Dias, Amélia Paula Reis, Eduardo Ferreira da Silva, Ruth Pereira, Armando da Costa Duarte and Carla Patinha
Minerals 2019, 9(3), 139; https://doi.org/10.3390/min9030139 - 26 Feb 2019
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3028
Abstract
Urban soils quality may be severely affected by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contamination, as is the case of Lisbon (Portugal). However, to conduct a risk assessment analysis in an urban area can be a very difficult task due to the patchy nature and [...] Read more.
Urban soils quality may be severely affected by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contamination, as is the case of Lisbon (Portugal). However, to conduct a risk assessment analysis in an urban area can be a very difficult task due to the patchy nature and heterogeneity of these soils. Thus, the present study aims to provide an example on how to perform the first tier of a risk assessment plan in the case of urban soils using a simpler, cost effective, and reliable framework. Thus, a study was conducted in Lisbon to assess the levels of PAH, their potential risks to the environment and human health, and to identify their major sources. Source apportionment was performed by studying PAHs profiles, their relationship with potentially toxic elements, and general characteristics of soil using multivariate statistical methods. Results showed that geostatistical tools are useful for evaluating the spatial distribution and major inputs of PAHs in urban soils, as well as to identify areas of potential concern, showing their usefulness in risk assessment analysis and urban planning. Particularly, the prediction maps obtained allowed for a clear identification of areas with the highest levels of PAHs (close to the airport and in the city center). The high concentrations found in soils from the city center should be a result of long-term accumulation due to diffuse pollution mostly from traffic (through atmospheric emissions, tire debris and fuel exhaust, as well as pavement debris). Indeed, most of the sites sampled in the city center were historical gardens and parks. The calculation of potential risks based on different models showed that there is a high discrepancy among guidelines, and that risks will be extremely associated with the endpoint or parameters used in the different models. Nevertheless, this initial approach based on total levels was useful for identifying areas where a more detailed risk assessment is needed (close to the airport and in the city center). Therefore, the use of prediction maps can be very useful for urban planning, for example, by crossing information obtained with land uses, it is possible to define the most problematic areas (e.g., playgrounds and schools). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medical Geology)
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14 pages, 1010 KiB  
Article
Genetic Damage in Workers from the Rare Metal Ore Production Region
by Dina Petrashova, Alla Martynova and Vladimir Megorskiy
Minerals 2019, 9(2), 135; https://doi.org/10.3390/min9020135 - 25 Feb 2019
Viewed by 2812
Abstract
The aim of this study was to assess the genotoxic and cytotoxic effects that occur in miners working underground in rare metal ore mines at ionizing radiation levels within the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) standards using the buccal micronucleus cytome (BMCyt) assay. At [...] Read more.
The aim of this study was to assess the genotoxic and cytotoxic effects that occur in miners working underground in rare metal ore mines at ionizing radiation levels within the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) standards using the buccal micronucleus cytome (BMCyt) assay. At the same time, we attempted to identify possible relationships between cytogenetic abnormalities in the buccal epithelium and such physiological indicators as cardiodynamics and the body mass index. The study involved a total of 269 individuals, 236 miners working underground in production related to the mining and enrichment of loparite ores and 33 non-exposed individuals (Russia, Murmansk region). Buccal micronucleus cytome assay and heart rate variability parameters were used. Micronucleus frequency was revealed to be a higher in the exposed group (8.3 ± 1.08‰) than in the non-exposed group (3.3 ± 0.49‰). The repair index showed a statistically significant increase in the non-exposed group (14.9 ± 2.90) compared with the exposed group (6.1 ± 0.74). The frequency of nuclear protrusions correlates significantly with the body mass index in the young miners (≤30 years (r = 0.45)). There is a negative relationship between the micronucleus frequency and the level of organism adaptation (r = −0.24), the vegetative regulation rate (r = −0.20) and the psycho-emotional state (r = −0.30) for miners older than 30 years. The results testify to the possible induction of clastogenic effects and a decrease in the level of reparation in the buccal epithelium cells due to the exposure of a various of production factors in the extraction of loparite ore. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medical Geology)
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18 pages, 4625 KiB  
Article
The Link between Soil Geochemistry in South-West England and Human Exposure to Soil Arsenic
by Joanna Wragg, Mark Cave, Elliott Hamilton and T. Robert Lister
Minerals 2018, 8(12), 570; https://doi.org/10.3390/min8120570 - 04 Dec 2018
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4536
Abstract
The aim of this research is to use the whole soil geochemistry and selected bioaccessibility measurements, using the BioAcessibility Research Group of Europe (BARGE) method, on the same soils to identify the geochemical controls on arsenic (As) bioaccessibility and to gain an understanding [...] Read more.
The aim of this research is to use the whole soil geochemistry and selected bioaccessibility measurements, using the BioAcessibility Research Group of Europe (BARGE) method, on the same soils to identify the geochemical controls on arsenic (As) bioaccessibility and to gain an understanding of its spatial distribution in south-west England. The total element concentrations of 1154 soils were measured with As concentrations ranging from 4.7–1948 mg·kg−1, with the bioaccessible As of 50 selected soils ranging from 0.6–237 mg·kg−1. A Self Modelling Mixture Resolution approach was applied to the total soil element chemistry to identify the intrinsic soil constituents (ISCs). The ISCs were used as predictor variables and As bioaccessibility as the dependant variables in a regression model for the prediction of As bioaccessibility at all soil locations to examine its regional spatial distribution. This study has shown that bioaccessibility measurements can be directly linked to the geochemical properties of soils. In summary, it seems the primary source of bioaccessible As comes from soils developed directly over the mineralised areas surrounding the granite intrusions. Secondary sources of bioaccessible As are derived from As that has been mobilised from the primary mineralised source and then re-absorbed onto clay material, Fe oxides and carbonate coatings. This information can be of direct use for land development, since land contamination can affect the health of people living, working, visiting or otherwise present on a site. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medical Geology)
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