Abstract
This study investigated the effect of soil organic matter content on the bioavailability of malathion to the common nightcrawler, Lumbricus terrestris. Earthworms were exposed for 72 h to malathion on two soil types, 8% organic matter and 55% organic matter. Two different measures of bioavailability, malathion body burdens and tissue cholinesterase activities, were then measured in the malathion exposed animals. There were no significant differences in body burden or cholinesterase levels in L. terrestris exposed to malathion on soils with differing organic matter content. This suggests that absorption into organic matter is not a limiting factor of malathion bioavailability to earthworm species.
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank the Environmental Protection Agency for funding for this project. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through its Office of Research and Development partially funded and collaborated in the research described here under assistance agreement #R-83055101 to North Carolina State University. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view or policies of the EPA.
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Henson-Ramsey, H., Shea, D., Levine, J.F. et al. Assessment of the Effect of Varying Soil Organic Matter Content on the Bioavailability of Malathion to the Common Nightcrawler, Lumbricus terrestris L.. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 80, 220–224 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-007-9349-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-007-9349-6