title: Metal exposure in cows grazing pasture contaminated by iron industry: Insights from magnetic particles used as tracers.
abstract: Magnetic particles (MP) emitted by an iron smelter were used to investigate the exposure of cows grazing on a grassland polluted by these MP and by large amounts of potentially toxic elements (PTE). The morphology as well as the chemical composition of the MP separated from cow dung were studied. Large amounts of typical MP were found (1.1 g kg(-1) dry weight) in the cow dung sampled from the exposed site, whereas these particles were absent from the reference unpolluted site. The ingested MP were mainly technogenic magnetic particles (TMP) emitted by the smelter. Considering the MP concentration in the grazed grass on the exposed site, it was concluded that cows absorb the MP not only from the grass but also from the soil surface. The results of a mild acidic leaching of the MP suggested that the particles were possibly submitted to a superficial dissolution in the abomasum, pointing at a potential route of transfer of the PTE originating from the TMP and leading into food chains. TMP were only a small part of the anthropogenic contamination having affected the soil and the dung. However, due to their unequivocal signature, TMP are a powerful tracer of the distribution of PTE in the different compartments constituting the food chains and the ecosystems. Furthermore, the measurement of the particle sizes gave evidence that a noticeable proportion of the MP could enter the respiratory tract.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France. Electronic address: sophie.ayrault@lsce.ipsl.fr.
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ayrault
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire LECA, UMR 5553, Equipe Pollution, Environnement, Ecotoxicologie et Ecoremédiation, Univ. Grenobles Alpes, 38041 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Mickaël
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Catinon
authors.affiliation: Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie Paris 06, CNRS, Institut des Sciences de la Terre de Paris (iSTeP), 4 Place Jussieu 75005 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Omar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Boudouma
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
authors.forename: Louise
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bordier
authors.affiliation: Evinrude, Espace St Germain, 38200 Vienne, France.
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Agnello
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire LECA, UMR 5553, Equipe Pollution, Environnement, Ecotoxicologie et Ecoremédiation, Univ. Grenobles Alpes, 38041 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Reynaud
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire LECA, UMR 5553, Equipe Pollution, Environnement, Ecotoxicologie et Ecoremédiation, Univ. Grenobles Alpes, 38041 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tissut
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism*; D005243:Feces; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination; D007501:Iron / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D008280:Magnetics; D008669:Metallurgy; D008670:Metals; D006109:Poaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D008670:Metals; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D007501:Iron
keywords: Abomasum; Cattle; Dung; Herbivorous; ICP-MS; Potentially toxic elements (PTE); SEM-EDX; Smelter; Technogenic magnetic particles; Terrestrial ecosystems