Terrestrial lichens

The use of terrestrial invertebrates as sentinel organisms has been suggested for monitoring lead. The spider Araneus umbricatus, for example, contained lead body burdens that correlated with that in a lichen (Lecanora conizaeoides) that is used to monitor atmospheric lead (Clausen 1984). Similarly, the woodlouse (Porcellio scaber) seems to reflect lead concentrations in adjacent soil or leaf litter (Hopkin et al. 1986). 

Lichen, Umbilicaria sp. whole 16 km vs. 90 km from nickel smelter Terrestrial vegetation Hyperaccumulator plants Most species Vegetables... 

Sensitive terrestrial plants die when soil zinc levels exceed 100 mg/kg (oak and maple seedlings), and photosynthesis is inhibited in lichens at >178 mg Zn/kg DW whole plant. Sensitive terrestrial invertebrates have reduced survival when soil levels exceed 470 mg Zn/kg (earthworms), reduced growth at >300 mg Zn/kg diet (slugs), and inhibited reproduction at >1600 mg Zn/kg soil (woodlouse). The most sensitive aquatic species were adversely affected at nominal water concentrations between 10 and 25 pg Zn/L, including representative species of plants, protozoans, sponges,... 

The accident at the Chernobyl, Ukraine, nuclear reactor on April 26, 1986, contaminated much of the northern hemisphere, especially Europe, by releasing large amounts of radiocesium-137 and other radionuclides into the environment. In the immediate vicinity of Chernobyl at least 30 people died, more than 115,000 others were evacuated, and the consumption of locally produced milk and other foods was banned because of radiocontamination. The most sensitive local ecosystems were the soil fauna and pine forest communities. Elsewhere, fallout from Chernobyl measurably contaminated freshwater, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems, including flesh and milk of domestic livestock. Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) calves in Norway showed an increasing frequency of chromosomal aberrations that seemed to correlate with cesium-137 tissue concentrations tissue concentrations, in turn, were related to cesium-137 in lichens, an efficient absorber of airborne particles containing radiocesium and the main food source of reindeer during winter. A pattern similar to that of reindeer was documented in moose (Alces) in Scandinavia. 

Brominated fatty acids are rare in nature. They have been found in sponges and other marine animals. Recently, the presence of (5E, 7E)-18-bromo-octadeca-5,17-diene-15-ynoic acid (221) and 18-bromo-octadeca-5,7,17-triynoic acid (222) has been described in a halophilic (present in hypersaline environments) terrestrial organism, the Central Asian lichen Acorospora gobiensis [171]. 

Organohalogens are present in many terrestrial environments sediments, soils, plants, fungi, lichen, volcanoes, biomass combustion, bacteria, insects, and higher organisms. The high concentration and dispersal of chloride in minerals, soils,... 

Vanadium bromoperoxidase (V-BrPO) has been isolated from many species of marine brown algae, including A. nodosum [1,26,27], Laminaria saccharina [28], Fucus distichus [29], and Macrocystis pyrifera [29] the red algae Ceramium rubrum [30] and C. pilulifera [31] and a terrestrial lichen, Xanthoria parie-tina [32],... 

Many peroxovanadates have potent insulin-mimetic properties [1,2]. Apparently, this functionality derives from the ability of these compounds to rapidly oxidize the active site thiols found in the group of protein tyrosine phosphatases that are involved in regulating the insulin receptor function [3], The discovery of vanadium-dependent haloperoxidases in marine algae and terrestrial lichens provided an additional stimulus in research toward obtaining functional models of peroxidase activity, and there is great interest in duplicating the function of these enzymes (see Section 10.4.2). 

Detailed consideration is given to plants involved in the biomonitoring of terrestrial heavy metal pollution, ranging from lichens, fungi, and mosses to higher plants. In addition in-depth analysis of criteria for the selection of future monitoring species indicates new trends. 

For the vanadium bromoperoxidase from the lichen X. parietina it has been reported (23) that an excess (50 mM) of F", Cl", and Br" inhibited the enzymic activity. This enzjune from the terrestrial organism also had a surprisingly high affinity for bromide (Km = 0.03 mM), which is about two orders of magnitude higher than the values reported for the enzymes from seaweed (19,22,32, 33). This particular enzyme was also inhibited by low concentrations (1-5 mM) of nitrate (32). 

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