| Project Title |  |
| Project
C1: Predicting metal and metal mixture effects in aquatic biota.
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| Research Team | |
| G. Dixon, Univ.
of Waterloo. Email: dgdixon@biology.watstar.uwaterloo.ca Tel: 519-885-1211 X 2531 Co-Investigators:
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| Project Summary | |
| All Canadian water quality guidelines for metals are based on single metals, despite the fact that aquatic organisms are invariably exposed to mixtures of metals, as opposed to single metals one at a time. A unified approach that addresses the interactions of metals, for both uptake and impact, is one of the most pressing needs in metals toxicology. The overall objectives of this project are to compare free metal-ion concentrations and body metal concentrations as predictors of biological effects of single metals in freshwater invertebrates (amphipods), and to determine if metal speciation modeling or body concentration measurements can improve predictions of effects of metals in mixtures. This research examines the interactions of waterborne metal mixtures with the aquatic invertebrate Hyalella azteca and will seek relationships among water chemistry, metal toxicity and metal tissue residues within the organisms. | |