Shin-ichi Hayama

Lead (Pb), an environmental pollutant, has been widely reported to have contaminated mammals, including humans and birds. This study focuses on the effects of Pb pollution on avian influenza virus (AIV) antibody production. A total of 170 black-headed gulls (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) were captured in Tokyo Bay (TBP) from January 2019 to April 2020 and in Mikawa Bay (MBP) from November 2019 to April 2021. The gulls were weighed, subjected to blood sampling, and released with a ring band on their tarsus. The samples were used to measure blood Pb levels (BLL) and AIV-specific antibodies. The BLL were compared using the Wilcoxon two-sample test between the period when black-headed gulls arrived and the wintering period, defined by the number of gulls counted in each area. A significant increase was found in the TBP. A decrease in BLL significantly increased antibody titer during wintering in TBP and MBP. Pb pollution had a negative effect on the production of AIV antibodies. These findings suggest that wild birds that were contaminated by Pb in the environment may facilitate the spread of zoonotic diseases, further increasing the possibility that environmental pollutants may threaten human health.

Wild Japanese monkeys (Macaca fuscata) were exposed to radiation after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in 2011. To clarify the biological effects of radiation exposure on their fetal growth, pregnant monkeys and their fetuses were analyzed. These animals were collected between 2008 and 2020 (before and after the accident in 2011) living in Fukushima City, approximately 70 km from the nuclear power plant. Multiple regression analyses were conducted with fetal body weight (FBW) and fetal head circumference (FHS) as objective variables, and maternal and fetal factors as explanatory variables. The maternal factors were relative exposure dose rate (REDR), age, body weight, body length, fat index, and parity. The fetal factors were crown ramp length (CRL) and sex. Multiple regression analyses showed that FBR and FHS growth were positively associated with CRL, maternal body length, and negatively associated with REDR. Since the relative growth of FBR and FHS to CRL decreased with increasing REDR, radiation exposure due to the nuclear accident may have contributed to the delayed fetal growth observed in Japanese monkeys.