Objective - Development of biochemical fingerprint techniques (biomarkers) for assessing the exposure and effects of chemicals on soil-living invertebrates.- Establishment of specific relationships between the biomarker response and adverse effects at the population level of soil-living invertebrates.Biomarkers, such as stress proteins, metal-binding proteins or esterases, act as integrators of exposure to environmental contaminants. They have the potential to bridge the enormous gap between chemical analyses of contamination and the impairment of physiological reactions of organisms which may lead to effects at the population and ecosystems levels. The biomarker approach is directly related to the bioavailability of a specific chemical compound or class of compounds, and may be used as a sensitive early warning of chemical stress before sublethal effects, such as inhibition of growth or reproduction, become apparent. Even combined effects of various chemical compounds and unexpected toxicants may be integrated in the biomarker response.The BIOPRINT project will characterise and quantify the induction of heat shock proteins (HSP) in gastropods, isopods and collembola, the induction of metallothioneins and of other metal-binding proteins in isopods, collembola and gastropods, and the induction/inhibition of esterases in oligochaetes, isopods and collembola as reaction on sub-lethal exposure of copper and dimethoate. Other metals (Cd, Zn, Pb) may be used as further test chemicals. Also novel biomarkers, e.g. on the basis of relationships between metabolic dysfunction and sub-lethal effects will be developed.The biomarkers reaction will be correlated to sensitive sub-lethal effects, such as growth and reproduction, and the potential applicability of the biomarker approach in the field will be investigated.The BIOPRINT project is closely related to the SECOFASE project (Contract EV5V-CT92-0218) which is developing, improving and standardizing a test system for assessing sublethal effects of chemicals on the fauna in soil ecosystems. Fields of science natural sciencesbiological sciencesbiochemistrybiomoleculesproteinsnatural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystemsnatural sciencesbiological scienceszoologyinvertebrate zoology Programme(s) FP3-ENV 1C - Specific research and technological development programme (EEC) in the field of the environment, 1990-1994 Topic(s) 040204 - Risks to health and the environment from chemical substances Call for proposal Data not available Funding Scheme CSC - Cost-sharing contracts Coordinator WAGENINGEN UNIVERSITY Address 10,binnenhaven 10 6701 ES Wageningen Netherlands See on map EU contribution € 0,00 Participants (5) Sort alphabetically Sort by EU Contribution Expand all Collapse all Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck Austria EU contribution € 0,00 Address 25,technikerstraße 6020 Innsbruck See on map NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE - MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY Denmark EU contribution € 0,00 Address 25,vejlsoevej 25 8600 Silkeborg See on map NERC Institute of Terrestrial Ecology United Kingdom EU contribution € 0,00 Address Monks wood experimental station abbots ripton PE17 2LS Huntingdon See on map Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg Germany EU contribution € 0,00 Address Im neuenheimer feld 230 69120 Heidelberg See on map VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT AMSTERDAM - VERENIGING VOOR CHRISTELIJK WETENSCHAPPELIJK ONDERWIJS Netherlands EU contribution € 0,00 Address 1087,de boelelaan 1087 1081 HV Amsterdam See on map
