Environmental UV Radiation: Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health and Predictive Models: Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Environmental UV Radiation: Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health and Predictive Models Pisa, Italy June 2001

287 Pages·2006·3.077 MB·English

by  Janet F. Bornman (auth.), Francesco Ghetti, Giovanni Checcucci, Janet F. Bornman (eds.)

Environmental UV Radiation:
Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health
and Predictive Models
NATO Science Series
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Series IV:Earth and Environmental Sciences – Vol.57
Environmental UV Radiation:
Impact on Ecosystems and
Human Health and
Predictive Models
edited by
Francesco Ghetti
CNR Istituto di Biofisica, Pisa, Italy
Giovanni Checcucci
CNR Istituto di Biofisica, Pisa, Italy
and
Janet F.Bornman
Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences,
Research Centre Flakkebjerg,
Slagelse, Denmark
Published in cooperation with NATO Public Diplomacy Division
Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on
Environmental UV Radiation:Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health
and Predictive Models
Pisa, Italy
June 2001
A C.I.P.Catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN-10 1-4020-3696-5 (PB)
ISBN-13 978-1-4020-3696-5 (PB)
ISBN-10 1-4020-3695-7 (HB)
ISBN-13 978-1-4020-3695-8 (HB)
ISBN-10 1-4020-3697-3 (e-book)
ISBN-13 978-1-4020-3697-3 (e-book)
Published by Springer,
P.O.Box 17, 3300 AADordrecht, The Netherlands.
www.springer.com
Printed on acid-free paper
All Rights Reserved
© 2006 Springer
No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or
otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any
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computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work.
Printed in the Netherlands.
CONTENTS
Preface vii
Historical Overview of Ozone Trends and Future Scenarios 1
J.F. Bornman
Basic Concepts of Radiation 5
D.H. Sliney, E. Chaney
Solar Radiation and its Measurement 25
H.K. Seidlitz, A. Krins
Medical and Environmental Effects of UV Radiation 39
B.M. Sutherland
Quantification of Biological Effectiveness of UV Radiation 51
G. Horneck, P. Rettberg, R. Facius, K. Scherer
Use and Evaluation of Biological Spectral UV Weighting Functions
for the Ozone Reduction Issue 71
M. M. Caldwell, S.D. Flint
Response to UV-B Radiation: Weighting Functions and Action Spectra 85
F. Ghetti, C. Bagnoli, G. Checcucci
ELDONET – European Light DOsimeter NETwork 95
D.-P. Häder, M. Lebert
Genetic and Molecular Analysis of DNA Damage Repair and Tolerance Pathways 109
B.M. Sutherland
UV-B and UV-A Radiation Effects on Photosynthesis at the Molecular Level 121
C. Sicora, A. Szilárd, L. Sass, E. Turcsányi, Z. Máté, I. Vass
Potential Effects of UV-B on Photosynthesis and Photosynthetic
Productivity of Higher Plants 137
S. Nogués, D.J. Allen, N.R. Baker
Detecting Stress-induced Reactive Oxygen Species in Plants Under UV Stress 147
É. Hideg
v
vi
Non-damaging and Positive Effects of UV Radiation on Higher Plants 159
M.G. Holmes
Impact of UV Radiation on the Aquatic Environment 179
D.-P. Häder
Underwater Radiation Measurements: Consequences of an Increased
UV-B Radiation 193
B. Kjeldstad
Influence of Ultraviolet Radiation on the Chromophoric Dissolved Organic Matter
in Natural Waters 203
R. Del Vecchio, N.V. Blough
Impact of UV Radiation on Rice-field Cyanobacteria: Role of Photoprotective
Compounds 217
R.P. Sinha, D.-P. Häder
Effect of UV-B Radiation on Ciliated Protozoa 231
R. Marangoni, F. Marroni, F. Ghetti, D. Gioffré, G. Colombetti
UV Radiation, DNA Damage, Mutations and Skin Cancer 249
F.R. De Gruijl
Ultraviolet Radiation and the Eye 259
D.H. Sliney
Student Abstracts 279
PREFACE
This volume originates from the NATO Advanced Study Institute
Environmental UV Radiation: Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health and
Predictive Models, held in Pisa, Italy in June 2001. The Institute was sponsored
and mainly funded by the NATO Scientific Affairs Division, whose constant
contribution in favour of the cooperation among scientists from different
countries must be acknowledged. Other Institutions substantially contributed to
the success of the ASI and our thanks and appreciation go to the Italian National
Research Council (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche), the Italian Space
Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana), the European Society for Photobiology and
the bank Banca Toscana.
In the last two decades of the past century, concern has been growing for
the possible effects on the biosphere of the stratospheric ozone depletion, due to
anthropogenic emissions of ozone-destroying chemicals. The ozone loss causes
an increase in the biologically important part of the solar ultraviolet radiation
(UV) reaching the Earth’s surface, which constitutes a threat to the biosphere,
because of UV damaging effects on humans, animals and plants.
The international agreements have reduced the production of ozone-
destroying compounds, which, however, are still present in high concentrations
in the stratosphere, mainly because of their longevity, and thus ozone depletion
will likely continue for several decades.
It is, therefore, critical to adequately predict how changes in UV radiation
and other environmental variables will affect ecosystems and the biological
processes needed to sustain life on Earth and to provide useful hints for future
actions of governmental and international agencies, as well as non-
governmental organizations.
This book offers not only basic information on the action mechanisms of
UV radiation on ecosystems and various biological systems, but also a picture
of the possible scenarios of the long-term global increase of environmental UV
radiation and emphasises the research aspects aimed at the proper quantitative
assessment of risk factors and the formulation of reliable predictive models.
vii
viii
The book is structured in four sections: the first one is devoted to a
general overview of the consequences of ozone depletion and to the basic
concepts of radiation measurements and monitoring; the other three sections are
devoted to the effects on plants, aquatic ecosystems and human health. At the
end a few abstracts of contributions from students who attended the school are
included.
For the latest information on the ongoing research about the
environmental effects of ozone depletion and its interactions with climate
change, the reader is referred to the last full assessment by the UNEP EEAP
(United Nations Environment Programme, Environmental Effects Assessment
Panel), published in Photochemical & Photobiologica. Sciences 2: 1-72 (2003),
and to its following updates, published in Photochem. Photobiol. Sci. 3: 1-5
(2004) and Photochem. Photobiol. Sci. 4: 177-184 (2005).
HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF OZONE TRENDS AND FUTURE SCENARIOS
JANET F. BORNMAN
Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, Research Centre
Flakkebjerg, Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences (DIAS), Slagelse,
Denmark
1. Ozone distribution
Stratospheric ozone (O ) is created over low latitudes by the action of ultraviolet
3
radiation of wavelengths shorter than ca 240 nm. An oxygen molecule (O ) reacts with
2
the high energy radiation and two oxygen atoms are formed in the reaction. A third
molecule (M), e.g. another oxygen or nitrogen, is required to remove the excess kinetic
energy in the following way:
O + UV (< 240 nm) (cid:314) O + O
2
O + O + M (cid:314)O + M
2 3
The destruction of ozone results in its breakdown to molecular oxygen and
atomic oxygen. In equilibrium, these two events of synthesis and degradation have in
the past resulted in an average ozone content of ca 300 DU (Dobson unit, DU = 1 mm of
ozone at STP). However, with the loading of the atmosphere with halogen compounds
containing Cl and Br from industrial activities, the balance is no longer in place, since
Br, BrO, Cl and ClO take part in catalytic breakdown cycles involving ozone.
Most of the stratospheric ozone occurs between 10 and 30 km above the surface
of the earth, providing an effective filter against harmful ultraviolet radiation. This high
energy radiation can cause erythema (sunburn), skin cancers, cataracts, and changes in
immune response, etc. UV also modifies terrestrial and aquatic life forms, as well as
detrimentally affecting synthetic and natural materials. The filtering layer typically
removes 70-90% of the UV radiation. Furthermore, since ozone absorbs solar energy,
the ozone layer is an important controlling factor of upper stratospheric temperature.
Between 1979 and 1997, the annual global average temperature decreased by 0.6 Kelvin
per decade in the lower stratosphere, and by 3 K per decade in the upper stratosphere1.
2. Progression of changes in stratospheric ozone
Reductions in ozone have been recorded in the Antarctic, Arctic, and mid-
latitudes in both hemispheres. This thinning of the ozone is also not confined only to the
polar spring, which is the period of minimum ozone concentration. The ozone
measurements in the Antarctic started in the mid-1950s. Up to the 1970s, the apparently
1
F. Ghetti et al. (eds.), Environmental UV Radiation: Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health
and Predictive Models,1–3.
© 2006 Springer. Printed in the Netherlands.
2
normal ozone cycles in the Antarctic gave values of ca 300 DU during winter and until
late spring in October. Thereafter a rise to ca 400 DU by the beginning of December
was typical, with a gradual falling off again towards March. Since the 1980s this cycle
of events has been replaced by a superimposed thinning of the ozone with values below
100 DU during the Antarctic spring. This spring-time decrease was first reported by
Farman and co-workers2 of the British Antarctic Survey team in 1985. They had
observed a mean loss during October 1984 from ca 300 to 180 DU. Subsequent
recordings have shown values of less than 100 DU. A press release by NASA in
September 2000 announced that an ozone depletion area three times larger than the land
mass of the United States, had occurred. This depleted area spanned ca 28 million km2,
and was considerably larger than that noted two years previously.
3. Contributing factors for the ozone loss
There is general consensus that the ozone layer is being destroyed mainly as a
consequence of the release of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) into the atmosphere by
industry3. The chlorine monoxide molecule (ClO) and other important chemical species
such as bromine monoxide (BrO) and nitrogen oxides are involved. Reservoirs of
bromine, nitrogen oxide and chlorine are transported to the upper atmosphere, although
bromine reservoirs are more unstable than chlorine, and occur mainly as Br and BrO.
The chlorine reservoirs may consist of hydrochloric acid and chlorine nitrate, while
dinitrogen pentoxide and nitric acid are the nitrogen oxide reservoirs. Catalytic
breakdown reactions of ozone involve heterogeneous interactions with bromine,
chlorine and nitrogen compounds. Of importance are also sulphate aerosol particles and
sulphur dioxide, the latter of which has been found in high amounts following volcanic
eruptions. During polar spring conditions of ca –80°C, the sulphate aerosols take up
water and nitric acid and form the so-called polar stratospheric clouds (PSC) which
become solidified as temperatures drop further. These clouds serve as catalytic surfaces
where ozone-degrading substances are released and become concentrated, and react
with ozone when the polar regions warm up.
Another important climatic factor is the increasing trend of CO levels, which
2
also negatively affect the ozone chemistry by preventing re-emission of the radiation
from the surface of the earth. This greenhouse phenomenon cools the upper atmosphere,
which in turn results in favourable conditions for the formation of the polar stratospheric
clouds over the polar regions, especially over the Antarctic.
4. Antarctic versus Arctic climates
The geographical features of the Arctic region apparently result in more irregular
polar vortex winds and higher temperatures compared to the Antarctic, which is
surrounded by ocean rather than by mountainous continents. Consequently, polar
stratospheric clouds are not as frequent in the Arctic. Despite this, recent recordings of
ozone losses exceeding 60% have coincided with increased sightings of PSCs and a
more stable polar vortex. The lower temperatures found in the Arctic in recent years
show a positive correlation with stratospheric ozone loss4. These findings suggest that
the recovery of the ozone layer may be delayed longer than predicted.