METHOD OF BIOLOGICALLY MONITORING ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS AND OBJECTS Russian patent published in 1999 - IPC

FIELD: environmental monitoring. SUBSTANCE: method is designed to determine toxicity of ecological systems and objects: soil, water, foods, drugs, domestic objects, and unknown objects. As test organism, infusoria Paramecium Caudatum are used, and monitoring is conducted consecutively in three steps. First, biological activity of substance of object being monitored is evaluated: effect of this substance on test organism after 0.5-24 h incubation is compared to that of a reference standard medium. In the second step, mixture of standard medium containing test organisms with substance of object being monitored and reference standard medium with test organisms are used. The two media are exposed to functional loads until complete destruction of test organisms is attained, and their life duration since the beginning of functional loads is registered, from which stimulation and inhibitory activities of substance of object being monitored are evaluated in comparison with those of standard medium. In the third step, mixture of standard medium containing 3-4 days- aged test organisms with substance of object revealing biological activity in the first step is used. This mixture is incubated for 3-4 days and then number of test organisms in fixed volume of object is calculated to estimate effect of substance on the rate of test organisms' reproduction. In the first and second steps, 2-3 weeks- aged infusoria Paramecium Caudatum are used as test organisms. Substance of object to be tested is added to medium in concentrations from 1•10^-2 to 1•10^-6 per 1 ml of medium. This mixture and reference standard medium with test organisms are incubated at 18-27 C. EFFECT: potentially dangerous objects rapidly revealed, biological monitoring data banks for ecological systems created, their conditions predicted, and scientifically-founded ways to control them developed. 2 cl, 1 tbl, 6 ex