Ecotoxicology

General data

Course ID:	1300-WETKW-GEP
Erasmus code / ISCED:	07.204 Kod klasyfikacyjny przedmiotu składa się z trzech do pięciu cyfr, przy czym trzy pierwsze oznaczają klasyfikację dziedziny wg. Listy kodów dziedzin obowiązującej w programie Socrates/Erasmus, czwarta (dotąd na ogół 0) – ewentualne uszczegółowienie informacji o dyscyplinie, piąta – stopień zaawansowania przedmiotu ustalony na podstawie roku studiów, dla którego przedmiot jest przeznaczony. / (0532) Earth science The ISCED (International Standard Classification of Education) code has been designed by UNESCO.
Course title:	Ecotoxicology
Name in Polish:	Ekotoksykologia
Organizational unit:	Faculty of Geology
Course groups:	(in Polish) Przedmiot sugerowany do wyboru na II roku na stud. II st. GEP na spec. Geologia klimatyczna (in Polish) Przedmioty sugerowane do wyboru na I semestrze I roku st. na kierunku geologia poszukiwawcza
ECTS credit allocation (and other scores):	(not available) Basic information on ECTS credits allocation principles: the annual hourly workload of the student’s work required to achieve the expected learning outcomes for a given stage is 1500-1800h, corresponding to 60 ECTS; the student’s weekly hourly workload is 45 h; 1 ECTS point corresponds to 25-30 hours of student work needed to achieve the assumed learning outcomes; weekly student workload necessary to achieve the assumed learning outcomes allows to obtain 1.5 ECTS; work required to pass the course, which has been assigned 3 ECTS, constitutes 10% of the semester student load. view allocation of credits
Language:	Polish
Type of course:	elective courses
Prerequisites (description):	Basic knowledge of ecology, biology and chemistry.
Short description:	During the course the following issues are discussed: the basic concepts and definitions of ecotoxicology, classification of toxic substances and characteristics of the mechanisms of their impact on the environment at different levels of nature organization (cell, organism, population, ecosystem). The most important methods used in ecotoxicology are presented.
Full description:	During the lecture the following issues are discussed: 1. Definition, history, range of ecotoxicology and the basic terms and concepts used in ecotoxicology. 2. Biogenic and xenobiotic compounds, classification of xenobiotics and environmental factors affecting the toxicity of the substance. 3. Toxic elements (heavy metals) and inorganic chemicals (gases, dust, detergents, fertilizers, nitrogen). 4. Toxic organic compounds (pesticides, PAHs, dioxins, furans, PCBs, etc.). 5. Effect of poisons on organisms, dose and levels of poisons, types of poisonings, metabolism of xenobiotics. 6. Physiological effects of toxins, genetic resistance and susceptibility, biochemical defenses and detoxification. 7. Theory of stress, organism's adaptation to life under stress. 8. Biomarkers of exposure, biomarkers of effect. 9. Effect of poisons on populations, adaptation, evolution of resistance, impact on the gene pool. 10. Effect of poisons on ecosystems, bioaccumulation and biomagnification of poisons in the trophic chain. 11. Complex effects of pollution on the ecosystem on the example of spruce forests in the Karkonosze Mountains. 12. Ecological disasters. 13. Research methods in ecotoxicology, epidemiological studies, laboratory tests, ecotoxicological tests, long- and short-term bioassessment, statistical methods. 14. The importance of biotechnology for ecotoxicology and environmental protection.
Bibliography:	(in Polish) Laskowski R., Migula P., 2004. Ekotoksykologia - od komórki do ekosystemu, Państwowe Wyd. Rolnicze i Leśne, Warszawa. Walker C.H., Hopkin S.P., Sibly R.M., Peakall B., 2002. Podstawy Ekotoksykologii, PWN, Warszawa. Manahan S.E., 2006. Toksykologia środowiska. PWN, Warszawa Piotrowski J.K., 2006. Podstawy toksykologii. WNT, Warszawa Seńczuk W., 2002. Toksykologia, Wydawnictwo Lekarskie PZWL, Warszawa Zakrzewski Z., 2000. Podstawy toksykologii środowiska, PWN, Warszawa.
Learning outcomes:	On completion of the course, the student: - recognizes multiple relationships between environmental components and understands the processes occurring in the environment at different levels of the organization of nature, - has a knowledge of the human impact on the natural processes in the environment, - knows the concepts of ecotoxicology and the main toxic substances in the environment, - uses specialistic terminology in the field of environmental protection in Polish and English, - critically evaluate information about the environment, - identifies the strengths and weaknesses of standard actions taken to solve environmental problems, - is able to identify environmental risks associated with economic activity.
Assessment methods and assessment criteria:	Knowledge of all the issues presented during the lecture, final written assessment. In the case of resit the same criteria as above apply.
Practical placement:	none

This course is not currently offered.

Course descriptions are protected by copyright.
Copyright by University of Warsaw.