Sternberg natural history museum is located at the Fort Hays State University, Kansas in the United States (US). Its exhibits are permanent on the walls; they includes fossils collected mostly in the western US and all over Kansas. The museum also has exhibits of minerals and videos that explain the museum history; and its famous ‘fish within a fish’ fossil collection history included.
2 Exposure to Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde (FA) is a gas that is flammable, colourless and has a pungent noticeable odour. It usually reacts with cellular macromolecules such as deoxyribonucleic acids (DNA) and proteins (Murta et al, 2016). A curator may use FA to preserve newly arriving specimens in a museum; the same is done at Sternberg Museum. …show more content…
Under both approaches there are several techniques (Active, Passive and Grab sampling techniques) that one may consider depending on several factors such as available sampling time and the effectiveness of the technique with regards to what is to be sampled (Fulazzaky et al, 2016)
An example of air sampling procedure for formaldehyde (NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods (NMAM) Fourth Edition; CAS: 50-00-0, 2016 Issue 2)
1. Calibrate each personal sampling pump with a representative sampler (and ozone scrubber, if used) in line.
2. Open sampler packet and remove end caps.
3. Attach sampler to the sampling pump with flexible tubing. The Waters sampler is bi-directional and can be connected at either end. NOTE: The sampler does not have a backup section for determination of breakthrough. If high concentrations of aldehydes and ketones are anticipated, connect two samplers in series. The back pressure of the sampling train will be higher and a lower flow rate may be required.
4. Sample 1 to 15 L of air at 0.03 to 1.5 L/min. NOTE: To protect from intense light, such as bright sunlight, the sampler can be wrapped with aluminum foil or electrical tape.
5. Place end caps onto the sampler and seal sampler in an envelope. Protect samples from heat. 6. Ship samples on ice (0 °C).
6 …show more content…
Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology.36: 948–955.
Li, Y., Song, Z., Ding, Y., Xina, Y., Wu, T., Su, T., He, R., Tai, F., and Lian, Z.(2016).Effects of formaldehyde exposure on anxiety-like and depression-like behaviour, cognition, central levels of glucocorticoid receptor and tyrosine hydroxylase in mice. Chemosphere.144: 2004–2012.
Murta, G.L., Campos, K.K.D., Bandeira, A.C.B., Diniz, M.F., Costa, G.D., Costa, D.C., Talvani, A., Lima, W.G., and Bezerra, F.S.(2016).Oxidative effects on lung inflammatory response in rats exposed to different concentrations of formaldehyde. Environmental Pollution.211: 206–213.
Speit, G., Schmid, O., Frohler-Keller, M., Lang, I., and Triebig, G.(2007).Assessment of local genotoxic effects of formaldehyde in humans measured by the micronucleus test with exfoliated buccal mucosa cells. Mutation Research/Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis.627: 129–135.
Yang, X., Wang, Y., Liu., W., Zhang, Y., Zheng, F., Wang, S., Zhang, D., and Wang, J.(2016).A portable system for on-site quantification of formaldehyde in air based on G-quadruplex halves coupled with A smartphone reader. Biosensors and Bioelectronics.75: