A method of detecting carbonyl compounds in tree leaves in China

Background, aim, and scope  

Carbonyl compounds have been paid more and more attention because some carbonyl species have been proven to be carcinogenic or a risk for human health. Plant leaves are both an important emission source and an important sink of carbonyl compounds. But the research on carbonyl compounds from plant leaves is very scarce. In order to make an approach to the emission mechanism of plant leaves, a new method was established to extract carbonyl compounds from fresh plant leaves.     

Assessment of water quality in the Alqueva Reservoir (Portugal) using bioassays

Background, aim, and scope  

Alqueva Reservoir is the biggest artificial freshwater reservoir in Europe and is an important water supply for human and agricultural consumption in the Alentejo region (Portugal). Pollution can impair environmental and human health status, and to assure water quality and ecological balance, it is crucial to frequently monitor water supplies. In this study, we used an ecotoxicological test battery to identify the potential toxicity of water from this reservoir.     

Development of a model to select plants with optimum metal phytoextraction potential

Purpose  

The aim of the present study is to propose a nonlinear model which provides an indicator for the maximum phytoextraction of metals to help in the decision-making process. Research into different species and strategies plays an important role in the application of phytoextraction techniques to the remediation of contaminated soil. Also, the convenience of species according to their biomass and pollutant accumulation capacities has gained important space in discussions regarding remediation strategies, whether to choose species with low accumulation capacities and high biomass or high accumulation capacities with low biomass.     

Some microbial characteristics of mussels (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Mytilus galloprovincialis</Emphasis>) in coastal city area

Purpose  

The aim of this work was to determine some microbial characteristics of Mytilus galloprovincialis harvested from four stations, located in Izmir coastal area (Eastern Aegean Sea, Turkey). The area along the Izmir coast is densely populated, and it includes extensive agricultural lands, industrial and domestic discharge. Shellfish contamination from sewage-polluted waters is very important for public health.     

Anomalous low tropospheric column ozone over Eastern India during the severe drought event of monsoon 2002: a case study

Background, aim, and scope  

The present study is an attempt to examine some of the probable causes of the unusually low tropospheric column ozone observed over eastern India during the exceptional drought event in July 2002.     

Energy budget in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Daphnia magna</Emphasis> exposed to natural stressors

Background, aim, and scope  

Climate changes are nowadays an important issue of concern, and it is expected that in the near future it will be intensified, leading to extreme environmental conditions. These changes are expected to originate additional sources of stress; therefore, the exposure of organisms to natural stressors is receiving an increased importance in risk assessment. Organisms tend to avoid extremely environmental conditions looking for optimum conditions. This work aimed to evaluate the effects of natural stressors on the energetic reserves of Daphnia magna using the quantification of lipids, proteins, and sugars.     

Phytoremediation to remove nutrients and improve eutrophic stormwaters using water lettuce (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pistia stratiotes</Emphasis> L.)

Background, aim, and scope  

Water quality impairment by nutrient enrichment from agricultural activities has been a concern worldwide. Phytoremediation technology using aquatic plants in constructed wetlands and stormwater detention ponds is increasingly applied to remediate eutrophic waters. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness and potential of water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes L.) in removing nutrients including nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from stormwater in the constructed water detention systems before it is discharged into the St. Lucie Estuary, an important surface water system in Florida, using phytoremediation technologies.     

Effects of rhamnolipids and shear on initial attachment of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas aeruginosa</Emphasis> PAO1 in glass flow chambers

Background, aim, and scope  

Solid surfaces in contact with water have been found to be biofouled due to the attachment of various organisms. For better understanding of the biofilm formation, the important initial stage of bacterial attachment was investigated with Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 as a model microorganism. Effects of the biosurfactant rhamnolipids and the shear conditions were particularly examined.     

A multibiomarker approach using the polychaete Arenicola marina to assess oil-contaminated sediments

Background, aim and scope  

Marine and coastal sediments can accumulate substantial concentrations of metals and hydrocarbons, yet the consequences of this contamination for exposed biota in situ can be difficult to establish. Here, we examine the hypothesis that exposure to contaminated sediments can lead to detrimental effects in sediment-dwelling species. The combination of chemical and biological assessment allows the identification of the impact of chemical contamination, and their use as assessment tools is becoming increasingly important.     

Seasonal variations of nitrogen and phosphorus retention in an agricultural drainage river in East China

Background, aim, and scope  

Riverine retention decreases loads of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in running water. It is an important process in nutrient cycling in watersheds. However, temporal riverine nutrient retention capacity varies due to changes in hydrological, ecological, and nutrient inputs into the watershed. Quantitative information of seasonal riverine N and P retention is critical for developing strategies to combat diffuse source pollution and eutrophication in riverine and coastal systems. This study examined seasonal variation of riverine total N (TN) and total P (TP) retention in the ChangLe River, an agricultural drainage river in east China.     

Interaction of nano-TiO2 with lysozyme: insights into the enzyme toxicity of nanosized particles

Background, aim, and scope  

Nanomaterials have been used increasingly in industrial production and daily life, but their human exposure may cause health risks. The interactions of nanomaterial with functional biomolecules are often applied as a precondition for its cytotoxicity and organ toxicity where various proteins have been investigated in the past years. In the present study, nano-TiO₂ was selected as the representative of nanomaterials and lysozyme as a representative for enzymes. By investigating their interaction by various instrumentations, the objective is to identify the action sites and types, estimate the effect on the enzyme structure and activity, and reveal the toxicity mechanism of nanomaterial.     

Straining phenomena in bacteria transport through natural porous media

Background, aim, and scope  

Transport of bacteria through natural porous media is an issue of increasing concern arising in several very important environmental processes. These include the percolation of bacteria from fecal waste to drinking water reservoirs, thus leading to a risk for human health, or the bioremediation of contaminated soils in which the bacteria are expected to travel long distances underground in order to reach contaminated areas and degrade chemicals originating from accidental spills. An understanding of bacterial retention and transport mechanisms in porous media would be of great help in the development of models able to predict the distance covered by bacterial suspensions in these situations.     

Combined biological processing and microfiltration in the treatment of unhairing wastewater

Introduction  

The unhairing step, a part of the beamhouse process, is particularly polluting, generating an alkaline wastewater with high concentrations of organic and inorganic matter. The aim of this study was to evaluate the treatment of this industrial wastewater using a combination of biological and microfiltration processes.     

Assessing spatial patterns of metal bioaccumulation in French mosses by means of an exposure index

Background, aim and scope  

The European Heavy Metals in Mosses Surveys (UNECE-ICP Vegetation) is a programme performed every 5 years since 1990 in at least 21 European countries. The moss surveys aim at uncovering the spatiotemporal patterns of metal and nitrogen bioaccumulation in mosses. In France, the moss survey was conducted for the third time in 2006. Five hundred thirty-six monitoring sites were sampled across the whole French territory. The aim of the presented study is to give an integrative picture of the metal bioaccumulation for the entire French territory without geographical gaps. Furthermore, confounding factors of the metal bioaccumulation in mosses should be investigated.     

Bioremediation and reclamation of soil contaminated with petroleum oil hydrocarbons by exogenously seeded bacterial consortium: a pilot-scale study

Purpose  

Spillage of petroleum hydrocarbons causes significant environmental pollution. Bioremediation is an effective process to remediate petroleum oil contaminant from the ecosystem. The aim of the present study was to reclaim a petroleum oil-contaminated soil which was unsuitable for the cultivation of crop plants by using petroleum oil hydrocarbon-degrading microbial consortium.     

An integrated approach for identification of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) pollutant sources based on human blood contents

Background, aim, and scope  

This study developed an integrated approach to identify pollutant sources of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) of workers based on their blood contents.     

Trace analysis of persistent toxic substances in the main stream of Jiangsu section of the Yangtze River,China

Background, aim, and scope  

The Jiangsu section of the Yangtze River is the downstream of the whole river, serving as an important drinking water source. Persistent toxic substances (PTS), from the industries such as automobile, textile, chemical, and electronic production, are not listed in the National Standard yet and not monitored and controlled. However, pollution of PTS can threaten the environment and human health. In order to understand the pollution status of the PTS contamination and recommend future rationalization of countermeasure, the PTS including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), and phthalates (PAEs) were investigated.     

Surface ozone measurements in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula (Huelva,Spain)

Introduction  

Photochemical ozone pollution of the lower troposphere (LT) is a very complex process involving meteorological, topographic emissions and chemical parameters. Ozone is considered the most important air pollutant in rural, suburban and industrial areas of many sites in the world since it strongly affects human health, vegetation and forest ecosystems, and its increase during the last decades has been significant. In addition, ozone is a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. For these reasons, it is necessary to carry out investigations that determine the behaviour of ozone at different locations. The aim of this work is to understand the levels and temporal variations of surface ozone in an industrial-urban region of the Southwest Iberian Peninsula.     

Degradation of poly (lactic acid) and nanocomposites by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus licheniformis</Emphasis>

Background, aim, and scope  

The disposal problem due to non-degradable petroleum-based plastics has raised the demand for biodegradable polymers. The degradation of poly (lactic acid) (PLA) has been studied for several years, but the understanding of involved mechanisms is still incomplete. Based on our previous studies, and it is hypothesized an enzymatic involvement, the aim of this study was to continue investigations on the degradation of PLA and its nanocomposites by Bacillus licheniformis.     

On the relationship between ozone and its precursors in the Pearl River Delta: application of an observation-based model (OBM)

Background, aim, and scope  

Photochemical smog, characterized by high concentrations of O₃ and fine particles, is of great concern in the urban areas, in particular megacities and city clusters like the Pearl River Delta.