Altered toxicity of organic pollutants in water originated from simultaneous exposure to UV photolysis and CdSe/ZnS quantum dots

The paper reports unforeseen results of increased toxicity of water, subsequent to interactions between CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs), phenol and toluene under UV irradiation. The consistent pattern of changes in measured toxicity (TU) was observed and correlated with degradation of phenol and/or toluene. Spearman rank coefficients (SRCs) for data pairs sum-parameters vs. TU were calculated. The highest correlation between toxicity and degradation by-products was observed for hydroquinone (0.86) and catechol (0.89). The presence of QDs in tested concentration range in the absence of UV has shown low toxicity and no interactions with phenol and/or toluene. The leak of constituent core and shell metal ions was observed. The minor differences in physical characteristics of tested QDs of the same chemical composition led to rather different degradation patterns of phenol and toluene, and the amount of leak of the metal ions as well.     

Analysing urban expansion and land use suitability for the city of Kahramanmaraş, Turkey, and its surrounding region

This study aimed at quantifying changes in urban area of the city of Kahramanmara? (K.Mara?) between 1948 and 2006, and analysing suitability of existing land use (LU) to the land potential. Urban change information was derived from two black-white monoscopic aerial photographs, and IKONOS and the QuickBird images acquired in 1948, 1985, 2000 and 2006, respectively. QuickBird image and soil map with 1:25,000 scale were used to analyze suitability of the current LU pattern to the land potential. The findings showed that the urban area of K.Mara? has expanded approximately 13 times during the past six decades. According to current LU and the soil map, productive and moderately productive soils were largely (73.2%) allocated for agricultural activities, which means that there was a strong consistency between the agricultural LU type and the land capability. However, widespread agriculture on the non-productive soils, and urbanization on the fertile agricultural lands were assessed as unsuitable from sustainable LU viewpoint. Considering this phenomenon, it is possible to say that rapid urban expansion has a growing pressure on the fertile agricultural soils. Monitoring LU changes, particularly urbanization, and developing effective LU plans based on the land capability were determined as the most important approaches to encourage sustainable use of land.     

Adaptation Scenarios of Agriculture in Poland to Future Climate Changes

This paper demonstrates the ability of Polish agriculture to adapt to predicted climate change according to GISS and GFDL scenarios. Both climate-change scenarios will significantly affect farming conditions in Poland through water deficit, shifts in planting and harvesting seasons, changes in crop yields and crop structure. Neither scenario seems to endanger the self-sufficiency of Poland as long as preventative measures are taken. Moreover, the realization of GISS creates the possibility of a surplus in production. It must be emphasized that regardless of the scenario, the adaptation of agriculture to an expected climate change cannot be handled by the farming community itself.     

Binding affinity of proanthocyanidin from waste Pinus radiata bark onto proline-rich bovine achilles tendon collagen type I

Binding affinity of proanthocyanidin (PA) purified from Pinus radiata bark waste onto bovine Achilles tendon collagen (type I) was studied. Adsorption of PA onto the collagen was optimized by examining pH, contact time and temperature. The adsorption was pH-dependent. The maximum adsorption capacity (Q(0)) of PA on collagen was found to be 211 mg g(-1) using the Langmuir isotherm. Comparison between two adsorbents also showed that collagen had higher adsorptivity of approximately 20% more than PVPP (polyvinyl polypyrrolidone). The high affinity between PA and collagen was further confirmed in solvent solubility experiments. The observed solvent resistance was thought to be mainly due to a hydrophobic stacking mechanism reinforced by hydrogen bonding. FT-IR spectra clearly indicated the presence of PA adsorbed on collagen. The results have interesting implications that PA can be a good protective agent for collagen against collagenase and other enzymes.     

An operational assessment of the application of the relative reduction factors in the demonstration of attainment of the 8-hr ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1997 revised the 1-hr ozone (O3) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) to one based on an 8-hr average, resulting in potential nonattainment status for substantial portions of the eastern United States. The regulatory process provides for the development of a state implementation plan that includes a demonstration that the projected future O3 concentrations will be at or below the NAAQS based on photochemical modeling and analytical techniques. In this study, four photochemical modeling systems, based on two photochemical models, Community Model for Air Quality and the Comprehensive Air Quality Model with extensions, and two emissions processing models, Sparse Matrix Optimization Kernel for Emissions and Emissions Modeling System, were applied to the eastern United States, with emphasis on the northeastern Ozone Transport Region in terms of their response to oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic carbon-focused controls on the estimated design values. With the 8-hr O3 NAAQS set as a bright-line test, it was found that a given area could be termed as being in or out of attainment of the NAAQS depending upon the modeling system. This suggests the need to provide an estimate of model-to-model uncertainty in the relative reduction factor (RRF) for a better understanding of the uncertainty in projecting the status of an area's attainment. Results indicate that the model-to-model differences considered in this study introduce     

Birds and air traffic safety on Zagreb airport (Croatia)

One of the objectives of the new State of Croatia, as a Mediterranean country oriented towards tourism, is safety of its air traffic. The frequency of use of Zagreb airport is currently 688 flights, or about 20000 passengers a week. In 1996, research was carried out at the airport concerning air traffic safety with respect to the presence of birds on the airfield. Biological methods, in which birds were chased away by means of trained birds of prey, were used. For the Zagreb airport experiment nine birds involving three different species: Falco peregrinus, Accipiter gentilis and Falco cherrug were utilised. The results showed that the air traffic safety on Zagreb airport with regard to possible bird-plane strikes improved.Other bird clearing methods, applied over the 1987–1996 period also reduced bird-plane interferences but were noted to be less effective. With the biological, bird of prey method, 100% temporary clearance was achieved. Habitat modification, which involved removal from the airport vicinity of all factors attractive to the birds, only removed 20–30% of the birds, but this was of a more permanent nature. Use of fire-arms achieved a 80–90% temporary bird clearance. A combination of all three methods would appear to be most effective and measures for further monitoring for safe air traffic movement at Zagreb airport are proposed.     

Volatile fatty acid evolution in biomass mixture composts prepared in open and closed bioreactors

In this study we observed the production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) during the composting process of compost heaps in two different bioreactors (open and closed) at three different depths (0, 40 and 80 cm). The compost was prepared as a mixture of bio-waste, horse manure, grass and sawdust to ensure sufficient pH conditions in compost heaps. VFA contents in the composting materials were analysed weekly over 14–119 d. The degradation process was monitored, along with temperature, pH, total organic carbon, oxidizable carbon and mono- and oligosaccharides. VFA contents were evaluated with regard to the depth of the sample site in the compost heap and to conditions in the bioreactors. The maximum VFA occurrence was observed during the first 35 d; acetic and propionic acids in particular were determined to occur in each sample. Considerable variations in their formation and elimination were observed in the two bioreactors as well as at the various depths in the compost heaps. Significant correlations were found between individual VFAs, as well as between VFA concentrations and organic carbon contents.     

不同粒径矿化垃圾对大麦生长发育和斑马鱼胚胎毒性效应研究

将太原东山新沟垃圾填埋场矿化垃圾筛分为900~300μm、300~150μm、150~105μm、105~90μm和90~0μm共5个不同粒径范围,制备浸出液。在分析不同粒径矿化垃圾浸出液的理化指标基础上,研究了矿化垃圾浸出液对大麦和斑马鱼胚胎生长发育的影响。结果显示,矿化垃圾浸出液p H值随粒径的减小而减小,电导率、CODCr、全盐量和总氮则随粒径的减小而增大。矿化垃圾浸出液对大麦的萌发、根长和芽长均表现出抑制作用,且抑制作用随粒径的减小而显著增加,90~0μm抑制作用最强,具体表现为染毒1 d、2 d和3 d后,大麦种子处理组萌发率为对照组的39.74%、56.38%和59.81%;染毒3 d、5 d和7 d后,根长分别为对照组的57.08%、48.33%和41.66%;芽长分别为对照组的66.60%、64.79%和61.65%。斑马鱼胚胎暴露于不同粒径的矿化垃圾浸出液中,胚胎生长发育的毒害作用与粒径大小呈现明显负相关关系,即在最小粒径90~0μm处理后,卵凝结、血循环异常、孵化率、心包水肿及脊柱畸形影响作用达到最大,这5个指标值分别为40.28%、50.00%、51.39%、31.94%和29.17%。以上研究表明,矿化垃圾浸出液对大麦和斑马鱼胚胎生长发育的毒性效应与矿化垃圾粒径分布显著相关,小粒径矿化垃圾(90~0μm)的生态毒性效应最大。     

Warning signals confer advantage to prey in competition with predators: bumblebees steal nests from insectivorous birds

Aposematic (warning) signals of prey help predators to recognize the defended distasteful or poisonous prey that should be avoided. The evolution of aposematism in the context of predation has been in the center of modern ecology for a long time. But, the possible roles of aposematic signals in other ecological contexts have been largely ignored. Here we address the role of aposematic signals in competition between prey and predators. Bumblebees use visual and auditory aposematic signals to warn predators about their defenses. For 2 years, we observed competition for nestboxes between chemically defended insects, Bombus ardens (and possibly also Bombus ignitus), and cavity nesting birds (Parus minor and Poecile varius). Bumblebees settled in 16 and 9 % of nestboxes (in 2010 and 2011 breeding seasons, respectively) that contained bird nests at the advanced stage of nest building or at the stage of egg laying. Presence of bumblebees prevented the birds from continuing the breeding activities in the nestboxes, while insects took over the birds’ nests (a form of kleptoparasitism). Playback experiments showed that the warning buzz by bumblebees contributed to the success in ousting the birds from their nests. This demonstrates that aposematic signals may be beneficial also in the context of resource competition.     

Changes in the liver proteome in apoE knockout mice exposed to inhalation of silica nanoparticles indicate mitochondrial damage and impairment of ER stress responses associated with microvesicular steatosis

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The adverse effects of air pollution on the cardiovascular system have been well documented. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an...