Impact of posture and upper-limb muscle activity on grip strength

Purpose. The current research was carried out to determine grip strength (GS) with change in posture and upper-limb muscle activity of manual workers and investigate the impacts of these changes. Methods. For the current research, 120 male and 80 female participants were selected and GS was assessed using a digital hand grip dynamometer in various conditions. Results. The outcomes showed that male participants had higher GS as compared to female participants. Maximum GS was found in a standing posture with the fixed forward shoulder at 45°, elbow at 90° and a neutral position of the wrist and forearm for all participants. Conclusions. Higher values of GS were attained in standing postures which may result in attainment of higher performance levels by the workers. The outcomes justify the importance of correct postures during manual work in industries employing traditional methods.     

Emerging applications of green coconut: A promising lignocellulosic biomass

Waste accumulation is a grave concern and becoming a transboundary challenge for environment. During Covid-19 pandemic, diverse type of waste were collected due to different practices employed in order to fight back the transmission rate of the virus. Covid-19 was proved to be capricious catastrophe of this 20th century and even not completely eradicated from the world. The havoc created by this imperceptible quick witted, pleomorphic deadly virus can't be ignored. Though a number of vaccines have been developed by the scientists but there is a fear of getting this virus again in our life. Medical studies prove that immunity drinks will help to reduce its reoccurrences. Coconut water is widely used among all drinks available globally. Its massive consumption created an incalculable pile of green coconut shells around the different corners of the world. This practice generating enormous problem of space acquisition for the environment. Both the environment and public health will benefit from an evaluation of quantity of coconut waste that is being thrown and its potential to generate value added products. With this context, present article has been planned to study different aspects like, coconut waste generation, its biological properties and environmental hazards associated with its accumulation. Additionally, this review illustrates, green technologies for production of different value added products from coconut waste.     

一种新型铋基光催化剂的合成及其可见光催化性能

采用水热法合成铋基光催化剂Bi4VO8Br,通过X-射线粉末衍射、扫描电镜等手段对其进行表征.选择甲基橙为目标降解物来评价不同条件下合成的Bi4VO8Br在可见光下的光催化活性,发现pH 3、反应时间15 h、反应温度160℃为材料水热合成的最佳条件.考察了Bi4VO8Br在可见光及紫外光下对几种农药和增塑剂的光催化降解性能,显示了Bi4VO8Br对不易光解的含苯环有机物的可见光高活性.五氯酚的光催化过程影响因素优化结果表明,可见光和紫外光分别照射120 min和20 min,其降解率分别达到97％和99％,Bi4VO8Br表面上活性基团的捕获即空穴的氧化作用是主要反应原理.     

Determination of microbiological contamination,antibacterial and antioxidant activities of natural plant hazelnut (Corylus avellana L.) pollen

The aim of our study is to determine microbial contamination, antibacterial and antioxidant activities of 14 pollen samples of Corylus avellana collected from different locations in Slovakia. Microbiological analysis was carried out in two steps: microbiological assays and studies of antibacterial activity of pollen extracts. The antimicrobial properties of pollen extracts were carried out with the disc-diffusion method. Methanol (70%), ethanol (70%) and distilled water were used for pollen extracts. Five strains of bacteria such as gram-negative (Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica CCM 3807, Escherichia coli CCM 2024, and Yersinia enterocolitica CCM 5671) and gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus CCM 2461 and Bacillus thuringiensis CCM 19T) were tested. Antioxidant activity of pollen extracts was determined by the DPPH method. Bacterial analysis includes the determination of the total bacterial count ranged from 4.08 to 4.61 log CFU g^?1, mesophilic aerobic bacteria ranged from 3.40 to 4.89 log CFU g^?1, mesophilic anaerobic bacteria ranged from 3.20 to 4.52 log CFU g^?1, coliform bacteria ranged from 3.30 to 4.55 log CFU g^?1, yeasts and filamentous fungi ranged from 3.00 to 3.56 log CFU g^?1. Microscopic filamentous fungi Aspergillus spp., Alternaria spp., Penicillium spp., Cladosporium spp., Rhizopus spp., and Paecylomyces spp. were isolated from hazelnut pollen. Yersinia enterocolitica was the most sensitive strain among ethanolic and methanolic pollen hazelnut extracts. Staphylococcus aureus was the most sensitive strain against aqueous hazelnut pollen extracts. We determined the following sensitivity against ethanol pollen extracts respectively: Yersinia enterocolitica?>?Salmonella enterica?>?Staphylococcus aureus?>?Bacillus thuringiensis?>?Escherichia coli. Methanol pollen extracts had shown following sensitivity: Yersinia enterocolitica?>?Salmonella enterica?>?Escherichia coli?>?Staphylococcus aureus?>?Bacillus thuringiensis. Aqueous extracts had shown the following sensitivity: Staphylococcus aureus?>?Salmonella enterica?>?Escherichia coli?>?Bacillus thuringiensis?>?Yersinia enterocolitica. Hazelnut pollen extracts have over 82% antioxidant capacity in samples from non-urban zones. An elevated level of antioxidant potential in the pollen is determined by its biological properties conditioned by biologically active substances. DPPH method allowed characterizing pollen as a source of antioxidants.     

高效石油烃降解菌的筛选及其对原油污染土壤的修复

从陕北原油污染土壤中筛选出7株高效石油烃降解菌,其中黄杆菌属CC-2、不动细菌属SC-5、假单胞菌属SC-6表现出较强的石油烃降解能力。通过单因素试验和正交试验考察总石油烃(TPH)降解效果的影响因素,得出各因素对TPH降解率影响程度的大小次序为:溶液p H降解温度降解菌接种量摇床转速,且在降解菌接种量为7%(φ)、溶液p H为7、降解温度为30℃、摇床转速为150 r/min的最适处理条件下,菌株SC-6的TPH降解率可达61.23%。原油污染土壤生物修复实验结果表明:高效石油烃降解菌的投加有利于土壤TPH降解率和酶活性的提高;"菌株SC-6+营养剂"组修复处理42 d后的TPH降解率可达57.59%。     

Racemic,R-, and S-tebuconazole altered chitinase and chitobiase activity of Daphnia magna

Tebuconazole is a chiral trizole fungicide and widely used in many crops for controlling disease. Tebuconazole is potential toxic to some aquatic organisms but relative information of its isomers is scarce. To detect the endocrine disrupting effects and difference of rac-, R-, and S-tebuconazole, the chitinase activity in Daphnia magna and chitobiase activity in each test medium were used as biomonitors after a 14-day exposure. Results showed that chitinase activity was significantly reduced by rac-, R-, and S-tebuconazole. The chitobiase activity in the test medium was reduced by rac- and R-tebuconazole before day 10, and only one peak was observed at day 10 or day 12 compared with two obvious peaks in the control group (days 6 and 12). S-tebuconazole delayed and reduced the reproduction of D. magna, but did not delay the first chitobiase activity peak, whereas the second peak could not be characterized as the exposure concentration and time increased. Compared with chitinase activity, chitobiase activity can still be used as a rudimentary model for identifying molt-interfering xenobiotics, and further studies should focus on the analysis of correlations between these parameters.     

浅谈如何开展环境监测类设施公众开放日活动

随着城市工业化的快速发展,突发性环境污染事故逐渐增多,因此,环境公众开放日活动显得尤为重要。本文结合实际情况,探讨如何开展监测类公众开放日活动。     

Effectiveness of a physical activity program on weight,physical fitness,occupational stress,job satisfaction and quality of life of overweight employees in high-tech industries: a randomized controlled study

Introduction. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a physical activity (PA) program on weight control, physical fitness, occupational stress, job satisfaction and quality of life of overweight and sedentary employees in high-tech industries. Methods. Participants in the intervention group (n?=?37) were instructed to carry out a PA program at moderate intensity for 60?min/session, 3 sessions/week for 12 weeks. Those in the control group (n?=?38) received no PA program and were asked to continue their routine lifestyle. Evaluations were performed at baseline and at the end of the intervention. Results of structured questionnaires and blood biochemistry tests and evaluations of physical fitness were analyzed. Results. The PA program effectively reduced the number of risk factors for metabolic syndrome and body fat percentage, and improved physical fitness such as flexibility, muscular strength and endurance and cardiorespiratory endurance. The intervention also significantly decreased levels of serum triglyceride, total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Significant positive effects on work control, interpersonal relationships at work, global job satisfaction and quality of life were also demonstrated. Conclusion. This study showed that a PA program can be helpful in improving physical, physiological and psychological outcomes for overweight and sedentary employees in high-tech industries.     

Photocatalytic activity of Fe-doped CaTiO3 under UV-visible light

The photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue（MB） over Fe-doped CaTiO3 under UV-visible light was investigated. The as-prepared samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction（XRD）, scanning electron microscope（SEM） equipped with an energy dispersive spectrometer（EDS） system, Fourier transform infrared spectra（FT-IR）, and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy（DRS）. The results show that the doping with Fe significantly promoted the light absorption ability of CaTiO3 in the visible light region. The Fe-doped CaTiO3 exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than CaTiO3 for the degradation of MB.However, the photocatalytic activity of the Fe-doped CaTiO3 was greatly influenced by the calcination temperature during the preparation process. The Fe-doped CaTiO3 prepared at500°C exhibited the best photocatalytic activity, with degradation of almost 100% MB（10 ppm）under UV-visible light for 180 min.     

Community structure and elevational diversity patterns of soil Acidobacteria

Acidobacteria is one of the most dominant and abundant phyla in soil,and was believed to have a wide range of metabolic and genetic functions. Relatively little is known about its community structure and elevational diversity patterns. We selected four elevation gradients from 1000 to 2800 m with typical vegetation types of the northern slope of Shennongjia Mountain in central China. The vegetation types were evergreen broadleaved forest,deciduous broadleaved forest,coniferous forest and sub-alpine shrubs. We analyzed the soil acidobacterial community composition,elevational patterns and the relationship between Acidobacteria subdivisions and soil enzyme activities by using the 16 S rRNA meta-sequencing technique and multivariate statistical analysis. The result found that 19 known subdivisions as well as an unclassified phylotype were presented in these forest sites,and Subdivision 6 has the highest number of detectable operational taxonomic units(OTUs). A significant single peak distribution pattern(P 0.05) between the OTU number and the elevation was observed. The Jaccard and Bray–Curtis index analysis showed that the soil Acidobacteria compositional similarity significantly decreased(P 0.01) with the increase in elevation distance. Mantel test analysis showed the most of the soil Acidobacteria subdivisions had the significant relationship(P 0.01) with different soil enzymes. Therefore,soil Acidobacteria may be involved in different ecosystem functions in global elemental cycles. Partial Mantel tests and CCA analysis showed that soil pH,soil temperature and plant diversity may be the key factors in shaping the soil Acidobacterial community structure.