Adoption of green banking practices and environmental performance in Pakistan: a demonstration of structural equation modelling

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Banking industries are blamed to be among the major factors that affect global climate change both directly and indirectly. The green banking concept...     

Effect of compaction on soil CO2 and CH4 fluxes from tropical peatland in Sarawak,Malaysia

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Tropical peatland stores a large amount of carbon (C) and is an important C sink. In Malaysia, about 25% of the peatland area has been converted to oil...     

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha,prostaglandin-E2 and interleukin-1β targeted anti-arthritic potential of fluvoxamine: drug repurposing

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Fluvoxamine, a selective serotonin re uptake inhibitor, is used to treat depression. The aim of present study was to evaluate fluvoxamine in acute...     

Economic feasibility of solar-powered reverse osmosis water desalination: a comparative systemic review

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Due to disparities in the allocation of rainwater and drought, extreme exploitation of groundwater reservoirs has depleted water supplies in many...     

Biomass energy consumption and sustainable development: empirical evidence from Asian economies

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Biomass energy is an important source of energy consumption. It is a renewable, abundant, and easily produced energy source. Its usage supports...     

Microplastics in water,sediments, and fish at Alpine River,originating from the Hindu Kush Mountain,Pakistan: implications for conservation

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Microplastics (MP) pollution is an emerging threat to life and the environment. These particles are not restricted to human-inhabited lands but also...     

基于多元子代理模块系统(MAS)的单司机值乘驾驶安全可靠性研究

介绍并分析影响单司机值乘驾驶安全可靠性的因素,强调单司机值乘人-机-环境系统安全性中人行为的重要性,提出利用MAS模型对单司机值乘的安全可靠性进行分析。介绍该模型的标定过程,给出其驾驶行为的安全可靠度和Agent模型结合在一起来确定司机决策行为的过程和方法。为提高我国单司机值乘驾驶安全性提供了一种研究方法。     

Effects of oyster shell on soil chemical and biological properties and cabbage productivity as a liming materials

Oyster shell, a byproduct of shellfish-farming in Korea and containing a high amount of CaCO(3), has a high potential to be used as a liming material in agriculture. However, the agricultural utilization of oyster shell is limited due to its high concentration NaCl. The oyster-shell meal collected had a low concentration of water soluble NaCl (mean 2.7 g kg(-1)), which might be a result of stacking the material for 6 months in the open field. It has a very similar liming potential with calcium carbonate, with 3.4 and 3.8 Mg ha(-1) for silt loam (SiL, pH 6.2) and sandy loam (SL, pH 5.8) to bring the soil pH to 6.5, respectively. To determine the effect of crushed oyster-shell meal on improving soil chemical and biological properties and crop plant productivity, oyster-shell meal was applied at rates of 0, 4, 8, 12, and 16 Mg ha(-1) before transplanting Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris L.) in the two soils mentioned above. Soil pH was significantly increased to 6.9 and 7.4 by 16 Mg ha(-1) shell meal application (4 times higher level than the recommendation) in SiL and SL, respectively, at harvesting stage. The effect of liming was found higher in SL compared to SiL soil, probably due to the different buffering capacity of the two soils. The concentration of NaCl and EC value of soils were found slightly increased with shell meal applications, but no salt damage was observed. Oyster-shell meal application increased soil organic matter, available P, and exchangeable cations concentrations. The improved soil pH and nutrient status significantly increased the microbial biomass C and N concentrations and stimulated soil enzyme activities. With the exception of acid phosphomonoesterase (PMEase) activity, which decreased with increasing soil pH in SL but slightly increased in SiL, the activities of urease and alkali PMEase increased markedly with increasing soil pH by shell meal application. The improved soil chemical and biological properties resulted in increased crop productivity. The highest yield in Chinese cabbage was achieved following the application of 8 Mg ha(-1) oyster-shell meal. Conclusively, crushed oyster shell could be used as an alternative liming material to restore the soil chemical and microbial properties in upland soil and to increase crop productivity.     

Bacterial diversity in selenium reduction of agricultural drainage water amended with rice straw

Bacterial reduction of the Se oxyanions selenate [Se(VI)] and selenite [Se(IV)] to elemental selenium [Se0] is an important biological process in removing Se from drainage water. This study was conducted to characterize the molecular diversity of bacterial populations involved in Se reduction of drainage water amended with rice (Oryza sativa L.) straw and also to monitor the bacterial community shifts during the course of the study. Selenate was removed in the drainage water by the bacteria 5 to 6 d after addition of rice straw. Six Se(VI)- and 32 Se(IV)-reducing bacteria were isolated from rice straw containing sterilized drainage water. Three Se(VI)- and two Se(IV)-reducing bacteria were also isolated from the drainage water. Identification of Se(VI)- and Se(IV)-reducing bacteria by 16S rDNA sequence analysis showed a broad phylogenetic diversity in Se-reducing assemblages. Three major phyla (Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Firmicutes) of bacterial domain with numerous classes, orders, and families constituted the Se-reducing bacterial community. We documented changes in the composition of bacterial assemblages in the drainage water amended with rice straw using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of 16S rDNA. The Shannon-Weaver index (H') revealed higher bacterial diversity at Day 6 in the sterilized and Day 4 in the non-sterilized drainage water amended with rice straw. The results of this study suggest that rice straw, a good source of carbon and energy, harbors a wide range of bacteria useful in Se reduction and may be used in removing Se from drainage water.     

Prenatal diagnosis of β-thalassemia in Southern Punjab,Pakistan

Pakistan has a large population of more than 150 million people with an overall carrier frequency of approximately 5.6% for β-thalassemia. Punjab is the largest province of the country having more than 50% of the population. The state of β-thalassemia is alarming as consanguinity is very high (>81%) and the literacy rate is low in South Punjab. A thalassemia prevention program is the need of the hour in this part of Pakistan. In this study, we initiated awareness, screening, and characterization of the mutations causing β-thalassemia as well as a genetic counseling program mainly in the districts of Faisalabad and D.G. Khan to establish prenatal diagnosis, a facility previously unavailable in this region for disease prevention. A total of 248 unrelated transfusion-dependent children and the available members of their families were screened to characterize the mutations and identify the carriers. Genetic counseling was provided to these families and prenatal diagnosis offered. In the samples analyzed, 11 β-thalassemia mutations and three hemoglobin variants were detected mainly by using the Monoplex and Multiplex ARMS-PCR. First-trimester prenatal diagnosis was carried out through chorionic villus sampling (CVS) in seven pregnancies at risk. As a result of our campaign, 145 carrier couples planning to have more children gave their consent to have retrospective prenatal diagnosis in every pregnancy in future. A cooperative trend and a positive attitude toward the prevention of β-thalassemia were noticed in the families with affected children and in the general population. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.