Use of Preservative Agents and Antibiotics for Increased Poliovirus Survival on Positively Charged Filters

Environmental surveillance of poliovirus (PV) and other non-enveloped viruses can help identify silent circulation and is necessary to certify eradication. The bag-mediated filtration system is an efficient method to filter large volumes of environmental waters at field sites for monitoring the presence of viruses. As filters may require long transit times to off-site laboratories for processing, viral inactivation or overgrowth of bacteria and fungi can interfere with virus detection and quantification (Miki and Jacquet in Aquatic Microb Ecol 51(2):195–208, 2008). To evaluate virus survival over time on ViroCap^? filters, the filters were seeded with PV type 1 (PV1) and/or MS2 and then dosed with preservatives or antibiotics prior to storage and elution. These filters were stored at various temperatures and time periods, and then eluted for PV1 and MS2 recovery quantification. Filters dosed with the preservative combination of 2% sodium benzoate and 0.2% calcium propionate had increased virus survival over time when stored at 25 °C, compared to samples stored at 25 °C with no preservatives. While elution within 24 h of filtration is recommended, if storage or shipping is required then this preservative mixture can help preserve sample integrity. Addition of an antibiotic cocktail containing cephapirin, gentamicin, and Proclin^? 300 increased recovery after storage at 4 and 25 °C, when compared to storage with no antibiotics. The antibiotic cocktail can aid sample preservation if access to appropriate antibiotics storage is available and sample cold chain is unreliable. This study demonstrated that the use of preservatives or antibiotics is a simple, cost-effective method to improve virus detection from ViroCap cartridge filters over time.     

DNA Heat Treatment for Improving qPCR Analysis of Human Adenovirus in Wastewater

PCR inhibitory substances in complex sample matrices can cause false negatives or under-estimation of target concentration. This study assessed DNA heat treatment for reducing inhibition during qPCR analysis of human adenovirus (HAdV) in wastewater samples. Inhibition was reduced by heat treating DNA, where mean HAdV concentration was increased by 0.71 log₁₀ GC/L (and up to 3.04 log₁₀ GC/L in one case), and replicate variability and false negatives were reduced. DNA heat treatment should be further investigated for improving reliability of HAdV concentration estimates in water, which can support more accurate assessment of health risks associated with viral pathogen exposure.     

Assessment and Evaluation of an Integrated Hybrid Anaerobic–Aerobic Sewage Treatment System for the Removal of Enteric Viruses

The capability of a cost-effective and a small size decentralized pilot wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to remove enteric viruses such as rotavirus, norovirus genogroup I (GGI), norovirus genogroup II (GGII), Hepatitis E virus (HEV), and adenovirus was studied. This pilot plant is an integrated hybrid anaerobic/aerobic setup which consisted of anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB), biological aerated filter (BAF), and inclined plate settler (IPS). Both the UASB and BAF are packed with a non-woven polyester fabric (NWPF). Results indicated that the overall log₁₀ reductions of enteric viruses’ genome copies through the whole system were 3.1 ± 1, 3.3 ± 0.5, and 2.6 ± 0.9 log₁₀ for rotavirus, norovirus GGI, and adenovirus, respectively. Reduction efficiency for both norovirus GGII and HEV after the different treatment steps could not be calculated because there were no significant numbers of positive samples for both viruses. The overall reduction of rotavirus infectious units through the whole system was 2.2 ± 0.8 log₁₀ reduction which is very close to the overall log₁₀ reduction of adenovirus infectious units through the whole system which was 2.1 ± 0.8 log₁₀ reduction. There was no considerable difference in the removal efficiency for different rotavirus G and P types. Adenovirus 41 was the only type detected in the all positive samples. Although the pilot WWTP investigated is cost effective, has a small footprint, does not need a long distance network pipes, and easy to operate, its efficiency to remove enteric viruses is comparable with the conventional centralized WWTPs.     

基于地基遥感数据的太湖地区气溶胶光学厚度和粒子谱变化规律研究

利用多光谱旋转遮蔽影带辐射计(Multi-Filter Rotating Shadowband Radiometer,MFRSR)测定了我国长江三角洲中部的太湖地区2008年5月至2009年4月期间415 nm、500 nm、615 nm、673 nm、870 nm波段的全天空总辐射、散射辐射和直接辐射通量密度,结合球形粒子的Mie散射理论反演了该地区大气气溶胶粒子谱,并对结果进行了分析.结果表明:受人为活动的影响,该地区工作日和非工作日气溶胶光学厚度和粒子谱的日变化存在明显的差异,工作日上午6:00-9:00时间内,细粒子的生成远大于非工作日这一期间细粒子的生成.太湖地区气溶胶光学厚度常年较高,500 nm波段的年平均值为0.8038±0.7924,夏季最大(0.9359±0.7389),冬季最小(0.6209±0.5500);气溶胶粒子谱表现出双峰分布,一种是位于半径0.15 μm附近的细模态,另一种是半径3μm左右的粗模态,且夏季和秋季细粒子较多,而其他季节粗粒子较多.气溶胶光学厚度以及气溶胶粒子谱分布的季节变化受到气象条件的显著影响.降水过程对大气气溶胶具有明显的冲刷作用,并且降水后大气气溶胶的增加与气溶胶粒子大小有关,积聚态粒子浓度的增加比粗模态粒子的增加更快.     

Occurrence and distribution of hexabromocyclododecane in sediments from seven major river drainage basins in China

The concentrations and geographical distribution of hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) were investigated in 37 composite surface sediments from seven major river drainage basins in China, including Yangtze River, Yellow River, Pearl River, Liaohe River, Haihe River, Tarim River and Ertix River. The detection frequency of HBCD was 54%, with the concentrations ranged from below limit of detection (LOD) to 206 ng/g dry weight. In general, the geographical distribution showed increasing trends from the upper reaches to the lower reaches of the rivers and from North China to Southeast China. Compared to other regions in the world, the average concentration of HBCD in sediments from Yangtze River drainage basin was at relatively high level, whereas those from other six river drainage basins were at lower or similar level. The highest HBCD concentration in sediment from Yangtze River Delta and the highest detection frequency of HBCD in Pearl River drainage basins suggested that the industrial and urban activities could evidently affect the HBCD distribution. HBCD diastereoisomer profiles showed that γ-HBCD dominated in most of the sediment samples, followed by α- and β-HBCD, which was consistent with those in the commercial HBCD mixtures. Further risk assessment reflected that the average inventories of HBCD were 18.3, 5.87, 3.92, 2.50, 1.77 ng/cm 2 in sediments from Pearl River, Haihe River, Tarim River, Yellow River and Yangtze River, respectively.     

悬浮膜(CFM)分离技术在油田废水处理中的应用

应用微电解等技术对油田废水进行预处理,然后用悬浮膜进行分离,使其中的油、微生物和固体物与水相分离,使其达到回注用水要求。重点对CFM分离设备的结构及原理加以介绍,以期推进过滤技术的进步,提高油田废水的处理水平。     

A pilot-scale study of cryolite precipitation from high fluoride-containing wastewater in a reaction-separation integrated reactor

Fluoride removal by traditional precipitation generates huge amounts of a water-rich sludge with low quality, which has no commercial or industrial value. The present study evaluated the feasibility of recovering fluoride as low water content cryolite from industrial fluoride-containing wastewater. A novel pilot-scale reaction-separation integrated reactor was designed. The results showed that the seed retention time in the reactor was prolonged to strengthen the induced crystallization process. The particle size of cryolite increased with increasing seed retention time, which decreased the water content. The recovery rate of cryolite was above 75% under an influent fluoride concentration of 3500 mg/L, a reaction temperature of 50℃, and an influent flow of 40 L/hr. The cryolite products that precipitated from the reactor were small in volume, large in particle size, low in water content, high in crystal purity, and recyclable.