Environmental Chemistry Letters - Shale gas extraction is increasing worldwide in the context of the energy crisis, yet the associated pollution by this industrial activity is poorly known. Here we... 相似文献
In this study, an approach for the facile, rapid, energy-saving, and sensitive determination of Fe3+ and Cr(VI) was developed. L-arginine/D-glucose carbon quantum dots (Arg/Glu-CQDs), with a photoluminescence quantum yield of 21%, were synthesized from L-arginine and D-glucose through a facile, hydrothermal process. The maximum emission wavelength of Arg/Glu-CQDs was observed at 450 nm, under an excitation wavelength of 365 nm. In addition, Arg/Glu-CQDs exhibited a sensitive and selective response to Fe3+ compared to Fe2+ and other metal ions. The Arg/Glu-CQDs’ fluorescence was noticeably quenched through the inner filter effect (IFE) when Arg/Glu-CQDs were mixed with Fe3+. Accordingly, the Arg/Glu-CQDs/Fe2+ system could selectively detect Cr(VI); Cr(VI) could oxidize Fe2+ to Fe3+ and quench the fluorescence. The fluorescence sensor system (i.e., the Arg/Glu-CQDs/Fe2+ system) showed high sensitivity and excellent selectivity for the detection of Fe3+ and Cr(VI) in river water samples. Satisfactory detection efficiencies ranging from 97.07 to 103.46% were obtained. The cytotoxicity of Arg/Glu-CQDs was evaluated through an MTT assay using A549 cells as the target, to extend the application of Arg/Glu-CQDs to biological systems; the MTT assay indicated that the Arg/Glu-CQDs is non-cytotoxicity. Arg/Glu-CQDs were also successfully imaged in A549 cells indicating further application possibilities in bioimaging.
The electric power grid is a critical societal resource connecting multiple infrastructural domains such as agriculture, transportation, and manufacturing. The electrical grid as an infrastructure is shaped by human activity and public policy in terms of demand and supply requirements. Further, the grid is subject to changes and stresses due to diverse factors including solar weather, climate, hydrology, and ecology. The emerging interconnected and complex network dependencies make such interactions increasingly dynamic, posing novel risks, and presenting new challenges to manage the coupled human–natural system. This paper provides a survey of models and methods that seek to explore the significant interconnected impact of the electric power grid and interdependent domains. We also provide relevant critical risk indicators (CRIs) across diverse domains that may be used to assess risks to electric grid reliability, including climate, ecology, hydrology, finance, space weather, and agriculture. We discuss the convergence of indicators from individual domains to explore possible systemic risk, i.e., holistic risk arising from cross-domain interconnections. Further, we propose a compositional approach to risk assessment that incorporates diverse domain expertise and information, data science, and computer science to identify domain-specific CRIs and their union in systemic risk indicators. Our study provides an important first step towards data-driven analysis and predictive modeling of risks in interconnected human–natural systems.
If cellulose can be effectively hydrolyzed into glucose by cellulase, the production costs of hydrogen, ethanol or other chemicals from cellulosic materials will be greatly decreased, and economically viable production of biohydrogen and bioethanol will become feasible. Cellulose is degraded into glucoses by multi-component enzyme systems. Nowadays cellulases are widely used in brewing, food, bioenergy, fodder, textiles, paper, pharmaceuticals, environmental protection and other industries. However, existing cellulases have several problems that limit their wider applications, including the low turnover number for solid cellulosic materials, and low stability in adapting to various application conditions. For example, high temperature, low pH, and so on. Application of directed evolution technology may be one of the most effective ways for improving the characteristics of cellulases. This paper presents a brief review of the cellulose hydrolysis mechanism by cellulase, advances in cellulases (endoglucanase and β-glucosidase) improvement by directed evolution for several characteristics (for instance, thermal stability, pH adaptability and enzyme activity), limitations of directed evolution for cellulases, and the outlook for directed evolution for cellulase. 相似文献
Engagement in extra-pair copulations is an example of the abundant conflicting interests between males and females over reproduction.
Potential benefits for females and the risk of cuckoldry for males are expected to have important implications on the evolution
of parental care. However, whether parents adjust parental care in response to parentage remains unclear. In Eurasian penduline
tits Remiz pendulinus, which are small polygamous songbirds, parental care is carried out either by the male or by the female. In addition, one
third of clutches is deserted by both male and female. Desertion takes place during the egg-laying phase. Using genotypes
of nine microsatellite loci of 443 offspring and 211 adults, we test whether extra-pair paternity predicts parental care.
We expect males to be more likely to desert cuckolded broods, whereas we expect females, if they obtain benefits from having
multiple sires, to be more likely to care for broods with multiple paternity. Our results suggest that parental care is not
adjusted to parentage on an ecological timescale. Furthermore, we found that male attractiveness does not predict cuckoldry,
and we found no evidence for indirect benefits for females (i.e., increased growth rates or heterozygosity of extra-pair offspring).
We argue that male Eurasian penduline tits may not be able to assess the risk of cuckoldry; thus, a direct association with
parental care is unlikely to evolve. However, timing of desertion (i.e., when to desert during the egg-laying phase) may be
influenced by the risk of cuckoldry. Future work applying extensive gene sequencing and quantitative genetics is likely to
further our understanding of how selection may influence the association between parentage and parental care. 相似文献
In order to better understand the environmental behaviors of persistent organic pollutants, the characteristics of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) were investigated in twenty-three soil/sediment samples from Baiying City, Northwest China, in 2008. The possible sources and potential health risk of PCDD/Fs were also discussed. The concentrations of PCDD/Fs in nineteen soil samples varied between 20.13 and 496.26 pg/g dry weight (dw.), with an average value of 125.59 pg/g dw. The highest International Toxic Equivalent (I-TEQ) of PCDD/Fs (8.34 pg/g dw.) in soil was found at sample S1 collected from proximity to a copper metallurgy plant. The concentrations of PCDD/Fs in four sediment samples ranged from 37.69 to 491.49 pg/g dw., with an average value of 169.95 pg/g dw. The highest I-TEQ of PCDD/Fs (8.56 pg/g dw.) in sediment was found at sample S12 collected from the East big ditch with waste water discharged into the Yellow River. The results indicated that PCDD/Fs contamination of soil/sediment is originated from three sources: chlorine-containing chemicals, non-ferrous metal industrial PCDD/Fs emission and coal burning. The health risk exposure to PCDD/Fs through soil, dust ingestion and dermal absorption ranged from 0.0006 to 0.0134 pg/kg/day Word Health Organization’s toxic equivalent in 1998 (WHO1998-TEQ) with mean values 0.0032 pg WHO1998-TEQ for adults and varied between 0.0012 and 0.0256 pg/kg/day WHO1998-TEQ with mean values 0.006 pg/kg/day WHO1998-TEQ for children, respectively. These results indicated that health risk of PCDD/Fs for children should be paid more attention. 相似文献
Medicinal herbs are steadily increasing in complementary use for chronic and alterative therapies. The health risks associated with herbal supplements have therefore been identified as a top research priority. Tecoma stans (Tronadora), a Bignoniaceae plant, is a herbal drug traditionally consumed as tea in South America for the control of diabetes. It contains the alkaloids of tecomine and tecostanine which were shown as functional compounds responsible for hypoglycemic activity. However, the side effects of aqueous extracts of this herbal tea have not been reported. In this study, studies sought to evaluate the cytotoxicity of water extracts from T. stans in human hepatoblastoma (HepG2). Toxic effects of T. stans were concentration- and time-dependent in the presence and absence of fetal bovine serum (FBS). Cells were incubated for up to 72-h with varying concentrations of herbal extracts (60–100%), cytotoxicity was determined spectrophotometrically by MTT and reported in terms of % cell viability. For IC50 assay (24 h exposure), cytotoxicity was found at concentration of 60–100%. Evaluation of the effects of T. stans and Brickellia cavanillesi (Asteraceae) in combination revealed that extracts of both herbal extracts' nontoxic levels of T. stans significantly reduced cell viability in a time-dependent manner. Further studies are needed regarding the identification, toxicity, and molecular mechanism of action of active compounds, as well as their cytotoxicity to other cell lines following exposure to both single and combined herbal extracts of these plants with anti-diabetic properties. 相似文献