Using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a model animal for assessing thetoxicity induced by microcystin-LR

Among more than 75 variants of microcystin(MC),microcystin-LR(MC-LR) is one of the most common toxins.In this study,the feasibility of using Caenorhabditis elegans to evaluate MC-LR toxicity was studied.C.elegans was treated with MC-LR at different concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 80 μg/L.The results showed that MC-LR could reduce lifespan,delay development,lengthen generation time,decrease brood size,suppress locomotion behavior,and decreases hsp-16-2-gfp expression.The endpoints of generation time,brood...     

Combined fluorescence and electrochemical investigation on the bindinginteraction between organic acid and human serum albumin

Human serum albumin (HSA) is a plasma protein responsible for the binding and transport of fatty acids and a variety of exogenous chemicals such as drugs and environmental pollutants. Such binding plays a crucial role in determining the ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion) and bioavailability of the pollutants. We report investigation on the binding interaction between HSA and acetic acid (C2), octanoic acid (C8) and dodecanoic acid (C12) by the combination of site-specific fluorescent probe, tryptophan intrinsic fluorescence and tyrosine electrochemistry. Two fluorescent probes, dansylamide and dansyl-L-proline, were employed in the displacement measurement to study fatty acid interaction with the two drug-binding sites on HSA. Intrinsic fluorescence of tryptophan in HSA was monitored upon addition of the fatty acids into HSA. Electrocatalyzed response of the tyrosine residues in HSA by a redox mediator was used to investigate the binding interaction. Qualitatively, observations made by the three approaches are very similar. HSA did not show any change in either fluorescence or electrochemistry after mixing with C2, suggesting there is no significant interaction with the short-chain fatty acid. For C8, the measured signal dropped in a single-exponential fashion, indicative of independent and non-cooperative binding. The calculated association constant and binding ratio is 3.1×106 L/mol and 1 with drug binding Site I, 1.1×107 L/mol and 1 with Site II, and 7.0×104 L/mol and 4 with the tryptophan site. The measurement with C12 displayed multiple phases of fluorescence change, suggesting cooperativity and allosteric effect of C12 binding. These results correlate well with those obtained by the established methods, and validate the new approach as a viable tool to study the interactions of environmental pollutants with biological molecules.     

One century record of contamination by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsand polychlorinated biphenyls in core sedimentsfrom the southern Yellow Sea

Sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 28 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were measured at a 2-cm interval in a core sample from the middle of the southern Yellow Sea for elucidating their historical variations in inflow and sources. The chronology was obtained using the 210Pb method. PAHs concentrations decreased generally with depth and two climax values occurred in 14–16 cm and 20–22 cm layers, demonstrating that the production and usage of PAHs might reach peaks in the periods of 1956–1962...     

A novel aminated polymeric adsorbent for removing refractory dissolvedorganic matter from landfill leachate treatment plant

Refractory dissolved organic matter (DOM) from landfill leachate treatment plant was with high dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content. An aminated polymeric adsorbent NDA-8 with tertiary amino groups and sufficient mesopore was synthesized, which exhibited high adsorption capacity to the DOM (raw water after coagulation). Resin NDA-8 performed better in the uptake of the DOM than resin DAX-8 and A100. Electrostatic attraction was considered as the decisive interaction between the adsorbent and adsorbate. Special attention was paid to the correlation between porous structure and adsorption capacity. The mesopore of NDA-8 played a crucial role during uptake of the DOM. In general, resin in chloride form performed a higher removal rate of DOC. According to the column adsorption test, total adsorption capacity of NDA-8 was calculated to 52.28 mg DOC/mL wet resin. 0.2 mol/L sodium hydroxide solution could regenerate the adsorbent efficiently.     

Acid deposition critical loads modeling for the simulation of sulfur exceedanceand reduction in Guangdong, China

The current acid deposition critical loads in Guangdong, China were calculated using the PROFILE model with a 3 km × 3 km resolution. Calculations were carried out for critical loads of potential acidity, actual acidity, sulfur and nitrogen, with values in extents of 0–3.5, 0–14.0, 0–26.0 and 0–3.5 kmol/(hm2·year), respectively. These values were comparable to previously reported results and reflected the influences of vegetation and soil characteristics on the soil acid buffering capacity. Simulations of S...     

Quinone-mediated decolorization of sulfonated azo dyes by cells and cellextracts from Sphingomonas xenophaga

The effects of various quinone compounds on the decolorization rates of sulfonated azo dyes by Sphingomonas xenophaga QYY were investigated. The results showed that anthraquinone-2-sulfonate (AQS) was the most effective redox mediator and AQS reduction was the rate-limited step of AQS-mediated decolorization of sulfonated azo dyes. Based on AQS biological toxicity tests, it was assumed that AQS might enter the cells to kill them. In the cytoplasmic extracts from strain QYY, AQS effectively increased decolorization rates of sulfonated azo dyes than other quinone compounds. In addition, we found a NADH/FMN-dependent AQS reductase using nondenaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (Native-PAGE).     

Sensitivity of green and blue-green algae to methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) during a fifteen-day test

The test was designed to assess the toxicity of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) to Chlorella ellipsoidea and Aphanizomenon flos-aquae during 15 d with concentrations of MTBE from high (2.00×104 mg/L) to low (2 mg/L). The results showed that the toxicity was low when the concentration of MTBE was 1.00×104-2.00×104 mg/L (the greatest inhibition of growth-rate was 70%-71%, occurring on day 1-5). Low concentrations (2-500 mg/L) stimulated algal growth up to the greatest effect of 85%-200% when the concentration of MTBE was 50-100 mg/L on day 3-5. The low concentrations may lead to an algal bloom owing to overabundance, which represents an aquatic ecological risk. However, the stimulatory effect occurred only during the day 1-5 and disappeared gradually during the day 13-15. The toxicity of MTBE (72-120 h EC50) is 6.65×103-9.58×103 mg/L for C. ellipsoidea and that is 1.14×104-2.00×104 mg/L for A. spiroides. We found that the toxicity and ecological risk of MTBE for the algal community structure were low. The toxicity was influenced by the duration of the test. We suggest that the duration of the test should not be shorter than half a life-cycle.     

Influence of driving cycles on exhaust emissions and fuel consumption ofgasoline passenger car in Bangkok

The influence of different driving cycles on their exhaust emissions and fuel consumption rate of gasoline passenger car was investigated in Bangkok based on the actual measurements obtained from a test vehicle driving on a standard chassis dynamometer. A newly established Bangkok driving cycle (BDC) and the European driving cycle (EDC) which is presently adopted as the legislative cycle for testing automobiles registered in Thailand were used. The newly developed BDC is constructed using the driving characteristic data obtained from the real on-road driving tests along selected traffic routes. A method for selecting appropriate road routes for real driving tests is also introduced. Variations of keyed driving parameters of BDC with different driving cycles were discussed. The results showed that the HC and CO emission factors of BDC are almost two and four times greater than those of EDC, respectively. Although the difference in the NOx emission factor is small, the value from BDC is still greater than that of EDC by 10%. Under BDC, the test vehicle consumes fuel about 25% more than it does under EDC. All these differences are mainly attributed to the greater proportion of idle periods and higher fluctuations of vehicle speed in the BDC cycle. This result indicated that the exhausted emissions and fuel consumption of vehicles obtained from tests under the legislative modal-type driving cycle (EDC) are significantly different from those actually produced under real traffic conditions especially during peak periods.     

A bioaugmentation failure caused by phage infection and weak biofilmformation ability

Two biological aerated filters (BAF) were setup for ammonia removal treatment of the circulation water in a marine aquaculture. Oneof the BAFs was bioaugmented with a heterotrophic nitrifying bacterium, Lutimonas sp. H10, where the ammonia removal was notimproved and the massive inoculation was even followed by a nitrification breakdown from day 9 to 18. The nitrification was remainedstable in control BAF operated under the same conditions. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) with rRNA-targeted probes andcultivable method revealed that Lutimonas sp. H10 almost disappeared from the bioaugomented BAF within 3 d, and this was mainlydue to the infection of a specific phage as revealed by flask experiment, plaque assay and transmission electron observation. Analysesof 16S rRNA gene libraries showed that bacterial groups from two reactors evolved di erently and an overgrowth of protozoa wasobserved in the bioaugmented BAF. Therefore, phage infection and poor biofilm forming ability of the inoculated strain are the mainreasons for bioaugmentation failure. In addition, grazing by protozoa of the bacteria might be the reason for the nitrification breakdownin bioaugmented BAF during day 9–18.     

Biofilm structure and its influence on clogging in drip irrigation emittersdistributing reclaimed wastewater

Using reclaimed wastewater for crop irrigation is a practical alternative to discharge wastewater treatment plant effluents into surface waters.However,biofouling has been identified as a major contributor to emitter clogging in drip irrigation systems distributing reclaimed wastewater.Little is known about the biofilm structure and its influence on clogging in the drip emitter flow path.This study was first to investigate the microbial characteristics of mature biofilms present in the emitters and the effect of flow path structures on the biofilm microbial communities.The analysis of biofilm matrix structure using a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that particles in the matrix of the biofilm coupled extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) and formed sediment in the emitter flow path.Analysis of biofilm mass including protein,polysaccharide and phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) showed that emitter flow path style influenced biofilm community structure and diversity.The correlations of biofilm biomass and discharge reduction after 360 h irrigation were computed and suggest that PFLAs provide the best correlation coefficient.Comparatively,the emitter with the unsymmetrical dentate structure and shorter flow path (Emitter C) had the best anti-clogging capability.By optimizing the dentate structure,the internal flow pattern within the flow path could be enhanced as an important method to control the biofilm within emitter flow path.This study established electron microscope techniques and biochemical microbial analysis methods that may provide a framework for future emitter biofilm studies.