Evaluation of photolysis and hydrolysis of pyraclostrobin in aqueous solutions and its degradation products in paddy water

This study evaluated the hydrolysis and photolysis kinetics of pyraclostrobin in an aqueous solution using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–photodiode array detection and identified the resulting metabolites of pyraclostrobin by hydrolysis and photolysis in paddy water using high-resolution mass spectrometry coupled with liquid chromatography. The effect of solution pH, metal ions and surfactants on the hydrolysis of pyraclostrobin was explored. The hydrolysis half-lives of pyraclostrobin were 23.1–115.5?days and were stable in buffer solution at pH 5.0. The degradation rate of pyraclostrobin in an aqueous solution under sunlight was slower than that under UV photolysis reaction. The half-lives of pyraclostrobin in a buffer solution at pH 5.0, 7.0, 9.0 and in paddy water were less than 12?h under the two light irradiation types. The metabolites of the two processes were identified and compared to further understand the mechanisms underlying hydrolysis and photolysis of pyraclostrobin in natural water. The extracted ions obtained from paddy water were automatically annotated by Compound Discoverer software with manual confirmation of their fragments. Two metabolites were detected and identified in the pyraclostrobin hydrolysis, whereas three metabolites were detected and identified in the photolysis in paddy water.     

Determination of the residue dynamics and dietary risk of thiamethoxam and its metabolite clothianidin in citrus and soil by LC-MS/MS

A modified quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe (QuEChERS) method was developed for the determination of thiamethoxam and its metabolite clothianidin in citrus (including the whole citrus, peel and pulp) and soil samples by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The sample was extracted with acetonitrile and purified with octadecylsilane. The detection limits of both compounds were 0.0001–0.0002?mg kg^–1, while the limit of quantification of thiamethoxam was 0.002?mg kg^–1 and the limit of quantitation of metabolites was 0.001?mg kg^–1. The recovery was 70.37%–109.76%, with inter-day relative standard deviations (RSD) (n?=?15) values ≤9.46% for the two compounds in the four matrices. The degradation curve of thiamethoxam in whole citrus and soil was plotted using the first-order kinetic model. The half-life of the whole citrus was 1.9–6.2?days, and the half-life of the soil was 3.9–4.2?days. The terminal residue of thiamethoxam (the sum of thiamethoxam and clothianidin, expressed as thiamethoxam) was found to be concentrated on the peel. The final residual amount of thiamethoxam in the edible portion (pulp) was less than 0.061?mg kg^–1. The risk quotient values were all below 1, indicating that thiamethoxam as a citrus insecticide does not pose a health risk to humans at the recommended dosage.     

Potential of microalgae as biopesticides to contribute to sustainable agriculture and environmental development

The loss of yields from agricultural production due to the presence of pests has been treated over the years with synthetic pesticides, but the use of these substances negatively affects the environment and presents health risks for consumers and animals. The development of agroecological systems using biopesticides represents a safe alternative that contributes to the reduction of agrochemical use and sustainable agriculture. Microalgae are able to biosynthesize a number of metabolites with potential biopesticidal action and can be considered potential biological agents for the control of harmful organisms to soils and plants. The present work aims to provide a critical perspective on the consequences of using synthetic pesticides, offering as an alternative the biopesticides obtained from microalgal biomass, which can be used together with the implementation of environmentally friendly agricultural systems.     

Trace elements and microbiological parameters in farmed Nile tilapia with emphasis on muscle,water, sediment and feed

Fish may bioaccumulate contaminants from the aquatic environment and extend them to the food chain provoking risks to human health. This study evaluated the microbiological parameters of the pond´s water and trace elements concentrations in samples of water, sediment, feed and muscle of farmed Nile tilapia used for human consumption in southern Brazil. A total of 240 fish were collected from 12 tilapia farms. Sediment, tank water and dry ration used in the animals' diet were collected for analysis. Analysis were performed by Energy Dispersion X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF), Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS), Induced Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES), and Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS-VGA). In addition, the microbiological analysis of the water was carried out. The concentrations of Se, I, Fe, Cu and Zn in fish muscle were higher than the recommended by the Brazilian legislation, considering the advised daily intake for adults. The arsenic element had concentrations above the limit stipulated by the present Brazilian legislation, observed in all samples of muscle, sediment and tank water highlighting a possible environmental and fish contamination by the toxic element. Moreover, the arsenic concentration in the water presented a positive correlation (ρ?=?0.33) with arsenic in the muscle, suggesting that tilapia is a good environmental bioindicator, once they properly reflect the levels of arsenic in the water. It is suggested to perform an arsenic speciation for quantification of the inorganic form and accurate assessment of the degree of toxicity in the muscle samples and risks it can bring to human health. Regarding the other potentially toxic elements (Hg, Pb and Cd), and microbiological analysis of water it was verified that the consumption of the fish in question does not raise risks, since the values are within a quality benchmark established by law. The concentration of total and fecal coliforms in pond´s water in the facilities was in agreement with the microbiological indexes required by the legislation of CONAMA class II. Western region presented the lowest concentrations of fecal coliforms when compared to the other regions. There was no significant difference in the microbiological counts of total heterotrophic bacteria, Vibrio spp. and Pseudomonas spp. among the regions.     

Abundance and removal of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the rearing environments of intensive shrimp aquaculture in South China

Although research regarding antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in aquaculture environments has gained increasing scientific interest, further studies are required to understand the abundances and removal mechanisms of ARGs during the entire rearing period of shrimp aquaculture. Thus, in this study, abundances, distributions and removal rates of ARGs in different environmental compartments of intensive shrimp farms in South China were investigated during the entire rearing period. The results indicated that sul1 and cmlA were the predominant ARGs in the water and sediment samples. Additionally, the total abundance of ARGs was higher in shrimp pond water than in the source water and farm effluent. Moreover, sediment samples indicated significantly higher ARG abundances than water samples from the shrimp ponds (P?<?0.05). Environmental factors were found to significantly affect the distribution of ARGs in shrimp rearing environments. Furthermore, stable ponds aided the removal of ARGs from shrimp pond water. This study accounted for temporal variations in ARG abundances as well as removal of ARGs in different environmental compartments during the entire shrimp rearing period. However, additional research is required to optimize the water treatment process for removal of ARGs from the aquaculture.     

Study on the denitrification performance of FexLayOz/activated coke for NH3-SCR and the effect of CO escaped from activated coke at mid-high temperature on catalytic activity

Currently, activated coke is widely used in the removal of multiple pollutants from industrial flue gas. In this paper, a series of novel Fe_xLa_yO_z/AC catalysts was prepared by the incipient wetness impregnation for NH₃-SCR denitrification reaction. The introduction of Fe-La bimetal oxides significantly improved the denitrification performance of activated coke at mid-high temperature, and 4% Fe_0.3La_0.7O_1.5/AC exhibited a superior NO_x conversion efficiency of 90.1% at 400 °C. The catalysts were further characterized by BET, SEM, XRD, Raman, EPR, XPS, FTIR, NH₃-TPD, H₂-TPR, et al., whose results showed that the perovskite-type oxide of LaFeO₃ and oxygen vacancies were produced on the catalysts’ surfaces during roasting. Fe-La doping enhanced the amount of acid sites (mainly Lewis and other stronger acid sites) and the content of multifarious oxygen species, which were beneficial for NO_x removal at mid-high temperature. Moreover, it was investigated that the effect of released CO from activated coke at mid-high temperature on the NO_x removal through the lifetime test, in which it was found that a large amount of CO produced by pyrolysis of activated coke could promote the NO_x removal, and long-term escaping of CO on the activated coke carrier did not have a significant negative impact on catalytic performance. The results of the TG-IR test showed that volatile matter is released from the activated coke while TG results showed that the weight loss rate of 4% Fe_0.3La_0.7O_1.5/AC only was 0.0015~0.007%/min at 300–400 °C. Hence, 4% Fe_0.3La_0.7O_1.5/AC had excellent thermal stability and denitrification performance to be continuously used at mid-high temperature. Finally, the mechanisms were proposed on the basis of experiments and characterization results.

     

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.     

Larvicidal and pupicidal activities of eco-friendly phenolic lipid products from Anacardium occidentale nutshell against arbovirus vectors

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus are vectors of diseases that constitute public health problems. The discovery of products capable of...     

Ovariectomy predisposes female rats to fine particulate matter exposure’s effects by altering metabolic,oxidative, pro-inflammatory,and heat-shock protein levels

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The reduction of estrogen levels, as a result of menopause, is associated with the development of metabolic diseases caused by alterations in...     

Simultaneous removal of metronidazole and Pb(II) from aqueous solution onto bifunctional activated carbons

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In this work, it was analyzed the behavior of three commercial activated carbons with different textural and chemical properties to adsorb...