Photomirex: A teratogenicity and tissue distribution study in the rabbit

Abstract

Adult New Zealand white does were intubated orally with single daily doses of 0, 5, or 10 mg of photomirex (8‐monohydromirex) per kg body weight from the 6th through to the 18th day of gestation. Pregnancies were interrupted at term by cesarian section and fetuses removed and evaluated by following routine teratologic methods. Both maternal and fetal tissues were analyzed for residues of photomirex. None of the treated does showed any sign of toxicity. Except for a significant reduction in the mean fetal weight of the 10 mg/kg group all other parameters which evaluated fetal survival and fetal development were within the control range. Photomirex was found in all tissues examined. In the doe, the highest levels were found in fat followed by liver, kidney, spleen, heart, brain and blood. Photomirex was readily transferred across the placenta and accumulated in the fetus. However, in the fetus the highest levels were found in the heart, followed by liver, brain and blood. There were no teratogenic effects at the doses used in this study.     

Cooling Suits,Physiological Response,and Task Performance in Hot Environments for the Power Industry

Heat stress on workers working outdoors in the power industry may result in fatigue and deterioration in task performance. This research collected and analyzed data on task performance of workers working indoors and outdoors with and without a cooling suit. The task performance was compared on the basis of heart rate, oxygen consumption, tympanic temperature, subjective responses, productivity, and error rates. Based on One-Way Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA) results, a significantly lower estimated working oxygen consumption was observed (p < .001) when the cooling suit was worn. The productivity was higher while workers wore the cooling suit as compared to no cooling suit (p = .011) whereas the error rates were significantly lower(p < .001). Also a significantly lower self-reported discomfort was observed in the neck and shoulders while working wearing the cooling suit (p = .004). This study concluded that wearing a cooling suit while working outdoors was associated with physiological benefits as well as improved task performance of the study participants.     

Differences in the quality of steamed hull-less barley and wheat cakes北大核心CSCD

In this study, three different hull-less barley varieties were used to prepare steamed cakes, and their nutritional value, sensory qualities, textural properties, and in vitro starch hydrolysis were evaluated. The results showed that the contents of total dietary fiber (4.50%-5.12%), β-glucan (2.96%-3.96%), total flavonoids (12.56-38.73 mg/100 g), and γ-aminobutyric acid (5.08-9.53 mg/100 g) in the steamed hull-less barley cakes were significantly higher than that in the steamed wheat cake, which were 0.65%, 0.23%, 3.93 mg/(100 g), and 2.63 mg/(100 g), respectively. The sensory properties of steamed ordinary hull-less barley and wheat cakes were not significantly different, but the steamed 08-1127 (waxy hull-less barley) cake was softer and out of shape. The springiness, resilience, cohesiveness, gumminess, and adhesiveness of steamed ordinary hull-less barley cakes were similar to those of steamed wheat cake, while those of steamed 08-1127 cakes were significantly lower than those of steamed ordinary hull-less barley cakes. Steamed hull-less barley cake also showed a maximum starch hydrolysis rate (38.76%-42.74%) that was lower than that of steamed wheat cake (49.92%), and the contents of rapidly (11.58%-13.16%) and slowly digested starch (5.34%-7.56%) were lower than that of steamed wheat cake (17.21% and 15.97%, respectively). In addition, the glycemic (59.37-61.67) and hydrolysis indexes (35.82-40.00) were lower than those of steamed wheat cake (76.66 and 67.30, respectively), and the contents of resistant starch (2.74%-3.55%) were higher than those of wheat steamed cake (1.68%). Therefore, the steamed cakes of ordinary hull-less barley had a higher content of nutritional components than the steamed cake of wheat, and the in vitro starch hydrolysis parameters were better than those of steamed wheat cake. When it is necessary to consider both nutritional and sensory qualities, ordinary hull-less barley can be selected as the raw material for steamed cakes, but waxy hull-less barley is not suitable for making steamed cakes. © 2022 Science Press. All rights reserved.     

Treatment and recycling of incinerated ash using thermal plasma technology

To treat incinerated ash is an important issue in Taiwan. Incinerated ashes contain a considerable amount of hazardous materials such as dioxins and heavy metals. If these hazardous materials are improperly treated or disposed of, they shall cause detrimental secondary contamination. Thermal plasma vitrification is a robust technology to treat and recycle the ash residues. Under the high temperature plasma environment, incinerated ashes are vitrified into benign slag with large volume reduction and extreme detoxification. Several one-step heat treatment processes are carried out at four temperatures (i.e. 850, 950, 1,050 and 1,150 degrees C) to obtain various "microstructure materials". The major phase to form these materials is a solid solution of gehlenite (Ca2Al2SiO7) and ?kermanite (Ca2MgSi2O7) belonging to the melilite group. The physical and mechanical properties of the microstructure materials are improved by using one-step post-heat treatment process after plasma vitrification. These microstructure materials with good quality have great potential to serve as a viable alternative for construction applications.     

Aquatic toxicity of glyphosate-based formulations: comparison between different organisms and the effects of environmental factors

Glyphosate-based herbicides (e.g. Roundup) are extensively used in the aquatic environment, but there is a paucity of data on the toxicity of the formulated products and the influences by environmental factors. In this study, the acute toxicity of technical-grade glyphosate acid, isopropylamine (IPA) salt of glyphosate, Roundup and its surfactant polyoxyethylene amine (POEA) to Microtox bacterium (Vibrio fischeri), microalgae (Selenastrum capricornutum and Skeletonema costatum), protozoa (Tetrahymena pyriformis and Euplotes vannus) and crustaceans (Ceriodaphnia dubia and Acartia tonsa) was examined and the relative toxicity contributions of POEA to Roundup were calculated. The effects of four environmental factors (temperature, pH, suspended sediment and algal food concentrations) on the acute toxicity of Roundup to C. dubia were also examined. Generally, the toxicity order of the chemicals was: POEA>Roundup>glyphosate acid>IPA salt of glyphosate, while the toxicity of glyphosate acid was mainly due to its high acidity. Microtox bacterium and protozoa had similar sensitivities towards Roundup toxicity (i.e. IC50 from 23.5 to 29.5 mg AE/l). In contrast, microalgae and crustaceans were 4-5 folds more sensitive to Roundup toxicity than bacteria and protozoa. Except photosynthetic microalgae, POEA accounted for more than 86% of Roundup toxicity and the toxicity contribution of POEA was shown to be species-dependent. Increase in pH (6-9) and increase of suspended sediment concentration (0-200 mg/l) significantly increased the toxicity of Roundup to C. dubia, but there were no significant effects due to temperature change and food addition.     

Accumulation, distribution and transformation of DDT and PCBs by Phragmites australis and Oryza sativa L.: II. Enzyme study

Two wetland plant species, Phragmites australis and Oryza sativa, were grown in a glasshouse under hydroponics conditions. Enzyme extracts from different parts of the plants were used to determine the transformation rate of o,p′-DDT, p,p′-DDT and PCBs. The organic pollutants were directly spiked into the enzyme extracts, and samples were collected every 30 min and analyzed with a GC-ECD. Root extracts of P. australis readily degraded and transformed DDT and some PCB congeners with a low degree of chlorination. In contrast, crude extracts of O. sativa showed no appreciable degradation or transformation of DDT or PCBs. Inhibition studies indicated that the degradation and transformation of both DDT and PCBs by P. australis enzymes were partly mediated by peroxidase and the plant P-450 system. PCBs with a high degree of chlorination were highly resistant to transformation or degradation by plant enzymes. Both wetland plant species accumulated substantial quantities of the persistent organic chemicals but had different degradation capacities. The enzyme systems in P. australis were much more effective that those in rice in the degradation and transformation of the organic pollutants.     

Enhancement of ozone oxidation and its associated processes in the presence of surfactant: degradation of atrazine

In this study, the degradation of atrazine (ATZ) by ozone (O3) oxidation and its associated processes (i.e. UV, UV/O3) in the presence and absence of surfactant was investigated and compared. A non-ionic surfactant, Brij 35, was selected. It was found that the presence of a low concentration of surfactant could improve the removal of ATZ by increasing the dissolution of ozone and the indirect generation of hydroxyl radicals. The saturated ozone level and the reaction rate constants were increased with increasing the concentration of surfactant and then decreased at higher surfactant doses at pH level of 2.5. A similar trend was observed at pH level of 7.0 in the presence of bicarbonate ion, because it is capable of deactivating the hydroxyl radicals generating at higher pH level. However, when the radical reactions become dominant in the ozonation (at pH 7.0 without bicarbonate), the saturated ozone level was higher than that with bicarbonate and the kinetic rate constants were increased first and levelled off with increasing of the dose of surfactant. Through the examining of a proposed unit performance index, the low concentration of surfactant is surely beneficial to the ozonation process. Besides, the direct photolysis and photo-assisted ozonation were compared to the ozonation. A significant enhancement on the decay rate of ATZ was resulted exclusively by adding the surfactant. An enhancement index for quantifying the improvement of the various processes was developed.     

长江口潮间带湿地涨退潮期N2O的排放通量研究

随着河口区接收上游人为氮排放量的增加,为这一区域氧化亚氮（N2O）的排放增加了很大不确定性。选择长江河口潮间带湿地为研究对象,分别采用原位静态箱法和静态顶空法,从2011年1月至12月对长江口沉积物 大气界面以及涨潮水 大气界面的N2O排放通量进行了为期一年的现场观测和研究。研究结果表明,沉积物 大气界面N2O通量有着显著的时空差异。N2O排放通量在日变化以及季节变化上都表现出明显的源汇转变,就年平均排放通量,光滩带沉积物 大气界面达到了599 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h),而海三棱藨草盐沼带与大气间N2O交换则十分微弱,为060 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h)。对长江口涨退潮期光滩和草滩上覆水体 大气界面N2O排放通量的研究表明,长江口涨退潮期在夏季和秋季,无论是光滩还是草滩均表现为大气N2O的稳定排放源,其中夏季平均253 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h),秋季平均排放通量为207 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h)。作为河口区上游排放氮素的直接接收者,和沉积物 大气界面N2O排放相比,长江口涨潮水 大气界面N2O排放稳定而又显著,是长江口N2O排放的主要贡献者,应成为这一区域N2O排放的关注热点     

Hygroscopicity of particles generated from photooxidation of α-pinene under diferent oxidation conditions in the presence of sulfate seed aerosols

Smog chamber experiments were conducted to investigate the hygroscopicity of particles generated from photooxidation of α-pinene/NOx with diferent sulfate seed aerosols or oxidation conditions. Hygroscopicity of particles was measured by a tandem diferential mobility analyzer(TDMA) in terms of hygroscopic growth factor(Gf), with a relative humidity of 85%. With sulfate seed aerosols present, Gf of the aerosols decreased very fast before notable secondary organic aerosols(SOA) formation was observed, indicating a heterogeneous process between inorganic seeds and organic products might take place as soon as oxidation begins, rather than only happening after gas-aerosol partition of organic products starts. The final SOA-coated sulfate particles had similar or lower Gf than seed-free SOA. The hygroscopicity of the final particles was not dependent on the thickness but on the hygroscopicity properties of the SOA, which were influenced by the initial sulfate seed particles. In the two designed aging processes, Gf of the particles increased more significantly with introduction of OH radical than with ozone. However, the hygroscopicity of SOA was very low even after a long time of aging, implying that either SOA aging in the chamber was very slow or the Gf of SOA did not change significantly in aging. Using an aerosol composition speciation monitor(ACSM) and matrix factorization(PMF) method, two factors for the components of SOA were identified, but the correlation between SOA hygroscopicity and the proportion of the more highly oxidized factor could be either positive or negative depending on the speciation of seed aerosols present.