Effects of benzo[a]pyrene toxicity on morphology and ultrastructure of Hordeum sativum

Many studies have been devoted to investigation of toxic benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) compound, but studies involving changes at the cellular level are insufficient to understand the mechanisms of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) effect on plants. To study the toxicity of BaP, a model vegetation experiment was conducted on cultivation of spring barley (Hordeum sativum distichum) on artificially polluted BaP soil at different concentrations. The article discusses the intake of BaP from the soil into the plant and its effect on the organismic and cellular levels of plant organization. The BaP content in the organs of spring barley was determined by the method of saponification. With an increase in the concentration of BaP in the soil, its content in plants also rises, which leads to inhibition of growth processes. The BaP content in the green part of Hordeum sativum increased from 0.3 µg kg^?1 in control soil up to 2.6 µg kg^?1 and 16.8 µg kg^?1 under 20 and 400 ng/g BaP applying in soil, as well as in roots: 0.9 µg kg^?1, 7.7 µg kg^?1, 42.8 µg kg^?1, respectively. Using light and electron microscopy, changes in the tissues and cells of plants were found and it was established that accumulation of BaP in plant tissues caused varying degrees of ultrastructural damage depending on the concentration of pollutant. BaP had the greatest effect on the root, significant changes were found in it both at histological and cytological levels, while changes in the leaves were observed only at the cytological level. The results provide significant information about the mechanism of action of BaP on agricultural plants.

     

Is software sustainability considered in the CSR of software industry?

Software is a key factor in the functioning of today’s world. Software is supposed to have some characteristics such as: reliability, security, etc., but it is not at all easy to find energy efficiency considered as being one of software’s most important features. Aspects related to Green Software have begun to be considered vital and basic, due to pressure from a society which is becoming more and more aware of environmental problems. In this paper we want to explore whether software companies, responsible for developing software, are aligning their strategies with environmental concerns. To do so, we have checked the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies of the ten most important software companies and looked at these documents with reference to the UN’s sustainable development goals. A well-defined method for carrying out the analysis of the CSR policies led the authors to identify which of the sustainability actions proposed can be classified within any of the software sustainability dimensions. The analysis of these actions shows that sustainability is considered in most of the companies; nonetheless, most attention is currently devoted to hardware-based initiatives intended to reduce the carbon footprint of the hardware resources of the companies. In addition, green software initiatives are still not the priority, despite the influence of software on energy consumption, and in spite of its impact on the environment. Using the set of actions selected, a set of specific actions for software sustainability, to be included in the CSR of software companies, has been defined.     

Characterisation of agroindustrial solid residues as biofuels and potential application in thermochemical processes

In the present work, selected agroindustrial solid residues from Brazil – biosolids from meat processing wastewater treatment and mixture of sawdust with these biosolids; residues from apple and orange juice industries; sugarcane bagasse; açaí kernels (Euterpe oleracea) and rice husk – were characterised as solid fuels and an evaluation of their properties, including proximate and ultimate composition, energy content, thermal behaviour, composition and fusibility of the ashes was performed. The lower heating value of the biomasses ranged from 14.31 MJ kg^?1 to 29.14 MJ kg^?1, on a dry and ash free basis (daf), all presenting high volatile matter content, varying between 70.57 wt.% and 85.36 wt.% (daf) what improves the thermochemical conversion of the solids. The fouling and slagging tendency of the ashes was predicted based on the fuel ash composition and on the ash fusibility correlations proposed in the literature, which is important to the project and operation of biomass conversion systems. The potential for application of the Brazilian agroindustrial solid residues studied as alternative energy sources in thermochemical processes has been identified, especially concerning direct combustion for steam generation.     

Prenatal diagnosis of 47,XX,der(15)t(15;16)(q13;p13.2)

A case of prenatally detected partial trisomy 15 and 16 is reported. Amniocentesis was performed at 14 weeks' gestation because a 6-mm nuchal translucency was detected on a dating ultrasound evaluation. Karyotype from amniocytes was suspect of an aberration concerning a marker chromosome. FISH analysis demonstrated that this marker chromosome was a der(15). A maternal chromosomal rearrangement t(15;16)(q13;p13.2) was confirmed. At birth, the proband was severely hydropic and had dysmorphic features, which included hypertelorism, micrognathia, incomplete separation of the maxilla and mandible, hyperflexed hands with overlapping fingers, hyposegmented right lung, and a single umbilical artery. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Regulation of respiration during juvenile development of Sepia officinalis (Mollusca: Cephalopoda)

A culture of juvenile Sepia officinalis L. was kept during summer 1985 in the aquaria of the Station Marine, Wimereux, France. During the first four months of juvenile development, oxygen consumption under increasing hypoxia was measured with a closed respirometer. The experiments revealed a high regulatory capacity of juvenile S. officinalis. The critical oxygen concentrations were calculated and their ontogenetical evolution was studied. The critical oxygen concentration increased with increasing development. A linear relationship emerged between the critical oxygen concentration and the logarithm of the wet weight [CO_c (mg O₂ l^-1)=-0.393+0.893×log₁₀(W _w )]. The decreasing regulatory capacity of growing S. officinalis is most probably related to adaptations to a changing ecological environment during development. Another possibility is a physiological change, most probably related to the shift from embryonic to adult hemocyanin.     

Quantification of the effect of fumigation on short- and long-term nitrogen mineralization and nitrification in different soils

The effect of soil fumigation on N mineralization and nitrification needs to be better quantified to optimize N fertilizer advice and predict NO(-)(3) concentrations in crops and NO(-)(3) leaching risks. Seven soils representing a range in soil texture and organic matter contents were fumigated with Cyanamid DD 95 (a mixture of 1,3-dichloropropane and 1,3-dichloropropene). After removal of the fumigant, the fumigated soils and unfumigated controls were incubated for 20 wk and N mineralization and nitrification were monitored by destructive sampling. The average short-term N mineralization rates (k(s)) were significantly larger in the fumigated than in the unfumigated soils (P = 0.025), but the differences in k(s) between fumigated and unfumigated soils could not be related to soil properties. The average long-term N mineralization rates (k(l)) were slightly larger in the fumigated soils but the difference with the unfumigated soils was not significant. Again, the differences in k(l) values could not be related to soil properties. Nitrification was inhibited completely for at least 3 wk in all soils, and an effect on nitrification could be observed up to 17 wk in one soil. An S-shaped function was fitted to the nitrification data corrected for N mineralization, and both the rate constant (gamma) and the time at which maximum nitrification was reached (t(max)) were strongly correlated to soil pH. However, since no correlations were found between the effect of fumigation on N mineralization and soil properties, taking into account the effects of fumigation in fertilizer advice and in the prediction of NO(-)(3) leaching risks will need further research.     

Curriculum Development in Environmental Science: A Case Study on Paradigm and Institutions

/ The case of "Environment and Development" at Leiden University, the Netherlands, offers an example of developing a new environmental science curriculum in a conservative, disciplines-oriented university context. The core of this history is the long-term struggle of environmental science to evolve from the level of doing applied interdisciplinary studies and establish itself as a distinct body of knowledge with its own theory level, i.e., a discipline of its own. The struggle itself as well as its final outcome, a "bidisciplinary" curriculum in which both environmental science and one social science are expressed as disciplines (hence not environmental science as a mere "field of application") may be of value in other "classical" universities, too. KEY WORDS: Environmental science; Curriculum; Interdisciplinarity; Universities     

Preparation of activated carbons from heavy-oil fly ashes

The use of heavy oil fly ash with high ash content (45 wt.%) as a precursor for the preparation of activated carbons has been investigated. The raw fly ash and the fly ash with lower ash content, obtained by a HCl/HF washing treatment, have been pyrolyzed at 900 degrees C and then activated with CO(2) in the temperature range of 800-900 degrees C for different times. The activated carbons have been characterised as regards the surface area and the pore volume. The evolution of the porosity has been related to the burn-off degree.