Information system for monitoring environmental impacts of genetically modified organisms

Background, aim and scope  

European legislation stipulates that genetically modified organisms (GMO) have to be monitored to identify potential adverse environmental effects. A wealth of different types of monitoring data from various sources including existing environmental monitoring programmes is expected to accumulate. This requires an information system to efficiently structure, process and evaluate the monitoring data.     

衡水市医疗废物处理现状调查及对策

医疗废物是一类成分复杂并有特殊危害的危险废弃物。通过分析衡水市医疗废物处理过程中存在的分散处置、处理率低等问题,提出了加强管理监督机制、提高医疗废物收集处理率的应对策略。通过综合比较分析几种医疗废物处理方法的优缺点,指出高温焚烧法集中处置是衡水市医疗废物的最佳处理方法。     

Development of Thixotropic Coatings Using Dimerized Soybean Oil Fatty Acids: The Case of Polyamide of 1,2-Phenylene Diamine

Soybean oil (SBO) was dimerized and the crude dimer acid product reacted with 1,2-phenylene diamine at 210 ± 5 °C under inert atmosphere to obtain fatty polyamide (FPA). The FPA was used to modify a commercial alkyd resin by reacting a mixture of the alkyd resin with 5 wt% of FPA at 120 °C for 80 min under inert atmosphere. The FTIR spectrum of the FPA modified resin showed evidence of higher degree of H-bonding than was found for the unmodified alkyd. White gloss coatings of 15, 20, 25, and 30% solids were formulated from the modified and unmodified resins and examined for performance with respect to: leveling, sag resistance, drying time, pigment settling, skinning tendency and film hardness. Results showed that the unmodified alkyd coatings exhibited good leveling but poor sag resistance at all solid contents. In contrast, FPA modified alkyd coatings combined good leveling with high sag resistance indicating their thixotropic nature. A strong tendency to pigment settling was observed for unmodified alkyd coatings but was not observed in the FPA modified alkyd coatings. The modified alkyd coatings showed skinning while the unmodified alkyd coatings did not skin. A 30% solids coating formulation of the FPA modified resin showed shorter surface dry time but longer hard dry time than the unmodified alkyd resin coating.     

Block Copolymers Containing (R)-3-Hydroxybutyrate and Isosorbide Succinate or (S)-Lactic Acid Mers

A new aliphatic block copolyester was synthesized in bulk from transesterification techniques between poly((R)-3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and poly(isosorbide succinate) (PIS). Additionally, other two block copolyesters were synthesized in bulk either from transesterification reactions involving PHB and poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) or from ring-opening copolymerization of l-lactide and hydroxyl-terminated PHB, as result of a previous transesterification reactions with isosorbide. Two-component blends of PHB and PIS or PLLA were also prepared as comparative systems. SEC, MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS), ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy, WAXD, solubility tests, and TG thermal analysis were used for characterization. The block copolymer structures of the products were evidenced by MALDI-TOFMS, ¹³C NMR, and WAXD data. The block copolymers and the corresponding binary blends presented different solubility properties, as revealed by solubility tests. Although the incorporation of PIS sequences into PHB main backbone did not enhance the thermal stability of the product, it reduced its crystallinity, which could be advantageous for faster biodegradation rate. These products, composed of PHB and PIS or PLLA sequences, are an interesting alternative in biomedical applications.     

Purification and Properties of Extracellular Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) Depolymerase Produced by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aspergillus fumigatus</Emphasis> 202

An extracellular poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) depolymerase produced by a thermotolerant fungal soil isolate, Aspergillus fumigatus 202, was purified and characterized. Maximum PHB depolymerase production was obtained at the end of 48 h with initial medium pH 7.0 and 45 °C in Bushnell Haas Minerals medium containing PHB as sole source of carbon. The PHB depolymerase was purified using size exclusion chromatography to a fold purification of 20.62 and 61.62% yield. SDS-PAGE and isoelectric focusing revealed the molecular weight and pI of the purified enzyme as 63,744 Da and 4.2, respectively. N-terminal amino acid sequence of purified enzyme was HAXDAYLVK. This non-glycosylated enzyme was most active at pH 9.0 and 45 °C. Purified enzyme was inactivated by N-bromosuccinimide and dithiothreitol suggesting the involvement of tryptophan residues and disulfide bonds at its active site. Nonionic detergents like Tween 20, Tween 80 and Triton X-100 inhibited the enzyme activity. Ions like Ca⁺² and Mg⁺² (5 mM) increased the enzyme activity 1.5 times. Fe⁺² effectively inhibited the enzyme activity to 88% whereas Hg⁺² completely inhibited the enzyme.     

Effects of acetaminophen in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica juncea</Emphasis> L. Czern.: investigation of uptake,translocation, detoxification,and the induced defense pathways

Purpose  

Besides classical organic pollutants and pesticides, pharmaceuticals and their residues have nowadays become recognized as relevant environmental contaminants. The risks of these chemicals for aquatic ecosystems are well known, but information about the pharmaca-plant interactions and metabolic pathways is scarce. Therefore, we investigate the process of uptake of acetaminophen (N-Acetyl-4-aminophenol) by Brassica juncea, drug-induced defense responses and detoxification mechanisms in different plant parts.     

How life history contributes to stress response in the Manila clam <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ruditapes philippinarum</Emphasis>

Introduction  

Within the last decade, numerous studies have investigated the role of environmental history on tolerance to stress of many organisms. This study aims to assess if Manila clams Ruditapes philippinarum may react differently to cadmium exposure and trematode parasite infection (Himasthla elongata) depending on their origin and environmental history in Arcachon Bay (France).     

Zr—Fe双组分复合除砷吸附剂的优化制备及性能评价

实验发现,铁氧化物或铁的羟基氧化物对As（V）有较好的吸附性能,而锆氧化物或锆水合氧化物则对As（Ⅲ）有优异的吸附选择性,但其使用的pH通常要在〉9的条件下。通过简单的共沉淀法制备了Zr-Fe双组分复合吸附剂,在制备过程中通过优化制备条件如：沉淀剂浓度、金属离子总浓度、金属离子配比、反应温度、反应时间及吸附剂价格等因素,最终合成出了对As（V）和As（Ⅲ）都具有良好吸附能力的吸附剂。这种吸附剂在中性条件下对As（V）和As（Ⅲ）的最大吸附量为62mg／g和118mg／g。     

Influence of regional development policies and clean technology adoption on future air pollution exposure

Future air pollution emissions in the year 2030 were estimated for the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) in central California using a combined system of land use, mobile, off-road, stationary, area, and biogenic emissions models. Four scenarios were developed that use different assumptions about the density of development and level of investment in transportation infrastructure to accommodate the expected doubling of the SJV population in the next 20 years. Scenario 1 reflects current land-use patterns and infrastructure while scenario 2 encouraged compact urban footprints including redevelopment of existing urban centers and investments in transit. Scenario 3 allowed sprawling development in the SJV with reduced population density in existing urban centers and construction of all planned freeways. Scenario 4 followed currently adopted land use and transportation plans for the SJV. The air quality resulting from these urban development scenarios was evaluated using meteorology from a winter stagnation event that occurred on December 15th, 2000 to January 7th 2001. Predicted base-case PM2.5 mass concentrations within the region exceeded 35 μg m^?3 over the 22-day episode. Compact growth reduced the PM2.5 concentrations by ～1 μg m^?3 relative to the base-case over most of the SJV with the exception of increases (～1 μg m^?3) in urban centers driven by increased concentrations of elemental carbon (EC) and organic carbon (OC). Low-density development increased the PM2.5 concentrations by 1–4 μg m^?3 over most of the region, with decreases (0.5–2 μg m^?3) around urban areas. Population-weighted average PM2.5 concentrations were very similar for all development scenarios ranging between 16 and 17.4 μg m^?3. Exposure to primary PM components such as EC and OC increased 10–15% for high density development scenarios and decreased by 11–19% for low-density scenarios. Patterns for secondary PM components such as nitrate and ammonium ion were almost exactly reversed, with a 10% increase under low-density development and a 5% decrease under high density development. The increased human exposure to primary pollutants such as EC and OC could be predicted using a simplified analysis of population-weighted primary emissions. Regional planning agencies should develop thresholds of population-weighted primary emissions exposure to guide the development of growth plans. This metric will allow them to actively reduce the potential negative impacts of compact growth while preserving the benefits.