Innovations strategy for moving from created regional clusters to co-creation in life sciences for health care and well-being ecosystems

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Over the last decades, the demographic changes have all altered the population structure and influenced the social, economic, and political...     

Determination of phthalates in particulate matter and gaseous phase emitted in indoor air of offices

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Phthalate esters (PAEs) are endocrine disrupters and can disrupt the functioning of different hormones, causing adverse effects on human health. Due...     

Predicting the combustion behaviour of compression ignition engine fuelled with biodiesel from Stoechospermum marginatum,a macro algae

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Biodiesel is one among the recent developments in the field of renewable energy research. To enhance the combustion characteristics of compression...     

Solar drying of granulated waste blends for dry biofuel production

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In the paper, results of drying biofuels from sewage sludge using solar energy are presented. Drying rates of biofuels made from sewage sludge and...     

Soil and preen waxes influence the expression of carotenoid-based plumage coloration

The signaling function of carotenoid-based plumage is mainly determined by the concentration of pigments in feathers. For this reason, most studies of the proximate control of coloration focus on processes during and preceding moult. In great tits Parus major, past research demonstrates that carotenoid-based plumage coloration honestly indicates male quality and, thus, may be a sexually selected signal. In this study, we investigate how dirt and preen oil influence the coloration of carotenoid-based feathers in the great tit. We collected six feathers from each individual bird; three feathers served as controls while the remaining three feathers were washed with a chloroform/methanol mixture to remove soil and preen waxes. We assessed plumage coloration using digital photography. This cleaning procedure slightly enhanced ornamentation; the experimentally cleaned feathers expressed hues shifted towards shorter wavelengths and expressed brighter overall coloration than control feathers. This is the first experimental study conducted on wild birds demonstrating that, in addition to pigment concentration, the presence of preen waxes and soils on feathers may contribute to variation in coloration.     

The first direct evidence of a Late Devonian coelacanth fish feeding on conodont animals

We describe the first known occurrence of a Devonian coelacanth specimen from the lower Famennian of the Holy Cross Mountains, Poland, with a conodont element preserved in its digestive tract. A small spiral and phosphatic coprolite (fossil excrement) containing numerous conodont elements and other unrecognized remains was also found in the same deposits. The coprolite is tentatively attributed to the coelacanth. Although it is unclear whether the Late Devonian coelacanth from Poland was an active predator or a scavenger, these finds provide the first direct evidence of feeding on conodont animals by early coelacanth fish, and one of the few evidences of feeding on these animals known to date. It also expands our knowledge about the diet and trophic relations between the Paleozoic marine animals in general.     

The first Neanderthal tooth found North of the Carpathian Mountains

An upper second permanent molar from a human was found alongside numerous tools of the Micoquian tradition and was excavated in Stajnia Cave, which is located over 100 km North of the Carpathian Mountains in southern Poland. The age of these finds has been established within a time-span of late Saalian to early Weichselian, most likely to OIS 5c or 5a, according to the palaeontological, geological, archaeological and absolute dating of the layer from which they were obtained. An examination of the morphology of the human molar indicates that this tooth exhibits many traits frequently occurring in Neanderthal upper molars. Although the occurrence of derived Neanderthal traits in the Stajnia molar cannot be firmly established because of degradation of its cusps, the presence of the above-mentioned features allows the assertion that this tooth belonged to a Neanderthal. The age of the Stajnia tooth and the archaeological context of this find also indicate that this molar is of Neanderthal origin.     

Assessment of health risk associated with persistent organic pollutants in water

This paper presents the results of analyses of water samples taken from water intakes supplying one of the districts located near the city of Wroc?aw. Surprisingly high concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls and chloroorganic pesticides, classified as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), were detected in the monitored sites. Basing on the analytical and toxicological data, the individual health risks related to carcinogenic effects (excess cancer risk over a lifetime) in humans were assessed, resulting from direct ingestion of community water. Also noncarcinogenic effects resulting from exposure to the examined POPs were determined. The conservative approach to risk assessment, taking into account a safety margin for data incompleteness, was adopted. The carcinogenic risk was found to slightly exceed the unconditionally acceptable risk of 10^?6 in the case of polychlorinated biphenyls and hexachlorocyclohexane, for all the inhabitant populations. The determined values of noncarcinogenic effects expressed by hazard quotient and hazard index indicate that the water pollutants and their concentrations do not cause an increase in noncarcinogenic incidences in the inhabitants using the monitored water sources.     

Inorganic and methyl-mercury speciation in sediments of the Swarzędzkie Lake

Sediment samples were analysed for mercury and methylmercury content in different parts of the bottom sediment of Swarz ?dzkie Lake, which were influenced by different external pollution sources. The results of determination with two methods of mineralization using two separate media (HNO₃/H₂O₂ and HF) were compared. The accuracy of the studied methods was analysed using certified reference material IAEA 405 of river sediment. The recovery of mercury was satisfactory and ranged from 97.5 to 98.8%. Methylmercury compounds in the studied sediments were found in limited concentrations. Their concentrations ranged from 0.26 to 58.1 μg kg^?1, i.e. 1.0–7.4% of the total mercury content. The depth profile displayed high values of both total and methylmercury content at a depth of 10–20 cm, related to the heavy pollution of the lake in the 1980s. Canonical analysis displayed the relationship of both total mercury and methylmercury concentrations with organic matter and phosphorus content in bottom sediments.     

Transformation of a lowland river from a meandering and multi-channel pattern into an artificial canal: retracing a path of river channel changes (the Middle Obra River, W Poland)

At the beginning of the nineteenth century, a significant change in sedimentation took place along the middle course of the Obra River (W Poland): a “natural” channel bed was replaced by three artificial canals. Before that time the Obra River bed had been characterized by various river patterns (braided, meandering and disappearing in wetlands). GPR (ground-penetrating radar) surveys and the analysis of satellite and aerial images were carried out to retrace the natural river course near the village of Kopanica. The GPR, ground-truthed with core data, revealed that at least two types of the river pattern had been functioning here before the period of the hydrotechnical works: a large-scale meandering pattern (width-to-depth (w/d) ratio ranging from 15 to 40) and a relatively smaller-scale multi-channel pattern (w/d = 11–22). Possibly, the transformation was caused by forming a series of large floods followed by in-channel aggradation and avulsions. Next, the multi-channel pattern was artificially transformed into the North Obra Canal. This paper discusses possibilities of a creation of network of channels that were active after the construction of the North Obra Canal in the beginning of the nineteenth century. Such intervention would increase natural values of the presented section of the Obra valley. The presented study also shows that a detailed analysis of history and evolution of a given river course is needed before undertaking any restoration works.