Novel application of the CORAL software to model cytotoxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles to bacteria Escherichia coli

Convenient to apply and available on the Internet software CORAL (http://www.insilico.eu/CORAL) has been used to build up quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR) for prediction of cytotoxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles to bacteria Escherichia coli (minus logarithm of concentration for 50% effect pEC50). In this study six random splits of the data into the training and test set were examined. It has been shown that the CORAL provides a reliable tool that could be used to build up a QSAR of the pEC50.     

Quantification of the interactions between Ca,Hg and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) of sludge

The interactions between metals (Ca²⁺ and Hg²⁺) and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from the aerobic and anaerobic sludge in wastewater treatment reactors were investigated using a combination of zeta potential measurement and 3-dimensional excitation–emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy with parallel factor (PARAFAC) analysis. Results show that Ca²⁺ had no substantial effects on the EEM fluorescence spectra of the EPS, but their zeta potentials increased with the increasing Ca²⁺ dosage. However, Hg²⁺ had a significant effect on the EEM fluorescence spectra of the EPS, while their zeta potentials seemed not to be affected by the dose of Hg²⁺. The interactions between Hg²⁺ and EPS were elucidated using the fluorescence quenching with PARAFAC analysis, while the interactions between Ca²⁺ and EPS were evaluated by the zeta potential technique. The binding constants for Hg²⁺ and EPS were two orders of magnitude higher than those for Ca²⁺ and EPS, suggesting that the binding mechanisms between Ca²⁺ and EPS were different from those between Hg²⁺ and EPS. The results might be useful for understanding the roles of EPS in bacterial self-protection against heavy metals and the aggregate formation mechanisms through ionic bridging interactions.     

Green manure plants for remediation of soils polluted by metals and metalloids: Ecotoxicity and human bioavailability assessment

Borage, white mustard and phacelia, green manure plants currently used in agriculture to improve soil properties were cultivated for 10 wk on various polluted soils with metal(loid) concentrations representative of urban brownfields or polluted kitchen gardens. Metal(loid) bioavailability and ecotoxicity were measured in relation to soil characteristics before and after treatment. All the plants efficiently grow on the various polluted soils. But borage and mustard only are able to modify the soil characteristics and metal(loid) impact: soil respiration increased while ecotoxicity, bioaccessible lead and total metal(loid) quantities in soils can be decreased respectively by phytostabilization and phytoextraction mechanisms. These two plants could therefore be used for urban polluted soil refunctionalization. However, plant efficiency to improve soil quality strongly depends on soil characteristics.     

Immobilization of Pb(II), Cd(II) and Ni(II) ions on kaolinite and montmorillonite surfaces from aqueous medium

The present study investigates the immobilization of Pb(II), Cd(II) and Ni(II) on clays (kaolinite and montmorillonite) in aqueous medium through the process of adsorption under a set of variables (concentration of metal ion, amount of clay, pH, time and temperature of interaction). Increasing pH favours the removal of metal ions till they are precipitated as the insoluble hydroxides. The uptake is rapid with maximum adsorption being observed within 180 min for Pb(II) and Ni(II) and 240 min for Cd(II). A number of available models like the Lagergren pseudo first-order kinetics, second-order kinetics, Elovich equation, liquid film diffusion and intra-particle diffusion are utilized to evaluate the kinetics and the mechanism of the immobilization interactions. Two isotherm equations due to Langmuir and Freundlich showed good fits with the experimental data. Kaolinite and montmorillonite have considerable Langmuir monolayer capacity with respect to Pb(II), Cd(II) and Ni(II), the values being in the range of 6.8-11.5mg/g (kaolinite) and 21.1-31.1mg/g (montmorillonite). The Freundlich adsorption capacity follows a similar order. The thermodynamics of the immobilization process indicates the same to be exothermic with Pb(II) and Ni(II), but endothermic with Cd(II). The interactions with Pb(II) and Ni(II) are accompanied by decrease in entropy and Gibbs energy while the endothermic immobilization of Cd(II) is supported by an increase in entropy and an appreciable decrease in Gibbs energy. The results have established good potentiality for kaolinite and montmorillonite to remove heavy metals like Pb(II), Cd(II) and Ni(II) from aqueous medium through adsorption-mediated immobilization.     

Heavy metal contamination from mining sites in South Morocco: Monitoring metal content and toxicity of soil runoff and groundwater

The aim of the present work is the assessment of metal toxicity in runoff, in their contaminated soils and in the groundwater sampled from two mining areas in the region of Marrakech using a microbial bioassay MetPLATE™. This bioassay is based on the specific inhibition of the β-galactosidase enzyme of a mutant strain of Escherichia coli, by the metallic pollutants. The stream waters from all sampling stations in the two mines were all very toxic and displayed percent enzyme inhibition exceeding 87% except SWA₄ and SWB₁ stations in mine C. Their high concentrations of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) confirm the acute toxicity shown by MetPLATE. The pH of stream waters from mine B and C varied between 2.1 and 6.2 and was probably responsible for metal mobilization, suggesting a problem of acid mine drainage in these mining areas. The bioassay MetPLATE™ was also applied to mine tailings and to soils contaminated by the acidic waters. The results show that the high toxicity of these soils and tailings was mainly due to the relatively concentration of soluble Zn and Cu. The use of MetPLATE™ in groundwater toxicity testing shows that, most of the samples exhibited low metal toxicity (2.7–45.5% inhibition) except GW3 of the mine B (95.3% inhibition during the wet season and 82.9% inhibition during the dry season). This high toxicity is attributed to the higher than usual concentrations of Cu (189 μg Cu l⁻¹) and Zn (1505 μg Zn l⁻¹). These results show the potential risk of the contamination of different ecosystems situated to the vicinity of these two metalliferous sites. The general trend observed was an increase in metal toxicity measured by the MetPLATE with increasing total and mobile metal concentrations in the studied matrices. Therefore, the MetPLATE bioassay is a reliable and fast bioassay to estimate the metals toxicity in the aquatic and solids samples.     

ICP-MS法同时测定地表水中18种金属元素

以115In-103Rh为双内标校正系统,采用电感耦合等离子体质谱法同时测定地表水中铜、锌、硒、砷、汞、镉、铅、铁、锰、钼、钴、铍、锑、镍、钡、钒、钛、铊等18种金属元素,优化了测量同位素、内标元素等试验条件。18种金属元素在0μg/L～100μg/L范围内线性良好,检出限为0.006μg/L～0.123μg/L,标准样品的测定值均在保证值范围内,平行测定的RSD为1.7%～4.2%,实际水样加标回收率为89.0%～100%。     

进口含金属物料的固体废物鉴别方法研究

基于已完成的112例进口含金属物料的固体废物鉴别实践,系统地介绍了进口含金属物料的申报品名及各品名所占比例,种类及各种类的特征、固体废物鉴别关键方法和每种鉴别结果所占比例,其中申报品名主要为矿石(砂),所占比例为51.8%;鉴别结果主要为冶炼渣,所占比例为37.5%。提出对于进口的含金属物料,通过测量主要成分和含量、最主要金属元素及典型重金属元素的含量、物相组成、矿相组成,对于极细的粉末等特殊物料,还需要粒度分析等辅助试验,确定其产生来源。如果确定属于金属冶炼过程中产生的副产物、污染控制设施或环境治理过程中产生的物料、含金属废料简单加工处理产物、矿物采选过程中产生的废弃物,那么鉴别物料属于固体废物。     

Lead Solubilization and Accumulation by Two Strains of Pseudomonas Obtained from a Contaminated Alfisol's Effluent in Southwestern Nigeria

Two strains of Pseudomonas species (B₂ and D₅)selected from an array of lead solubilizing and accumulatingbacteria obtained from the effluent contaminated soil samples of abattery manufacturing factory were studied. Increase in pH between 4.0 and 6.0 favoured the growth of isolates: Peaklog₁₀ cfu mL^–1 values of 7.1, 7.5 and 8.5 wereobtained at pH 4, 5 and 6, respectively.Cell bound lead concentrations for B₂ (0.34 mg mL^–1)and D₅ (0.30 mg mL^–1) obtained by direct contact withPbs were greater than lead concentrations of 0.89 and 0.25 mg mL^–1 for B₂ and D₅, respectively,obtained in dialyzed cultures. These cell bound lead concentration in undialyzed cultures were alsogreater than lead concentrations of 0.03 and 0.07 mg mL^–1 for B₂ and D₅ in culture supernatants. Glucose addition did nor improve lead accumulation in the isolates.Exploitation of such isolates for the biotreatment of lead ladeneffluent was conducted.     

Comparison of Four <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sesbania</Emphasis> Species to Remediate Pb/Zn and Cu Mine Tailings

A 6-month greenhouse pot trial was performed, aimed at screening appropriate Sesbania species for remediation of Pb/Zn and Cu mine tailings. Performances of young seedlings of four Sesbania species (S. cannabina, S. grandiflora, S. rostrata, and S. sesban) were compared with and without inoculation of rhizobia. Seedlings were planted in two types of tailings amended with garden soil or garden soil mixed with river sediment. The results indicated that inoculated plants generally produced a higher biomass than samples without inoculation. Pb/Zn mine tailings containing rather high concentrations of total and water-soluble Cu, Pb, and Zn were toxic to plant growth compared with Cu mine tailings, according to the growth performance of the four species. Sesbania sesban and S. rostrata showed superior growth performance, compared to the other two species. Thus, they can serve as pioneer species to modify the barren environment, by providing organic matter and essential nutrients such as nitrogen, upon decomposition, in a relatively short period of time. This is especially true for S. rostrata, which is an annual plant that forms both stem and root nodules. However, a longer-term field trial should be conducted to investigate if superior species can beneficially modify the habitat for the growth of subsequent plant communities.     

Persistent Impacts of Trace Metals from Mining on Floodplain Grass Communities Along Soda Butte Creek, Yellowstone National Park

Phleum pratense and Poa pratensis were significantly lower (P ≤ 0.001) on plots with more than 250 ppm copper. Above-ground biomass of Phleum pratense was also significantly lower on plots with copper levels above 250 ppm. Decreased mean grass density was found on plots with pH < 6.4, but the only statistically significant difference was for Juncus balticus, which had increased density on plots with pH < 6.4. In contrast to the clear impacts of trace metals and pH on vegetation, other site characteristics did not alter measured vegetation characteristics.