Cigarette filter fibres as a source and sink of trace metals in coastal waters.

Cellulose acetate fibres from cigarette filters represent a form of microplastic that has received little attention in the environment. In this study, a ground composite of spent, smoked filter material (FM) has been used to investigate the role of cellulose acetate fibres as a source and a sink of trace metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) in coastal waters. FM suspended in river water and seawater and mixtures thereof representative of an estuarine gradient resulted in the leaching of pre-existent metals derived from the combustion of tobacco, with mean percentages of release ranging from about 40 for Pb to nearly 90 for Cd, Co and Zn.

Understanding the Non-Equivalency of Bio-Fluorescent Particle Counts versus the Colony-Forming Unit.

Adopting emerging microbiological methods is often desirable because it enables more advantageous, real-time monitoring practices. However, when the newer method measures contamination based on a different detection principle and provides results that are based on different units of measure, a paradigm shift is necessary. That shift can be one of the most difficult challenges in any such project and requires careful consideration.

Challenges Encountered in the Implementation of Bio-Fluorescent Particle Counting Systems as a Routine Microbial Monitoring Tool.

The transition from traditional growth-based microbial detection methods to continuous bio-fluorescent particle counting methods represents a paradigm shift, because the results will be non-equivalent in terms of microbial counts, and a continuous, rather than periodic, data stream will be available. Bio-fluorescent particle counting technology, a type of rapid microbiological method, uses the detection of the intrinsic fluorescence of microbial cells to enumerate bioburden levels in air or water samples, continuously. The reported unit is commonly referred to as an autofluorescence unit, which is not dependent upon growth, as is the traditional method.

Do Plant Isolates Have a Role in Method Suitability and Growth Promotion Testing in the Microbiology Laboratory? Is It a Matter of Science versus Compliance?

In response to regulatory citations for not including plant isolates in method suitability and growth promotion testing of microbiological culture media, the authors make the case that the compendial designated cultures meet the requirements of the official tests and are sufficiently representative of the most frequently identified environmental isolates. It was our conclusion that this compliance request lacks scientific justification. The scope of this review was largely directed to the growth promotion and suitability testing requirements for USP <60>, <61>, <62>, and <71>.

Microbial Ecology of the Human Skin.

This review article on the skin microbiota was written in response to recent advances that transitioned from culture methods to PCR amplification and sequencing of bacterial and fungal genes as a result of the Human Microbiome Project. This transition enables the investigation of the full diversity of microorganisms inhabiting human skin. The skin provides a range of habitats with different microbiota associated with the three major regions of the skin, namely the moist axilla, perineum, and toe webs; oily or sebaceous head, neck, and trunk; and dry forearms and legs.