Assessing the fate, toxicity, and ecological risk of mixtures of di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate and di-n-butylphthalate using aquatic and terrestrial microcosms.

Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) and di-n-butylphthalate (DBP) frequently coexist in different environmental compartments. Thus, in this study, model aquatic and terrestrial microcosms were prepared to analyze the combined effect of DEHP and DBP on their fate, toxicity, and ecological risk. In the aquatic microcosms, with the addition of the same amount of DEHP and DBP, a higher total amount of DEHP was detected in water, suspended particles, and sediment than DBP due to the higher K and half-life of DEHP than DBP.

AFFnet - a deep convolutional neural network for the detection of atypical femur fractures from anteriorposterior radiographs.

Despite well-defined criteria for radiographic diagnosis of atypical femur fractures (AFFs), missed and delayed diagnosis is common. An AFF diagnostic software could provide timely AFF detection to prevent progression of incomplete or development of contralateral AFFs. In this study, we investigated the ability for an artificial intelligence (AI)-based application, using deep learning models (DLMs), particularly convolutional neural networks (CNNs), to detect AFFs from femoral radiographs.

The use of carbon fiber/polyetheretherketone (CF/PEEK) in pedicle screw fixation for spinal neoplasms-potential advantages in postoperative imaging and radiotherapy planning.

Background: Titanium pedicle screw fixation complicates postoperative care in patients with spinal neoplasms due to postoperative imaging artefacts and dose perturbation. This study aims to measure the benefits of using carbon fiber/polyetheretherketone (CF/PEEK) pedicle fixation compared to titanium in postoperative imaging, radiotherapy planning and delivery for spinal neoplasms treated with conventional external beam radiotherapy with a commercial treatment planning system.

Methods: The properties of CF/PEEK pedicle fixation systems were compared to titanium in radiotherapy dose planning accuracy and postoperative computed tomography (CT) image quality.

Pembrolizumab with Chemoradiation as Treatment for Muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer: Analysis of Safety and Efficacy of the PCR-MIB Phase 2 Clinical Trial (ANZUP 1502).

Background: Radiation may improve the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibition. This study investigates the combination of pembrolizumab and chemoradiation (CRT) for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC).

Objective: To assess the feasibility and safety of pembrolizumab combined with CRT for MIBC.

Air Pollution-Related Respiratory Diseases and Associated Environmental Factors in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in 2011-2020.

The unfavorable effects of global climate change, which are mostly the result of human activities, have had a particularly negative effect on human health and the planet's ecosystems. This study attempted to determine the seasonality and association of air pollution, in addition to climate conditions, with two respiratory infections, influenza and pneumonia, in Chiang Mai, Thailand, which has been considered the most polluted city on Earth during the hot season. We used a seasonal-trend decomposition procedure based on loess regression (STL) and a seasonal cycle subseries (SCS) plot to determine the seasonality of the two diseases.

Spatiotemporal distribution and risk assessment of short-chain chlorinated paraffins in 30 major rivers in Taiwan.

Because of their highly persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic properties, short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) have become emerging contaminants and have been included in Annex A (elimination) of the Stockholm Convention since 2017. The contamination of SCCPs has been observed in the environment and biota worldwide but has not been detected in Taiwanese river ecosystems. Thus, this study aimed to determine the occurrence of SCCPs in sediments and fish from 30 major rivers in Taiwan and to evaluate the risk of SCCPs to river ecosystems and human health.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in 30 river ecosystems, Taiwan: Sources, and ecological and human health risks.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are diverse contaminants of global concern because of their ubiquity, toxicity, and carcinogenicity to many organisms, including humans. This study determines the distribution and sources of PAHs in sediments and fish from 30 major rivers in Taiwan, and the risks these PAHs pose to river ecosystems and human health. The total concentrations of 26 PAHs in sediments and fish were 0.

Factors affecting in situ analysis of total petroleum hydrocarbons in contaminated soils by using a mid-infrared diffuse reflectance spectroscopy.

The hand-held mid-infrared diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (MIR-DRIFT) spectrometer was used to assess the applicability of on-site and real time monitoring of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) in contaminated soils during site characterization and remediation. Field measurement devices (MIR-DRIFT and turbidimetric screening test kits) were used to analyze reference soils with concentration ranging from 713 to 54790 mg/kg and compared with the results by a gas chromatography/mass spectrometry method (GC/MS). In situ field measurement of 147 petroleum-contaminated soil samples from 11 contaminated sites was correlated with laboratory-determined soil TPH levels by GC/MS.

Synthesis of diagnostic quality cancer pathology images by generative adversarial networks.

Deep learning-based computer vision methods have recently made remarkable breakthroughs in the analysis and classification of cancer pathology images. However, there has been relatively little investigation of the utility of deep neural networks to synthesize medical images. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of generative adversarial networks to synthesize high-resolution pathology images of 10 histological types of cancer, including five cancer types from The Cancer Genome Atlas and the five major histological subtypes of ovarian carcinoma.

Microplastics in water, sediment and fish from the Fengshan River system: Relationship to aquatic factors and accumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by fish.

The occurrence of microplastics was investigated in water, sediment and fish from the Fengshan River system. All collected samples contained microplastics with 334-1058 items/m in the water samples, 508-3987 items/kg dry weight in the sediment samples and 14-94 items/fish in the fish samples. The spatial distribution of microplastics in water and sediments was attributed to anthropogenic discharges, flow dynamics, tidal exchanges and microplastic density.

Antibiotic instillation for a chronic lung abscess.

Introduction: Antibiotic treatment of lung abscesses fails in 10-20% of cases and require surgery, however, some are unsuitable for resection. Alternative options carry significant morbidity.

Case Report: A 47 year old man with inoperable non-small cell lung cancer developed a lung abscess following definitive radiotherapy.

Emergent contaminants in sediments and fishes from the Tamsui River (Taiwan): Their spatial-temporal distribution and risk to aquatic ecosystems and human health.

The occurrence of emergent contaminants, 24 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP), diethyl phthalate (DEP), dimethyl phthalate (DMP), di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP), bisphenol A (BPA) and nonylphenol (NP), was investigated in sediments and fishes collected from the Tamsui River system to determine the factors that influence their distribution and their risk to aquatic ecosystems and human health. The concentrations of total PBDEs, DEHP, DBP, BBP, DEP, DMP, DnOP, BPA and NP in sediments were 1-955, ND-23570, <50-411, <50-430, ND-80, ND-<50, ND-<50, 1-144, 3-19624 μg/kg dw, respectively. The spatial-temporal distribution trends of these compounds in sediments could be attributed to urbanization, industrial discharge and effluents from wastewater treatment plants.

Epidemiological, clinical and climatic characteristics of dengue fever in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan with implication for prevention and control.

Background: The early identification of dengue infection is essential for timely and effective quarantine and vector control measures for preventing outbreaks of the disease. Kaohsiung City is responsible for most of the dengue cases in Taiwan. Thus, this study aims to identify major factors involved in the prevalence of dengue fever by analyzing the epidemiological and clinical characteristics, and to establish associations between weather parameters and dengue occurrence in this City.

Partitioning of Aromatic Constituents into Water from Jet Fuels.

A comprehensive study of the most commonly used jet fuels (i.e., Jet A-1 and JP-8) was performed to properly assess potential contamination of the subsurface environment from a leaking underground storage tank occurred in an airport.

Assessing soil and groundwater contamination from biofuel spills.

Future modifications of fuels should include evaluation of the proposed constituents for their potential to damage environmental resources such as the subsurface environment. Batch and column experiments were designed to simulate biofuel spills in the subsurface environment and to evaluate the sorption and desorption behavior of target fuel constituents (i.e.

Biodegradation of carbamate pesticides by natural river biofilms in different seasons and their effects on biofilm community structure.

This study investigated the ability of natural river biofilms from different seasons to degrade the carbamate pesticides methomyl, carbaryl and carbofuran in single and multiple pesticide systems, and the effects of these pesticides on algal and bacterial communities within biofilms. Spring biofilms had the lowest biomass of algae and bacteria but showed the highest methomyl degradation (>99%) and dissipation rates, suggesting that they might contain microorganisms with high methomyl degradation abilities. Degradation of carbofuran (54.

The potential role of water quality parameters on occurrence of nonylphenol and bisphenol A and identification of their discharge sources in the river ecosystems.

Nonylphenol (NP) and bisphenol A (BPA) have attracted great attention due to their estrongenic activities and occurrence in different environments. This study investigated concentrations of NP and BPA in water and sediments of 16 major rivers in Taiwan to determine their association with water quality parameters on their distribution. The sources of NP and BPA discharged into river environments were also identified.

Patterns of metal accumulation by natural river biofilms during their growth and seasonal succession.

To evaluate the factors influencing patterns of metal accumulation by river biofilms, concentrations of chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), and lead (Pb) in biofilms from Erh-Jen River and San-Yeh-Kung Creek were investigated during their growth and seasonal succession. Different metal-accumulation patterns during biofilm development were observed between the two rivers. Mature biofilms (grown for 21-28 days) in both rivers showed maximum metal accumulation (≤3.

Biodegradation of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) by Enterobacter sp. NKNU02.

We previously isolated and identified Enterobacter sp. NKNU02 as a methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE)-degrading bacterial strain from gasoline-contaminated water. In this study, tert-butyl alcohol, acetic acid, 2-propanol, and propenoic acid were detected using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry when MTBE was degraded by rest cells of Enterobacter sp.

Application of real-time PCR, DGGE fingerprinting, and culture-based method to evaluate the effectiveness of intrinsic bioremediation on the control of petroleum-hydrocarbon plume.

Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), and the culture-based method were applied in the intrinsic bioremediation study at a petroleum-hydrocarbon contaminated site. The genes of phenol hydroxylase (PHE), ring-hydroxylating toluene monooxygenase (RMO), naphthalene dioxygenase (NAH), toluene monooxygenase (TOL), toluene dioxygenase (TOD), and biphenyl dioxygenase (BPH4) were quantified by real-time PCR. Results show that PHE gene was detected in groundwater contaminated with benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene isomers (BTEX) and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), and this indicates that intrinsic bioremediation occurred at this contaminated site.

Impact of cadmium on the bacterial communities in the gut of Metaphire posthuma.

The effects of cadmium (Cd) contamination in soil onto the bacterial communities of the guts pooled from ten Metaphire posthuma were addressed during 14 days' incubation. We found that about 50% of Cd (5mg/kg, dry weight soil) in the contaminated soil was bio-accumulated into the earthworms. DNA was extracted from the guts of M.

Development of river biofilms on artificial substrates and their potential for biomonitoring water quality.

This study conducted several approaches to determine development and succession of different types of biofilms (i.e., colonization and accumulation biofilms).

Partitioning of aromatic and oxygenated constituents into water from regular and ethanol-blended gasolines.

Variability in gasoline-water partitioning of major aromatic constituents (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX)) and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) were examined for regular and ethanol-blended gasolines. By use of a two-phase liquid-liquid equilibrium model, the distribution of nonpolar solutes between fuel phase and water was related to principles of equilibrium. The models derived using Raoult's law convention for activity coefficients and liquid solubility is presented.

Assessment of genotoxicity of methyl-tert-butyl ether, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene to human lymphocytes using comet assay.

Methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE) is a gasoline oxygenate and antiknock additive substituting for lead alkyls currently in use worldwide. Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) are volatile monoaromatic hydrocarbons which are commonly found together in crude petroleum and petroleum products such as gasoline. The aim of this study is to evaluate the genotoxic effects of these tested chemicals in human lymphocytes.

Performance characteristics of the limulus amebocyte lysate assay and gas chromatography-mass spectrum analysis of lipopolysaccharides relative to nitric oxide production by peritoneal exudates of cells.

Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) assay and gas chromatography-mass spectrum (GC-MS) analysis are usually used for the quantification of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from the environment. The LAL assay measures endotoxin units to represent the LPS biological function but GC-MS analysis measures decanoic (C(10:0)) and dodecanoic (C(12:0)) 3-hydorxy fatty acids (3-OH FA) concentration to represent the LPS chemical composition. A study was carried out using these methods to evaluate their degree of correlation.