Exploring adsorption dynamics of heavy metals onto varied commercial microplastic substrates: Isothermal models and kinetics analysis.

The increasing presence of plastics in the environment has raised concerns about their potential impact, especially as carriers of heavy metals such as Cd, Ni, and Pb. However, the adsorption mechanism of heavy metals on microplastics remains poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the adsorption behavior of Cd, Ni, and Pb by polystyrene (PS) and polypropylene (PP) microplastics to better comprehend their interaction and potential environmental implications.

Fate of pharmaceutical residue in two Romanian rivers receiving treated water: Occurrence, distribution and risk assessment.

This study presents the first set of data on the removal of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and histamine H2 receptor antagonists (HRAs) and their transformation products in two Romanian wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), as well as the impact of these organic pollutants on freshwater receiving effluents. The research investigated eight target pharmaceuticals and three metabolites using a newly developed and validated Liquid Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method. The combined determination had a range of quantification limits varying from 0.

Occurrence and distribution of azole antifungal agents in eight urban Romanian waste water treatment plants.

Azole compounds are utilized to combat fungal infections in plants to protect them and also used for treating mycosis in humans. The LC-MS/MS method is a technique that combines liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry for analysis of twelve azole compounds from wastewater (influent, effluent) and sewage sludge. The compounds were isolated from waste water using automatic extraction in the solid phase.

Electrochemical System for Field Control of Hg Concentration in Wastewater Samples.

The paper presents the validation of an electrochemical procedure for on-site Hg ions determination in wastewater samples using a modified carbon screen-printed electrode (SPE) with a complexing polymeric film based on poly(2,2'-(ethane-1,2-diylbis((2-(azulen-2-ylamino)-2-oxoethyl)azanediyl))diacetic acid) (poly). Using metal ions accumulation in an open circuit followed by anodic stripping voltammetry, the SPE-poly electrode presents a linear range in the range of 20 µg/L to 150 µg/L, with a limit of detection (LOD) = 6 µg/L, limit of quantification (LOQ) = 20 µg/L, and an average measurement uncertainty of 26% of mercury ions. The results obtained in situ and in the laboratory using the SPE-poly modified electrode were compared with those obtained by the atomic absorption spectrometry coupled with the cold vapor generation standardized method, with the average values indicating excellent recovery yields.

Bioavailability, Accumulation and Distribution of Toxic Metals (As, Cd, Ni and Pb) and Their Impact on Plant Nutrient Metabolism.

This study presents the behavior of white mustard seedlings grown for three months in laboratory polluted soil containing As, Cd, Ni and Pb. Four different experiments were performed in which As was combined with the other three toxic metals in different combinations (As, AsCd, AsCdNi, AsCdNiPb), keeping the same concentrations of As and Cd in all tests and following the national soil quality regulations. The effects of these metals were monitored by the analytical control of metal concentrations in soil and plants, bioavailability tests of mobile metal fractions using three different extracting solutions (DTPA + TEA + CaCl-DTPA, DTPA + CaCl-CAT, and CHCOONH + EDTA-EDTA) and calculation of bioaccumulation and translocation factors.

Toxic Metals (As, Cd, Ni, Pb) Impact in the Most Common Medicinal Plant ().

This study aimed to evaluate the behavior of under Cd, Pb, Ni, and As soil contamination and their transfer from soil in plants as well as translocation in the roots/stems/leaves system compared with a control without metal addition. The mint seedlings were exposed for a three-month period using two metal mixtures in the same concentrations such as AsCd and AsCdNiPb (23.7 mg/kg As, 5 mg/kg Cd, 136 mg/kg Ni, and 95 mg/kg Pb).

Surgical Treatment of an Aneurysmal Bone Cyst with Avascular Bone Graft.

Unlabelled: Aneurysmal bone cyst is a solitary bone tumor, expansile and lytic most often seen in the second decade of life, more frequently in men than in women (2: 1). They can occur in any bone, most common in the metaphysis of the long bones of the lower limbs. Although it is a benign tumor formation, aneurysmal cysts may have an aggressive local evolution and can cause a significant decrease in bone strength.

Comparative study of different methods for detection of toxic and other enzymatic factors in Vibrio cholerae strains.

The purpose of this work was to characterize the toxin profile and the presence of other virulence factors involved in the pathogenesis and biology of 13 V. cholerae O1 (11 clinical cases and 2 waters) and 6 V. cholerae non O1 strains (4 clinical cases and 2 waters) using genetic (PCR), immunological (RPLA), biochemical (NAD degradation, haemolysis, Kanagawa phenomenon, caseinase, lecithinase, mucinase, amylase, esculine hydrolysis) and cell culture (Vero E6, HEp-2) assays.

Extracellular trypsin increases ASIC1a selectivity for monovalent versus divalent cations.

Sustained proton activation of native ASIC channels in primary sensory neurons or HEK293 cells leads to a reduction in the peak amplitude of transient inward currents and the progressive development of a persistent component, which hinders titration experiments in pharmacological studies. Here we report that extracellular trypsin applied for 5 min at 10-45 microg/ml and/or a short exposure to high Ca2+ (75 mM for less than 1 min) alleviate the persistent component, improving reproducibility of acid-elicited transients. Selectivity measurements performed in current clamp mode, in essentially bi-ionic conditions, prove that these two treatments decrease hASIC1a permeability for divalent but not for monovalent cations, producing a significant change in P(Na)/P(Ca) from 8.

[Study of antibiotic influence on adherence capacity of gram positive and gram negative bacteria to the cellular substrate].

Bacterial adherence to the cellular substrate (skin and mucosa) represents a precondition of infectious pathology. It was demonstrated that bacteria which adhere and form biofilms on catheters and other inert materials used in medicine are resistant to the therapeutic antibiotic concentrations being protected by the biofilm mathrix and generating severe and hard to treat infections. There are only few studies on the influence of antibiotics on the bacterial adhesins synthesis and bacterial adherence to the cellular substrate.

[ Study of exo-enzymatic profile and cytotoxic effect of bacterial culture supernatants in different growth phase].

Bacterial quorum-sensing represents an ubiquitary regulating system in which the pheromones (small molecules with different chemical structures, i.e. homoserin-lactones, octapeptides, aminoacids) act as extracellular mediators of signaling and intercellular communication.

[Factors influencing the capacity of cellular substrate adherence of vibrio cholerae O1 and non O1 strains].

Bacterial adherence to eukariotic cells represents an important step of tissue colonization and is mediated by specific molecules called adhesins. Bacterial adherence to cellular substrate is a very complex process consisting in specific interactions between the surface of host cell and bacterial cell surface respectively. Adherence to cellular substrate confers selective advantages to bacterial cells, as: rapid growth rate by shorter lag period and protection against antibodies and lysozime.