Integrated assessment of the chemical, microbiological and ecotoxicological effects of a bio-packaging end-of-life in compost.

The present study aimed to i) assess the disintegration of a novel bio-packaging during aerobic composting (2 and 6 % tested concentrations) and evaluate the resulting compost ii) analyse the ecotoxicity of bioplastics residues on earthworms; iii) study the microbial communities during composting and in 'earthworms' gut after their exposure to bioplastic residues; iv) correlate gut microbiota with ecotoxicity analyses; v) evaluate the chemico-physical characterisation of bio-packaging after composting and earthworms' exposure. Both tested concentrations showed disintegration of bio-packaging close to 90 % from the first sampling time, and compost chemical analyses identified its maturity and stability at the end of the process. Ecotoxicological assessments were then conducted on Eisenia fetida regarding fertility, growth, genotoxic damage, and impacts on the gut microbiome.

Neurodevelopmental profile in children born to mothers affected by systemic sclerosis.

Background: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a chronic immune-mediated connective tissue disease that can affect women of childbearing age. The long-term outcomes of their offspring remain poorly explored. Aim of this study was to detail the neurodevelopmental profile of children born to SSc mothers.

Six-telescope integrated optics beam combiner fabricated using ultrafast laser inscription for J- and H-band astronomy.

We have built and characterized, to our knowledge, the first six-telescope discrete beam combiner (DBC) for stellar interferometry in the astronomical J-band. It is the DBC with the largest number of beam combinations and was manufactured using ultrafast laser inscription in borosilicate glass, with a throughput of ≈56. For calibration of the visibility-to-pixel matrix, we use a two-input Michelson interferometer and extract the complex visibility.

Short term effects of digestate and composted digestate on soil health and crop yield: Implications for sustainable biowaste management in the bioenergy sector.

Composting mitigates environmental risks associated with using solid digestate as fertilizer. However, evidence is lacking on benefits of using composted digestate as fertilizer in enhancing soil health and increasing agronomic yield compared to non-composted digestate (hereafter, digestate). A field study was conducted consisting of digestate, composted digestate, co-composted digestate with biogas feedstocks (corn [Zea mays L.