Publications by authors named "Fan-ping Zhu"

Article Synopsis
  • * Both positively and negatively charged nanoplastics inhibit nitrification and denitrification, with increased concentrations leading to stronger negative effects, particularly on the efficiency of denitrifying bacteria.
  • * The study highlights that negatively charged nanoplastics not only hinder bacterial growth but also impact enzymatic activities associated with denitrification, thereby informing future evaluations of nanoplastic safety in wastewater treatment systems.
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Methanogenic archaea, characterized by their cell membrane lipid molecules consisting of isoprenoid chains linked to glycerol-1-phosphate via ether bonds, exhibit exceptional adaptability to extreme environments. However, this distinct lipid architecture also complicates the interactions between methanogenic archaea and nanoparticles. This study addresses this challenge by exploring the interaction and transformation of selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) within archaeal C2A.

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Integration of methanogenic archaea with photocatalysts presents a sustainable solution for solar-driven methanogenesis. However, maximizing CH conversion efficiency remains challenging due to the intrinsic energy conservation and strictly restricted substrates of methanogenic archaea. Here, we report a solar-driven biotic-abiotic hybrid (biohybrid) system by incorporating cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanoparticles with a rationally designed methanogenic archaeon C2A, in which the glucose synergist protein and glucose kinase, an energy-efficient route for glucose transport and phosphorylation from , were implemented to facilitate nonnative substrate glucose for methanogenesis.

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Diets comprising selenium-deficient crops have been linked to immune disorders and cardiomyopathy. Selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) have emerged as a promising nanoplatform for selenium-biofortified agriculture. However, SeNPs fail to reach field-scale applications due to a poor understanding of the fundamental principles of its behavior.

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Microplastics (MPs) in natural environments undergo complex aging processes, changing their interactions with coexisting antibiotics, and posing unpredictable ecological risks. However, the joint toxicity of aged MPs (aMPs) and antibiotics to bacteria, especially at the molecular level, is unclear. In this study, non-thermal plasma technology was used to simultaneously simulate various radical oxidation and physical reactions that occur naturally in the environment, breaking the limitation of simple aging process in laboratory aging technologies.

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Although the biological effects of nanoplastics (<100 nm in size) in aquatic environments have been increasingly investigated, almost all such studies have been performed at observed-effect concentrations (higher than 1 μg/mL). The use of observed-effect concentrations of nanoplastics can provide essential data for evaluating the potential risks, but how these results apply to the effects of concentrations of nanoplastics observed in the environment remains unclear. Here, we show that exposure to both positively and negatively charged nanoplastics at the observed-effect concentration (ranging from 0 to 50 μg/mL) can result in physiological changes of L.

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N-doped carbon materials have been proven to be effective catalysts for activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS). Marine algae biomass is rich in nitrogenous substances , which can reduce the cost of N-doping process and can obtain excellent N-doped catalysts cheaply and easily. In this study, kelp biomass was selected to prepare N-doped kelp biochar (KB) materials.

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Although the fates of microplastics (0.1-5 mm in size) and nanoplastics (<100 nm) in marine environments are being increasingly well studied, little is known about the behaviour of nanoplastics in terrestrial environments, especially agricultural soils. Previous studies have evaluated the consequences of nanoplastic accumulation in aquatic plants, but there is no direct evidence for the internalization of nanoplastics in terrestrial plants.

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Although the fate of nanoplastics (<100 nm) in freshwater systems is increasingly well studied, much less is known about its potential threats to cyanobacterial blooms, the ultimate phenomenon of eutrophication occurrence worldwide. Previous studies have evaluated the consequences of nanoplastics increasing the membrane permeability of microbes, however, there is no direct evidence for interactions between nanoplastics and microcystin; intracellular hepatotoxins are produced by some genera of cyanobacteria. Here, we show that the amino-modified polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NH) promote microcystin synthesis and release from , a dominant species causing cyanobacterial blooms, even without the change of coloration.

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Microcystin (MC) elimination is a global challenge that is necessary for the health of humans and ecosystems. Biodegradation of MC, one of the most environmental-friendly methods, had previously been focused on the aerobic condition. In this study, two enrichment cultures from Taihu sediments possessed high capacity for MC-leucine arginine (MC-LR) anaerobic biodegradation.

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Bensulfuron methyl (BSM), one of the most widely used herbicides in paddy soils, is frequently detected in natural and artificial aquatic systems. However, BSM transformation under methanogenic conditions has not been given sufficient attention. In this study, BSM elimination and transformation by anaerobic enrichment cultures were investigated.

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Objective: To prepare curcumin polybutylcyanoacrylate nanoparticles (Cur-PBCNs) and evaluate its characteristics.

Methods: Cur-PBCNs were prepared by emulsion polymerization, and the formulation was optimized by L16 (4(3)) orthogonal design test with entrapment efficiency and drug loading as indices. In addition, its characteristics were investigated.

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