Degradation of pyrene in soils by free and immobilized yeasts, Candida tropicals.

The aim of this research was to ascertain the efficacy of immobilized yeasts for the degradation of pyrene in soil. Pyrene degradation by individual yeasts and their mixtures was clearly enhanced when the yeasts were immobilized with chemical and physical entrapments, and cross-shaped beads from physical entrapment were more promising than spherical beads from chemical entrapment. Immobilized yeast mixture Candida tropicals Y 219 + Y 220 showed the best degradation of pyrene, exhibiting collaboration in pyrene removal.

Optimization of cellulase complex formulation for peashrub biomass hydrolysis.

To improve efficiency and reduce cost, solid state simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of peashrub woody biomass was investigated under anaerobic conditions at 50 degrees C, with a cellulase-inoculant mixture consisting of Trichoderma koningii cellulase, Aspergillus niger cellulase, and Lactobacillus. Experimental formulations were prepared according to uniform prescription design principles. By crude protein, crude fiber models constructed using multivariate regression in SPSS and solutions analysis through unconstrained mathematical optimization in Microsoft Excel, it was clearly revealed that low pH value (3.

[Study on continued degradation of BaP and its metabolites].

Two metabolites, cis-BP4, 5-dihydrodiol and cis-BP7, 8-dihydrodiol, were identified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) during the degradation of BaP by Bacillus-07 (BA-07). The two metabolites were hardly further metabolized for their toxicity to microorganism. To promote degradation of BaP and decrease accumulation of cis-BP4, 5-dihydrodiol and cis-BP7, 8-dihydrodiol, two methods (degradation only by BA-07, degradation by coupling the BA-07 and KMnO4) were compared.

Photochemical behavior of benzo[a]pyrene on soil surfaces under UV light irradiation.

The rates of photodegradation and photocatalysis of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) on soil surfaces under UV light have been studied. Different parameters such as temperature, soil particle sizes, and soil depth responsible for photodegradation, catalyst loads and wavelength of UV irradiation blamed for photocatalysis have been monitored. The results obtained indicated that BaP photodegradation follows pseudo-first-order kinetics.

Biodegradation of benzo[a]pyrene in soil by Mucor sp. SF06 and Bacillus sp. SB02 co-immobilized on vermiculite.

Two indigenous microorganisms, Bacillus sp. SB02 and Mucor sp. SF06, capable of degrading polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were co-immobilized on vermiculite by physical adsorption and used to degrade benzo[a] pyrene (BaP).

Multiple biomarkers response in maize (Zea mays L.) during exposure to copper.

Biomarkers in higher plants played an important role to estimate exposure effects of pollutants in soil ecosystem and have received increasing attention in recent years. The qualitative and quantitative modifications arising in amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) profiles as a measure of DNA effects were compared with a number of parameters, namely, the root length, total soluble protein content in root tips, chlorophylls content and shoot size to select the most sensitive biomarker responding to copper stress in the range of 0-600 mg/kg. The changes occurring in AFLP profiles of root tips following Cu treatment included loss of normal bands and appearance of new bands and variation in band intensity in comparison to that of the normal seedlings.

[Immobilization of introduced bacteria and degradation of pyrene and benzo(alpha) pyrene in soil by immobilized bacteria].

In this study, introduced bacteria were applied in the bioremediation of pyrene and benzo (alpha) pyrene in organic pollutants-contaminated soils, aimed to test whether it was feasible to introduce bacteria to environmental engineering. Three introduced bacteria were immobilized separately or together to degrade the pyrene and benzo (alpha) pyrene in soil, taking dissociated bacteria as the control, and comparing with three indigenous bacteria. The results showed that immobilized introduced bacteria, either single or mixed, had higher degradation efficiency than dissociated bacteria.

Degradation mechanisms of benzo[a]pyrene and its accumulated metabolites by biodegradation combined with chemical oxidation.

A high degradation extent of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) should not be considered as the sole desirable criterion for the bioremediation of BaP-contaminated soils because some of its accumulated metabolites still have severe health risks to human. Two main metabolites of BaP, benzo[a]pyrene-1,6-quinone (BP1,6-quinone) and 3-hydroxybenzo[a]pyrene (3-OHBP) were identified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with standards. This study was the first time that degradation of both BaP and the two metabolites was carried out by chemical oxidation and biodegradation.

Removal of heavy metals from a contaminated soil using tartaric acid.

This study reports the feasibility of remediation of a heavy metal (HM) contaminated soil using tartaric acid, an environmentally-friendly extractant. Batch experiments were performed to test the factors influencing remediation of the HM contaminated soil. An empirical model was employed to describe the kinetics of HM dissolution/desorption and to predict equilibrium concentrations of HMs in soil leachate.

[Remediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in non-fluid medium with immobilized microorganism technique].

The remediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in non-fluid medium is a difficult and urgent task for environmental scientists. Due to the particularities of non-fluid medium, conventional techniques cannot work effectively, while bioremediation techniques using free microorganism also have many limitations that restricted the use of microorganism in removing PAHs from non-fluid medium. Immobilized microorganism (IM) technique is a proven approach in increasing the stability of microorganism under unfavorable conditions, which can not only provide a special microenvironment to protect dominant microorganisms from the malignant competition of aboriginal microorganism, but also improve the tolerance against toxic compounds in environment.

Activated carbon adsorption of PAHs from vegetable oil used in soil remediation.

Vegetable oil has been proven to be advantageous as a non-toxic, cost-effective and biodegradable solvent to extract polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from contaminated soils for remediation purposes. The resulting vegetable oil contained PAHs and therefore required a method for subsequent removal of extracted PAHs and reuse of the oil in remediation processes. In this paper, activated carbon adsorption of PAHs from vegetable oil used in soil remediation was assessed to ascertain PAH contaminated oil regeneration.

[An approach to the theoretical meaning of ecological remediation of contaminated soil].

The objectives of contaminated soil remediation are to transfer and transform the hazardous contaminants in soil, to eliminate and reduce their toxicity, and to restore or partly restore the ecological service function of soil. Since soil contamination is always a combined one, it is essential to use multiple methods to remediate contaminated soil. It is a tendency of soil remediation to use a uniform method, which aims to restore the ecological service function of soil by combining the restoration of internal function with external clean function.

Effects of half-dose aprotinin in off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting.

Objective: The effects of half-dose aprotinin in off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB) surgery have not yet been described. The present prospective study was designed to investigate its effects in OPCAB.

Methods: Seventy-six patients were randomized into two groups, receiving aprotinin (1 x 10(6) Kallikrein-inactivating units [KIU] loading dose before surgery and 5 x 10(5) KIU/h during surgery, gross dose: 2.

Pectinase production by solid fermentation from Aspergillus niger by a new prescription experiment.

The Ordos Plateau in China is covered with up to 300,000 ha of peashrub (Caragana) which is the dominant natural vegetation and ideal for fodder production. To exploit peashrub fodder, it is crucially important to optimize the culture conditions, especially culture substrate to produce pectinase complex. In this study, a new prescription process was developed.

[Application of wastewater land treatment technique to the construction of ecological engineering in sand land].

In this paper studies on the feasibility of harmlessness and resource of wastewater, which was discharged from a thermal power plant, by using slow rate filtration of land treatment technique for the fast recovery of vegetation in the Kubuqi sand land were carried out. The selected arbor, shrub and herbage in the land treatment system were poplar (Populus alba Var. Pyramidalis bunge), seabuckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) and sweet clover (Melilotus suaveolens) respectively.

Short-term toxic effects of chlorobenzenes on broadbean (Vicia faba) seedlings.

The root growth, changes in superoxide dismutase (SOD, EC 1.15.1.

A comparative study of classical and biochemical endpoints for phytotoxicity testing of chlorobenzoic acids.

The phytotoxicity of chlorobenzoic acids (CBAs) was studied and the biochemical endpoints' suitability and sensibility was evaluated. Two terrestrial plant species in the same family were exposed to different concentrations of CBAS and tested their germination according to the guideline of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECP, 1984). The results showed that CBA dose-inhibition rate of classical endpoint had the distinct linear relationship in the range of 10%-50% inhibition rate for root elongation (p < 0.

[Research progress on environmental carrying capacity].

To study the theories and quantification methods of environmental carrying capacity is of significance in reality for directing human beings economic behaviors and harmonizing the relationships between social development and environment. In this paper, the definition of environmental carrying capacity was introduced from the aspects of "capacity", "threshold" and "capability", with the main characteristics of objective and subjective, regional and temporal, and dynamic and adjustable, and its research progress was reviewed. On the basis of these, the quantification methods of environmental carrying capacity, including exponential assessment, carrying rate assessment, system dynamics, and multi-objective optimization, were analyzed, and the research perspectives of environmental carrying capacity were discussed.

Assessment of microbial respiratory activity of a manufactured gas plant soil after remediation using sunflower oil.

Microbial activity of a manufactured gas plant (MGP) soil, as well as remaining oil degradability, before and after remediation using sunflower oil was assessed. A sandy soil contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was collected from an MGP site in Berlin, Germany. Column solubilizations of PAHs from the field-moist soil and air-dried soil using sunflower oil as an extractant at an oil/soil ratio of 2:1 (v/m) were carried out to compare PAH removals from the soil under these two conditions.

Removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from manufactured gas plant-contaminated soils using sunflower oil: laboratory column experiments.

Laboratory column experiments were performed to remove PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) from two contaminated soils using sunflower oil. Two liters of sunflower oil was added to the top of the columns (33 cm x 21 cm) packed with 1 kg of PAH-contaminated soil. The sunflower oil was applied sequentially in two different ways, i.

[Impact of hypertension on angiogenesis in the tissues of benign prostatic hyperplasia].

Objective: To investigate the impact of primary hypertension on angiogenesis in the tissues of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Methods: Immunohistochemistry was carried out to examine the expression of CD34, so as to calculate the microvassel density (MVD), and the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the tissues of prostatic gland, resected during operation, of 50 simple BPH patients, aged 68.3 (56 approximately 83), and 50 patients with BPH with hypertension, aged 69.

Microbial changes in rhizospheric soils contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons after bioremediation.

Effects of bioremediation on microbial communities in soils contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons are a scientific problem to be solved. Changes in dominate microbial species and the total amount of microorganisms including bacteria and fungi in rhizospheric soils after bioremediation were thus evaluated using field bioremediation experiments. The results showed that there were changed dominant microorganisms including 11 bacterial strains which are mostly Gram positive bacteria and 6 fungal species which were identified.

The shift-invariant discrete wavelet transform and application to speech waveform analysis.

The discrete wavelet transform may be used as a signal-processing tool for visualization and analysis of nonstationary, time-sampled waveforms. The highly desirable property of shift invariance can be obtained at the cost of a moderate increase in computational complexity, and accepting a least-squares inverse (pseudoinverse) in place of a true inverse. A new algorithm for the pseudoinverse of the shift-invariant transform that is easier to implement in array-oriented scripting languages than existing algorithms is presented together with self-contained proofs.

Influence of soil moisture on sunflower oil extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from a manufactured gas plant soil.

The influence of soil moisture on efficiency of sunflower oil extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from contaminated soil was investigated. The PAH-contaminated soil was collected from a manufactured gas plant (MGP) site in Berlin, Germany. Half of the soil was air-dried, and the other half was kept as field-moist soil.

[Correlation of benign prostatic hyperplasia with hyperlipemia].

Objective: To investigate relationship between benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and hyperlipemia, and to clear out possible factors related to BPH etiology.

Methods: A total of 462 cases of BPH diagnosed by pathological examination were studied retrospectively.

Results: Of 462 cases, BPH with hyperlipemia was noted in 232 cases (50.