Organochlorine pesticide residues in Uganda's honey as a bioindicator of environmental contamination and reproductive health implications to consumers.

Honey has multifaceted nutritional and medicinal values; however, its quality is hinged on the floral origin of the nectar. Taking advantage of the large areas that they cover; honeybees are often used as bioindicators of environmental contamination. The focus of the present paper was to examine the quality of honey from within the vicinity of an abandoned pesticide store in Masindi District in western Uganda.

Synthesis of cyclic carbonates from epoxides and carbon dioxide catalyzed by talc and other phyllosilicates.

Naturally occurring phyllosilicate minerals such as talc and vermiculite in conjunction with n-tetra butyl ammonium bromide (TBAB) co-catalyst were found to be efficient in the coupling of CO with epoxides to form cyclic carbonates. The reaction was carried out in a pressurized autoclave reactor at moderate pressures of 10-35 bars and temperatures of 100-150 °C. The optimized catalyst system exhibited > 90% conversion of the epoxides and > 90% selectivity for the desired cyclic carbonates, in the presence or absence of a solvent.

Primary validation of Charm II tests for the detection of antimicrobial residues in a range of aquaculture fish.

The study carried out a primary validation of Charm II tests for the detection of antimicrobial residues in aquaculture fish. The validation was performed according to European Commission Decision 2002/657/ and the parameters determined included: detection capability, repeatability, reproducibility, specificity and robustness for the detection of antimicrobial residues in fish. Fish materials from different species including cat fish, trout, salmon, sea bass, tilapia, lingue and pangasius, were spiked with varying concentrations of selected antimicrobials including sulfonamides, β-lactams, macrolides, tetracyclines and aminoglycosides to determine the detection capabilities and other validation parameters of the Charm II tests.