Fungal Microbiome of Alive and Dead Korean Fir in its Native Habitats.

A rapid decline of has been reported in most of the natural alpine habitats in Korea. It is generally accepted that this phenomenon is due to climate change even though no clear conclusions have been drawn. Most research has focused on abiotic environmental factors, but studies on the relationships between and soil fungal microbiomes are scarce.

Machine learning-based water quality prediction using octennial in-situ Daphnia magna biological early warning system data.

Biological early warning system (BEWS) has been globally used for surface water quality monitoring. Despite its extensive use, BEWS has exhibited limitations, including difficulties in biological interpretation and low alarm reproducibility. This study addressed these issues by applying machine learning (ML) models to eight years of in-situ BEWS data for Daphnia magna.

Transcriptome and computational approaches highlighting the molecular regulation of Zacco platypus induced by mesocosm exposure to common disinfectant chlorine.

Chlorine (Cl) is a disinfectant often used in swimming pools and water treatment facilities. However, it is released into aquatic ecosystems, where it may harm non-targeted organisms. Here, we performed a mesocosm experiment exposing Zacco platypus (Z.

Metabolomic analysis of combined exposure to microplastics and methylmercury in the brackish water flea Diaphanosoma celebensis.

Owing to their widespread distribution and high bioaccumulation, microplastics (MPs) and mercury (Hg) are considered major threats to the ocean. MP interacts with Hg because of its high adsorption properties. However, their toxicological interactions with marine organisms, especially combined effects at the molecular level, are poorly understood.

Application of jetventurimixer for developing low-energy-demand and highly efficient aeration process of wastewater treatment.

In biological wastewater treatment, the oxygen supply in an aeration tank is the most important factor for removing organic pollutants, but it takes a large amount of electricity to generate the oxygen supply required. The Jetventurimixer (JVM) is a device that applies Bernoulli's principle, and the difference in flow rate pressure through the impeller is generated by the rotational force. Due to this physical mechanism, this device can supply oxygen in the atmosphere to the bioreactor without additional power.

Metabolomic analysis predicted changes in growth rate in Daphnia magna exposed to acetaminophen.

As urbanization and the global population increases, pollutants associated with municipal wastewater such as pharmaceuticals are becoming more prevalent in aquatic environments. Acetaminophen (paracetamol) is a widely used drug worldwide and one of the most frequently detected pharmaceuticals in freshwater ecosystems. This study investigated the impact of acetaminophen on the metabolite profile of Daphnia magna at two life stages; and used these metabolomic findings to hypothesize a potential impact at a higher organismal level which was subsequently tested experimentally.

Pyrolytic Remediation and Ecotoxicity Assessment of Fuel-Oil-Contaminated Soil.

Oil-contaminated soil is a major societal problem for humans and the environment. In this study, the pyrolysis method was applied to oil-contaminated soil used as a landfill and gas station site in Korea. The removal efficiency of the main components of oil-contaminated soils, such as total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), unresolved complex mixture (UCM), and alkylated PAHs (Alk-PAHs) were measured, and the effect of temperature, treatment time, and moisture content on pyrolysis efficiency was studied.

Comparative Study of the Synergistic Effects of Blending Raw/Torrefied Biomass and Vietnamese Anthracite Using Co-pyrolysis.

Biomass can be upgraded via torrefaction, and torrefied kenaf (TK) is a fuel that allows blending with coal at high ratios. In the present study, raw kenaf () (RK) was torrefied at 523 K for 30 min and then mixed with Vietnamese anthracite (NinhBinh, NB) before co-pyrolysis. Thermogravimetric (TG) analysis was used to evaluate the behavior of RK, TK, and blended RK/TK during co-pyrolysis at biomass blending ratios (BBRs) of 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 wt %.

Antioxidant enzyme activity in Daphnia magna under microscopic observation and shed carapace length as an alternative growth endpoint.

Daphnia magna is an important organism for exposure studies in ecotoxicology. Body length measurement of a daphnid is a useful endpoint that represents the adverse effects of exposed chemicals or conditions on growth. This study questioned whether stress on body length measurement conditions while maintaining Daphnia magna on a slide glass results in any impact to antioxidant enzyme activity or growth.

Endocrine Disruptor Exposure Causes Infochemical Dysregulation and an Ecological Cascade from Zooplankton to Algae.

Endocrine disruption is intimately linked to controlling the population of pollutant-exposed organisms through reproduction and development dysregulation. This study investigated how endocrine disruption in a predator organism could affect prey species biology through infochemical communication. and were chosen as model prey and predator planktons, respectively, and fenoxycarb was used for disrupting the endocrine system of .

Reproduction stage specific dysregulation of Daphnia magna metabolites as an early indicator of reproductive endocrine disruption.

Rapid biomolecular observation in model indicator organisms has been considered as a potential predictor of water pollution from chronic and trace toxicants. This study evaluated the use of Daphnia magna metabolomic measurements as indicators for exposure to reproductive endocrine disruptors by using the model juvenile hormone analogue fenoxycarb. Because D.

Time-dependent biomolecular responses and bioaccumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in Daphnia magna.

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is a persistent pollutant which is potentially harmful and bioaccumulative to aquatic organisms. To evaluate the regulatory alteration of select metabolites with PFOS exposure at early and typical acute exposure periods in an aquatic indicator species Daphnia magna, the hourly abundance of the twenty-three metabolites was investigated over 24 h. To evaluate the bioaccumulation potential of PFOS at a sub-lethal concentration in D.

Understanding the Fate of Environmental Chemicals Inside Living Organisms: NMR-Based C Isotopic Suppression Selects Only the Molecule of Interest within C-Enriched Organisms.

In vivo nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is rapidly evolving as a critical tool as it offers real-time metabolic information, which is crucial for delineating complex toxic response pathways in living systems. Organisms such as (water fleas) and (freshwater shrimps) are commonly C-enriched to increase the signal in NMR experiments. A key goal of in vivo NMR is to monitor how molecules (nutrients, contaminants, or drugs) are metabolized.

Reproduction Stage Differentiates the Time-Course Regulation of Metabolites in .

is a keystone indicator zooplankton used in environmental quality assessments. Comparative metabolomics, which contrasts small biomolecular regulations under different conditions, has emerged as a sensitive and informative investigation tool for the assessment of environmental stressors on . Baseline metabolomic variation is likely impacted by the asexual reproduction cycle of ; however, the relationship between metabolite concentration regulation and reproduction cycle has not been investigated.

Daphnia magna metabolic profiling as a promising water quality parameter for the biological early warning system.

The inclusion of omics data into water quality monitoring programs is being considered to help alleviate the growing threat to water resources and ecosystem services. Despite the increasing need, the biological early warning system (BEWS), the widely used real-time water quality monitoring system, does not currently incorporate omics information, despite that metabolomics is a highly sensitive indicator of organism health and stress. We examined Daphnia magna metabolomics, which is the analysis of small molecules in living D.

Comparative microbial communities in tidal flats sediment on Incheon, South Korea.

Coastal ecosystems, play critical ecological roles of which tidal flats are a significant component of coastal wetlands, such as habitat and nutrient cycling in aquatic biology. Microbial communities in tidal flats are known to play vital roles of self-purification. And the microbial ecology of the sediment is easily affected by human activities and pollution.

Effect of β-adrenergic receptor agents on cardiac structure and function and whole-body gene expression in Daphnia magna.

Propranolol (PRO), a human β-AR (β-adrenergic receptor) antagonist, is considered to result in specific effects in a non-target species, D. magna, based on our previous studies. The present study investigated the effects of β-AR agents, including an antagonist and agonist using pharmacologically relevant endpoints as well as a more holistic gene expression approach to reveal the impacts and potential mode of actions (MOAs) in the model non-target species.

Profiling the decomposition products of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) irradiated using an electron beam.

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) has been found in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and in surface water as a result of domestic uses of textiles, electronics, and surfactants. The detection of PFOS in the aqueous environment has been linked to hazardous biological effects including estrogenicity and genotoxicity. To provide an alternative to conventional processes, one of the radical-based advanced oxidation and reduction processes being tested for treatment of refractory compounds in water, involves the use of an electron beam.

Sorption of Nitro Explosives to Polymer/Biomass-Derived Biochar.

Factors affecting the sorptive removal of nitro explosives (2,4,6-trinitrotoluene [TNT] and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine [RDX]) to polymer/biomass-derived biochar were investigated through batch experiments. Compared with that of rice ( L.) straw (RS)-derived biochar, the sorption of TNT and RDX to polymer/RS-derived biochar was greatly enhanced by >2.

Mode of action characterization for adverse effect of propranolol in Daphnia magna based on behavior and physiology monitoring and metabolite profiling.

Studies are underway to gather information about the mode of action (MOA) of emerging pollutants that could guide practical environmental decision making. Previously, we showed that propranolol, an active pharmaceutical ingredient, had adverse effects on Daphnia magna that were similar to its pharmaceutical action. In order to characterize the mode of action of propranolol in D.

Multigenerational Effects of the Antibiotic Tetracycline on Transcriptional Responses of Daphnia magna and Its Relationship to Higher Levels of Biological Organizations.

Given the risk of environmental pollution by pharmaceutical compounds and the effects of these compounds on exposed ecosystems, ecologically relevant and realistic assessments are required. However, many studies have been mostly focused on individual responses in a single generation exposed to one-effect concentrations. Here, transcriptional responses of the crustacean Daphnia magna to the antibiotic tetracycline across multiple generations and effect concentrations were investigated.

Sorption and toxicity reduction of pharmaceutically active compounds and endocrine disrupting chemicals in the presence of colloidal humic acid.

This study investigated the toxicity changes and sorption of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupters in the presence of humic acid (HA). For the sorption experiment, a dead end filtration (DEF) system was used to separate bound and free-form target compounds. An algae growth inhibition test and E-screen assay were conducted to estimate the toxic effect of pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) and endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), respectively.