Impact and variability of social determinants of health on the transmission and outcomes of COVID-19 across the world: a systematic review protocol.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated health inequalities across the globe, disproportionately affecting those with poor social determinants of health (SDOHs). It is imperative to understand how SDOH influences the transmission and outcomes (positive case, hospitalisation and mortality) of COVID-19. This systematic review will investigate the impact of a wide range of SDOHs across the globe on the transmission and outcomes of COVID-19.

Charge Separated One-Dimensional Hybrid Cobalt/Nickel Phosphonate Frameworks: A Facile Approach to Design Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Evolution and Hydrogen Evolution Reactions.

Two new organoamine templated one-dimensional transition metal phosphonate compounds are synthesized, and their bifunctional electrocatalytic activities are examined in highly alkaline and acidic media. Compared with state-of-the-art materials, the cobalt phosphonate system is a new fabrication of sustainable and highly efficient catalysts toward electrochemical water splitting systems.

Effectiveness and potential risk of CaO application in Cd-contaminated paddy soil.

In this study, the accurate effectiveness of CaO in mitigating Cd bioavailability in paddy soil-rice system was investigated and moreover, the potential for reversibility of CaO liming process was provided. Increasing soil pH to ≥6.5 by CaO was determined to be the minimal threshold for minimizing Cd transfer into rice in historically contaminated soils across light to severe Cd levels, while an elevated CaO ratio was needed for soil with recent input of Cd.

Near-infrared spectroscopic models for analysis of winter pea (Pisum sativum L.) quality constituents.

Background: Winter pea (Pisum sativum L.) grows well in a wide geographic region, both as a forage and cover crop. Understanding the quality constituents of this crop is important for both end uses; however, analysis of quality constituents by conventional wet chemistry methods is laborious, slow and costly.

Analysis of moisture, oil, and fatty acid composition of olives by near-infrared spectroscopy: development and validation calibration models.

Background: Olive is a new, expanding crop in Georgia. Its oil content steadily increases with maturity, but eventually plateaus at the maximum when the olives should be promptly harvested, avoiding overripening and quality degradation. This requires frequent testing.

The effect of bullet removal and vegetation on mobility of Pb in shooting range soils.

Lead (Pb) contamination at shooting ranges is a public health concern because Pb is a toxic metal. An experiment was conducted to determine the effect of two best management practices; bullet removal and vegetation, on bioavailability and leachability of Pb in three shooting range (SR) soils. St.

Phytoremediation of arsenic-contaminated groundwater using arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata L.: effects of frond harvesting regimes and arsenic levels in refill water.

A large-scale hydroponic system to phytoremediate arsenic-contaminated groundwater using Pteris vittata (Chinese brake fern) was successfully tested in a field. In this 30-wk study, three frond-harvesting regimes (all, mature, and senescing fronds) and two water-refilling schemes to compensate for evapotranspiration (high-As water of 140-180 μg/L and low-As water of <7 μg/L) were investigated. Two experiments (Cycle 1 and Cycle 2) were conducted using the same plants in 24 tanks with each containing 600 L of arsenic-contaminated groundwater and 32 ferns.

Arsenic transformation in the growth media and biomass of hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata L.

This study determined the role of plant and microbes in arsenite (AsIII) oxidation in the growth media and the location of AsIII oxidation and arsenate (AsV) reduction in Pteris vittata tissues. P. vittata grew in 0.

Effectiveness of best management practices in reducing Pb-bullet weathering in a shooting range in Florida.

This field study evaluated the effectiveness of three best management practices (BMPs) in reducing the weathering of Pb-bullets in a shooting range. The BMPs included replacing soil berm with sand berm, liming sand berm, and removing Pb-bullets from soil berm. Berm samples were collected before and after implementing BMPs and analyzed for total Pb and/or water-soluble Pb.

Colloid-facilitated Pb transport in two shooting-range soils in Florida.

Shooting range soils with elevated Pb contents are of environmental concern due to their adverse impacts on human and animals. In Florida, the problem merits special attention because of Florida's sandy soil, high rainfall, and shallow groundwater level, which tend to favor Pb migration. This study used large intact soil column to examine colloid-facilitated Pb transport in two Florida shooting-range soils with different physicochemical properties (e.

Sulfate and glutathione enhanced arsenic accumulation by arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata L.

This experiment examined the effects of sulfate (S) and reduced glutathione (GSH) on arsenic uptake by arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata after exposing to arsenate (0, 15 or 30 mg As L(-1)) with sulfate (6.4, 12.8 or 25.

Phytofiltration of arsenic-contaminated groundwater using Pteris vittata L.: effect of plant density and nitrogen and phosphorus levels.

This field-scale hydroponic experiment investigated the effects of plant density and nutrient levels on arsenic (As) removal by the As-hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata L. (Chinese brake fern). All ferns were grown in plastic tanks containing 30 L of As-contaminated groundwater (130 microg x L(-1) As) collected from South Florida.

Identification of a Cd accumulator Conyza canadensis.

One of key steps of phytoremediating heavy metal contaminated soils is still the identification of hyperaccumulator and accumulator. In a former published article, Conyza canadensis L. Cronq.

Potent, selective and low-calcemic inhibitors of CYP24 hydroxylase: 24-sulfoximine analogues of the hormone 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3).

A dozen 24-sulfoximine analogues of the hormone 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) were prepared, differing not only at the stereogenic sulfoximine stereocenter but also at the A-ring. Although these sulfoximines were not active transcriptionally and were only very weakly antiproliferative, some of them are powerful hydroxylase enzyme inhibitors. Specifically, 24-(S)-NH phenyl sulfoximine 3a is an extremely potent CYP24 inhibitor (IC(50) = 7.

Low-calcemic, efficacious, 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 analog QW-1624F2-2: calcemic dose-response determination, preclinical genotoxicity testing, and revision of A-ring stereochemistry.

Based on an X-ray crystal structure determination, the A-ring stereochemistry of hybrid analog QW-1624F2-2 (1alpha-hydroxymethyl-16-ene-24,24-difluoro-25-hydroxy-26,27-bis-homovitamin D3) is revised to be 1alpha-CH2OH-3beta-OH. This analog is shown to be approximately 80-100 times less calciuric than the natural hormone 1alpha,25-dihydoxyvitamin D3. This analog is shown also to be non-genotoxic in three different standard assays.

Potent, low-calcemic, selective inhibitors of CYP24 hydroxylase: 24-sulfone analogs of the hormone 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3.

The new 24-phenylsulfone 4a, a low-calcemic analog of the natural hormone 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3), is a potent (IC(50) = 28nM) and highly selective inhibitor of the human 24-hydroxylase enzyme CYP24.