An estrogenic municipal effluent decreased fathead minnow reproduction to a near stop.

Municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) release endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) which can impact aquatic species' reproduction (e.g., decrease fecundity).

Is Seven Days Enough? Comparing A 7-Day Exposure to the Classical 21-Day OECD TG 229 Fish Short-Term Reproduction Assay in Fathead Minnow.

The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) test guidelines (TG) 229-fish short-term reproduction assay (FSTRA) is one of the gold standard methods used to identify endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). While informative, the FSTRA's 5-6 week duration makes it difficult to use routinely. Prior studies have shown that EDCs' impact on fecundity, vitellogenin (VTG) and steroid levels can be detected after less than 1 week of exposure suggesting the FSTRA could be shortened.

Toxicity and risk management of oil-spiked sediments by diluted bitumen for two freshwater benthic invertebrates.

Diluted bitumen (dilbit) is an unconventional oil produced by the oil sands industry in Canada. Despite the knowledge available on hydrocarbon toxicity, the effects of diluted bitumen on benthic organisms are still largely unknown. Moreover, in Quebec there are only provisional threshold values of 164 mg/kg C-C for chronic effects and 832 mg/kg for acute effects.

Skin disorders and interstitial lung disease: Part II-The spectrum of cutaneous diseases with lung disease association.

Part 2 of this 2-part CME introduces dermatologists to noninfectious inflammatory skin diseases associated with pulmonary involvement. In many cases, dermatologists may be the first physicians recognizing respiratory complications associated with these diagnoses. Because pulmonary involvement is often the leading cause of morbidity and mortality, dermatologists should be comfortable screening and monitoring for lung disease in high-risk patients, recognizing cutaneous stigmata of lung disease in these patients and referring to pulmonary specialists, when appropriate, for prompt treatment initiation.

The effects of dissolved petroleum hydrocarbons on benthic organisms: Chironomids and amphipods.

The oil sands industry in Canada, produces heavy unconventional oils, diluted for transport and called diluted bitumen. However, despite advances in our knowledge of the ecotoxicological risk that these products represent, their effects on benthic organisms following a spill are still largely unknown. In order to fill these gaps, this study aims to determine the lethal and sublethal effects of two diluted bitumens (Bluesky and Cold Lake) and one conventional oil (Lloydminster) for two freshwater benthic invertebrates: Chironomus riparius and Hyalella azteca.

Obesity and Ventral Hernia Repair: Is There Success in Staging?

Obesity predisposes patients to the development of abdominal wall hernias. Ventral hernia incidence, size, and recurrence rate are all increased in this population. As such, the surgeon is likely to encounter patients presenting for metabolic and bariatric surgery with existing ventral hernias.

Effect of the electrocoagulation process on the toxicity of gold mine effluents: A comparative assessment of Daphnia magna and Daphnia pulex.

Mine effluents must meet discharge criteria for both physicochemical parameters and toxicity. While chemical precipitation is efficient for the treatment of metallic elements in mine effluents, the removal of sulfates, as a source of salinity and potential toxicity, is limited by gypsum solubility. This study evaluated the efficiency of electrocoagulation (EC), an emerging process to treat mine water, in removing sulfates and acute toxicity in two gold mine effluents (E1 and E2), before and after treatment (Fe-electrodes, 30 min at 20 mA/cm, and pH near neutrality).

A Review of the Role of Robotics in Bariatric Surgery: Finding Our Future?

Obesity rates continue to rise in America and around the World. Numerous studies show the benefit of bariatric surgery on all-cause mortality in obese patients. Given its substantial role in the future of patient care, we continue to search for the most beneficial ways to optimize patient outcomes and procedural costs in bariatric surgery.

Accumulation and sublethal effects of triclosan and its transformation product methyl-triclosan in the earthworm Eisenia andrei exposed to environmental concentrations in an artificial soil.

Municipal biosolids are increasingly used as a low-cost fertilizer in agricultural soil. Biosolids are contaminated by low concentrations (nanograms per gram dry wt range) of a large variety of organic contaminants, such as triclosan. The effect of exposure to low concentrations of organic contaminants on soil biota remains largely undocumented.

Selective bioaccumulation of neonicotinoids and sub-lethal effects in the earthworm Eisenia andrei exposed to environmental concentrations in an artificial soil.

In this study, we evaluated the bioaccumulation of neonicotinoid insecticides in the earthworm Eisenia andrei exposed to environmental concentrations (<200 ng g dry weight, nominal concentration) in an artificial soil. We tested the selectivity for neonicotinoids by exposing earthworms to 7 neonicotinoids alone and in more complex mixtures of 54 pesticides then 69 organic contaminants (OCs) (54 pesticides and 15 pharmaceuticals). We applied long-term (56-day) toxicity tests to further evaluate the effect of OCs on earthworms.

Analysis of emerging contaminants in water and solid samples using high resolution mass spectrometry with a Q Exactive orbital ion trap and estrogenic activity with YES-assay.

Trace emerging contaminants (ECs) occur in both waste and surface waters that are rich in particulates that have been found to sorb several organic contaminants. An analytical method based on off-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) followed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis was developed for the detection and quantification of 31 ECs from surface water, wastewater, suspended particulate matter (SPM) as well as sediments. Lyophilized sediments and air-dried SPM were subjected to ultrasonic extraction.

UV spectrophotometry for monitoring the performance of a yeast-based deoxygenation process to treat ships' ballast water.

This study assessed the usefulness of UV spectrophotometry for the monitoring of a yeast-based deoxygenation process proposed for ships' ballast water treatment to prevent the transfer of aquatic invasive species. Ten-day laboratory experiments using three treatment concentrations and different water types were conducted and resulted in complete oxygen depletion of treated waters. The treatment performance and quality of treated waters were determined by measuring the UV-visible absorbance spectra of water samples taken over time.

Synthesis of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles with tailorable morphologies and carbonate substitutions using a wet precipitation method.

Hydroxyapatite (HA) nanoparticles with different morphologies and variant levels of carbonate substitutions were synthesized using a wet precipitation method by adjusting the heating temperature and/or the initial ion concentration of the reaction system. Within the particles, crystalline domains with different lengths were aligned along each other and formed into nanoparticles with different sizes, shapes and topographies. Different from most reported studies, the nucleation, growth and morphology of the crystalline domains were found sensitive to heating temperature, but not significantly influenced by initial ion concentration within the studied range.

Performance evaluation of phycocyanin probes for the monitoring of cyanobacteria.

The performance of two field probes (YSI 6600 and TriOS), used for the measurement of in vivo phycocyanin fluorescence, was compared and validated in the laboratory in 2008 and 2009 with cultures of Microcystis aeruginosa and field samples. The background noise of the two probes was low and the detection limits were estimated at 1500 cells mL(-1) for the YSI and 0.69 µg PC L(-1) for the TriOS.

ES cell cycle progression and differentiation require the action of the histone methyltransferase Dot1L.

Mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) proliferate with rapid cell cycle kinetics but without loss of pluripotency. The histone methyltransferase Dot1L is responsible for methylation of histone H3 at lysine 79 (H3K79me). We investigated whether ESCs require Dot1L for proper stem cell behavior.

Onboard ship evaluation of the effectiveness and the potential environmental effects of PERACLEAN Ocean for ballast water treatment in very cold conditions.

This study verified the effectiveness and the potential toxic impact of PERACLEAN Ocean ballast water treatment for very cold freshwater (0.1-0.5 degrees C) in real ballast tank (750 m(3)) conditions aboard a ship and in large-volume (4.

Identification of molecular markers associated with leptine in reciprocal backcross families of diploid potato.

Solanum phureja clone 1-3 and S. chacoense clone 80-1 have a zero and high leptine content in their foliage, respectively. An F(1) hybrid (CP2) was intermediate for the trait, but self-incompatible.