Search results for: lead toxicity

Authors: Anastasiia Kuptsevych, Robert J. Johnson, Olena Antonaccio, Ekaterina V. Botchkovar

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Ukraine has recently experienced one of the bloodiest conflicts taking place on the European continent. Many active duty personnel and civilians have died, and millions of people have been displaced. This situation can lead to disorder in the country characterized by acceptance of violence and crime. There is a gap in the literature addressing the issues related to attitudes towards violence resulting from war, as well as focusing on the world’s more vulnerable civilian populations – those that live in lower and middle-income countries, such as Ukraine. Using a random sample of 1200 adults from two major Ukrainian cities, this study explores the relationship between different types of war exposure (direct and vicarious) and attitudes to violence. Multivariate models reveal that multiple types of war exposure (e.g., being injured, being a witness of death, watching war events on TV) are significantly associated with the attitudes to political and interpersonal violence. In addition, the KHB decomposition procedure showed that experiencing certain mental illnesses serve as important mediating mechanisms between war exposure and attitudes towards violence. Finally, in order to prevent society from disorder and high levels of violence, future studies need to pay more attention to exploring how vital and traumatic life events can lead a population to find violent acts acceptable.

Keywords: attitudes, Ukraine, violence, war

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Authors: Nicholas Sehube, Rosemary Kelebemang, Pogisego Dinake

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The extent of Pb contamination of shooting range soils has never been ascertained in Botswana, this was the first attempt in evaluating the deposition of Pb into the soils emanating from munitions. A total of 8 military shooting ranges were used for this study. Soil samples were collected at each of the 8 shooting ranges at the berm (stop butt), target line, 50 and 100 m from the berm. In all of the shooting ranges investigated the highest concentrations were found in the berm soils. The highest Pb concentrations of 38 406.87 mg/Kg were found in the berm soils of Thebephatshwa shooting range which is enclosed within a military camp with staff residential dwelling only a kilometre away. Most of the shooting ranges soils contained elevated levels of Pb in the ranges above 2000 mg/kg far exceeding the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) critical value of 400 mg/Kg. Mobilization of lead at high pH is attributed to low organic matter and such was the case with Thebephatshwa shooting range with a percept organic matter of 0.35±0.08. The predominant weathering products in these shooting ranges were cerussite (PbCO3), hydrocerussite (Pb(CO3)2(OH)2 and massicot (PbO). The detailed examination and characterization of the extent of pollution will help in the development and implementation of scientifically sound remediation and restoration of shooting ranges soils.

Keywords: ammunition, Botswana, Pb, pollution, soil

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Authors: Maria Manzoor, Iram Gul, Muhammad Arshad, Jean Kallerhoff

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The potential of fungal isolates to be used in phytoremediation of widespread lead contaminated soil has been evaluated in this study. Five different fungal isolates (Trichoderma harzianum, Penicillium simplicissimum, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger and Mucor spp.) were obtained and tested for their tolerance to increasing concentration of lead (Pb) i.e. 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 mgL-1 on PDA and PDB culture experiment. All strains were tolerant up to 500 mgL-1 following sequence; A. flavus > A. niger > Mucor spp. > P. simplicissimum > T. harzianum. Further the isolates were then monitored for possible effect on Pb solubility/mobility through soil incubation experiments and characterized for essays including pathogenicity, germination and root elongation and plant growth promoting activities including IAA (indole acetic acid), phosphorus solubilization and gibberellic acid (GA3) production. Results revealed that fungal isolates have positive effect on Pb mobility in soil and plant biomass production. Pb solubility was significantly (P> 0.05) increased in soil upon application of Mucor spp. P. simplicissimum and T. harzianum. when compared to control. Among different strains three isolates (Mucor spp., P. simplicissimum and T. harzianum) were nonpathogenic because no inhibitory effect of fungus was observed to plant growth when exposed to these strains in root shoot elongation essay. Particularly T. harzianum and P. simplicissimum showed great ability to increase root length by 1.1 and 1.3 folds and shoot length by 1.47 and 1.5 folds respectively under Pb stress (500 mgL-1). Significantly high production of IAA was observed in A. niger (26.7 μg/ml), Phosphorus solubilization was observed in T. harzianum (9.15 μg/ml) and GA3 production was observed in P. simplicissimum (11.02 μg/ml). From results it is concluded that Mucor spp., P. simplicissimum and T. harzianum have potential to increase Pb mobility and improving plant growth under highy Pb contamination, therefore can be used in microbially assisted phytoremediation of Pb contaminated soil.

Keywords: Pb tolerant fungus, Pb mobility, plant growth promoting activities, indole acetic acid (IAA)

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Authors: Muhammad Waqar Ashraf, Atiq A. Mian

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In the present study, accumulation of eight heavy metals, lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni) and chromium (Cr)was determined in kidney, heart, liver and muscle tissues of Lethrinus miniatus fish caught from Arabian Gulf. Metal concentrations in all the samples were measured using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Analytical validation of data was carried out by applying the same digestion procedure to standard reference material (NIST-SRM 1577b bovine liver). Levels of lead (Pb) in the liver tissue (0.60µg/g) exceeded the limit set by European Commission (2005) at 0.30 µg/g. Zinc concentration in all tissue samples were below the maximum permissible limit (50 µg/g) as set by FAO. Maximum mean cadmium concentration was found 0.15 µg/g in the kidney tissues. Highest content of Mn in the studied tissues was seen in the kidney tissue (2.13 µg/g), whereas minimum was found in muscle tissue (0.87 µg/g). The present study led to the conclusion that muscle tissue is the least contaminated tissue in Lethrinus miniatus and consumption of organs should be avoided as much as possible.

Keywords: lethrinus miniatus, arabian gulf, heavy metals, atomic absorption spectroscopy

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Authors: Nirali Sanghavi, Julia Ash, Amy Wasserman

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Introduction: To the best of our knowledge, there is only one case report that found an association between leuprolide and scleroderma renal crisis (SRC). Leuprolide has been noted to cause acute renal failure in some patients. Given the close timing of the leuprolide injection and the worsening renal function in our patient, leuprolide likely caused exacerbation of lupus nephritis and SRC. Interestingly, our patient on long-term hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) with normal baseline cardiac function was found to have HCQ cardiomyopathy highlighting the need for close monitoring of HCQ toxicity. We know that some of the risk factors that are involved in HCQ induced cardiomyopathy are older age, females, increased dose and >10 years of HCQ use, and pre-existing cardiac and renal insufficiency. Case presentation: A 34-year-old African American woman with a history of overlap of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and scleroderma features and class III lupus nephritis presented with severe headaches, elevated blood pressure (180/120 mmHg) and worsening creatinine levels (2.07 mg/dL). The headaches started 1 month ago after she started leuprolide injections for fibroids. She was being treated with mycophenolate mofetil 1 gm twice a day, belimumab weekly, HCQ 200mg, and prednisone 5 mg daily. She has been on HCQ since her teenage years. The examination was unremarkable except for proximal interphalangeal joint contractures in the right hand and sclerodactyly of bilateral hands, unchanged from baseline. Laboratory findings include urinalysis, which showed 3+ protein, 1+ blood, 6 red blood cells, and 14 white blood cells ruling out thrombotic microangiopathy. C3 was 32 mg/dL, C4 <5 mg/dL, and +dsDNA increased >1000. She was started on captopril and discharged once creatinine and blood pressure was controlled. She was readmitted with hypertension, hyperkalemia, worsening creatinine, nephrotic range proteinuria, complaints of chest pressure, and shortness of breath with pleuritic chest pain. Physical examination and lab findings were unchanged. She was treated with pulse dose methyl prednisone followed by taper and multiple anti-hypertensive agents, including captopril, for presumed lupus nephritis flare versus SRC. Renal biopsy was consistent with SRC and class IV lupus nephritis and was started on cyclophosphamide. While cardiac biopsy showed borderline myocarditis without necrosis and cytoplasmic vacuolization consistent with HCQ cardiomyopathy, hence HCQ was discontinued. Summary: It highlights a rare association of leuprolide causing exacerbation of lupus nephritis or SRC. Although rare, the current case reinforces the importance of close monitoring for HCQ toxicity in patients with renal insufficiency.

Keywords: leuprolide, lupus nephritis, scleroderma, SLE

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Authors: Muhammad Waqar Ashraf

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In the present study, accumulation of eight heavy metals, lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni) and chromium (Cr)was determined in kidney, heart, liver and muscle tissues of Lethrinus Miniatus fish caught from Arabian Gulf. Metal concentrations in all the samples were measured using Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (GF-AAS). Analytical validation of data was carried out by applying the same digestion procedure to standard reference material (NIST-SRM 1577b bovine liver). Levels of lead (Pb) in the liver tissue (0.60µg/g) exceeded the limit set by European Commission (2005) at 0.30 µg/g. Zinc concentration in all tissue samples were below the maximum permissible limit (50 µg/g) as set by FAO. Maximum mean cadmium concentration was found to be 0.15 µg/g in the kidney tissues. Highest content of Mn in the studied tissues was seen in the kidney tissue (2.13 µg/g), whereas minimum was found in muscle tissue (0.87 µg/g). The present study led to the conclusion that muscle tissue is the least contaminated tissue in Lethrinus Miniatus and consumption of organs should be avoided as much as possible.

Keywords: Arabian gulf, Lethrinus miniatus, heavy metals, atomic absorption spectroscopy

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Authors: Khalid Elbadawi Elshafea, Mahmoud Hassan Onsa

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This paper presents the results of the experiments to measure the impact of pasteurization cows dung on important parameter of anaerobic digestion (retention time) and measure the effect in daily production rate of biogas, were used local materials in these experiments, two experiments were carried out in two bio-digesters (1 and 2) (18.0 L), volume of the mixture 16.0-litre and the mass of dry matter in the mixture 4.0 Kg of cow dung. Pasteurization process has been conducted on the mixture into the digester 2, and put two digesters under room temperature. Digester (1) produced 268.5 liter of methane in period of 49 days with daily methane production rate 1.37L/Kg/day, and digester (2) produced 302.7-liter of methane in period of 26 days with daily methane production rate 2.91 L/Kg/day. This study concluded that the use of system pasteurization cows dung speed up hydrolysis in anaerobic process, because heat to certain temperature in certain time lead to speed up chemical reactions (transfer Protein to Amino acids, Carbohydrate to Sugars and Fat to Long chain fatty acids), this lead to reduce the retention time an therefore increase the daily methane production rate with 212%.

Keywords: methane, cow dung, daily production, pasteurization, increase

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Authors: Mohammad Parsaeimaram, Fang Congqi

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In this paper, one of the significant seismic design parameter as response modification factor in reinforced concrete (RC) buildings with base isolation system was evaluated. The seismic isolation system is a capable approach to absorbing seismic energy at the base and transfer to the substructure with lower response modification factor as compared to non-isolated structures. A response spectrum method and static nonlinear pushover analysis in according to Uniform Building Code (UBC-97), have been performed on building models involve 5, 8, 12 and 15 stories building with fixed and isolated bases consist of identical moment resisting configurations. The isolation system is composed of lead rubber bearing (LRB) was designed with help UBC-97 parameters. The force-deformation behavior of isolators was modeled as bi-linear hysteretic behavior which can be effectively used to create the isolation systems. The obtained analytical results highlight the response modification factor of considered base isolation system with higher values than recommended in the codes. The response modification factor is used in modern seismic codes to scale down the elastic response of structures.

Keywords: response modification factor, base isolation system, pushover analysis, lead rubber bearing, bi-linear hysteretic

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Authors: M. A. Ferhat, M. N. Boukhatem, F. Chemat

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Lycopene extraction with petroleum derivatives as solvents has caused safety, health, and environmental concerns everywhere. Thus, finding a safe alternative solvent will have a strong and positive impact on environments and general health of the world population. d-limonene from the orange peel was extracted through a steam distillation procedure followed by a deterpenation process and combining this achievement by using it as a solvent for extracting lycopene from tomato fruit as a substitute of dichloromethane. Lycopene content of fresh tomatoes was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography after extraction. Yields obtained for both extractions showed that yields of d-limonene’s extracts were almost equivalent to those obtained using dichloromethane. The proposed approach using a green solvent to perform extraction is useful and can be considered as a nice alternative to conventional petroleum solvent where toxicity for both operator and environment is reduced.

Keywords: alternative solvent, d-limonene, extraction, lycopene

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Authors: Teja Koduru

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Untreated Lyme disease can lead to neurological, cardiac, and dermatological complications. Rapid diagnosis of the erythema migrans (EM) rash, a characteristic symptom of Lyme disease is therefore crucial to early diagnosis and treatment. In this study, we aim to utilize deep learning frameworks including Tensorflow and Keras to create deep convolutional neural networks (DCNN) to detect images of acute Lyme Disease from images of erythema migrans. This study uses a custom database of erythema migrans images of varying quality to train a DCNN capable of classifying images of EM rashes vs. non-EM rashes. Images from publicly available sources were mined to create an initial database. Machine-based removal of duplicate images was then performed, followed by a thorough examination of all images by a clinician. The resulting database was combined with images of confounding rashes and regular skin, resulting in a total of 683 images. This database was then used to create a DCNN with an accuracy of 93% when classifying images of rashes as EM vs. non EM. Finally, this model was converted into a web and mobile application to allow for rapid diagnosis of EM rashes by both patients and clinicians. This tool could be used for patient prescreening prior to treatment and lead to a lower mortality rate from Lyme disease.

Keywords: Lyme, untreated Lyme, erythema migrans rash, EM rash

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Authors: Firoz Alam Faroque, Ankur Neog

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Earthquake causes significant loss of lives and severe damage to infrastructure. Base isolator is one of the most suitable solutions to make a building earthquake resistant. Base isolation consists of installing an isolator along with the steel plates covered with pads of strong material like steel, rubber, etc. In our study, we have used lead rubber bearing (LRB). The basic idea of seismic isolation is based on the reduction of the earthquake-induced inertia forces by shifting the fundamental period of the structure out of dangerous resonance range, and concentration of the deformation and energy dissipation demands at the isolation and energy dissipation systems, which are designed for this purpose. In this paper, RC frame buildings have been modeled and analyzed by response spectrum method using ETABS software. The LRB used in the model is designed as per uniform building code (UBC) 97. It is found that time period for the base isolated structures are higher than that of the fixed base structure and the value of base shear significantly reduces in the case of base-isolated buildings. It has also been found that buildings with vertical irregularities give better performance as compared to building with plan irregularities using base isolators.

Keywords: base isolation, base shear, irregularities in buildings, lead rubber bearing (LRB)

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Authors: M. Hakami, A. Jammaly, I. Attafi, M. Oraiby, M. Jeraiby

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We reviewed an unusual case of a 65-year-old male taking an herbal mixture containing compounds with anticholinesterase activity for a long period of time, presented with acute my myocardial infarction and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome followed by death. Clinically, there are findings correlated with anticholinesterase activity, such as bilateral miosis, diaphoresis, vomiting and fasciculation without a history of any toxic ingestion or exposure. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry screening studies identified the presence of thymol, anethole in the herbal extract and butylated hydroxytoluene in the blood sample. Hence, with this case report, we intend to highlight the necessity of evaluating the long-term use of the herbal mixture.

Keywords: cholinesterase inhibitors, thymole, anethole, butylatedhydroxytoluene, cardiac toxicity, myocardial infarction

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Authors: W. Mohammed Saeed, A. J. Mcbain, S. M. Cruickshank, C. A. O’Neill

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In the gut, probiotics have been shown to protect epithelial cells from pathogenic bacteria through a number of mechanisms: 1-Increasing epithelial barrier function, 2-Modulation of the immune response especially innate immune response, 3-Inhibition of pathogen adherence and down regulation of virulence factors. Since probiotics have positive impacts on the gut, their potential effects on other body tissues, such as skin have begun to be investigated. The purpose of this project is to characterize the potential of probiotic bacteria lysate as therapeutic agent for preventing or reducing the S. aureus infection. Normal human primary keratinocytes (KCs) were exposed to S. aureus (106/ml) in the presence or absence of L. rhamnosus GG lysate (extracted from 108cfu/ml). The viability of the KCs was measured after 24 hours using a trypan blue exclusion assay. When KCs were treated with S aureus alone, only 25% of the KCs remained viable at 24 hours post infection. However, in the presence of L. rhamnosus GG lysate the viability of pathogen infected KCs increased to 58% (p=0.008, n=3). Furthermore, when KCs co-exposed, pre- exposed or post-exposed to L. rhamnosus GG lysate, the viability of the KCs increased to ≈60%, the L. rhamnosus GG lysate was afforded equal protection in different conditions. These data suggests that two possible separate mechanisms are involved in the protective effects of L. rhamnosus GG such as reducing S. aureus growth, or inhibiting of pathogenic adhesion. Interestingly, a lysate of L rhamnosus GG provided significant reduction in S. aureus growth and adhesion of S. aureus that being viable following 24 hours incubation with S aureus. Therefore, a series of Liquid Chromatography (RP-LC) methods were adopted to partially purify the lysate in combination with functional assays to elucidate in which fractions the efficacious molecules were contained. In addition, the Mass Spectrometry-based protein sequencing was used to identify putative proteins in the fractions. The data presented from purification process demonstrated that L. rhamnosus GG lysate has the potential to protect keratinocytes from the toxic effects of the skin pathogen, S. aureus. Three potential mechanisms were identified: inhibition of pathogen growth; competitive exclusion; and displacement of the pathogen from keratinocyte binding sites. In this study, ‘moonlight’ proteins were identified in the current study’s MS/MS data for L. rhamnosus GG lysate, which could elucidate the ability of lysate in the competitive exclusion and displacement of S. aureus from keratinocyte binding sites. Taken together, it can be speculated that L. rhamnosus GG lysate utilizes different mechanisms to protect keratinocytes from S. aureus toxicity. The present study indicates that the proteinaceous substances are involved in anti-adhesion activity. This is achieved by displacing the pathogen and preventing the severity of pathogen infection and the moonlight proteins might be involved in inhibiting the adhesion of pathogens.

Keywords: lysate, fractions, adhesion, L. rhamnosus GG, S. aureus toxicity

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Authors: Abbas Hani

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In recent decades with the development of technology and lack of food sources, sewage sludge in production of human foods is inevitable. Various sources of municipal and industrial sewage sludge that is produced can provide the requirement of plant nutrients. Soils in arid, semi-arid climate of central Iran that most affected by water drainage, iron and zinc deficiencies, using of sewage sludge is helpful. Therefore, the aim of this study is investigation of sewage sludge and manure application on Ni and Zn uptake by Savory. An experiment in a randomized complete block design with three replications was performed. Sewage sludge treatments consisted of four levels, control, 15, 30, 80 tons per hectares, the manure was used in four levels of control, 20, 40 and 80 tons per hectare. Results showed that the wet and dry weights was not affected by sewage sludge using, while, manure has significant effect on them. The effect of sewage sludge on the cadmium and lead concentrations were significant. Interactions of sewage sludge and manure on dry weight values were not significant. Compare mean analysis showed that increasing the amount of sewage sludge had no significant effect on cadmium concentration and it reduced when sewage sludge usage increased. This is probably due to increased plant growth and reduced concentrations of these elements in the plant.

Keywords: savory, lead, cadmium, sewage sludge, manure

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Authors: M. Krishna

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The study was intended to identify if scalp cooling therapy is effective on preventing chemotherapy-induced hair loss among cancer patients. Critical literature of non-randomized controlled trials was used to investigate whether scalp cooling therapy is effective on preventing chemotherapy-induced alopecia. The review identified that scalp cooling therapy is effective on preventing chemotherapy-induced alopecia. Most of the patients receiving chemotherapy experience alopecia. It is also perceived as the worst effect of chemotherapy. This may be severe and lead the patients to withdraw the chemo treatment. The image disturbance caused by alopecia will make the patient depressed and will lead to declined immunity. With the knowledge on effectiveness of scalp cooling therapy on preventing chemotherapy-induced alopecia, patient undergoing chemotherapy will not be hesitant to undergo the treatment. Patients are recommended to go through scalp cooling therapy every chemo cycle and the proper therapy duration is 30 minutes before, during chemo. The suggested duration of the scalp cooling therapy is 45-90 minutes for an effective and positive outcome. This finding is excluding other factors of alopecia such as menopause, therapeutic drugs, poor hair density, liver function problems, and drug regimes.

Keywords: alopecia, cancer, chemotherapy, scalp cooling therapy

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Authors: Fairouz Tazerouti, Samira Ihadadene

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Pyrethroids are synthetic pesticides that originated from the modification of natural pyrethrins to improve their biological activity and stability. They are a family of chiral pesticides with a large number of stereoisomers. Enantiomers of synthetic pyretroids present different insecticidal activity, toxicity against aquatic invertebrates and persistence in the environment so the development of rapid and sensitive chiral methods for the determination of different enantiomers is necessary. In this study, the separation of enantiomers of pyrethroid insecticides has been systematically studied using three commercially chiral high-performance liquid chromatography columns. Useful resolution was obtained for compounds with a variety of acid and alcohol moieties, and containing one to four chiral centres. The chromatographic behaviour of the diastereomers of some of these insecticides by using normal, polar and reversed mobile phase mode were also examined.

Keywords: pesticides, analysis, liquid chromatography, pyrethroids

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Authors: Thomas F. Ducey, Kristin M. Trippe, James A. Ippolito, Jeffrey M. Novak, Mark G. Johnson, Gilbert C. Sigua

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The Oronogo-Duenweg mining belt –approximately 20 square miles around the Joplin, Missouri area– is a designated United States Environmental Protection Agency Superfund site due to lead-contaminated soil and groundwater by former mining and smelting operations. Over almost a century of mining (from 1848 to the late 1960’s), an estimated ten million tons of cadmium, lead, and zinc containing material have been deposited on approximately 9,000 acres. Sites that have undergone remediation, in which the O, A, and B horizons have been removed along with the lead contamination, the exposed C horizon remains incalcitrant to revegetation efforts. These sites also suffer from poor soil microbial activity, as measured by soil extracellular enzymatic assays, though 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid (rRNA) indicates that microbial diversity is equal to sites that have avoided mine-related contamination. Soil analysis reveals low soil organic carbon, along with high levels of bio-available zinc, that reflect the poor soil fertility conditions and low microbial activity. Our study looked at the use of several materials to restore and remediate these sites, with the goal of improving soil health. The following materials, and their purposes for incorporation into the study, were as follows: manure-based biochar for the binding of zinc and other heavy metals responsible for phytotoxicity, locally sourced biosolids and compost to incorporate organic carbon into the depleted soils, effective microorganisms harvested from nearby pristine sites to provide a stable community for nutrient cycling in the newly composited 'soil material'. Our results indicate that all four materials used in conjunction result in the greatest benefit to these mine-impacted soils, based on above ground biomass, microbial biomass, and soil enzymatic activities.

Keywords: locally effective microorganisms, biochar, remediation, reclamation

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Authors: Alpana Saini, Sanghamitra Barman

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Investigations were carried out to determine whether low cost peanut hull as adsorbent hold promise in removal of thionine dyes in the biomedical industries. Pollution of water due to presence of colorants is a severe socio-environmental problem caused by the discharge of industrial wastewater. In view of their toxicity, non-biodegradability and persistent nature, their removal becomes an absolute necessity. For the removal of Thionine Dye using Peanut Hull, the 10mg/L concentration of dyes, 0.5g/l of adsorbent and 200 rpm agitation speed are found to be optimum for the adsorption studies. The Spectrophotometric technique was adopted for the measurement of concentration of dyes before and after adsorption at ʎmax 598nm. The adsorption data has been fitted well to Langmuir isotherm than to Freundlich adsorption isotherm. The adsorbent was characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).

Keywords: adsorption, langmuir isotherm, peanut hull, thionine

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Authors: Haiying Zong, Yi Yuan, Pengcheng Li

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Cadmium (Cd), one of the toxic heavy metals, has high solubility and mobility in agricultural soils and is readily taken up by roots and transported to the vegetative and reproductive organs which can cause deleterious effects on crop yield and quality. Excess Cd in plants can interfere with many metabolic processes, such as photosynthesis, transpiration, respiration or nutrients homeostasis. Generally, the main methods to reduce Cd accumulation in plants are to decrease the concentration of Cd in the soil solution through reduction of Cd influx into the soil system, site selection, and management practices. However, these approaches can be very costly and consume a lot of energy Therefore, it is critical to develop effective approaches to reduce the Cd concentration in plants. It is proved that chitooligosaccharide (COS) can enhance the plant's tolerance to abiotic stress including drought stress, salinity stress, and toxic metal stress. However, so far little information is known about whether foliar application with COS modulates Cd-induced toxicity in plants. The metal detoxification processes of plants treated with COS also remain unclear. In this study, edible rape (Brassica rapa L.), one of the most widely consumed leafy vegetables, was selected as an experimental mode plant. The effect of foliar application with COS on reducing Cd accumulation in edible rape was investigated. Moreover, Cd subcellular distribution pattern in response to Cd stress in the rape plant sprayed with COS was further tested in order to explore the potential detoxification mechanisms in plants. The results demonstrated that spraying COS at different concentrations (25, 50,100 and 200 mg L-1) possess diverse functions including growth-promoting,chlorophyll contents-enhancing, malondialdehyde (MDA) level-decreasing in leaves, Cd2+ concentration-decreasingin shoots and roots of edible rape under Cd stress. In addition, it was found that COS can also dramatically improve superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, catalase (CAT) activity and peroxidase (POX) activity of edible rape leaves. The relievingeffect of COS was related to theconcentration and COS with 50-100 mg L-1 displayed the best activity. Furtherly, theexperiments results exhibitedthat COS could decrease the proportion of Cd in the organelle fraction of leaves by 40.1% while enhance the proportion of Cd in the soluble fraction by 13.2% at the concentration of 50 mg L-1. The above results showed that COS may have thepotential to improve plant resistance to Cd via promoting antioxidant enzyme activities and altering Cd subcellular distribution. All the results described here open up a new way to study the protection role of COS in alleviating Cd tolerance and lay the foundation for future research about the detoxification mechanism at subcellular level.

Keywords: chitooligosaccharide, cadmium, edible rape (Brassica rapa L.), subcellular distribution

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Authors: Hannah Gutmann, Rick Richardson, Richard Bryant

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Intrusive memories following a traumatic event are not uncommon. However, in some individuals, these memories become maladaptive and lead to prolonged stress reactions. A seminal model of PTSD explains that aberrant processing during trauma may lead to prolonged stress reactions and intrusive memories. This model explains that elevated arousal at the time of the trauma promotes data driven processing, leading to fragmented and intrusive memories. This study investigated the role of elevated arousal on the development of intrusive memories. We measured salivary markers of arousal and investigated what impact this had on data driven processing, memory fragmentation, and subsequently, the development of intrusive memories. We assessed 100 healthy participants to understand their processing style, arousal, and experience of intrusive memories. Participants were randomised to a control or experimental condition, the latter of which was designed to increase their arousal. Based on current theory, participants in the experimental condition were expected to engage in more data driven processing and experience more intrusive memories than participants in the control condition. This research aims to shed light on the mechanisms underlying the development of intrusive memories to illustrate ways in which therapeutic approaches for PTSD may be augmented for greater efficacy.

Keywords: stress, cortisol, SAA, PTSD, intrusive memories

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Authors: Anette Forssten Seiser, Ulf Blossing, Mats Ekholm

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The expectation on principals to manage, lead and develop their schools and teachers are high. However, principals are not left alone without guidelines. Policy texts, curricula and syllabuses guide the orientation of their leadership. Moreover, principals’ traits and experience as well as professional norms, are decisive. However, in this study we argue for the importance to deepen the knowledge of how the practice of leadership is shaped in the daily social working life with the teachers at the school. Teachers’ experiences and expectations of leadership influence the principal’s actions, sometimes perhaps contrary to what is emphasized in official texts like the central guidelines. The expectations of teachers make up the norms of the school and thus constitute the local school culture. The aim of this study is to deepen the knowledge of teachers’ expectations on their principals to manage, lead and develop their schools. Two questions are used to guide the study: 1) How do teachers’ and principals’ expectations differ in realistic situations? 2) How do teachers’ experience-based expectations differ from more ideal expectations? To investigate teachers’ expectations of their principals, we use a social psychological perspective framed within an organisational development perspective. A social role is defined by the fact that, within the framework of the role, different people who fulfil the same role exhibit greater similarities than differences in their actions. The way a social role is exercised depends on the expectations placed on the role’s position but also on the expectations of the function of the role. The way in which the social role is embodied in practice also depends on how the person fulfilling the role perceives and understands those expectations. Based on interviews with school principals a questionnaire was constructed. Nine possible real-life and critical incidents were described that are important when it comes to role shaping in the dynamics between teachers and principals. Teachers were asked to make a choice between three, four, or five possible and realistic courses of action for the principal. The teachers were also asked to make two choices between these different options in real-life situations, one ideal as if they were working as a principal themselves, and one experience based – how they estimated that their own principal would act in such a situation. The sample consist of two elementary schools in Sweden. School A consists of two principals and 38 teachers and school B of two principals and 22 teachers. The response rate among the teachers is 95 percent in school A and 86 percent in school B. All four principals answered our questions. The results show that the expectations of teachers and principals can be understood as variations of being harmonic or disharmonic. The harmonic expectations can be interpreted to lead to an attuned leadership, while the disharmonic expectations lead to a more tensed leadership. Harmonious expectations and an attuned leadership are prominent. The results are compared to earlier research on leadership. Attuned and more tensed leadership are discussed in relation to school development and future research.

Keywords: critical incidents, principal leadership, school culture, school development, teachers' expectations

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Authors: Olga Gomez De Miranda, Jose R. Ochoa-Gomez, Stefaan De Wildeman, Luciano Monsegue, Soraya Prieto, Leire Lorenzo, Cristina Dineiro

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The chemical industry is facing a new revolution. As long as processes based on the exploitation of fossil resources emerged with force in the XIX century, Society currently demands a new radical change that will lead to the complete and irreversible implementation of a circular sustainable economic model. The implementation of biorefineries will be essential for this. There, renewable raw materials as sugars and other biomass resources are exploited for the development of new materials that will partially replace their petroleum-derived homologs in a safer, and environmentally more benign approach. Isosorbide, (1,4:3,6-dianhydro-d-glucidol) is a primary bio-based derivative obtained from the plant (poly) saccharides and a very interesting example of a useful chemical produced in biorefineries. It can, in turn, be converted to other secondary monomers as isosorbide bis-methyl carbonate (IBMC), whose main field of application can be as a key biodegradable intermediary substitute of bisphenol-A in the manufacture of polycarbonates, or as an alternative to the toxic isocyanates in the synthesis of new polyurethanes (non-isocyanate polyurethanes) both with a huge application market. New products will present advantageous mechanical or optical properties, as well as improved behavior in non-toxicity and biodegradability aspects in comparison to their petro-derived alternatives. A robust production process of IBMC, a biomass-derived chemical, is here presented. It can be used with different raw material qualities using dimethyl carbonate (DMC) as both co-reactant and solvent. It consists of the transesterification of isosorbide with DMC under soft operational conditions, using different basic catalysts, always active with the isosorbide characteristics and purity. Appropriate isolation processes have been also developed to obtain crude IBMC yields higher than 90%, with oligomers production lower than 10%, independently of the quality of the isosorbide considered. All of them are suitable to be used in polycondensation reactions for polymers obtaining. If higher qualities of IBMC are needed, a purification treatment based on nanofiltration membranes has been also developed. The IBMC reaction-isolation conditions established in the laboratory have been successfully modeled using appropriate software programs and moved to a pilot-scale (production of 100 kg of IBMC). It has been demonstrated that a highly efficient IBMC production process able to be up-scaled under suitable market conditions has been obtained. Operational conditions involved the production of IBMC involve soft temperature and energy needs, no additional solvents, and high operational efficiency. All of them are according to green manufacturing rules.

Keywords: biomass, catalyst, isosorbide bis-methyl carbonate, polycarbonate, polyurethane, transesterification

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Authors: Sara Assi, Berthe Hayar, Claudio Pisano, Nadine Darwiche, Walid Saad

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Nanomedicine, the application of nanotechnology to medicine, is an emerging discipline that has gained significant attention in recent years. Current breakthroughs in nanomedicine have paved the way to develop effective drug delivery systems that can be used to target cancer. The use of nanotechnology provides effective drug delivery, enhanced stability, bioavailability, and permeability, thereby minimizing drug dosage and toxicity. As such, the use of nanoparticle (NP) formulations in drug delivery has been applied in various cancer models and have shown to improve the ability of drugs to reach specific targeted sites in a controlled manner. Cancer is one of the major causes of death worldwide; in particular, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common type of cancer diagnosed amongst men and women and the second leading cause of cancer related deaths, highlighting the need for novel therapies. Retinoids, consisting of natural and synthetic derivatives, are a class of chemical compounds that have shown promise in preclinical and clinical cancer settings. However, retinoids are limited by their toxicity and resistance to treatment. To overcome this resistance, various synthetic retinoids have been developed, including the adamantyl retinoid ST1926, which is a potent anti-cancer agent. However, due to its limited bioavailability, the development of ST1926 has been restricted in phase I clinical trials. We have previously investigated the preclinical efficacy of ST1926 in CRC models. ST1926 displayed potent inhibitory and apoptotic effects in CRC cell lines by inducing early DNA damage and apoptosis. ST1926 significantly reduced the tumor doubling time and tumor burden in a xenograft CRC model. Therefore, we developed ST1926-NPs and assessed their efficacy in CRC models. ST1926-NPs were produced using Flash NanoPrecipitation with the amphiphilic diblock copolymer polystyrene-b-ethylene oxide and cholesterol as a co-stabilizer. ST1926 was formulated into NPs with a drug to polymer mass ratio of 1:2, providing a stable formulation for one week. The contin ST1926-NP diameter was 100 nm, with a polydispersity index of 0.245. Using the MTT cell viability assay, ST1926-NP exhibited potent anti-growth activities as naked ST1926 in HCT116 cells, at pharmacologically achievable concentrations. Future studies will be performed to study the anti-tumor activities and mechanism of action of ST1926-NPs in a xenograft mouse model and to detect the compound and its glucuroconjugated form in the plasma of mice. Ultimately, our studies will support the use of ST1926-NP formulations in enhancing the stability and bioavailability of ST1926 in CRC.

Keywords: nanoparticles, drug delivery, colorectal cancer, retinoids

Procedia PDF Downloads 86

Authors: Klaudia Chmielewska, Krystyna Dzierzbicka, Iwona Inkielewicz-Stepniak

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Carnosine, an endogenous peptide consisting of β-alanine and L-histidine has a variety of functions to mention: antioxidant, antiglycation, and reducing the toxicity of metal ions. It has therefore been proposed to act as a therapeutic agent for many pathological states, although its therapeutic index is limited by quick enzymatic cleavage. To overcome this limitation, there’s an urge to create new derivatives which might become less potent to hydrolysis, while preserving the therapeutic effect. The poster summarizes the efficiency of two peptide synthesis methods, which were: (1) the mixed anhydride with isobutyl chloroformate and N-methylmorpholine (NMM) and (2) carbodiimide - mediated coupling method via appropriate reagent condensing, here – CDI. The methods were used to obtain dipeptides which were the derivatives of carnosine. Obtained dipeptides were made in the form of methyl esters and their structures will be confirmed 1H NMR, 13C NMR, MS and elemental analysis techniques. Later on, they will be analyzed for their antioxidant properties, in comparison to carnosine.

Keywords: carnosine, method, peptide, synthesis

Procedia PDF Downloads 140

Authors: Mudafara S. Bengleil, Juma M. Orfi, Iman Abdelgader

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Since nickel is a known toxic and carcinogenic metal, the present study was designed to evaluate the level of nickel released into the saliva of orthodontic patients. Non-stimulated saliva was collected from 18 patients attending The Orthodontic Clinic of Dental Faculty of Benghazi University. Patients were divided into two groups and level of nickel was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Nickel concentration values (mg/L) in first group prior to starting treatment was 0.097± 0.071. An increase in level of nickel was followed by decrease 4 and 8 weeks after applying the arch wire (0.208± 0.112) and (0.077±0.056 mg/L) respectively. Nickel levels in saliva of the second group were showed minimal variation and ranged from 0.061± 0.044mg/L to 0.083±0.054 throughout period of study. It may be concluded that there could be a release of nickel from the appliance used in first group but it doesn't reach toxic level in saliva.

Keywords: atomic absorption spectrophotometry, nickel, orthodontic treatment, saliva, toxicity

Procedia PDF Downloads 337

Authors: Naraporn Taemaitree, Pruet Areesawangvong, Satchachon Changthom, Tanin Titipungul

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Adult intussusception, unlike childhood intussusception, is rare. Approximately 5-15% of cases are idiopathic without a lead point lesion. Secondary intussusception is caused by pathological conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, postoperative adhesions, Meckel’s diverticulum, benign and malignant lesions, metastatic neoplasms, or even iatrogenically due to the presence of intestinal tubes, jejunostomy feeding tubes or after gastric surgery. Diagnosis can be delayed because of its longstanding, intermittent, and non-specific symptoms. Computed tomography is the most sensitive diagnostic modality and can help distinguish between intussusceptions with and without a lead point and lesion localization. This report presents the case of a 49-year-old man presented with increasing abdominal pain over the past three days, loss of appetite, constipation, and frequent vomiting. Computed tomography revealed distal small bowel obstruction at the right lower quadrant with thickened outer wall and internal non-dilated small bowel loop. Emergency exploratory laparotomy was performed to clear the obstruction, which upon inspection was caused by extremely long Taenia solium parasites.

Keywords: intussusception, tape worm, Taenia solium, abdominal pain

Procedia PDF Downloads 111

Authors: Farrin Ghorbanalavi, Nihal Arıoğlu

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The concept of enhancing mechanical /thermal/physical properties of architectural materials is being practiced for over five decades. In comparison with other approaches, the current nanotechnology era equally attracted the structural scientists, engineers, and industries. It simply promises that using building blocks with dimensions in the nano size range makes it possible to design and develop new multi-functional materials. This research focuses on understanding the effects of nanotechnology on the building facade and new facade concepts based on the new possibilities of nanotechnology. Mentioned factors are very prosperous for the comfort as well as sustainability of the building itself. Furthermore, the study suggests that the potential for energy conservation and reduced waste, toxicity, non-renewable resource consumption, and carbon emissions through the architectural applications of nanotechnologies significant. More clearly, it provides us the information about what does the future hold for surface structures.

Keywords: sustainable, nano materials, façade, energy efficiency

Procedia PDF Downloads 547

Authors: V. Ivanov, J. Chu, V. Stabnikov

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Different biotechnological methods for the production of construction materials and for the performance of construction processes in situ are developing within a new scientific discipline of Construction Biotechnology. The aim of this research was to develop and test new biotechnologies and biotechnological grouts for the minimization of the hydraulic conductivity of the fractured rocks and porous soil. This problem is essential to minimize flow rate of groundwater into the construction sites, the tunneling space before and after excavation, inside levies, as well as to stop water seepage from the aquaculture ponds, agricultural channels, radioactive waste or toxic chemicals storage sites, from the landfills or from the soil-polluted sites. The conventional fine or ultrafine cement grouts or chemical grouts have such restrictions as high cost, viscosity, sometime toxicity but the biogrouts, which are based on microbial or enzymatic activities and some not expensive inorganic reagents, could be more suitable in many cases because of lower cost and low or zero toxicity. Due to these advantages, development of biotechnologies for biogrouting is going exponentially. However, most popular at present biogrout, which is based on activity of urease- producing bacteria initiating crystallization of calcium carbonate from calcium salt has such disadvantages as production of toxic ammonium/ammonia and development of high pH. Therefore, the aim of our studies was development and testing of new biogrouts that are environmentally friendly and have low cost suitable for large scale geotechnical, construction, and environmental applications. New microbial biotechnologies have been studied and tested in the sand columns, fissured rock samples, in 1 m3 tank with sand, and in the pack of stone sheets that were the models of the porous soil and fractured rocks. Several biotechnological methods showed positive results: 1) biogrouting using sequential desaturation of sand by injection of denitrifying bacteria and medium following with biocementation using urease-producing bacteria, urea and calcium salt decreased hydraulic conductivity of sand to 2×10-7 ms-1 after 17 days of treatment and consumed almost three times less reagents than conventional calcium-and urea-based biogrouting; 2) biogrouting using slime-producing bacteria decreased hydraulic conductivity of sand to 1x10-6 ms-1 after 15 days of treatment; 3) biogrouting of the rocks with the width of the fissures 65×10-6 m using calcium bicarbonate solution, that was produced from CaCO3 and CO2 under 30 bars pressure, decreased hydraulic conductivity of the fissured rocks to 2×10-7 ms-1 after 5 days of treatment. These bioclogging technologies could have a lot of advantages over conventional construction materials and processes and can be used in geotechnical engineering, agriculture and aquaculture, and for the environmental protection.

Keywords: biocementation, bioclogging, biogrouting, fractured rocks, porous soil, tunneling space

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Authors: Wei Yao, Constantinos Alexiou

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In the existing literature, many studies have focused on the implementation and effectiveness of quantitative easing (QE) since 2008, but only a few have evaluated QE’s effect on commodity prices. In this context, by following Frankel’s (1986) commodity price overshooting model, we study the dynamic covariation between the expected real interest rates and six agricultural commodities’ real returns over the period from 2000:1 to 2018 for the US economy. We use wavelet analysis to investigate the causal relationship and co-movement of time series data by calculating the coefficient of determination in different frequencies. We find that a) US unconventional monetary policy may cause more positive and significant covariation between the expected real interest rates and agricultural commodities’ real returns over the short horizons; b) a lead-lag relationship that runs from agricultural commodities’ real returns to the expected real short-term interest rates over the long horizons; and c) a lead-lag relationship from agricultural commodities’ real returns to the expected real long-term interest rates over short horizons. In the realm of monetary policy, we argue that QE may shift the negative relationship between most commodities’ real returns and the expected real interest rates to a positive one over a short horizon.

Keywords: QE, commodity price, interest rate, wavelet coherence

Procedia PDF Downloads 70

Authors: Ting-Yu Hsu, Shyu-Yu Wu, Shieh-Kung Huang, Hung-Wei Chiang, Kung-Chun Lu, Pei-Yang Lin, Kuo-Liang Wen

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Regional earthquake early warning (EEW) systems are not suitable for Taiwan, as most destructive seismic hazards arise due to in-land earthquakes. These likely cause the lead-time provided by regional EEW systems before a destructive earthquake wave arrives to become null. On the other hand, an on-site EEW system can provide more lead-time at a region closer to an epicenter, since only seismic information of the target site is required. Instead of leveraging the information of several stations, the on-site system extracts some P-wave features from the first few seconds of vertical ground acceleration of a single station and performs a prediction of the oncoming earthquake intensity at the same station according to these features. Since seismometers could be triggered by non-earthquake events such as a passing of a truck or other human activities, to reduce the likelihood of false alarms, a seismometer was installed at three different locations on the same site and the performance of the EEW system for these three sensor locations were discussed. The results show that the location on the ground of the first floor of a school building maybe a good choice, since the false alarms could be reduced and the cost for installation and maintenance is the lowest.

Keywords: earthquake early warning, on-site, seismometer location, support vector machine

Procedia PDF Downloads 229