COVIDiSTRESS diverse dataset on psychological and behavioural outcomes one year into the COVID-19 pandemic

During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the COVIDiSTRESS Consortium launched an open-access global survey to understand and improve individuals’ experiences related to the crisis. A year later, we extended this line of research by launching a new survey to address the dynamic landscape of the pandemic. This survey was released with the goal of addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion by working with over 150 researchers across the globe who collected data in 48 languages and dialects across 137 countries. The resulting cleaned dataset described here includes 15,740 of over 20,000 responses. The dataset allows cross-cultural study of psychological wellbeing and behaviours a year into the pandemic. It includes measures of stress, resilience, vaccine attitudes, trust in government and scientists, compliance, and information acquisition and misperceptions regarding COVID-19. Open-access raw and cleaned datasets with computed scores are available. Just as our initial COVIDiSTRESS dataset has facilitated government policy decisions regarding health crises, this dataset can be used by researchers and policy makers to inform research, decisions, and policy. © 2022, The Author(s).U.S. Department of Education, ED: P031S190304; Texas A and M International University, TAMIU; National Research University Higher School of Economics, ВШЭThe COVIDiSTRESS Consortium would like to acknowledge the contributions of friends and collaborators in translating and sharing the COVIDiSTRESS survey, as well as the study participants. Data analysis was supported by Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) Research Grant, TAMIU Act on Ideas, and the TAMIU Advancing Research and Curriculum Initiative (TAMIU ARC) awarded by the US Department of Education Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program (Award # P031S190304). Data collection by Dmitrii Dubrov was supported within the framework of the Basic Research Program at HSE University, RF

Organic and inorganic contaminants removal from water with engineered biochar

Water pollution represents one of the major concerns of the modern world, after scientific and industrial development that generates hazardous organic and inorganic contaminants. Biochar (BC) has gained tremendous attention in the past decade as a cheap and efficient adsorbent for organic and inorganic contaminants from aqueous solutions. BC is considered to be a low-cost alternative to activated carbon, however, BC typically suffer performance reductions due to their low surface areas and poor mechanical properties. The main objective of this work is to develop novel biochar materials by modifying the biochar surface for the removal of organic and inorganic contaminants from water. In recent years, biochar modifications involving various methods such as, acid/base treatment, impregnation of mineral sorbents, functional groups incorporation, steam activation and magnetic modification have been widely studied. Chapter I summarizes these biochar modification methods. In Chapter II, Chitosan-Modified fast pyrolysis BioChar (CMBC) was used to remove Pb2+ from water. CMBC was made by mixing pine wood biochar with a 2% aqueous acetic acid chitosan (85% deacylated chitin) solution followed by treatment with NaOH. CMBC removed more Pb2+ than non-modified biochar suggesting that modification with chitosan generates amine groups on the biochar surface which enhance Pb2+ adsorption. Chapter III describes the fast nitrate and fluoride adsorption and magnetic separation from water on iron oxide particles dispersed on Douglas Fir biochar. Nitrate and fluoride adsorption occurred by electrostatic attraction over the wide 2 to 10 pH range. In the chapter IV, aniline and nitrobenzene removal from water was studied using magnetized and nonmagnetized Douglas Fir biochar. The adsorption of aniline and nitrobenzene occurred mainly through pi-pi electron interactions over the wide 2 to 12 pH range and H-bonding. The surface morphology, chemistry, and composition of the modified biochars were examined by SEM, SEM-EDX, TEM, PZC, XPS, XRD, FTIR, TGA, DSC, elemental analysis, and surface area measurements

Adsorption of Phosphates onto Mg/Al-Oxide/Hydroxide/Sulfate-Impregnated Douglas Fir Biochar

Nitrates and phosphates, found in fertilizers, are the most common eutrophication-causing agents. Douglas fir biochar (BC), a syngas byproduct, was treated with different Al/Mg ratios of sulfate (5% w/w metal loading) followed by an NaOH treatment. The greatest phosphate uptake at 25 °C and pH 7 was attributed to the composite with a Mg/Al 2:1 ratio prepared at pH 13 (AMBC). Batch AMBC phosphate uptake was optimized for initial pH, equilibrium time, temperature, and initial phosphate concentration. Phosphate removal following pseudo-2nd-order kinetics and increases gradually before reaching a max at pH 11, with 95% phosphate uptake in 15 mins. The Sips isotherm model provided the best sorption data fit resulting in a 42.1 mg/g capacity at 25 °C and pH 11. Endothermic and spontaneous adsorption were determined using van ’t Hoff’s plots. BET, XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM, and EDS were used to characterize the biochar before and after phosphate sorption. Used AMBC has the potential to be exploited as a phosphate fertilizer as a key part of an environmentally friendly agricultural management plan

Colchitaxel, a coupled compound made from microtubule inhibitors colchicine and paclitaxel

BACKGROUND: Tumor promoters enhance tumor yield in experimental animals without directly affecting the DNA of the cell. Promoters may play a role in the development of cancer, as humans are exposed to them in the environment. In work based on computer-assisted microscopy and sophisticated classification methods, we showed that cells could be classified by reference to a database of known normal and cancerous cell phenotypes. Promoters caused loss of properties specific to normal cells and gain of properties of cancer cells. Other compounds, including colchicine, had a similar effect. Colchicine given together with paclitaxel, however, caused cells to adopt properties of normal cells. This provided a rationale for tests of microtubule inhibitor combinations in cancer patients. The combination of a depolymerizing and a stabilizing agent is a superior anti-tumor treatment. The biological basis of the effect is not understood. RESULTS: A single compound containing both colchicine and paclitaxel structures was synthesized. Colchicine is an alkaloid with a trimethoxyphenyl ring (ring A), a ring with an acetamide linkage (ring B), and a tropolone ring (ring C). Although rings A and C are important for tubulin-binding activity, the acetamide linkage on ring B could be replaced by an amide containing a glutamate linker. Alteration of the C-7 site on paclitaxel similarly had little or no inhibitory effect on its biological activity. The linker was attached to this position. The coupled compound, colchitaxel (1), had some of the same effects on microtubules as the combination of starting compounds. It also caused shortening and fragmentation of the + end protein cap. CONCLUSION: Since microtubule inhibitor combinations give results unlike those obtained with either inhibitor alone, it is important to determine how such combinations affect cell shape and growth. Colchitaxel shows a subset of the effects of the inhibitor combination. Thus, it may be able to bind the relevant cellular target of the combination. It will be useful to determine the basis of the shape reversal effect and possibly, the reasons for therapeutic efficacy of microtubule inhibitor combinations