Effects of desloratadine on activated sludge: behaviour of EPS and sludge properties

"Available online 8 August 2022"Desloratadine (DESL), a second generation of antihistamines, is an important anti-allergic pharmaceutical used to treat allergic rhinitis, hay fever and urticaria. In this study, the overall performance, extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) production, and sludge properties were assessed in a sequencing batch reactor wastewater treatment process with activated sludge during 139 days, under the presence of DESL (1, 5, and 10mgL-1). DESL at 10mgL-1 impacted biomass activity decreasing the chemical oxygen demand removal (78%) and the ammonium removal (71%). The removal of DESL was of 63%. Tightly bound EPS (TB-EPS) was significantly higher (149.5mg gMLVSS-1) at the end of operation. Peaks attributed to protein-like fluorophores clearly predominated along the experimental phases using three-dimensional excitation-emission matrix (3D-EEM) fluorescence. The peak locations and intensities in the EPS fluorescence revealed the difference in the chemical structures of the EPS caused by DESL exposure. Quantitative image analysis results clearly demonstrated the formation of large aggregates. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed a positive relationship between TB-EPS components, and large aggregates. Moreover, the results allowed to distinguish the different operational phases, emphasizing the effect of DESL on EPS and aggregates.The authors thank the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/ 04469/2020 unit, and by LABBELS – Associate Laboratory in Biotechnology, Bioengineering and Microelectromechanical Systems, LA/P/ 0029/2020. The authors also acknowledge the financial support to Antonio Melo through the grant number 240-20170220 provided by Instituto Federal de Educação Ciência e Tecnologia de Pernambuco (IFPE). Daniela P. Mesquita and Cristina Quintelas thank FCT for funding through program DL 57/2016 – Norma transitoria.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

EPS and aggregates changes on activated sludge under atrazine exposure

Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) play a vital role in biological wastewater treatment systems, affecting their performance in aggregates settling, structure and arrangement, and interacting with micropollutants present in wastewater. In this study, the effects of herbicide atrazine (ATZ) on the EPS yield and composition and aggregates structure were investigated on activated sludge (AS) in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR). The results demonstrated that TB-EPS and LB-EPS increased under ATZ exposure, indicating that microorganisms release EPS as a self-mechanism of defense against environmental changes. Above 5.5 mg L-1 of ATZ aggregates become larger. Principal component analysis (PCA) was useful in highlighting biomass changes during the experimental phases, and Pearson correlation revealed that TB-EPS content correlate well with large aggregates (0.996).The authors thank the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 unit, and by LABBELS – Associate Laboratory in Biotechnology, Bioengineering and Microelectromechanical Systems, LA/P/0029/2020. The authors also acknowledge the financial support to A. Melo through the grant 240-20170220 provided by Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia de Pernambuco (IFPE). D.P. Mesquita and C. Quintelas acknowledge FCT funding under DL57/2016 Transitory Norm Programme.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Anaerobic biological removal of pharmaceuticals: impact of these micropollutants towards different microbial groups in anaerobic communities

Pharmaceutical compounds are originated essentially from anthropogenic activities and end up in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). Despite the low concentrations usually detected in wastewater (ranging from ng L-1 to g L-1), levels of mg L-1 have been detected in some countries. Moreover, in conventional WWTP these compounds are hardly degraded and tend to accumulate in sludge, being an environmental and public health problem. A possible treatment and valorization of contaminated sewage sludge is through anaerobic digestion, but for that purpose, the effect of these micropollutants on the activity of crucial microbial groups present in the anaerobic sludge (i.e., acetogenic and methanogenic microorganisms) must be assessed. In this work, the effect of ciprofloxacin (CIP), ibuprofen (IBP), diclofenac (DCF), and 17-ethinylestradiol (EE2), on the activity of acetogenic and methanogenic anaerobic communities was investigated1. The microorganisms respond dissimilarly to these micropollutants, at different concentrations (0.01-100 mg L-1), but in general they were more affected by CIP, followed by EE2, DCF and IBP. The specific methanogenic activity (SMA) was not affected in concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.1 mg L-1. However, acetoclastic methanogens were the most sensitive microorganisms, being affect by all the pharmaceuticals, at higher concentrations. The SMA of these microorganisms was inhibited 20% by 1 mg L-1 of CIP, and circa 50% with higher concentrations. Acetogenic bacteria were not affected by IBP at all the tested concentrations, but they were sensitive to CIP at concentrations above 1 mg L-1, and to DCF and EE2 at concentrations above 10 mg L-1. Instead, hydrogenotrophic methanogens were not affected by any concentration, indicating their lower sensitivity. It can be concluded that methanogenic communities were not severely affected by these pharmaceuticals. So, the application of anaerobic digestion for the treatment of wastewater and sewage sludge contaminated with pharmaceuticals seems promising. Indeed, another study showed that CIP can be removed by anaerobic sludge in the presence of carbon materials (99% removal), and treated wastewater was much less toxic than before the treatment (46% detoxification), as assessed with the standard bioassay using Vibrio fischeri.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

High carbon load in food processing industrial wastewater is a driver for metabolic competition in aerobic granular sludge

The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2021.735607/ full#supplementary-materialAerobic granular sludge (AGS) processes are among the most robust wastewater treatments. One of their greatest advantages is related to the granules multi-layered structure, which creates a protective barrier against organic shock loads and variable wastewater composition, particularly attractive for the treatment of industrial wastewater. However, when treating a wastewater with variable and complex composition, the difficulty in identifying factors that most affect a specific biological process increases. In this study, the effect of organic loading rate (OLR), namely carbon content, on nitrification in an AGS process treating fish canning wastewater was investigated. Besides process performance, also biomass structural changes, and microbial community composition were analysed. Reactor operation lasted for 107 days and was divided in three phases during which different OLR and C/N ratios were applied. A higher OLR was applied during the first two phases (ca. 1.1 and 1.5 kg COD m3 day1, respectively) compared to the third phase (between 0.12 and 0.78 kg COD m3 day1) and the C/N ratios also varied (ca. 4.4, 7.8, and 2.9, respectively). Throughout the operation, COD concentration in the outlet was lower than 100 mg O2 L1. Nitrification was inhibited during the second phase and recovered afterwards. Principal component analysis (PCA) of quantitative image analysis (QIA) and performance data allowed to distinguish process changes over the three operational phases. During the first two phases, the decrease in the biomass robustness occurred, but recovered during the last phase, indicating that the high content of organic matter had possibly an effect on the aerobic granules structural characteristics. The composition of the AGS microbiome did not change substantially after the end of the higher OLR periods. The main microbial diversity shifts were mostly associated to adaptation to higher or lower carbon availability. Bacteria and inferred enzymes associated to nitrogen and phosphorous removal were identified. Chryseobacterium, a bacterium with high metabolic versatility, was able to adapt to the organic shock load, becoming dominant over operation. Despite the variable composition of the fish canning wastewater, carbon was identified as the main driver for nitrification inhibition, while promoting changes in the physical characteristics and on the microbial community of granules.This work was supported by National Funds from FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, through the project GReAT-PTDC/BTA-BTA/29970/2017 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029970).We would like to thank the scientific collaboration of CBQF under the FCT project UIDB/50016/2020 and of CEB under the FCT project UIDB/04469/2020. We would like also to thank “A Poveira S.A.” (Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal) for providing the fish canning wastewater.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Studies in the mouse model identify strain variability as a major determinant of disease outcome in Leishmania infantum infection

Visceral leishmaniasis is a severe and potentially fatal disease caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania, transmitted by phlebotomine sandflies. In Europe and the Mediterranean region, L. infantum is the commonest agent of visceral leishmaniasis, causing a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations, including asymptomatic carriage, cutaneous lesions and severe visceral disease. Visceral leishmaniasis is more frequent in immunocompromised individuals and data obtained in experimental models of infection have highlighted the importance of the host immune response, namely the efficient activation of host's macrophages, in determining infection outcome. Conversely, few studies have addressed a possible contribution of parasite variability to this outcome.No funders or funding refered in the paper

Patient-physician discordance in assessment of adherence to inhaled controller medication: a cross-sectional analysis of two cohorts

We aimed to compare patient's and physician's ratings of inhaled medication adherence and to identify predictors of patient-physician discordance.(SFRH/BPD/115169/2016) funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT); ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) through the operations: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029130 ('mINSPIRERS—mHealth to measure and improve adherence to medication in chronic obstructive respiratory diseases—generalisation and evaluation of gamification, peer support and advanced image processing technologies') cofunded by the COMPETE2020 (Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização), Portugal 2020 and by Portuguese Funds through FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The GO-DACT protocol : a multicentre, randomized, double-blind, parallel-group study to compare the efficacy of golimumab in combination with methotrexate (MTX) versus MTX monotherapy

© 2001-2020 Sociedade Portuguesa de ReumatologiaThe GO-DACT is an investigator-initiated, national, multicentric randomized placebo-controlled double-blinded trial, that assesses dactylitis as primary endpoint. Psoriatic arthritis patients naïve to methotrexate and biologic disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, with at least one active dactylitis, were assigned to golimumab in combination with methotrexate or placebo in combination with methotrexate, for 24 weeks. Both clinical (dactylitis severity score and the Leeds dactylitis index) and imaging (high resolution magnetic resonance imaging), among others, were assessed as outcomes. The main objective of GO-DACT is to provide evidence to improve the treatment algorithm and care of psoriatic arthritis patients with active dactylitis. In this manuscript we describe the GO-DACT protocol and general concepts of the methodology of this trial.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Morphological and Postural changes in the foot during pregnancy and puerperium : a longitudinal study

The aim of this study is to observe the morphological and postural changes to the foot that take place during pregnancy and the puerperium. Method: In this descriptive, observational, longitudinal study, we analysed 23 pregnant women, with particular attention to morphological and postural aspects of the foot, at three time points during and after pregnancy: in weeks 9-13 of gestation, weeks 32-35 of gestation and weeks 4-6 after delivery. The parameters considered were changes in foot length, the Foot Posture Index (FPI) and the Hernández Corvo Index, which were analysed using a pedigraph and taking into account the Body Mass Index (BMI). The same procedure was conducted in each review. Results: The statistical analyses obtained for each foot did not differ significantly between the three measurement times. A pronator-type footprint was most frequently observed during the third trimester of pregnancy; it was predominantly neutral during the postpartum period. Statistically significant differences between the measurement times were obtained in the right foot for cavus vs. neutral foot type (between the first and third trimesters and also between the first trimester and the puerperium) (in both cases, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Foot length increases in the third trimester and returns to normal in the puerperium. According to FPI findings, the third trimester of pregnancy is characterised by pronation, while the posture returns to neutrality during the postpartum period. During pregnancy, the plantar arch flattens, and this persists during the puerperium. The incidence of cavus foot increases significantly in the third trimester and in the puerperium

GO-DACT : a phase 3b randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of GOlimumab plus methotrexate (MTX) versus placebo plus MTX in improving DACTylitis in MTX-naive patients with psoriatic arthritis

© author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY- nC. no commercial re-use. see rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-­NC 4.0) license.Objectives: To assess the efficacy of golimumab in combination with methotrexate (MTX) versus MTX monotherapy in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) dactylitis. Methods: Multicentre, investigator-initiated, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-design phase 3b trial in 11 Portuguese rheumatology centres. Patients with PsA along with active dactylitis and naive to MTX and biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) were randomly assigned to golimumab or placebo, both in combination with MTX. The primary endpoint was Dactylitis Severity Score (DSS) change from baseline to week 24. Key secondary endpoints included DSS and Leeds Dactylitis Index (LDI) response, and changes from baseline in the LDI and MRI dactylitis score. Analysis was by intention-to-treat for the primary endpoint. Results: Twenty-one patients received golimumab plus MTX and 23 MTX monotherapy for 24 weeks. One patient from each arm discontinued. Patient inclusion was halted at 50% planned recruitment due to a favourable interim analysis. Median baseline DSS was 6 in both arms. By week 24, patients treated with golimumab plus MTX exhibited significantly greater improvements in DSS relative to MTX monotherapy (median change of 5 vs 2 points, respectively; p=0.026). In the golimumab plus MTX arm, significantly higher proportions of patients achieved at least 50% or 70% improvement in DSS and 20%, 50% or 70% improvement in LDI in comparison to MTX monotherapy. Conclusions: The combination of golimumab and MTX as first-line bDMARD therapy is superior to MTX monotherapy for the treatment of PsA dactylitis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Arbustus unedo essence: morphological and genetic characterization of the strawberry tree of Castelo de Paiva

O medronheiro é um arbusto da região mediterrânica que pode ser encontrada por todo o país. Ao contrário do que verifica na região sul do país, no concelho de Castelo de Paiva é atribuída uma reduzida importância económica a esta espécie. Com o intuito de preservar e potenciar a produção desta espécie e contribuir para a dinamização da economia do concelho, procedeu-se à caracterização morfológica e genética de uma amostra da população de medronheiros de Castelo de Paiva. A caracterização morfológica e genética foi realizada para um total de 10 genótipos. Para tal recolheram-se 70 folhas aleatoriamente em cada árvore. Em 40 folhas mediu-se o comprimento, largura, comprimento do pedúnculo, peso fresco, peso seco e determinou-se a área foliar. Dos caracteres morfológicos analisados, aqueles que se revelaram mais úteis na distinção dos vários genótipos foram: comprimento do pedúnculo, peso fresco e peso seco. As restantes 30 folhas foram utilizadas para a caracterização genética. Esta caracterização foi realizada recorrendo a um marcador de DNA, ISSR. Os 5 primeiros exemplaresutilizados na técnica de ISSR demonstraram-se polimórficos. Os resultados da caracterização genética sugerem que a variabilidade genética na população é média a alta.The strawberry tree is a shrub native in the Mediterranean region and it can be found throughout Portugal. Unlike the case in the southern region of the country, in Castelo de Paiva a minor economic importance is given to this species. In order to preserve, to enhance the production of this species and to contribute to the boosting of the economy of the region, we proceeded to the characterization of a small sample population of this fruit tree of Castelo de Paiva in what concerns to its morphology and genetics. The morphological and genetic characterization was performed for a total of 10 genotypes. For this, 70 leaves were randomly collected from each tree. For 40 leaves, it was measured the length, the width, the peduncle length, the wet weight, the dry weight and determined the leaf area. Of the morphological characteristics analyzed, the ones that proved most useful in distinguishing the various genotypes were: the length peduncle, the wet weight and the dry weight. The remaining 30 leaves were used in the genetic characterization. This characterization was performed using a DNA marker, the ISSR. The 5 primers used in the ISSR technique proved to be polymorphic. The results from the genetic characterization suggest that variability in population genetics is medium to high