Environmental aspects of innovation and new technology implementation in metallurgy industry

European metallurgy industry has to invest in innovations and new technologies in order to remain competitive on the world market. Because very often this action leads to limitation of the negative impact upon the environment,that is why lots of innovations implemented by iron and steel industry bear the features of environmental innovations and eco-innovations in metallurgy industry. The analysis of the environmental innovations and eco-innovations implementation in metallurgy industry, in terms of legal regulations in the environmental protection and the strategy area of sustainable development of enterprises, is the subject matter of this article

Usefulness and limitations of pollen characters in environmental studies based on Viola L. species (sect. Melanium Ging.)

The aim of these studies was to determine the effect of environmental pollution on pollen development. Pollen heteromorphism (the presence of pollen morphs differing in aperture number in one flower of a plant), pollen viability (stainability) and pollen grain size in European metallophytes from sect. Melanium Ging. (Viola L., Violaceae) were analyzed by SEM and histochemical staining.Plants’ tolerance to heavy metals is positively correlated with their pollen viability, which should be termed stainability as it depends on the staining method applied and is not correlated with pollen germination. Abortive pollen can be produced as an effect of heavy metals but also may result from hybridization, a very common phenomenon in pansies. Pollen stainability in hybrids can be high (even exceeding 70%) or low (barely above 20%), and stainable pollen grains can differ greatly in size (from very small to giant), indicating a cytological imbalance resulting from disturbed meiosis. The number of pollen apertures is an adaptive character in facultative metallophytes. Plants from a metallicolous population produced a wider range of aperture number (3, 4, 5) than plants from a non-metallicolous population, which developed only 4- and 5-aperturate pollen. Three-aperturate longer-lived pollen are favored in the harsh conditions of a metal-polluted environment

The genetic basis of endometriosis and comorbidity with other pain and inflammatory conditions

Endometriosis is a common condition associated with debilitating pelvic pain and infertility. A genome-wide association study meta-analysis, including 60,674 cases and 701,926 controls of European and East Asian descent, identified 42 genome-wide significant loci comprising 49 distinct association signals. Effect sizes were largest for stage 3/4 disease, driven by ovarian endometriosis. Identified signals explained up to 5.01% of disease variance and regulated expression or methylation of genes in endometrium and blood, many of which were associated with pain perception/maintenance (SRP14/BMF, GDAP1, MLLT10, BSN and NGF). We observed significant genetic correlations between endometriosis and 11 pain conditions, including migraine, back and multisite chronic pain (MCP), as well as inflammatory conditions, including asthma and osteoarthritis. Multitrait genetic analyses identified substantial sharing of variants associated with endometriosis and MCP/migraine. Targeted investigations of genetically regulated mechanisms shared between endometriosis and other pain conditions are needed to aid the development of new treatments and facilitate early symptomatic intervention

The genetic basis of endometriosis and comorbidity with other pain and inflammatory conditions

Endometriosis is a common condition associated with debilitating pelvic pain and infertility. A genome-wide association study meta-analysis, including 60,674 cases and 701,926 controls of European and East Asian descent, identified 42 genome-wide significant loci comprising 49 distinct association signals. Effect sizes were largest for stage 3/4 disease, driven by ovarian endometriosis. Identified signals explained up to 5.01% of disease variance and regulated expression or methylation of genes in endometrium and blood, many of which were associated with pain perception/maintenance (SRP14/BMF, GDAP1, MLLT10, BSN and NGF). We observed significant genetic correlations between endometriosis and 11 pain conditions, including migraine, back and multisite chronic pain (MCP), as well as inflammatory conditions, including asthma and osteoarthritis. Multitrait genetic analyses identified substantial sharing of variants associated with endometriosis and MCP/migraine. Targeted investigations of genetically regulated mechanisms shared between endometriosis and other pain conditions are needed to aid the development of new treatments and facilitate early symptomatic intervention