Structure-Dependent Effects of Phthalates on Intercellular and Intracellular Communication in Liver Oval Cells

Humans are exposed to phthalates released from plastics, cosmetics, or food on a daily basis. Phthalates have low acute liver toxicity, but their chronic exposures could induce molecular and cellular effects linked to adverse health outcomes, such as liver tumor promotion or chronic liver diseases. The alternation of gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) and MAPK-Erk1/2 pathways in liver progenitor or oval cells can disrupt liver tissue homeostatic mechanisms and affect the development and severity of these adverse outcomes. Our study with 20 different phthalates revealed their structurally dependent effects on liver GJIC and MAPK-Erk1/2 signaling in rat liver WB-F344 cell line with characteristics of liver oval cells. The phthalates with a medium-length side chain (3-6 C) were the most potent dysregulators of GJIC and activators of MAPK-Erk1/2. The effects occurred rapidly, suggesting the activation of non-genomic (non-transcriptional) mechanisms directly by the parental compounds. Short-chain phthalates (1-2 C) did not dysregulate GJIC even after longer exposures and did not activate MAPK-Erk1/2. Longer chain (>= 7 C) phthalates, such as DEHP or DINP, moderately activated MAPK-Erk1/2, but inhibited GJIC only after prolonged exposures (>12 h), suggesting that GJIC dysregulation occurs via genomic mechanisms, or (bio)transformation. Overall, medium-chain phthalates rapidly affected the key tissue homeostatic mechanisms in the liver oval cell population via non-genomic pathways, which might contribute to the development of chronic liver toxicity and diseases

Biodesalination: A Case Study for Applications of Photosynthetic Bacteria in Water Treatment

Shortage of freshwater is a serious problem in many regions worldwide, and is expected to become even more urgent over the next decades as a result of increased demand for food production and adverse effects of climate change. Vast water resources in the oceans can only be tapped into if sustainable, energy-efficient technologies for desalination are developed. Energization of desalination by sunlight through photosynthetic organisms offers a potential opportunity to exploit biological processes for this purpose. Cyanobacterial cultures in particular can generate a large biomass in brackish and seawater, thereby forming a low-salt reservoir within the saline water. The latter could be used as an ion exchanger through manipulation of transport proteins in the cell membrane. In this article, we use the example of biodesalination as a vehicle to review the availability of tools and methods for the exploitation of cyanobacteria in water biotechnology. Issues discussed relate to strain selection, environmental factors, genetic manipulation, ion transport, cell-water separation, process design, safety, and public acceptance

Predstavnici porodice Chironomidae (Insecta, Diptera) kao indikatori onečišćenja

Porodica Chironomidae vodeni su kukci koji su prisutni po cijelom svijetu. Zbog njihove brojnosti te promjene u strukturi prilikom povećanja organske tvari u vodi dobri su kandidati za indikatore onečišćenja okoliša u kojima obitavaju. Znanje o njihovoj taksonomiji je oskudno te to predstavlja problem prilikom korištenja cijele porodice kao indikatora, prvenstveno zato što različiti rodovi u porodici drukčije reagiraju na promjene u okolišu, neki su osjetljivi na lošu kvalitetu vode, dok neki prevladavaju u takvim uvjetima. U ovom radu izložena su različita istraživanja koje postoje na ovu temu, predstavljajući načine na koje jedinke porodice Chironomidae reagiraju na onečišćenje te analizu koliko su ti rezultati pouzdani. Konačno, za korištenje jedinki porodice Chironomidae kao indikatora onečišćenja potrebno je uložiti vrijeme na istraživanje njihove taksonomije kako bi rezultati istraživanja bili precizniji.The family Chironomidae are aquatic insects that are present all over the world. Due to their abundance and changes in structure during the increase of organic matter in water, they are good candidates for indicators of environmental pollution. Knowledge of their taxonomy is scarce and this is a problem when using the whole family as an indicator, primarily because different genera in the family react differently to changes in the environment, some are sensitive to poor water quality, while some prevail in such conditions. This paper presents the various studies that exist on this topic, presenting the ways in which individuals of the Chironomidae family respond to pollution and analyzing how reliable these results are. Finally, in order to use individuals of the Chironomidae family as indicators of pollution, it is necessary to invest time in researching their taxonomy in order for the research results to be more accurate