Hard coal and brown coal mining in the Czech Republic

Zasoby węgla w Republice Czeskiej są ocenione na 10 mld ton – w tym 37% węgla kamiennego, 60% węgla brunatnego i 3% lignitu. Węgiel kamienny jest wydobywany w północnych Morawach, w 2017 roku produkcja wyniosła 5,5 mln ton. Węgiel brunatny jest eksploatowany głównie w północno-zachodnich Czechach, produkcja węgla brunatnego wyniosła w 2017 roku 38,1 mln ton. Znaczne ilości węgla kamiennego są eksportowane do Słowacji, Austrii, Niemiec i Węgier Zgodnie z polityką energetyczną państwa węgiel pozostanie głównym źródłem energii w kraju w przyszłości, pomimo zwiększonego wykorzystania energii jądrowej i gazu ziemnego. Rząd oczekuje, że w 2030 r. energia z węgla będzie stanowić 30,5% produkowanej energii. W Republice Czeskiej działa pięć przedsiębiorstw węglowych: OKD, a.s., jedyny producent węgla kamiennego oraz cztery firmy wydobywcze węgla brunatnego Severočeské Doly a.s., których właścicielem jest ČEZ, największy producent węgla brunatnego, Vršanská uhelná a.s., z zasobami węgla do 2055 roku, Severní energetická a.s. z największymi rezerwami węgla brunatnego w Republice Czeskiej i Sokolovska uhelná a.s., najmniejsza spółka górnicza wydobywającą węgiel brunatny. OKD eksploatuje węgiel kamienny w dwu kopalniach Kopalnia Důlní závod 1 – Ruch ČSA, Ruch Lazy, Ruch Darkov oraz Kopalnia Důlní závod 2 (Ruch Sever, Ruch Jih). A artykule przedstawiono również proekologiczne rozwiązanie zagospodarowania hałd odpadów po wzbogacaniu węgla – zakład wzbogacania odpadów weglowych z hałdy Hermanice.Coal reserves in the Czech Republic are estimated to be 10 billion tons – hard coal about 37%, brown coal about 60% and lignite 3%. Hard coal is produced in Northern Moravia. In 2017 the production of hard coal was 5.5 million tons. Brown coal is mined in North-Western Bohemia − the production of brown coal in 2017 was 38.1 million tons. Significant quantities of hard coal are exported to: Slovakia, Austria, Germany and Hungary. In accordance with the National Energy Policy, coal will remain the main source of energy in the country in the future, despite the increased use of nuclear energy and natural gas. The government expects that in 2030 energy from coal will account for 30.5% of energy produced. There are five coal companies in the Czech Republic: OKD, a.s., the only hard coal producer and four brown coal mining companies: Severočeské Doly a.s., owned by ČEZ, the largest producer of brown coal, Vršanská uhelná a.s., with coal resources until 2055, Severní energetická a.s. with the largest brown coal reserves in the Czech Republic and Sokolovska uhelná a.s., the smallest mining company extracting lignite. OKD operates coal in two mines Kopalnia Důlní závod 1 – (consists of three mines: ČSA Mine, Lazy Mine, Darkov Mine) and Mine Důlní závod 2 (ttwo mines Sever, Jih). The article also presents a pro-ecological solution for the management of waste heaps after coal enrichment – a plant for the enrichment of coal waste from the Hermanice heap

Bakterijsko izluživanje olovnog metalurškog otpada

The aim of this paper is verification of application of bacterial leaching and calcination to recover heavy metals from metallurgical wastes - matte from metallurgical plant Kovohute Pribram. For bacterial leaching a pure bacterial culture of Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans was used. For a verification test an original sample of matte and matte from 2004 year were used. This paper further shows changes in the samples after bacterial leaching and after calcination. The paper results imply that the samples in question may be used as pigments.Cilj ovog rada je potvrđivanje primjene bakterijskog izluživanja i kalcinacije za oporabu teških metala iz metalurških otpada – sulfida teških metala i željeza (eng. matte) iz metalurškog postrojenje Kovohute Pribram. Za izluživanje je potrebna bakterijska kultura Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans. Za ispitivanje je korišten orginalnu uzorak sulfida teških metala i željeza i uzorak sulfida teških metala i željeza iz 2004. godine. U ovom radu pokazane su promjene na uzorku nakon bakterijskog izluživanja i kalcinacije. Iz rezultata slijedi da se uzorci mogu koristiti kao pigmenti

Biodegradation of hazardous pollutants

Celem projektu było przeprowadzenie badań laboratoryjnych rozkładu biologicznego próbek gleby zanieczyszczonych PAU, PCB i NEL ze składowiska odpadów niebezpiecznych w Pozdatku. Do badań użyto czystych kultur bakteryjnych Rhodococcus sp. i Pseudomonas putida. Na podstawie wyników badań laboratoryjnych stwierdzono, że po jednym miesiącu ługowania bakteriami Rhodococcus sp. usunięto 73 % NEL, 73 % PAU i 14 % PCB. Po zastosowaniu czystej kultury Pseudomonas putida usunięto 96 % NEL, 89 % PAU i 14 % PCB.The objective of the project was a laboratory check of biodegradation of soil samples contaminated by PAU, PCB and NEL from the hazardous waste dump in the Pozd'átky locality. For the laboratory check, pure bacterial cultures of Rhodococcus sp. and Pseudomonas putida have been used. It is apparent from the laboratory experiments results that after one-month bacterial leaching, applying the bacterium of Rhodococcus sp. there is a 73 % removal of NEL, a 73 % removal of PAU and a 14 % removal of PCB. Applying a pure culture of Pseudomonas putida there is a 96 % removal of NEL, a 89 % removal of PA U and a 14 % removal of PCB

Aerobic-Strength Exercise Improves Metabolism and Clinical State in Parkinson's Disease Patients

Regular exercise ameliorates motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD). Here, we aimed to provide evidence that exercise brings additional benefits to the whole-body metabolism and skeletal muscle molecular and functional characteristics, which might help to explain exercise-induced improvements in the clinical state. 3-months supervised endurance/strength training was performed in early/mid-stage PD patients and age/gender-matched individuals (n = 11/11). The effects of exercise on resting energy expenditure (REE), glucose metabolism, adiposity, and muscle energy metabolism (31P-MRS) were evaluated and compared to non-exercising PD patients. Two muscle biopsies were taken to determine intervention-induced changes in fiber type, mitochondrial content, and expression of genes related to muscle energy metabolism, as well as proliferative and regenerative capacity. Exercise improved the clinical disability score (MDS-UPDRS), bradykinesia, balance, walking speed, REE, and glucose metabolism and increased muscle expression of energy sensors (AMPK). However, the exercise-induced increase in muscle mass/strength, mitochondrial content, type II fiber size, and postexercise phosphocreatine (PCr) recovery (31P-MRS) were found only in controls. Nevertheless, MDS-UPDRS was associated with muscle AMPK and mechano-growth factor (MGF) expression. Improvements in fasting glycemia were positively associated with muscle function and the expression of Sirt1 and Cox7a1, and the parameters of fitness/strength were positively associated with the expression of MyHC2, MyHC7, and MGF. Moreover, reduced bradykinesia was associated with better muscle metabolism (maximal oxidative capacity and postexercise PCr recovery; 31P-MRS). Exercise training improved the clinical state in early/mid-stage Parkinson's disease patients, including motor functions and whole-body metabolism. Although the adaptive response to exercise in PD was different from that of controls, exercise-induced improvements in the PD clinical state were associated with specific adaptive changes in muscle functional, metabolic, and molecular characteristics.www.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier NCT02253732

Cleavage of cFLIP restrains cell death during viral infection and tissue injury and favors tissue repair.

Cell death coordinates repair programs following pathogen attack and tissue injury. However, aberrant cell death can interfere with such programs and cause organ failure. Cellular FLICE-like inhibitory protein (cFLIP) is a crucial regulator of cell death and a substrate of Caspase-8. However, the physiological role of cFLIP cleavage by Caspase-8 remains elusive. Here, we found an essential role for cFLIP cleavage in restraining cell death in different pathophysiological scenarios. Mice expressing a cleavage-resistant cFLIP mutant, CflipD377A, exhibited increased sensitivity to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-induced lethality, impaired skin wound healing, and increased tissue damage caused by Sharpin deficiency. In vitro, abrogation of cFLIP cleavage sensitizes cells to tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-induced necroptosis and apoptosis by favoring complex-II formation. Mechanistically, the cell death-sensitizing effect of the D377A mutation depends on glutamine-469. These results reveal a crucial role for cFLIP cleavage in controlling the amplitude of cell death responses occurring upon tissue stress to ensure the execution of repair programs