Micro(nano)plastics sources, fate, and effects : what we know after ten years of research

The last decade has been transformative for micro(nano)plastic (MnP) research with recent discoveries revealing the extent and magnitude of MnP pollution, even in the world's most remote places. Historically, while researchers recognized that most plastic pollution was derived from land-based sources, it was generally believed that microplastic particles (i.e., plastic fragments <5 mm) was only a marine pollution issue with effects largely impacting marine biota. However, over the last decade MnP research has progressed rapidly with recent discoveries of MnPs in freshwater, snow, ice, soil, terrestrial biota, air and even found in ocean spray. MnPs have now been found in every environmental compartment on earth, within tissues and gastrointestinal tracts of thousands of species, including humans, resulting in harmful effects. The last 10 years has also seen the development of new techniques for MnP analysis, and re-purposing of old technologies allowing us to determine the extent and magnitude of plastic pollution down to the nano size range (<1 µm). This short review summarizes what key milestones and major advances have been made in microplastic and nanoplastic research in the environment, including their sources, fate, and effects over the last decade

Assessment of Organophosphorus Pesticide Residues in Water and Sediment Collected from the Southern Caspian Sea

Pollution of water resources by uncontrolled pesticide use is a serious health and environmental issue. In this study, concentrations of three organophosphorus pesticides (diazinon, malathion, and azinphos-methyl) in water and sediment samples from five estuaries (Sefidrud, Chalus, Babolrud, Tajan, and Gorganrud) along the Caspian Sea were investigated. Samples were collected from surface water and sediment during summer to autumn, and pesticides were analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Results indicated that salinity and turbidity in Gorganrud were higher (salinity: range 2–8%; turbidity: range 1–9%) compared to other stations. Higher diazinon (water: 0.08±0.06, sediment: 0.04±0.01), malathion (water: 0.09±0.06, sediment: 0.05±0.01) and azinphos-methyl (water: 0.1±0.08, sediment: 0.06± 0.02) concentrations were observed in the Tajan river compared to other stations. Mean concentrations of diazinon, malathion and azinphos-methyl pesticides were higher in the summer compared to the autumn. Azinphos-methyl concentrations were higher than sediment quality guidelines (SQGs), which warrants ongoing monitoring. Our research provides insights into the presence of organophosphate pesticides (OPs) in rivers that enter into the Caspian Sea. Further work to better understand the environmental pollution of OPs in the Caspian Sea is ongoing

Abundance and characteristics of microplastics in commercial marine fish from Malaysia

Plastic debris is widespread and ubiquitous in the marine environment and ingestion of plastic debris by marine organisms is well-documented. Viscera and gills of 110 individual marine fish from 11 commercial fish species collected from the marine fish market were examined for presence of plastic debris. Isolated particles were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, and elemental analysis was assessed using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Nine (of 11) species contained plastic debris. Out of 56 isolated particles, 76.8% were plastic polymers, 5.4% were pigments, and 17.8% were unidentified. Extracted plastic particle sizes ranged from 200 to 34,900 μm (mean = 2600 μm ±7.0 SD). Hazardous material was undetected using inorganic elemental analysis of extracted plastic debris and pigment particles. The highest number of ingested microplastics was measured in Eleutheronema tridactylum and Clarias gariepinus, suggesting their potential as indicator species to monitor and study trends of ingested marine litter

Ag85-focused T-cell immune response controls Mycobacterium avium chronic infection

CD4+ T cells are essential players for the control of mycobacterial infections. Several mycobacterial antigens have been identified for eliciting a relevant CD4+ T cell mediated-immune response, and numerous studies explored this issue in the context of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Antigen 85 (Ag85), a highly conserved protein across Mycobacterium species, is secreted at the early phase of M. tuberculosis infection leading to the proliferation of Ag85-specific CD4+ T cells. However, in the context of Mycobacterium avium infection, little is known about the expression of this antigen and the elicited immune response. In the current work, we investigated if a T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire mostly, but not exclusively, directed at Ag85 is sufficient to mount a protective immune response against M. avium. We show that P25 mice, whose majority of T cells express a transgenic TCR specific for Ag85, control M. avium infection at the same level as wild type (WT) mice up to 20 weeks post-infection (wpi). During M. avium infection, Ag85 antigen is easily detected in the liver of 20 wpi mice by immunohistochemistry. In spite of the propensity of P25 CD4+ T cells to produce higher amounts of interferon-gamma (IFNγ) upon ex vivo stimulation, no differences in serum IFNγ levels are detected in P25 compared to WT mice, nor enhanced immunopathology is detected in P25 mice. These results indicate that a T cell response dominated by Ag85-specific T cells is appropriate to control M. avium infection with no signs of immunopathology.This work was developed under the scope of the project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000013, supported by the Northern Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the Portugal 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). Fellowships from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technoloy (FCT) were attributed to BCR (SFRH/BD/80352/2011; QREN-POPH through the Fundo Social Europeu (FSE) and national funds from MEC] and to CN (SFRH/BPD/112001/2015; POPH through FSE and national funds from MCTES). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

TURBOMOLE: Modular program suite for ab initio quantum-chemical and condensed-matter simulations

TURBOMOLE is a collaborative, multi-national software development project aiming to provide highly efficient and stable computational tools for quantum chemical simulations of molecules, clusters, periodic systems, and solutions. The TURBOMOLE software suite is optimized for widely available, inexpensive, and resource-efficient hardware such as multi-core workstations and small computer clusters. TURBOMOLE specializes in electronic structure methods with outstanding accuracy–cost ratio, such as density functional theory including local hybrids and the random phase approximation (RPA), GW-Bethe–Salpeter methods, second-order Møller–Plesset theory, and explicitly correlated coupled-cluster methods. TURBOMOLE is based on Gaussian basis sets and has been pivotal for the development of many fast and low-scaling algorithms in the past three decades, such as integral-direct methods, fast multipole methods, the resolution-of-the-identity approximation, imaginary frequency integration, Laplace transform, and pair natural orbital methods. This review focuses on recent additions to TURBOMOLE’s functionality, including excited-state methods, RPA and Green’s function methods, relativistic approaches, high-order molecular properties, solvation effects, and periodic systems. A variety of illustrative applications along with accuracy and timing data are discussed. Moreover, available interfaces to users as well as other software are summarized. TURBOMOLE’s current licensing, distribution, and support model are discussed, and an overview of TURBOMOLE’s development workflow is provided. Challenges such as communication and outreach, software infrastructure, and funding are highlighted

TURBOMOLE: Modular program suite for ab initio quantum-chemical and condensed-matter simulations

TURBOMOLE is a collaborative, multi-national software development project aiming to provide highly efficient and stable computational tools for quantum chemical simulations of molecules, clusters, periodic systems, and solutions. The TURBOMOLE software suite is optimized for widely available, inexpensive, and resource-efficient hardware such as multi-core workstations and small computer clusters. TURBOMOLE specializes in electronic structure methods with outstanding accuracy–cost ratio, such as density functional theory including local hybrids and the random phase approximation (RPA), GW-Bethe–Salpeter methods, second-order Møller–Plesset theory, and explicitly correlated coupled-cluster methods. TURBOMOLE is based on Gaussian basis sets and has been pivotal for the development of many fast and low-scaling algorithms in the past three decades, such as integral-direct methods, fast multipole methods, the resolution-of-the-identity approximation, imaginary frequency integration, Laplace transform, and pair natural orbital methods. This review focuses on recent additions to TURBOMOLE’s functionality, including excited-state methods, RPA and Green’s function methods, relativistic approaches, high-order molecular properties, solvation effects, and periodic systems. A variety of illustrative applications along with accuracy and timing data are discussed. Moreover, available interfaces to users as well as other software are summarized. TURBOMOLE’s current licensing, distribution, and support model are discussed, and an overview of TURBOMOLE’s development workflow is provided. Challenges such as communication and outreach, software infrastructure, and funding are highlighted

Microplastic in angling baits as a cryptic source of contamination in European freshwaters.

High environmental microplastic pollution, and its largely unquantified impacts on organisms, are driving studies to assess their potential entry pathways into freshwaters. Recreational angling, where many anglers release manufactured baits into freshwater ecosystems, is a widespread activity with important socio-economic implications in Europe. It also represents a potential microplastic pathway into freshwaters that has yet to be quantified. Correspondingly, we analysed three different categories of industrially-produced baits ('groundbait', 'boilies' and 'pellets') for their microplastic contamination (particles 700 µm to 5 mm). From 160 samples, 28 microplastics were identified in groundbait and boilies, with a mean concentration of 17.4 (± 48.1 SD) MP kg-1 and 6.78 (± 29.8 SD) mg kg-1, yet no microplastics within this size range were recorded in the pellets. Microplastic concentrations significantly differed between bait categories and companies, but microplastic characteristics did not vary. There was no correlation between microplastic contamination and the number of bait ingredients, but it was positively correlated with C:N ratio, indicating a higher contamination in baits with higher proportion of plant-based ingredients. We thus reveal that bait microplastics introduced accidentally during manufacturing and/or those originating from contaminated raw ingredients might be transferred into freshwaters. However, further studies are needed to quantify the relative importance of this cryptic source of contamination and how it influences microplastic levels in wild fish

Bioethanol production from white onion by yeast in repeated batch

Abstract Considered to be the cleanest liquid fuel, bioethanol can be a reliable alternative to fossil fuels. It is produced by fermentation of sugar components of plant materials. The common onions are considered to be a favorable source of fermentation products as they have high sugar contents as well as contain various nutrients. This study focused on the effective production of ethanol from an endemic Iranian white onion (Allium cepa L., Dorche cultivar) by the yeast &quot;Saccharomyces cerevisiae&quot; in repeated batch. The results showed that the total sugar concentration of onion juice was77.3 g/l. The maximum rate of productivity, ethanol yield and final bioethanol percentage was 8 g/l/h (g ethanol per liter of onion juice per hour), 40 g/l (g ethanol per liter of onion juice and 93 %, respectively

New integrated chassis control systems for vehicle handling performance enhancement

This paper investigates the principle of integration of vehicle dynamics control systems by proposing a new control architecture to integrate the following four major functional domains of a vehicle; braking, steering, suspension and driveline. The active control systems include brake-based electronic stability control, active front steering, normal suspension force control and variable torque distribution. Based on the analysis of these four standalone controllers, a novel rule based integration strategy is proposed to improve the vehicle handling. A nonlinear vehicle handling model is developed for this study in Matlab/Simulink. This model contains a sprung mass of six degrees of freedom that includes, longitudinal, lateral, yaw, roll, pitch and bounce and un-sprung masses with wheels at each corner of the vehicle. The simulation results show that this integration strategy enhances the vehicle handling stability in terms of reduction in vehicle yaw rate and side-slip angle that would not be attained in standalone manner