Air pollution and plant metabolism.

The 20 contributions examine mechanisms by which (potentially) harmful atmospheric gases and their aqueous products can exert an influence on living plant cells at the ultrastructural, biochemical and physiological levels. With a general understanding of metabolic changes, predictive models should be able to assess the relative consequences of atmospheric pollutants upon plants. Papers include discussion of: deposition, uptake and residence of pollutants; carbon gain, allocation and growth as affected by air pollution; interactions between air pollutants and both water stress and cold stress; air pollution effects on plant pathogens; effects of pollutants on mycorrhizae; and effects on host plant/insect relationships

Leaching behavior of enrofloxacin in three different soils and the influence of a surfactant on its mobility.

The leaching behaviors of enrofloxacin (ENR), a fluoroquinolone group antibiotic, in three different standard soils, namely sandy, loamy sand and sandy loam were investigated according to OECD guideline 312. In addition, the effects of tenside, sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (DBS) on the mobility of ENR in two different soils were studied. The mobility of ENR in all three standard soils was very similar and was mostly (98%) concentrated on the top 0–5 cm segment of the soils at pH 5.7. The DBS can enhance the mobility of ENR in soils but the impact was in general negligible under the studied conditions

Long-term monitoring of arsenic and selenium species in contaminated groundwaters by HPLC and HG-AAS

The long-term concentration and distribution of species of arsenic and selenium in contaminated groundwaters from Kelheim was monitored. Most of the groundwater wells contained elevated concentrations of iron, manganese and sulfur, Arsenic (III), arsenic (V), selenium (IV) and selenium (VI) were separated using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) based on phosphate buffers and collected in fractions. Due to the complex matrix, the fractions were analyzed element-specifically by hydride-generating atomic absorption spectrometry (HG-AAS). The combination of HPLC and HG-AAS was selected due to the authors' intention of developing an easy-to-handle, but nonetheless reliable, method suitable for the long-term monitoring of species distribution in an almost routine way? and taking account of the threshold values of 10 mu g/l for each element, indicated by German drinking water regulations. To enhance the reliability of the method, analytical quality control experiments were carried out. When applied to groundwater wells from Kelheim (Germany) they revealed that arsenic (V) and selenium (VI) were the dominating species, The presence of arsenic (III) and selenium (IV) was assumed to be supported by organic matter. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. [References: 15

Multi-parameter determination of TNFα, PCT and CRP for point-of-care testing.

A proof of concept for the simultaneous multi-parameter determination of three inflammation and sepsis parameters-TNFα, PCT and CRP-using a compact optical immunosensor is demonstrated. Harmonized assay conditions revealed standard curves with test midpoints (IC(50)) of 380 µg L(-1) for TNFα, 2300 µg L(-1) for PCT, and 2645 µg L(-1) for CRP