Geochemical assessment of metals in fluvial systems affected by anthropogenic activities in the Iron Quadrangle.

O presente estudo foi realizado na bacia hidrogr?fica do Rio do Peixe, Quadril?tero Ferr?fero (QF), em Minas Gerais. Essa bacia apresenta um cen?rio geol?gico distinto e atividades antr?picas diversificadas, como a minera??o de ferro, ouro e gemas, a agropecu?ria e a silvicultura. O principal objetivo desta pesquisa foi investigar as poss?veis fontes de contribui??es antropog?nicas dos metais em sedimentos de fundo. Para isso, foram realizadas duas campanhas com amostragens de sedimentos de fundo em 12 pontos da bacia, nos meses de mar?o e julho de 2015. A partir da t?cnica anal?tica de espectrometria de emiss?o ?ptica com plasma, foram detectadas concentra??es de Al, Ca, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, Ti e Zn nos sedimentos de fundo. Os resultados dos indicadores da qualidade dos sedimentos fator de contamina??o (FC), fator de enriquecimento (FE) e ?ndice de geoacumula??o (IGEO) demonstraram que h? interfer?ncias antr?picas, sendo as atividades miner?rias e industriais, o despejo de efluentes dom?sticos e o uso e a ocupa??o do solo inapropriado apontados como as principais fontes de contamina??o de metais da bacia.The present study was carried out in the river basin area of Rio do Peixe, Iron Quadrangle, in Minas Gerais, Brazil. This basin presents geological scenario and diversified anthropic activities, such as iron, gold and gems mining, agriculture, and forestry. The main objective of this research was to investigate the possible sources of anthropogenic contributions of metals in bottom sediments. Thus, two surveys were carried out on bottom sediments at twelve basin sites from March to July of 2015. Based on the plasma optical emission spectrometry analytical technique, we found concentrations of Al, Ca, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, Ti and Zn in the bottom sediments. The results of the FC, FE and IGEO sediment quality indicators showed that there are anthropic interferences, in which mining and industrial activities, disposal of domestic effluents and use and occupation of inappropriate soil are identified as the main sources of metals contamination of the basin

Global Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cerebral Venous Thrombosis and Mortality

Background and purpose: Recent studies suggested an increased incidence of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the volume of CVT hospitalization and in-hospital mortality during the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the preceding year. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of 171 stroke centers from 49 countries. We recorded COVID-19 admission volumes, CVT hospitalization, and CVT in-hospital mortality from January 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. CVT diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease-10 (ICD-10) codes or stroke databases. We additionally sought to compare the same metrics in the first 5 months of 2021 compared to the corresponding months in 2019 and 2020 (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04934020). Results: There were 2,313 CVT admissions across the 1-year pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic year (2020); no differences in CVT volume or CVT mortality were observed. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT volumes compared to 2019 (27.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 24.2 to 32.0; P<0.0001) and 2020 (41.4%; 95% CI, 37.0 to 46.0; P<0.0001). A COVID-19 diagnosis was present in 7.6% (132/1,738) of CVT hospitalizations. CVT was present in 0.04% (103/292,080) of COVID-19 hospitalizations. During the first pandemic year, CVT mortality was higher in patients who were COVID positive compared to COVID negative patients (8/53 [15.0%] vs. 41/910 [4.5%], P=0.004). There was an increase in CVT mortality during the first 5 months of pandemic years 2020 and 2021 compared to the first 5 months of the pre-pandemic year 2019 (2019 vs. 2020: 2.26% vs. 4.74%, P=0.05; 2019 vs. 2021: 2.26% vs. 4.99%, P=0.03). In the first 5 months of 2021, there were 26 cases of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), resulting in six deaths. Conclusions: During the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic, CVT hospitalization volume and CVT in-hospital mortality did not change compared to the prior year. COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with higher CVT in-hospital mortality. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT hospitalization volume and increase in CVT-related mortality, partially attributable to VITT

Global Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cerebral Venous Thrombosis and Mortality.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Recent studies suggested an increased incidence of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the volume of CVT hospitalization and in-hospital mortality during the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the preceding year. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of 171 stroke centers from 49 countries. We recorded COVID-19 admission volumes, CVT hospitalization, and CVT in-hospital mortality from January 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. CVT diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease-10 (ICD-10) codes or stroke databases. We additionally sought to compare the same metrics in the first 5 months of 2021 compared to the corresponding months in 2019 and 2020 (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04934020). RESULTS: There were 2,313 CVT admissions across the 1-year pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic year (2020); no differences in CVT volume or CVT mortality were observed. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT volumes compared to 2019 (27.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 24.2 to 32.0; P<0.0001) and 2020 (41.4%; 95% CI, 37.0 to 46.0; P<0.0001). A COVID-19 diagnosis was present in 7.6% (132/1,738) of CVT hospitalizations. CVT was present in 0.04% (103/292,080) of COVID-19 hospitalizations. During the first pandemic year, CVT mortality was higher in patients who were COVID positive compared to COVID negative patients (8/53 [15.0%] vs. 41/910 [4.5%], P=0.004). There was an increase in CVT mortality during the first 5 months of pandemic years 2020 and 2021 compared to the first 5 months of the pre-pandemic year 2019 (2019 vs. 2020: 2.26% vs. 4.74%, P=0.05; 2019 vs. 2021: 2.26% vs. 4.99%, P=0.03). In the first 5 months of 2021, there were 26 cases of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), resulting in six deaths. CONCLUSIONS: During the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic, CVT hospitalization volume and CVT in-hospital mortality did not change compared to the prior year. COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with higher CVT in-hospital mortality. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT hospitalization volume and increase in CVT-related mortality, partially attributable to VITT

Qualidade da ?gua de viveiros de piscicultura de pequeno porte associados ? suinocultura.

The water quality of fish ponds with tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) culture, associated with swine culture activities in a farm in Frutal, Brazil, was evaluated. Water samples were retrieved monthly, during 9 months, in three fish ponds with inflows and outflows (6 sites) to quantify limnological and microbiological variables, such as dissolved oxygen, pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, temperature, ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, total phosphorus, orthophosphates and thermotolerant coliforms. Results from different sample sites were statistically analyzed, according to data distribution for each variable. Three variables (dissolved oxygen, total phosphorus and thermotolerant coliforms) failed to comply with standards recommended by the Brazilian legislation. Since adjacent swine farms near the two ponds impacted water quality with regard to the above parameters, a treatment system in Pond 2 or a reduction of swine activity in the ponds is recommended to maintain adequate water quality for fish farming.O presente trabalho avaliou a qualidade da ?gua de viveiros de piscicultura com cultivo de til?pias (Oreochromis niloticus), associada ? suinocultura, em uma propriedade rural no munic?pio de Frutal, Brasil. Foram feitas coletas mensais durante 9 meses, na entrada e sa?da de 3 viveiros (6 pontos de coleta), para quantifica??o de vari?veis limnol?gicas e microbiol?gicas, como: oxig?nio dissolvido, pH, condutividade el?trica, s?lidos totais dissolvidos, temperatura, am?nia, nitrato, nitrito, f?sforo total, ortofosfato e coliformes termotolerantes. Os resultados dos diferentes pontos de coleta foram submetidos a an?lises estat?sticas, conforme o modo de distribui??o dos dados de cada vari?vel analisada. Tr?s vari?veis (oxig?nio dissolvido, f?sforo total e coliformes termtolerantes) estavam em desacordo com os padr?es vigentes da legisla??o. Uma vez que a suinocultura adjacente a dois dos viveiros impactou a qualidade da ?gua em rela??o a estes par?metros, um sistema de tratamento na sa?da do viveiro 2 e/ou a diminui??o da quantidade de su?nos junto aos viveiros ? recomendado, visando manter uma ?gua de qualidade adequada para o cultivo dos peixes

Rela??o entre o uso e ocupa??o do solo e qualidade de ?gua numa bacia hidrogr?fica impactada por rejeitos de minera??o de ferro e esgoto dom?stico.

Changes in land use and land cover in watersheds, together with population increases and urbanization of these areas, have caused negative impacts on surface water quality. Based on land-use types, we conducted a comprehensive water quality study of the Rio do Peixe watershed, a tributary of the Rio Doce River, located in the Iron Quadrangle, with different land uses/land covers. For this study, the relationship between water quality variables and land use types were examined according to the water quality index and principal components analysis. The water samples were collected from twelve stations located along the basin in two different seasons. The results of metals/semimetals concentrations reflected regional lithology, and in the case of iron, it was anthropic activities. Also, the computed water quality index values were between 26.8 and 74.9. The water quality was poor in four stations of the river basin in both seasons. Furthermore, the variables that influence water quality the most were E. coli, DBO, turbidity, nitrate, and total phosphorus. The multivariate statistics gave five principal components that together accounted for 58.3%, whereas analysis of score plots identified the formation of two groups with more perceptible anthropic influence. Finally, environmental impacts of the river basin, such as deforestation, erosion, domestic sewage, and iron ore tailings, were the main factors that interfered with water quality.O uso e ocupa??o do solo, o aumento populacional e a urbaniza??o de ?reas pr?ximas a bacias hidrogr?ficas causam diversos impactos negativos na qualidade das ?guas superficiais. Diante essa assertiva, foi realizado um estudo abrangente sobre a qualidade da ?gua na bacia hidrogr?fica do Rio do Peixe, tribut?rio do Rio Doce, localizado no Quadril?tero Ferr?fero e que possui diferentes usos. Para a compreens?o e discuss?o da rela??o entre as vari?veis de qualidade da ?gua e os tipos de uso foi calculado o ?ndice de qualidade da ?gua e realizada a an?lise de componentes principais. Para tal, foram coletadas amostras de ?gua em doze esta??es amostrais localizadas ao longo da bacia em diferentes per?odos sazonais. Os resultados da concentra??o de metais/semimetais refletiram a litologia regional, no caso das concentra??es de ferro tamb?m por atividades antr?picas. Os valores do ?ndice de qualidade da ?gua calculados est?o entre 26,8 e 74,9 e que a qualidade da ?gua foi considerada ruim em quatro esta??es em ambos os per?odos sazonais. Sendo que as vari?veis de maior influ?ncia na qualidade da ?gua foram E. coli, DBO, turbidez, nitrato e f?sforo total. Os resultados da estat?stica multivariada obtida permitiram diminuir as dez vari?veis iniciais em cinco componentes principais que juntos representaram 58,3% da vari?ncia dos dados. A an?lise do gr?fico dos escores permitiu identificar dois grupos formados onde a interfer?ncia antr?pica era mais percept?vel. Os impactos ambientais da bacia hidrogr?fica, como desmatamento, eros?o, esgoto dom?stico e rejeitos de minera??o de ferro foram os principais fatores que interferiram na qualidade da ?gua

Influence of environmental and anthropogenic factors at the bottom sediments in a Doce River tributary in Brazil.

In developing countries, it is uncommon to find watersheds that have been the object of detailed environmental studies. It makes the assessment of the magnitude of environmental impacts and pollution of these sites difficult. This research demonstrated ways to understand the dynamics of river bottom sediments contamination, even for watersheds with a lack of environmental data. Based on geochemical affinity, we conducted a comprehensive study on the concentration of metals and metalloids. Then, we discussed the probable origin of the concentration of these elements at the bottom sediment along the Matip? River. The Matip? River is an important tributary of the Doce River, which stood out in international headlines because of the mining tailing dam disaster in Mariana, Minas Gerais, in 2015. The bottom sediment samples were taken in 25 stations located along the basin in different seasonal periods. The results showed that copper (x = 464.7 mg kg?1) and zinc (x = 287.7 mg kg?1) probably have natural origin, despite of the high concentrations. Lead (x = 28.0mg kg?1), chromium (x = 153.2 mg kg?1), and nickel (x = 41.8 mg kg?1) also had high concentrations at some collecting stations, and this probably reflected the local natural conditions. The bedrock of the studying basin is dominantly composed of metabasalts and metatonalites interlayered with calcitic and dolomitic metalimestone. On the other hand, the concentration was worrisome in stations near human activities, possibly due to impacts caused by unsustainably agriculture and livestock

Wastewater treatment in photobioreactors illuminated by low intensity light emitting diodes (LEDS).

A aplica??o de LEDs em diferentes processos que utilizam luz possui importantes vantagens: baixo consumo energ?tico e longa durabilidade.??Al?m disso, os LEDs s?o livres de subst?ncias t?xicas. Atualmente a luz artificial ? usada no tratamento de efluentes em processos de desinfec??o para remover pat?genos e em processos oxidativos avan?ados para remover mat?ria org?nica (MO) recalcitrante. Entretanto, com a aplica??o de LEDs, pode?se utilizar a luz para a remo??o de poluentes como nitrog?nio (N), f?sforo (P) e MO. Um exemplo do uso de LED para a remo??o destes poluentes ? a partir do crescimento de microalgas em fotobiorreatores, que al?m de tratar o efluente produz uma biomassa que pode gerar bioprodutos.?? Esta pesquisa avaliou a efici?ncia de tr?s configura??es de fotobiorreatores iluminados por LEDs de baixa intensidade luminosa, operados em batelada, para tratar efluente dom?stico. Todos os fotobiorreatores mostraram?se eficientes para a remo??o dos poluentes analisados. Chegou?se a reduzir 71% de N; 60% de P; 91% de MO e 4 casas logar?tmicas de Escherichia coli, indicadora de contamina??o fecal. Os fotobiorreatores apresentaram valores de concentra??o biomassa superiores a 250 mg/L, indicando elevada produ??o de biomassa.Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) application in different processes have important advantages:? ? low energy consumption and high durability. In addition, the LEDs are free of toxic substances. In the effluent treatment, articifical light is currently used in the disinfection processes, to remove pathogens, and in the advanced oxidative processes, to remove recalcitrant organic matter (OM). With the application of LEDs, light also can be used to remove other pollutants, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P). An exemple of the LEDs use to remove pollutants are the photobioreactors for cultivation of microalgae, which treat effluent and also produces biomass for bioproducts. This research evaluated the efficiency of three different photobioreactors configurations illuminated by LEDs of low luminous intensity, operated in batch, to treat domestic effluent. Results showed that all of the them were efficient for the removal of the analyzed pollutants. The removal efficience was greater than 70% for N, 60% for P, 91% por OM, and 4 log units of Escherichia coli, which was an indicative of fecal contamination. Furthermore, biomass concentration was higher than 250 mg / L in all the photobioreactors, indicating high biomass production

The relationship between buman adenovirus and metals and semimetals in the waters of the Rio Doce, Brazil.

The 2015 rupture of the Fund?o dam near the district of Bento Rodrigues in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil, released around 50 million m3 of iron ore tailings. The first tributary of the Rio Doceto receive this waste was the Gualaxo do Norte River. Many groups in Brazil and from around the world have studied the environmental and social impacts of this disaster. However, relationships between the introduction of mining waste, the geological complexity of the area, and the presence of pathogenic organisms have not yet been investigated. The present study aimed to measure the concentrations of enteric pathogens along the Gualaxo do Norte River after the environmental disaster and to correlate their abundance with the presence of metals and semimetals coming from both mining tailings and geological sources. For this purpose, we collected water samples from 27 stations along the entire basin during a hydrological year. The concentrations of metals and semimetals measured in this study were generally within limits established by national and international legislation, except for those of iron and manganese. Positive correlations between the human adenovirus (HAdV) and arsenic, barium, iron, lead, manganese, and nickel were confirmed, allowing us to observe that there is an abundance of the potentially infectious virus present in the studied sites containing metal/semimetal concentrations. These studies indicate the importance of investigations that consider viral enteric pathogens complexed with metals and may favor the stability and prolongation of the infectivity of such pathogens in water destined for human and animal usage

Molecular identification of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli in the watershed of Xopot? River, in Alto do Rio Doce, Brazil.

Esta pesquisa cient?fica teve como principal objetivo identificar pat?tipos de Escherichia coli diarreiog?nica nas ?guas superficiais da Bacia Hidrogr?fica do Rio Xopot?, na regi?o do Alto Rio Doce, Minas Gerais. Os estudos referentes ?s estirpes diarreiog?nicas de E. coli no meio ambiente no Brasil s?o escassos. A bacia hidrogr?fica escolhida para o estudo sofre intensa degrada??o ambiental devido ao lan?amento de esgoto in natura em seus corpos d??gua e ?s atividades antr?picas, como a agropecu?ria. As coletas de ?gua nos 13 pontos amostrais foram realizadas em duas ?pocas do ano de 2015 (abril e julho). Para identifica??o dos genes de E. coli diarreiog?nica, utilizou?se o m?todo de rea??o em cadeia da polimerase (PCR). A bacia hidrogr?fica apresentou contamina??o diarreiog?nica de pat?tipos E. coli produtora de toxina Shiga (STEC), E. coli enteropatog?nica (EPEC) e E. coli enterotoxig?nica (ETEC), tal ocorr?ncia foi constante em ambas as campanhas. Os genes de virul?ncia observados foram: na STEC, toxina Shiga (Stx1), respons?vel por causar doen?as renais graves, como a s?ndrome hemol?tico-ur?mica (SHU); j? a EPEC apresentou somente o gene virulento eae, caracter?stico do subgrupo at?pico (aEPEC); a ETEC apresentou toxinas termol?beis (LT). A presen?a desses pat?tipos representa potencial risco de doen?as diarreiog?nicas na popula??o que utiliza os recursos h?dricos, particularmente idosos e crian?as, e evidencia o comprometimento da qualidade microbiol?gica dos cursos d??gua constituintes da Bacia Hidrogr?fica do Rio Xopot?, decorrente principalmente da aus?ncia de esta??es de tratamento de esgoto (ETEs).The main purpose of this scientific research was to identify pathotypes of diarrheogenic Escherichia coli in the watershed of Xopot? River, in Alto do Rio Doce, Minas Gerais region, Brazil. The studies referring to the stirps diarrheagenics of E. coli in the environment in Brazil are scarce. The watershed chosen for the study suffers intense environmental degradation due the release of raw sewage into their water bodies and human activities, such as agriculture. The water collecting at 13 sampling points were held in two periods of the year 2015 (April and July). For the identification of the genes of diarrheagenic E. coli, the method of reaction polymerase chain (PCR) was used. The watershed presented pathogenic contamination of pathotypes Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), and enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) such a constant occurrence in both campaigns. The virulence genes observed were: STEC, Shiga toxin (Stx1), responsible for causing severe kidney disease as hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS). Besides that, EPEC presented only the virulent gene eae, characteristic of the atypical subgroup (aEPEC), as well as thermolabile toxins (LT). The presence of these pathotypes represents potential risk of diarrheagenic diseases in the population that uses the water resources, particularly the elderly and children, and demonstrates the commitment of the microbiological quality of constituents watercourses of the watershed of Xopot? River, mainly because the lack of sewage treatment facilities

Reuse of treated sewage effluent in airports : irrigation of ornamental plant nursery.

Airports consume significant amounts of water which can be compared to the volume consumed by mid-size cities, thus practices aimed at reducing water consumption are important and necessary. The objective of this study was to assess the reuse potential of sewage effluent produced at a mid-size international airport for nursery irrigation. The sewage treatment system consisted of a facultative pond followed by a constructed wetland, which were monitored during one hydrological year and the parameters COD, pH, solids, nitrogen, phosphorus and Escherichia coli were analyzed. Removal efficiencies of 85% and 91% were achieved for COD and solids, respectively. Removal efficiencies for ammonia nitrogen and total phosphorus were 77% and 59%, respectively. In terms of E. coli concentration, the treated effluent met the recommendations by the World Health Organization for reuse in irrigation with the advantage of providing high levels of residual nutrient. The ornamental species Impatiens walleriana was irrigated with treated sewage effluent and plant growth characteristics were evaluated. The experiment showed that reuse can enhance plant growth without significantly affecting leaf tissue and soil characteristics. This study highlighted the importance of simple technologies for sewage treatment especially in countries which still do not present great investment in sanitation and proved that effluent reuse for landscape irrigation can provide great savings of water and financial resources for airport environments