Present Status of Microplastic Pollution Research Data in Sri Lanka and Microplastic Risk Mitigation Solutions; Lessons from a Global Policy Context

The emergence of microplastics (MP) as a pollutant in natural environments including aquatics has been increasingly recognized worldwide. This review focuses on the status of MP pollution research in Sri Lanka, and MP risk mitigation solutions, as lessons from a global MP policy context. The methodology involves a comprehensive literature review divided into three main sections: 1) a simple understanding of the plastic cycle and risk factors,2) a comprehensive review of MP pollution research trends in Sri Lanka, 3) a comprehension of global trends of MP regulation policies and adaptable solutions for national scale. There was less attention given to MP research in Sri Lanka, until the recent X-Press Pearl disastrous incident. In addition to that, we highlight the less attention paid to MP pollution in inland waters and lands compared to marine. Considering the widespread MP issue, the paper highlights the importance of a policy approach for MP pollution control. Finally, the paper discusses the future directions for MP pollution research in Sri Lanka and emphasizes the need for more detailed quantitative data for effective policy formulation. The overall study presents a sound case for understanding a national context in MP pollution and suggesting necessary policy instruments in pollution regulation

Viable approach towards the sustainable utilization of Negombo lagoon

Ncgombo lagoon is a shallow coastal water body located on the west coast of Sri Lanka with vitaleconomic importance. It has had a long association with the fisheries industry of the country. Duringthe past 25 years development activities associated with the fisheries industry in Negornbo lagoonhave been taken place without due consideration to its aquatic environment. To ensure sustainablemanagement of the Negornbo lagoon it is imperative to conserve the natural habitats and extract onlythe sustainable fish yield, which does not exceed the reproductive capacity of the lagoon.In this study an attempt was made to identi fy the major factors that determine the use of illegal fishingmethods which disturb the sustainable utilization of the lagoon, to examine the factors that determinefishing income of the fisherman and to explore the contribution of the Special Area Management(SAM) project in order to reduce illegal fishingThe results highlight that the fishing methods employed in Negombo lagoon are significantly determinedby the participation to the awareness programmes of the project, initial capital requirement and costof fishing. This study further reveals that the fishing income of the fishermen is significantly determinedby the method of fishing used, education level and fishing experience of the fishermen.

Fungal diversity notes 1512-1610: taxonomic and phylogenetic contributions on genera and species of fungal taxa

This article is the 14th in the Fungal Diversity Notes series, wherein we report 98 taxa distributed in two phyla, seven classes, 26 orders and 50 families which are described and illustrated. Taxa in this study were collected from Australia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chile, China, Cyprus, Egypt, France, French Guiana, India, Indonesia, Italy, Laos, Mexico, Russia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. There are 59 new taxa, 39 new hosts and new geographical distributions with one new combination. The 59 new species comprise Angustimassarina kunmingense, Asterina lopi, Asterina brigadeirensis, Bartalinia bidenticola, Bartalinia caryotae, Buellia pruinocalcarea, Coltricia insularis, Colletotrichum flexuosum, Colletotrichum thasutense, Coniochaeta caraganae, Coniothyrium yuccicola, Dematipyriforma aquatic, Dematipyriforma globispora, Dematipyriforma nilotica, Distoseptispora bambusicola, Fulvifomes jawadhuvensis, Fulvifomes malaiyanurensis, Fulvifomes thiruvannamalaiensis, Fusarium purpurea, Gerronema atrovirens, Gerronema flavum, Gerronema keralense, Gerronema kuruvense, Grammothele taiwanensis, Hongkongmyces changchunensis, Hypoxylon inaequale, Kirschsteiniothelia acutisporum, Kirschsteiniothelia crustaceum, Kirschsteiniothelia extensum, Kirschsteiniothelia septemseptatum, Kirschsteiniothelia spatiosum, Lecanora immersocalcarea, Lepiota subthailandica, Lindgomyces guizhouensis, Marthe asmius pallidoaurantiacus, Marasmius tangerinus, Neovaginatispora mangiferae, Pararamichloridium aquisubtropicum, Pestalotiopsis piraubensis, Phacidium chinaum, Phaeoisaria goiasensis, Phaeoseptum thailandicum, Pleurothecium aquisubtropicum, Pseudocercospora vernoniae, Pyrenophora verruculosa, Rhachomyces cruralis, Rhachomyces hyperommae, Rhachomyces magrinii, Rhachomyces platyprosophi, Rhizomarasmius cunninghamietorum, Skeletocutis cangshanensis, Skeletocutis subchrysella, Sporisorium anadelphiae-leptocomae, Tetraploa dashaoensis, Tomentella exiguelata, Tomentella fuscoaraneosa, Tricholomopsis lechatii, Vaginatispora flavispora and Wetmoreana blastidiocalcarea. The new combination is Torula sundara. The 39 new records on hosts and geographical distribution comprise Apiospora guiyangensis, Aplosporella artocarpi, Ascochyta medicaginicola, Astrocystis bambusicola, Athelia rolfsii, Bambusicola bambusae, Bipolaris luttrellii, Botryosphaeria dothidea, Chlorophyllum squamulosum, Colletotrichum aeschynomenes, Colletotrichum pandanicola, Coprinopsis cinerea, Corylicola italica, Curvularia alcornii, Curvularia senegalensis, Diaporthe foeniculina, Diaporthe longicolla, Diaporthe phaseolorum, Diatrypella quercina, Fusarium brachygibbosum, Helicoma aquaticum, Lepiota metulispora, Lepiota pongduadensis, Lepiota subvenenata, Melanconiella meridionalis, Monotosporella erecta, Nodulosphaeria digitalis, Palmiascoma gregariascomum, Periconia byssoides, Periconia cortaderiae, Pleopunctum ellipsoideum, Psilocybe keralensis, Scedosporium apiospermum, Scedosporium dehoogii, Scedosporium marina, Spegazzinia deightonii, Torula fici, Wiesneriomyces laurinus and Xylaria venosula. All these taxa are supported by morphological and multigene phylogenetic analyses. This article allows the researchers to publish fungal collections which are important for future studies. An updated, accurate and timely report of fungus-host and fungus-geography is important. We also provide an updated list of fungal taxa published in the previous fungal diversity notes. In this list, erroneous taxa and synonyms are marked and corrected accordingly

Post-Disaster Reconstruction of Road Infrastructure: Decision making processes in an Australian context

The rehabilitation and reconstruction of damaged road infrastructure plays a vital role in the recovery of disaster affected regions. The methods and processes adopted by road asset owners during the reconstruction phase influences the longer term effects in disaster hit communities. While the decision making processes are intended to reduce impacts, mistakes at the decision making stage can lead to an increase in social and economic impacts in the longer term. It is thus imperative to understand how decision making takes place with regard to post-disaster reconstruction of road infrastructure. The objective of this paper is to understand how road asset owners assess and prioritise post-disaster reconstruction projects in order to identify how decision making could be improved in Australia and similar regions. The results of in-depth interviews conducted with road infrastructure practitioners in disaster affected regions are presented. The findings show that there is a gap between the research community and practitioners in the use of systematic methods to aid prioritisation and decision making. The interviews also showed that the consideration of only a limited set of engineering and financial elements can lead to unintended consequences that impede resilience. A causal loop diagram was developed to illustrate the interrelationship between factors identified and shows the importance of a systems thinking approach to infrastructure related decision making. These findings suggest that the development of more localised decision making tools can increase their adoption among practitioners

Postdisaster Impact Assessment of Road Infrastructure: State-of-the-Art Review

Road infrastructure is a vital aspect in transportation systems and can be severely affected by disasters. Postdisaster impact assessment is vital for the repair and reconstruction of such infrastructure, which is constrained by budget and time. This review provides a detailed analysis of prior literature on postdisaster impact assessments of road infrastructure. The related methods used in the literature were analyzed based on their classifications, such as social, environmental, and economic impacts of road failure. It was determined that although a wide range of methods have been used to assess economic impacts, there is still a lack of research measuring environmental and indirect social impacts. Prior literature has also highlighted that the use of bottom-up models to assess socioeconomic impacts is more relevant in the aftermath of a disaster. This paper presents a systematic review of the literature and guidelines for selecting the most appropriate method to assess impacts. This review aims to provide a frame of reference for researchers and government authorities involved in postdisaster impact assessment and decision making related to road infrastructure

Dextran sulfate facilitates anti-CD4 mAb-induced long-term rat cardiac allograft survival after prolonged cold ischemia

Ischemia/reperfusion injury leads to activation of graft endothelial cells (EC), boosting antigraft immunity and impeding tolerance induction. We hypothesized that the complement inhibitor and EC-protectant dextran sulfate (DXS, MW 5000) facilitates long-term graft survival induced by non-depleting anti-CD4 mAb (RIB 5/2). Hearts from DA donor rats were heterotopically transplanted into Lewis recipients treated with RIB 5/2 (20 mg/kg, days-1,0,1,2,3; i.p.) with or without DXS (grafts perfused with 25 mg, recipients treated i.v. with 25 mg/kg on days 1,3 and 12.5 mg/kg on days 5,7,9,11,13,15). Cold graft ischemia time was 20 min or 12 h. Median survival time (MST) was comparable between RIB 5/2 and RIB 5/2+DXS-treated recipients in the 20-min group with >175-day graft survival. In the 12-h group RIB 5/2 only led to chronic rejection (MST = 49.5 days) with elevated alloantibody response, whereas RIB 5/2+DXS induced long-term survival (MST >100 days, p < 0.05) with upregulation of genes related to transplantation tolerance. Analysis of the 12-h group treated with RIB 5/2+DXS at 1-day posttransplantation revealed reduced EC activation, complement deposition and inflammatory cell infiltration. In summary, DXS attenuates I/R-induced acute graft injury and facilitates long-term survival in this clinically relevant transplant model