Nanoplastics in the oceans: Theory, experimental evidence and real world

This review critically analyses >200 papers collected by searching on Pubmed the word \u201cnanoplastics\u201d, a group of emerging contaminants which are receiving growing attention. The present review intends to provide an overview of current knowledge on nanoplastic pollution starting with the theory of polymer degradation, passing to laboratory confirmation of nanoplastic formation and ending with the possible occurrence in sea water samples. Most of the observations proposed focus the attention on polystyrene (PS) because the majority of research knowledge is based on this polymer. Moreover, we thoroughly describe what effects have been observed on different organisms tested in controlled conditions. Nanoplastics formation, fate and toxicity seem to be a very dynamic phenomenon. In light of this, we identify some aspects retained crucial when an ecotoxicological study with nanoplastics is performed and which elements of nanoplastics toxicity could be deeper covered

Preliminary evaluation of the climate-induced fatigue in wood: A physical and computational approach

Wood is the organic hygroscopic material for excellence. Due to its extremely easy handling, it has always been used in many applications, especially as building material for artefacts and works of art. However, it is highly climate-susceptible as it swells or shrinks by exchanging moisture with the surrounding environment when natural or artificial microclimatic fluctuations occur. The shrinkage/swelling of wood, if repeated over time, may cause the arising of deformations or damage that may lead to catastrophic failures. For this reason, in this work, a preliminary study about the effect that repeated microclimatic loads have on wooden samples is carried out. To do so, well-established fatigue approaches have been implemented, with few simplifying considerations. The case study is a slice of Scots pine which is assumed to be stored inside Ringebu stave church (Norway). Ringebu indoor microclimate is reconstructed, through a proper transfer function, starting from outdoor temperature data downloaded from web platforms. The reconstructed indoor temperature timeseries cover three periods: far past (1948–1977), recent past (1981–2010) and far future (2071–2100). The results obtained for the three periods made it possible to gain insights about the climate-induced fatigue of wood and to preliminary assess the impact of climate change. It has been observed that successive similar temperature fluctuations can be potentially treated as a block of constant amplitude and constant frequency fatigue-like load. Finally, introducing few simplifying considerations, it has been assessed that the simulated behavior is coherent with the theoretical one coming from exploiting well-established thermo-based methods

smokers and copd patients have high circulating caspase 4 levels is it an alarm

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Parasitic infection in the scyphozoan Rhizostoma pulmo (Macri, 1778)

: Very little information is reported for parasites of cnidarians, therefore, the present work aimed to investigate parasitic infections in one of the most widespread jellyfish in the Mediterranean Sea, Rhizostoma pulmo. The goals were to determine prevalence and intensity of parasites in R. pulmo, identify the species involved through morphological and molecular analysis, test whether infection parameters differ in different body parts and in relation to jellyfish size. 58 individuals were collected, 100% of them infected with digenean metacercariae. Intensity varied between 18.7 ± 6.7 per individual in 0-2 cm diameter jellyfish up to 505 ± 50.6 in 14 cm ones. Morphological and molecular analyses suggest that the metacercariae belonged to the family Lepocreadiidae and could be possibly assigned to the genus Clavogalea. Prevalence values of 100% suggest that R. pulmo is an important intermediate host in the life cycle of lepocreadiids in the region. Our findings also support the hypothesis that R. pulmo is an important part in the diet of teleost fish, which are reported as definitive hosts of lepocreadiids, since trophic transmission is necessary for these parasites to complete their life cycles. Parasitological data may therefore be useful to investigate fish-jellyfish predation, integrating traditional methods such as gut contents analysis

circulating and tumor associated caspase 4 a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for non small cell lung cancer patients

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Consistent Anisotropic Repulsions for Simple Molecules

We extract atom-atom potentials from the effective spherical potentials that suc cessfully model Hugoniot experiments on molecular fluids, e.g., $O_2$ and $N_2$. In the case of $O_2$ the resulting potentials compare very well with the atom-atom potentials used in studies of solid-state propertie s, while for $N_2$ they are considerably softer at short distances. Ground state (T=0K) and room temperatu re calculations performed with the new $N-N$ potential resolve the previous discrepancy between experimental and theoretical results.Comment: RevTeX, 5 figure

Haplosporidium pinnae Detection from the Faeces of Pinna nobilis: A Quick and Noninvasive Tool to Monitor the Presence of Pathogen in Early-Stage or during Fan Mussel Mass Mortalities

Due to the increasing mass mortality of Pinna nobilis, mainly caused by the protozoan Haplosporidium pinnae along the Mediterranean Sea, it is necessary to develop rapid and effective methods to detect the pathogen. The present study describes the development and validation of a species-specific assay based on hydrolysis probe chemistry to detect H. pinnae DNA from faeces and pseudofaeces of P. nobilis. During a study campaign in the Gulf of Trieste (Italy) in the spring and summer of 2022, 18 samples (10 faeces and 8 pseudofaeces) were collected. DNA was isolated from all samples and the presence of H. pinnae was tested by amplifying a small portion of 18S rDNA using qPCR. The newly developed assay detected positive H. pinnae in the faeces of the fan mussel in the spring, while no evidence of an outbreak of H. pinnae was found in the summer. In addition, the method proved to be noninvasive and can be used to monitor suspected H. pinnae infections in the early stages when bivalves are still vital. Furthermore, fecal analysis allows the monitoring of P. nobilis without dissecting tissues. The presented assay can also be used to routinely monitor the progress of mass mortalities caused by H. pinnae and to screen for the pathogen in live fan mussels and other environmental matrices, such as water, sediment, and faeces from other species that can host the protozoan

Preliminary observations of caulerpin accumulation from the invasive Caulerpa cylindracea in native Mediterranean fish species

Recent studies have shown that the Mediterranean white sea bream Diplodus sargus includes the invasive green alga Caulerpa cylindracea in its diet, with consequent metabolic and enzymatic alterations. As a result of this novel alimentary habit, the bioactive algal red pigment caulerpin has been detected in its tissues. However, this may not be an isolated case: other fish species have also been reported to feed on C. cylindracea, although the possible accumulation of caulerpin in their tissues has not yet been investigated. In this report, we analysed stomach contents and caulerpin levels in the native sparid species Spondyliosoma cantharus, Sarpa salpa, and Diplodus vulgaris, and in the scarid Sparisoma cretense, along with the Lessepsian siganid Siganus luridus. C. cylindracea was found in the stomachs of all but one fish species, the exception being S. cretense, in which prey items could not be determined due to the high degree of digestion. Chemical analysis of fish tissues revealed that only S. cantharus and S. salpa accumulated caulerpin, while no traces of the compound were detected in the other species. Despite intense research efforts on natural products obtained from C. cylindracea, a complete picture of the impacts caused by fish including this alga in their diet has not been elucidated. The identification of caulerpin in other Mediterranean native fish suggests a need for further research in order to assess the possible transfer of such molecules to humans through seafood consumption

Does Warming Enhance the Effects of Eutrophication in the Seagrass Posidonia oceanica?

Seagrass meadows are disappearing at rates comparable to those reported for mangroves, coral reefs, and tropical rainforests. One of the main causes of their decline is the so-called cultural eutrophication, i.e., the input of abnormal amounts of nutrients derived from human activities. Besides the impact of eutrophication at a local scale, the occurrence of additional stress factors such as global sea warming may create synergisms in detriment of seagrass meadows’ health. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate if plants undergoing chronic cultural eutrophication and plants growing in relatively pristine waters are more (or less) sensitive to heat stress, nutrient load and the combination of both stressors. To address this question, a mesocosm experiment was conducted using Posidonia oceanica collected from two environments with different nutrients load history. Plants were exposed in controlled conditions to high nutrient concentrations, increased temperature and their combination for 5 weeks, to assess the effect of the single stressors and their interaction. Our results revealed that plants experiencing chronic cultural eutrophication (EU) are more sensitive to further exposure to multiple stressors than plants growing in oligotrophic habitats (OL). OL and EU plants showed different morphological traits and physiological performances, which corroborates the role of local pressures in activating different strategies in response to global environmental changes. EU-plants appeared to be weaker during the treatments, showing the greatest percentage of mortality, particularly under increased temperature. Temperature and nutrient treatments showed opposite effects when tested individually and an offset response when combined. The activation of physiological strategies with high energetic expenses to cope with excess of nutrients and other stressors, could affect plants present and future persistence, particularly under eutrophic conditions. Our results represent a step forward in understanding the complex interactions that occur in natural environments. Moreover, unraveling intraspecific strategies and the role of local acclimation/adaptation in response to multiple stressors could be crucial for seagrass conservation strategies under a climate change scenario