Metal water-sediment interactions and impacts on an urban ecosystem

The metal loadings and distributions are determined in water and sediment samples collected from 11 sites within the Lower Lee catchment (London, UK). Total concentrations of Cd, Cu, Pb, Hg, Ni, Sn and Zn indicate exceedances of relevant environmental water quality standards/sediment quality guidelines. Mean metal sediment concentrations were found to be highest for Zn (499.9±264.7 µg/g), Pb (175.7±83.0 µg/g) and Cu (141.1±111.0 µg/g) with Zn demonstrating elevated mean water concentrations (17.2±13.8 µg/l) followed by Ni (15.6±11.4 µg/l) and Cu(11.1±17.8 µg/l). Dynamic relationships between water and sediment phases influence metal distributions throughout the catchment

Competition of As and other Group 15 elements for surface binding sites of an extremophilic Acidomyces acidophilus isolated from a historical tin mining site

An arsenic-resistant fungal strain, designated WKC-1, was isolated from a waste roaster pile in a historical tin mine in Cornwall, UK and successfully identified to be Acidomyces acidophilus using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight/time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS) proteomic-based biotyping approach. WKC-1 showed considerable resistance to As5+ and Sb5+ where the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) were 22500 mg L-1 and 100 mg L-1 respectively on Czapex-Dox Agar (CDA) medium; it was substantially more resistant to As5+ than the reference strains CBS 335.97 and CCF 4251. In a modified CDA medium containing 0.02 mg L-1 phosphate, WKC-1 was able to remove 70.30 % of As5+ (100 mg L-1). Sorption experiment showed that the maximum capacity of As5+ uptake was 170.82 mg g-1 dry biomass as predicted by the Langmuir model. The presence of Sb5+ reduced the As5+ uptake by nearly 40%. Based on the Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis, we propose that Sb is competing with As for these sorption sites: OH, NH, CH, SO3 and PO4 on the fungal cell surface. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the impact of other Group 15 elements on the biosorption of As5+ in Acidomyces acidophilus

Investigating arsenic resistance in fungi from tin-mining soil and the possible interaction between arsenic and tin/antimony

There is an increasing interest in the study of fungi that inhabit extreme environments that can provide new biotechnological applications in treating contaminated land. Fungi are versatile biosorbents as they can tolerate extreme levels of metal concentration, nutrient availability, pH and temperature (Gadd, 2009). In this work, heavy metals contaminated soil was collected from Geevor Tin Mine in Penzance, Cornwall. Arsenic and antimony were found in high concentration of 18970 ± 227.0 mg/kg and 196.57 ± 1.91 mg/kg respectively in an extremely acidic soil pH of 1.13. Acidomyces acidophilus strain shows promise in tolerating elevated levels of As (>20,000 mg/L) and Sb (>300 mg/L)

Metal water-sediment interactions and impacts on an urban ecosystem

The EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) requirement that all surface water bodies achieve good ecological status is still a goal for many regulatory authorities in England and Wales. This paper describes field and laboratory studies designed to identify metal contaminant loadings and their distributions within water bodies located in the Lower Lee catchment (London, UK). Water and sediment samples have been collected from increasingly urbanised sites on the River Lee and its main tributaries over a two-year period with samples analysed for total concentrations of cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, tin, and zinc. Complimentary batch tests indicate a positive relationship between aqueous metal concentrations and the batch test-derived sediment metal release data, particularly during wet weather events. Field data indicate a dynamic relationship between water and sediment concentrations with both being capable of exceeding relevant environmental quality standards/sediment quality guidelines at all sites. Mean sediment metal concentrations across all sites were found to be highest for Cu (141.1 +/- 111.0 ug/l), Pb (175.7 +/- 83.0 ug/l), and Zn (499.9 +/- 264.7 ug/l) with Zn demonstrating elevated mean water concentrations (17.2 +/- 13.8 ug/l) followed by Ni (15.6 +/- 11.4 ug/l) and Cu (11.1 +/- 17.8 ug/l)

Specific protease activity indicates the degree of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in chronic infected wounds

Chronic non-healing wounds are a major health problem with resident bacteria strongly implicated in their impaired healing. A rapid-screen to provide detailed knowledge of wound bacterial populations would therefore be of value and help prevent unnecessary and indiscriminate use of antibiotics—a process associated with promoting antibiotic resistance. We analysed chronic wound fluid samples, which had been assessed for microbial content, using 20 different fluorescent labelled peptide substrates to determine whether protease activity correlated with the bacterial load. Eight of the peptide substrates showed significant release of fluorescence after reaction with some of the wound samples. Comparison of wound fluid protease activities with the microbiological data indicated that there was no correlation between bacterial counts and enzyme activity for most of the substrates tested. However, two of the peptide substrates produced a signal corresponding with the microbial data revealing a strong positive correlation with Pseudomonas aeruginosa numbers. This demonstrated that short fluorescent labelled peptides can be used to detect protease activity in chronic wound fluid samples. The finding that two peptides were specific indicators for the presence of P. aeruginosa may be the basis for a diagnostic test to determine wound colonisation by this organism

Monitoring occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 in school populations: A wastewater-based approach

Clinical testing of children in schools is challenging, with economic implications limiting its frequent use as a monitoring tool of the risks assumed by children and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here, a wastewater-based epidemiology approach has been used to monitor 16 schools (10 primary, 5 secondary and 1 post-16 and further education) in England. A total of 296 samples over 9 weeks have been analysed for N1 and E genes using qPCR methods. Of the samples returned, 47.3% were positive for one or both genes with a detection frequency in line with the respective local community. WBE offers a low cost, non-invasive approach for supplementing clinical testing and can provide longitudinal insights that are impractical with traditional clinical testing

ADAM8 in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: a retrospective study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A disintegrin and metalloproteinase (ADAMs) have been associated with multiple malignancies. ADAMs are involved in cell fusion, cell migration, membrane protein shedding and proteolysis. ADAM8 has been found to be overexpressed in squamous cell carcinomas of the lung. A new study showed that ADAM8 is significantly overexpressed in metastasis of squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck (HNSCC).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We determined ADAM8 levels in the serum of 79 HNSCC patients at the time of diagnosis, in 35 patients 3 months after treatment and in 10 patients 1 year after therapy and compared the results to the sera of 31 healthy volunteers. We also constructed tissue microarrays to detect ADAM8 immunohistochemically in 100 patients. The results were correlated with the survival data of the patients to determine the diagnostic and prognostic value.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The data demonstrated that patients with high ADAM8 expression in the tumor have worse survival rates. We found that high ADAM8 serum levels correlated with high ADAM8 expression in tumor samples. Soluble ADAM8 levels did not show any prognostic or diagnostic properties.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In summary ADAM8 expression is a prognostic factor for survival of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.</p

Wastewater monitoring for detection of public health markers during the COVID-19 pandemic: Near-source monitoring of schools in England over an academic year

Background Schools are high-risk settings for infectious disease transmission. Wastewater monitoring for infectious diseases has been used to identify and mitigate outbreaks in many near-source settings during the COVID-19 pandemic, including universities and hospitals but less is known about the technology when applied for school health protection. This study aimed to implement a wastewater surveillance system to detect SARS-CoV-2 and other public health markers from wastewater in schools in England. Methods A total of 855 wastewater samples were collected from 16 schools (10 primary, 5 secondary and 1 post-16 and further education) over 10 months of school term time. Wastewater was analysed for SARS-CoV-2 genomic copies of N1 and E genes by RT-qPCR. A subset of wastewater samples was sent for genomic sequencing, enabling determination of the presence of SARS-CoV-2 and emergence of variant(s) contributing to COVID-19 infections within schools. In total, >280 microbial pathogens and >1200 AMR genes were screened using RT-qPCR and metagenomics to consider the utility of these additional targets to further inform on health threats within the schools. Results We report on wastewater-based surveillance for COVID-19 within English primary, secondary and further education schools over a full academic year (October 2020 to July 2021). The highest positivity rate (80.4%) was observed in the week commencing 30th November 2020 during the emergence of the Alpha variant, indicating most schools contained people who were shedding the virus. There was high SARS-CoV-2 amplicon concentration (up to 9.2x106 GC/L) detected over the summer term (8th June - 6th July 2021) during Delta variant prevalence. The summer increase of SARS-CoV-2 in school wastewater was reflected in age-specific clinical COVID-19 cases. Alpha variant and Delta variant were identified in the wastewater by sequencing of samples collected from December to March and June to July, respectively. Lead/lag analysis between SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in school and WWTP data sets show a maximum correlation between the two-time series when school data are lagged by two weeks. Furthermore, wastewater sample enrichment coupled with metagenomic sequencing and rapid informatics enabled the detection of other clinically relevant viral and bacterial pathogens and AMR. Conclusions Passive wastewater monitoring surveillance in schools can identify cases of COVID-19. Samples can be sequenced to monitor for emerging and current variants of concern at the resolution of school catchments. Wastewater based monitoring for SARS-CoV-2 is a useful tool for SARS-CoV-2 passive surveillance and could be applied for case identification and containment, and mitigation in schools and other congregate settings with high risks of transmission. Wastewater monitoring enables public health authorities to develop targeted prevention and education programmes for hygiene measures within undertested communities across a broad range of use cases

Donald J. Jamison Sr. v. Utah Home Fire Insurance Company : Brief of Respondent

Appeal from the Judgment of the Third Judicial District Court, Salt Lake County- Honorable Stewart M. Hanson, Jr

Comparative gene expression profiling of ADAMs, MMPs, TIMPs, EMMPRIN, EGF-R and VEGFA in low grade meningioma

MMPs (matrix metalloproteinases), ADAMs (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase) and TIMPs (tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases) are implicated in invasion and angiogenesis: both are tissue remodeling processes involving regulated proteolysis of the extracellular matrix, growth factors and their receptors. The expression of these three groups and their correlations with clinical behaviour has been reported in gliomas but a similar comprehensive study in meningiomas is lacking. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the patterns of expression of 23 MMPs, 4 TIMPs, 8 ADAMs, selective growth factors and their receptors in 17 benign meningiomas using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Results indicated very high gene expression of 13 proteases, inhibitors and growth factors studied: MMP2 and MMP14, TIMP-1, -2 and -3, ADAM9, 10, 12, 15 and 17, EGF-R, EMMPRIN and VEGF-A, in almost every meningioma. Expression pattern analysis showed several positive correlations between MMPs, ADAMs, TIMPs and growth factors. Furthermore, our findings suggest that expression of MMP14, ADAM9, 10, 12, 15 and 17, TIMP-2, EGF-R and EMMPRIN reflects histological subtype of meningioma such that fibroblastic subtype had the highest mRNA expression, transitional subtype was intermediate and meningothelial type had the lowest expression. In conclusion, this is the first comprehensive study characterizing gene expression of ADAMs in meningiomas. These neoplasms, although by histological definition benign, have invasive potential. Taken together, the selected elevated gene expression pattern may serve to identify targets for therapeutic intervention or indicators of biological progression and recurrence