scholarly journals Ecotoxicity, Occurrence, and Removal of Pharmaceuticals and Illicit Drugs from Aquatic Systems

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 12530-12546
Keyword(s):  
Illicit Drugs ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Water System ◽  
Illegal Drugs ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Aquatic Life ◽  
Waste Products ◽  
The Past ◽  
Health Care Clinics ◽  
Physical Chemical

ollutants of legal pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs are causing many adverse effects on the environment. Pollutants are arising from waste products and from pharmaceuticals or illegal drugs that have not been disposed of properly. Pharmaceuticals and illegal drugs are becoming subject of concern for the past few decades after they attracted considerable attention because they do not willingly biodegrade & remain toxic. Pharmaceuticals compounds such as antibiotics, anti-inflammatory, psychotropic, human drugs, hormones, and illicit drugs usually occur in wastewater from households, hospitals, health care clinics, veterinary, etc. ends in the water system. They potentially impact human health & aquatic life. Recent studies confirm legal pharmaceuticals & illegal drug residue in drinking water, surface water & groundwater. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have been considered as hotspots of Pharmaceuticals residue. This removes contaminants from water using physical, chemical & biological processes. This review focuses on the occurrence, toxicity, and elimination of legal pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs in water systems.

Reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) generation and energy consumption in wastewater treatment plants

2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 1159-1164 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Yerushalmi ◽  
O. Ashrafi ◽  
F. Haghighat
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Oxygen Demand ◽  
Anaerobic Digester ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Ghg Emission ◽  
Physical Chemical ◽  
Co2 Equivalent

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and energy consumption by on-site and off-site sources were estimated in two different wastewater treatment plants that used physical–chemical or biological processes for the removal of contaminants, and an anaerobic digester for sludge treatment. Physical–chemical treatment processes were used in the treatment plant of a locomotive repair factory that processed wastewater at 842 kg chemical oxygen demand per day. Approximately 80% of the total GHG emission was related to fossil fuel consumption for energy production. The emission of GHG was reduced by 14.5% with the recovery of biogas that was generated in the anaerobic digester and its further use as an energy source, replacing fossil fuels. The examined biological treatment system used three alternative process designs for the treatment of effluents from pulp and paper mills that processed wastewater at 2,000 kg biochemical oxygen demand per day. The three designs used aerobic, anaerobic, or hybrid aerobic/anaerobic biological processes for the removal of carbonaceous contaminants, and nitrification/denitrification processes for nitrogen removal. Without the recovery and use of biogas, the aerobic, anaerobic, and hybrid treatment systems generated 3,346, 6,554 and 7,056 kg CO2-equivalent/day, respectively, while the generated GHG was reduced to 3,152, 6,051, and 6,541 kg CO2-equivalent/day with biogas recovery. The recovery and use of biogas was shown to satisfy and exceed the energy needs of the three examined treatment plants. The reduction of operating temperature of the anaerobic digester and anaerobic reactor by 10°C reduced energy demands of the treatment plants by 35.1, 70.6 and 62.9% in the three examined treatment systems, respectively.

scholarly journals From waste treatment to resource recovery: A Chicago sustainability story

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debra Shore
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Lake Michigan ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Sewage Treatment ◽  
Resource Recovery ◽  
Waste Products ◽  
Sewage Treatment Plants ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Future ◽  
Power Centers

ABSTRACTThe development of Chicago and northeastern Illinois has been intimately tied to water, particularly Lake Michigan and the Chicago Area Waterways. The wastewater treatment plants of the past will become the power centers of the future by harnessing resources—including nutrients, energy, solids, and water itself—to bolster the economy and ensure regional sustainability.The story of Chicago’s development is inextricably linked to its relationship with the natural environment, beginning 16,000 years ago when the land was covered and compressed by an enormous glacier. Ever since, urban planners and policymakers have grappled with how to manage a city built on flat, swampy land, and what to do with the animal and human waste that accumulates in urban environments. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the solution was to move waste as far away from the area as possible. The Chicago River, which originally flowed into Lake Michigan, was converted into an open sewer and reversed, sending the flow—and all the wastes dumped into it—downstream. Over the 20th century, sewage treatment plants were constructed to minimize the potential for harm to humans and the environment. Now, however, our thinking is changing. Rather than discarding waste products, wastewater treatment plants are beginning to recover the resources that flow through them—including nutrients, energy, solids, and water—and transform them into assets that generate revenue and protect the environment. This potential for resource recovery means that the sewage treatment plants of the past will become the power centers of the future.

scholarly journals POTENSI MIKROORGANISME SEBAGAI AGEN BIOREMEDIASI MIKROPLASTIK DI LAUT

OSEANA ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 40-49
Author(s):  
Milani Anggiani
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Plastic Waste ◽  
Marine Biota ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Marine Waters ◽  
Aquatic Life ◽  
Remediation Technology ◽  
Physical Chemical ◽  
Degrading Bacteria ◽  
Waste Accumulation

Microplastic is a threat to the survival of organisms on terrestrial and ocean. Microplastic waste accumulation from human activities will accumulate in the environment. The presence of microplastics in the environment is a problem because plastics are persistent. Plastics often contain chemicals that are potentially toxic and carcinogenic. They are consumed by organisms that will affect aquatic life. Plastic waste in the ocean will directly or indirectly poison the marine biota, damaging coral reefs which will further damage the balance of the marine ecosystem. The process of decomposition of plastic waste into microplastics takes hundreds of years through physical, chemical, and biological processes. The problem of microplastic waste can be overcome by biotechnology approaches. One of the strategies to control microplastic pollution is remediation technology by utilizing the potential of indigenous bacteria that grow in their natural environment. Furthermore, the use of bioremediation agents from other microorganisms has been carried out among them, using Fungi and Actinomycetes. The potential of microplastic degrading microorganisms in sea waters has not been done in depth, especially studies in improving the ability of microorganisms to degrade microplastics. The purpose of writing this review is to review the potential of microplastic degrading bacteria originating from marine waters.

Transmission Electron Microscopy of Protein Macromolecules

1971 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 424-425
Author(s):  
Henry S. Slayter
Keyword(s):  
Biological Systems ◽  
Metal Vapor ◽  
Resolving Power ◽  
Electron Microscopic ◽  
Chemical Methods ◽  
Molecular Weights ◽  
The Past ◽  
Physical Chemical ◽  
Transmission Electron

Electron microscopic methods have been applied increasingly during the past fifteen years, to problems in structural molecular biology. Used in conjunction with physical chemical methods and/or Fourier methods of analysis, they constitute powerful tools for determining sizes, shapes and modes of aggregation of biopolymers with molecular weights greater than 50, 000. However, the application of the e.m. to the determination of very fine structure approaching the limit of instrumental resolving power in biological systems has not been productive, due to various difficulties such as the destructive effects of dehydration, damage to the specimen by the electron beam, and lack of adequate and specific contrast. One of the most satisfactory methods for contrasting individual macromolecules involves the deposition of heavy metal vapor upon the specimen. We have investigated this process, and present here what we believe to be the more important considerations for optimizing it. Results of the application of these methods to several biological systems including muscle proteins, fibrinogen, ribosomes and chromatin will be discussed.

Fluorescent potentiometric dyes for membrane-potential imaging

1994 ◽  
Vol 52 ◽  
pp. 166-167
Author(s):  
Leslie M. Loew
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Potential ◽  
Single Cells ◽  
Quantitative Imaging ◽  
Optical Recording ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Major Focus ◽  
The Past ◽  
Excitable Systems ◽  
Major Application ◽  
The Impact

A major application of potentiometric dyes has been the multisite optical recording of electrical activity in excitable systems. After being championed by L.B. Cohen and his colleagues for the past 20 years, the impact of this technology is rapidly being felt and is spreading to an increasing number of neuroscience laboratories. A second class of experiments involves using dyes to image membrane potential distributions in single cells by digital imaging microscopy - a major focus of this lab. These studies usually do not require the temporal resolution of multisite optical recording, being primarily focussed on slow cell biological processes, and therefore can achieve much higher spatial resolution. We have developed 2 methods for quantitative imaging of membrane potential. One method uses dual wavelength imaging of membrane-staining dyes and the other uses quantitative 3D imaging of a fluorescent lipophilic cation; the dyes used in each case were synthesized for this purpose in this laboratory.

Comparison and Analysis of Computational Methods for Identifying N6 - methyladenosine Sites in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pengmian Feng ◽  
Lijing Feng ◽  
Chaohui Tang
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Computational Methods ◽  
Computational Analysis ◽  
Computational Prediction ◽  
Experimental Methods ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Precise Location ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
The Past

Background and Purpose: N 6 -methyladenosine (m6A) plays critical roles in a broad set of biological processes. Knowledge about the precise location of m6A site in the transcriptome is vital for deciphering its biological functions. Although experimental techniques have made substantial contributions to identify m6A, they are still labor intensive and time consuming. As good complements to experimental methods, in the past few years, a series of computational approaches have been proposed to identify m6A sites. Methods: In order to facilitate researchers to select appropriate methods for identifying m6A sites, it is necessary to give a comprehensive review and comparison on existing methods. Results: Since researches on m6A in Saccharomyces cerevisiae are relatively clear, in this review, we summarized recent progresses on computational prediction of m6A sites in S. cerevisiae and assessed the performance of existing computational methods. Finally, future directions of computationally identifying m6A sites were presented. Conclusion: Taken together, we anticipate that this review will provide important guides for computational analysis of m 6A modifications.

scholarly journals MicroRNAs: Biological Regulators in Pathogen–Host Interactions

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Maia Acuña ◽  
Lucile Maria Floeter-Winter ◽  
Sandra Marcia Muxel
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Small Rnas ◽  
Immune Cell ◽  
Fine Tuning ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Host Interactions ◽  
The Past ◽  
Biological Aspects

An inflammatory response is essential for combating invading pathogens. Several effector components, as well as immune cell populations, are involved in mounting an immune response, thereby destroying pathogenic organisms such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites. In the past decade, microRNAs (miRNAs), a group of noncoding small RNAs, have emerged as functionally significant regulatory molecules with the significant capability of fine-tuning biological processes. The important role of miRNAs in inflammation and immune responses is highlighted by studies in which the regulation of miRNAs in the host was shown to be related to infectious diseases and associated with the eradication or susceptibility of the infection. Here, we review the biological aspects of microRNAs, focusing on their roles as regulators of gene expression during pathogen–host interactions and their implications in the immune response against Leishmania, Trypanosoma, Toxoplasma, and Plasmodium infectious diseases.

scholarly journals The crucial roles of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification in the carcinogenesis and progression of colorectal cancer

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhihao Fang ◽  
Yiqiu Hu ◽  
Jinhui Hu ◽  
Yanqin Huang ◽  
Shu Zheng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Colorectal Cancer ◽  
Nuclear Export ◽  
Messenger Rna ◽  
Regulatory Proteins ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
The Past ◽  
Common Cancer ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Regulated Gene Expression

AbstractAs the predominant modification in RNA, N6-methyladenosine (m6A) has attracted increasing attention in the past few years since it plays vital roles in many biological processes. This chemical modification is dynamic, reversible and regulated by several methyltransferases, demethylases and proteins that recognize m6A modification. M6A modification exists in messenger RNA and affects their splicing, nuclear export, stability, decay, and translation, thereby modulating gene expression. Besides, the existence of m6A in noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) could also directly or indirectly regulated gene expression. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common cancer around the world and of high mortality. Increasing evidence have shown that the changes of m6A level and the dysregulation of m6A regulatory proteins have been implicated in CRC carcinogenesis and progression. However, the underlying regulation laws of m6A modification to CRC remain elusive and better understanding of these mechanisms will benefit the diagnosis and therapy. In the present review, the latest studies about the dysregulation of m6A and its regulators in CRC have been summarized. We will focus on the crucial roles of m6A modification in the carcinogenesis and development of CRC. Moreover, we will also discuss the potential applications of m6A modification in CRC diagnosis and therapeutics.

Diverging trends in US male-female condom use by STI risk factors: a nationally representative study

2020 ◽  
pp. sextrans-2020-054642
Author(s):  
Casey E Copen ◽  
Patricia J Dittus ◽  
Jami S Leichliter ◽  
Sagar Kumar ◽  
Sevgi O Aral
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Condom Use ◽  
Illicit Drugs ◽  
Female Condom ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Past ◽  
Representative Study ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Sex Partner

ObjectiveCondom use behaviours are proximal to recent STI increases in the USA, yet it remains unclear whether the use of condoms has changed over time among unmarried, non-cohabiting young men who have sex with women (MSW) and how this variability is influenced by STI risk factors.MethodsTo examine condom use over time among MSW aged 15–29, we used three cross-sectional surveys from the 2002, 2006–2010 and 2011–2017 National Survey of Family Growth. We estimated weighted percentages, adjusted prevalence ratios (APRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) to assess changes in condom use, stratified by whether MSW reported any STI risk factors in the past 12 months (ie, perceived partner non-monogamy, male-to-male sex, sex in exchange for money or drugs, sex partner who injects illicit drugs, or an HIV-positive sex partner).ResultsWe observed a divergence in trends in condom use at last sex between men aged 15 –29 with STI risk factors in the past 12 months and those without such history. We saw significant declines in condom use from 2002 to 2011–2017 among men with STI risk factors (APR=0.80, 95% CI 0.68 to 0.95), specifically among those aged 15–19 (APR=0.73, 95% CI 0.57 to 0.94) or non-Hispanic white (APR=0.71, 95% CI 0.54 to 0.93). In contrast, trends in condom use among men with no STI factors remained stable or increased. Across all time periods, the most prevalent STI risk factor reported was perception of a non-monogamous female partner (23.0%–26.9%). Post-hoc analyses examined whether condom use trends changed once this variable was removed from analyses, but no different patterns were observed.ConclusionsWhile STIs have been increasing, men aged 15–29 with STI risk factors reported a decline in condom use. Rising STI rates may be sensitive to behavioural shifts in condom use among young MSW with STI risk factors.

Controlling chemical dosing for sulfide mitigation in sewer networks using a hybrid automata control strategy

2013 ◽  
Vol 68 (12) ◽  
pp. 2584-2590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiqi Liu ◽  
Ramon Ganigué ◽  
Keshab Sharma ◽  
Zhiguo Yuan
Keyword(s):  
Control Strategy ◽  
Control Method ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Control Performance ◽  
Hybrid Automata ◽  
Sewer Pipe ◽  
Physical Chemical ◽  
Iron Salts ◽  
Pumping Stations ◽  
Sewer Networks

Chemicals such as magnesium hydroxide (Mg(OH)2) and iron salts are widely used to control sulfide-induced corrosion in sewer networks composed of interconnected sewer pipe lines and pumping stations. Chemical dosing control is usually non-automatic and based on experience, thus often resulting in sewage reaching the discharge point receiving inadequate or even no chemical dosing. Moreover, intermittent operation of pumping stations makes traditional control theory inadequate. A hybrid automata-based (HA-based) control method is proposed in this paper to coordinate sewage pumping station operations by considering their states, thereby ensuring suitable chemical concentrations in the network discharge. The performance of the proposed control method was validated through a simulation study of a real sewer network using real sewage flow data. The physical, chemical and biological processes were simulated using the well-established SeweX model. The results suggested that the HA-based control strategy significantly improved chemical dosing control performance and sulfide mitigation in sewer networks, compared to the current common practice.

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