Microplastic pollution in lakeshore sediments: the first report on abundance and composition of Phewa Lake, Nepal.

Microplastic pollution in a freshwater environment has captured the attention of the scientific world in recent years. Microplastic is a new area of research in the freshwater of Nepal. Hence, the present study aims to examine the concentration, distribution, and characteristics of microplastic pollution in the sediments of Phewa Lake. Twenty sediment samples were collected from 10 sites to cover the vast area (5.762 km2) of the lake. The mean abundance of microplastic was 100.5 ± 58.6 items/kg dry weight. The average abundance of microplastics in five sections of the lake showed a significant difference (test statistics = 10.379, p < 0.05). Fibers (78.11%) dominated the sediments of Phewa Lake in all sampling sites. Transparent was the prominent color observed followed by red and altogether 70.65% of the microplastics detected were found at 0.2-1 mm size class. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis of visible microplastic particles (1-5 mm) confirmed polypropylene (PP) (42.86%) as the dominant polymer type followed by polyethylene (PE). This study can help to bridge the knowledge gap regarding the microplastic pollution in freshwater shoreline sediments of Nepal. Furthermore, these findings would create a new research area to explore the impact of plastic pollution which has been ignored in Phewa Lake.

Occurrence and Distribution of Microplastics from Nepal's Second Largest Lake.

Due to its harmful impact on biota, microplastic pollution is the top priority research in many countries. However, there is hardly any research on microplastic pollution in Nepal's freshwater. Therefore, the present research was accomplished in Phewa Lake to evaluate the occurrence and distribution of microplastic contamination in shoreline sediments. The average abundance of microplastic varied from 55 to 122.5 items/kg dry weight (dw). The highest value appeared on densely populated eastern side of the lake and the western region reported the lowest concentration of microplastic. With regard to the shape, fibers dominated the sediments of Phewa Lake accounting for 62.03%. The dominant color was transparent (23.53%) followed by blue (21.39%). The size category 0.2-1 mm recorded the highest abundance of microplastic. Similarly, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) reveal the dominant polymer type as polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE). The outcome of this result adds a step toward filling the existing knowledge gap and providing a database on microplastic pollution in Nepal's freshwater.

Microplastic pollution in urban Lake Phewa, Nepal: the first report on abundance and composition in surface water of lake in different seasons.

Microplastics are man-made pollutants which have been detected in surface water and groundwater. Research on microplastic concentration in aquatic environment is attracting scientists from developing countries, but in Nepal no information regarding microplastic in freshwater system is available. Therefore, this study investigates the presence and abundance of microplastic in lake surface water of Phewa Lake, the second largest lake in Nepal. The average concentration of microplastic for surface water was 2.96 ± 1.83 particles/L in winter (dry) season and 1.51 ± 0.62 particles/L in rainy (wet) season. Significant difference with t = 4.687 (p < 0.01) in microplastic concentration was observed in two different seasons. Fibers (93.04% for winter and 96.69% for rainy season) were the commonly found microplastic type in lake water and transparent as the dominant color for the two seasons. Almost all the detected microplastic were found to be < 1 mm in size. Due to the small size of microplastic and unavailability of micro-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (µ-FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy in Nepal, polymer identification was not done. The findings from this study can provide a valuable baseline data on microplastics for the first time in Nepal's freshwater lake environment.

Computed Tomographic Assessment of Renal Volume and Its Associative Factors Among Adults.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge of normal renal volume is a vital parameter for clinical assessment of renal diseases because renal size is altered by various medical conditions. Variations in renal dimension in different populations and it's relation to individual's body parameters are evident. Different studies have recommended the need for measurement of renal dimension for specific population. This study assesses normal range of renal volume in the study population and measures their correlation with individual's body parameters. METHODS: This descriptive study was done in 261 adults. After renal length measurement on reformatted coronal images, renal width and renal thickness on axil images, renal volume was calculated by ellipsoidal formula. Descriptive statistics and parametric tests were used to evaluate the association between renal volume and different parameters. RESULTS: This study showed a significant difference in mean renal volume between male (right and left mean renal volume 120.52 ± 26.84 cm3 and 121.00 ± 27.23 cm3 respectively) and female (right and left mean renal volume 110.11 ± 21.79 cm3 and 111.15 ± 22.34 cm3 respectively) on each side. Similarly, a significant positive correlation was found between renal volume and body height, body weight and BMI of participant for both kidneys however a significant negative correlation was observed between renal volume and age 40 years and above for both kidneys.   Conclusions: This study provides morphometric data regarding normal kidneys and concludes that male renal volume is more than female and renal volume is correlated to individual's body parameters.