A Flow-through Passive Sampler for Microplastics in Air.

Microplastics (MP) in air have attracted increasing attention because of their ubiquitous presence. Accurate atmospheric concentrations of MP are essential for evaluating their capacity for long-range transport and for assessing human inhalation risk. In order to sample airborne MP in locations with limited power supply, we adapted a flow-through passive sampler by placing a glass fiber filter in the inner sampling tube. To test the new sampler's performance under field conditions, two sizes of the flow-through sampler (with diameters of 20 and 10 cm) and a conventionally pumped high-volume air sampler were co-deployed on the Lhasa campus of the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research. Accurate sampling volumes could be estimated from a relationship between wind speeds recorded outside and inside of the flow-through sampler. Atmospheric concentrations and compositions of MP that compared favorably with those obtained by active sampling indicate that the larger version of the flow-through passive sampler can provide reproducible and quantitative information on atmospheric MP at sites with limited or unreliable power supply. This capability should be useful in large-scale and high-temporal resolution air monitoring networks for MP.

The Value of China's Legislation on Plastic Pollution Prevention in 2020.

It has taken 12 years since 2008, but China is finally strengthening plastic pollution prevention and control through legislation. In an effort to regulate and control plastic products, China's government amended and released a series of laws and regulations in 2020, possibly heralding the end of China's plastic pollution. China's plastic pollution legislation, while late, is a viable and right response to the severe environmental and ecology problem. Legislative progress in plastic pollution prevention has extended beyond China government's administrative capability but has also been an important step in the protection of the environment in the world.

An Environmental Dilemma for China During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Explosion of Disposable Plastic Wastes.

Plastic pollution control has been on top of the political agenda in China. In January 2020, China announced a phased ban on the production and usage of various types of single-use plastics as a solution to environmental pollution problems. However, the outbreak of COVID-19 seems to be a new obstacle to the ban on single-use plastic products. To basically satisfied the daily necessities and contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 under the background of the regular epidemic prevention and control in China, online ordering, contactless delivery and wearing mask have become an important and feasible way of daily life. However, the unrestrained use of disposable plastic bags, lunch boxes and masks within the nationwide quarantine leads to hundreds of millions of plastics wastes every day. The potential environmental pollution caused by the use of disposable plastic products during the pandemic should arouse social concern. The Chinese government should manage environmental protection in parallel with anti-pandemic endeavors as the situation of the pandemic evolves.

Impact of rainfall on the occurrence, spatiotemporal distribution, and partition trend of micropollutants in Taihu Lake, China: Bisphenol A and 4-nonylphenol as examples.

Very limited studies have evaluated the impact of rainfall on the fate of endocrine-disrupting micropollutants in lacustrine systems. This yearlong study investigated monthly fluctuation of bisphenol A (BPA) and 4-nonylphenol (NP) concentrations in both water and sediment samples from Taihu Lake and evaluated the impact of rainfall on their spatiotemporal distribution and partition trends. Results showed that BPA concentration in water was negatively correlated to rainfall while NP concentrations in both phases were positively related to rainfall. The spatial distribution of NP in the lake water was season specific with the lakeshore area higher than the central area during the wet season and a reversed pattern during the dry season. The spatial distributions of sediment-associated NP and BPA in both phases were not significantly different among seasons. Contrary partition tendencies were observed for BPA and NP that BPA tended to desorb from sediment and NP tended to be adsorbed during the wet season while the trends were reversed during the dry season. This study suggests that rainfall could affect the occurrence, distribution and environmental fate of micropollutants and should be considered in the monitoring program and risk assessment.

Evaluation of the Removal of Potassium Cyanide and its Toxicity in Green Algae (Chlorella vulgaris).

To evaluate the removal of potassium cyanide (KCN) and its toxicity in algae, an initial comprehensive analysis was performed with Chlorella vulgaris. The algae showed potential removal capability for KCN, with the maximal removal rate of 61%. Moreover, effects of KCN on growth, cellular morphology and antioxidant defense system of C. vulgaris were evaluated. Cell number and chlorophyll a content decreased in most cases, with the maximal inhibition rates of 48% and 99%, respectively. The 100 mg L- 1 KCN seriously damaged the algal cell membrane. Additionally, activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) was promoted by KCN exposure among 0.1-50 mg L- 1 and inhibited by 100 mg L- 1 KCN, while the malondialdehyde (MDA) content gradually decreased in C. vulgaris with increasing exposure concentration compared to the control. The present study reveals that C. vulgaris is useful in bio-treatment of cyanide-contaminated aquatic ecosystem, except in high concentrations which would cause overwhelming effects.

Bioconcentration of the antidepressant fluoxetine and its effects on the physiological and biochemical status in Daphnia magna.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the bioconcentration potential of fluoxetine and its biological effects in Daphnia magna. After 48h of waterborne exposure, the bioconcentration of fluoxetine in D. magna was determined to be 460.61 and 174.41Lkg-1 for nominal exposure concentrations of 0.5 and 5µgL-1, respectively. Moreover, various biological endpoints, including physiological responses (filtration and ingestion rates), enzymatic biomarkers related to neurotoxicity [acetylcholinesterase (AChE)] and antioxidant defense [superoxide dismutase (SOD)], and an oxidative stress damage marker [malondialdehyde (MDA)], were assessed. Fluoxetine exposure increased the filtration rate of daphnia, while the ingestion rate was not obviously modified. AChE activity was significantly inhibited, highlighting the neurotoxicity of fluoxetine on D. magna. However, with some alterations in the SOD activity and MDA content, no obvious oxidative damage was observed in D. magna exposed to fluoxetine at the tested concentrations. These results indicate that fluoxetine can be accumulated and consequently induce physiological and biochemical perturbations in D. magna.

Uptake, depuration, and bioconcentration of two pharmaceuticals, roxithromycin and propranolol, in Daphnia magna.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the uptake, depuration, and bioconcentration of two pharmaceuticals, roxithromycin (ROX) and propranolol (PRP), in Daphnia magna via aqueous exposure. Additionally, dietary and pH effects on the bioconcentration of two pharmaceuticals in daphnia were studied. During the 24-h uptake phase followed by the 24-h depuration phase, the uptake rate constants (k(u)) of ROX for daphnia were 9.21 and 2.77 L kg(-1) h(-1), corresponding to the exposure concentrations of 5 and 100 µg L(-1), respectively; For PRP at the nominal concentrations of 5 and 100 µg L(-1), k(u) were 2.29 and 0.99 L kg(-1) h(-1), respectively. The depuration rate constants (k(d)) of ROX in daphnia, at the exposure concentrations of 5 and 100 µg L(-1), were 0.0985 and 0.207 h(-1), respectively; while those of PRP were 0.0276 and 0.0539 h(-1) for the nominal concentrations of 5 and 100 µg L(-1), respectively. With the decreasing exposure concentrations, the bioconcentration factors (BCFs) in daphnia ranged from 13.4 to 93.5 L kg(-1) for ROX, and 18.4 to 83.0 L kg(-1) for PRP, revealing the considerable accumulation potential of these two pharmaceuticals. Moreover, after 6h exposure, the body burdens of ROX and PRP in dead daphnia were 4.98-6.14 and 7.42-12.9 times higher than those in living daphnia, respectively, implying that body surface sorption dominates the bioconcentration of the two pharmaceuticals in daphnia. In addition, the presence of algal food in the media could significantly elevate the kd values for both ROX and PRP, thereby restraining their bioconcentration in daphnia. A pH-dependent bioconcentration study revealed that the bioconcentration of the two pharmaceuticals in daphnia increased with increasing pH levels, which ranged from 7 to 9. Finally, a model was developed to estimate the relationships between pH and the BCFs of the two pharmaceuticals in zooplankton. The predicted values based on this model were highly consistent with wildlife monitoring data, implying that this model will be useful in identifying the bioaccumulation risks that pharmaceuticals pose to zooplankton.

Construction and Characterization of a Cellulolytic Consortium Enriched from the Hindgut of Holotrichia parallela Larvae.

Degradation of rice straw by cooperative microbial activities is at present the most attractive alternative to fuels and provides a basis for biomass conversion. The use of microbial consortia in the biodegradation of lignocelluloses could reduce problems such as incomplete synergistic enzymes, end-product inhibition, and so on. In this study, a cellulolytic microbial consortium was enriched from the hindgut of Holotrichia parallela larvae via continuous subcultivation (20 subcultures in total) under static conditions. The degradation ratio for rice straw was about 83.1% after three days of cultivation, indicating its strong cellulolytic activity. The diversity analysis results showed that the bacterial diversity and richness decreased during the consortium enrichment process, and the consortium enrichment process could lead to a significant enrichment of phyla Proteobacteria and Spirochaetes, classes Clostridia, Epsilonproteobacteria, and Betaproteobacteria, and genera Arcobacter, Treponema, Comamonas, and Clostridium. Some of these are well known as typical cellulolytic and hemicellulolytic microorganisms. Our results revealed that the microbial consortium identified herein is a potential candidate for use in the degradation of waste lignocellulosic biomass and further highlights the hindgut of the larvae as a reservoir of extensive and specific cellulolytic and hemicellulolytic microbes.

Evaluation of the interactive effects of lead, zinc and benzo(k)fluoranthene on crucian carp, Carassius carassius, using a multiple biomarker approach.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the interactive effects of the metals lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) and the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon benzo(k)fluoranthene (BkF) on crucian carp (Carassius carassius). To this end, various biomarkers in the fish [7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD); superoxide dismutase (SOD); malondialdehyde (MDA) and metallothioneins (MT)] were measured after 96 h of exposure. When compared to either treatment with Pb and Zn mixtures or BkF-only treatment, the treatment with BkF combined with Pb and Zn resulted in lower responses of EROD and MT synthesis activity, and higher SOD and MDA increases. These results indicated that the co-exposure of metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons may cause more severe oxidative stress on fish. However, the effect of these interactions on EROD and MT may lead to an underestimation of the actual exposure in the field and thereby should be carefully considered.

Microplastics alter the microbiota-mediated phosphorus profiles at sediment-water interface: Distinct microbial effects between sediment and plastisphere.

Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous in freshwater sediments, raising concern about their potential impacts on ecosystem services. However, the specific impacts of microbiota mediated by MPs in sediment and plastisphere compartments on P availability remain elusive. This investigation conducted a series of microcosm experiments utilizing eutrophic lake sediment amended with fuel-based polyethylene terephthalate (PET), bio-based polylactic acid (PLA) MPs, and a natural cobblestone substrate to unravel their effects. The findings highlighted that MPs induced alterations in bacterial communities in both sediment and plastisphere, consequently modifying P availabilities at the sediment-water interface (SWI). In comparison to non-biodegradable PET, biodegradable PLA MPs presented higher proportions of specific bacteria and functional genes associated with P profiles, such as Firmicutes, Ignavibacteriota, and P mineralizing genes in the sediment and plastisphere. This, in turn, elevated the levels of soluble reactive P in the porewater by 54.19 % (0-1 cm), 55.81 % (1-3 cm), and 18.24 % (3-5 cm), respectively. Additionally, PLA obviously altered P immobilization capacity and bioavailability, increasing the organic P fraction. Whereas, inert cobblestone exhibited negligible influence on P biogeochemical processes during the incubation. Moreover, the biofilm communities and those in the surrounding sediment specifically contributed to the changes in P profiles at the SWI. The functional genes associated with P profiles in the sediment mainly concentrate on P mineralization and P uptake/transport. In the plastisphere, P activation genes are obviously affected under MP exposure. This study fills the knowledge gap concerning the repercussions of MPs on ecosystem services.

New insights into changes in phosphorus profile at sediment-water interface by microplastics: Role of benthic bioturbation.

Microplastics (MPs) have attracted increasing attention due to their ubiquitous occurrence in freshwater sediments and the detrimental effects on benthic invertebrates. However, a clear understanding of their downstream impacts on ecosystem services is still lacking. This study examines the effects of bio-based polylactic acid (PLA), fuel-based polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and biofilm-covered PET (BPET) MPs on the bioturbator chironomid larvae (Tanypus chinensis), and the influence on phosphorus (P) profiles in microcosms. The changes in biochemical responses and metabolic pathways indicated that MPs disrupted energy synthesis by causing intestinal blockage and oxidative stress in T. chinensis, leading to energy depletion and impaired bioturbation activity. The impairment further resulted in enhanced sedimentary P immobilization. For larval treatments, the internal-P loadings were respectively 11.4%, 8.6%, and 9.0% higher in the PLA, PET, and BPET groups compared to the non-MP control. Furthermore, the influence of bioturbation on P profiles was MP-type dependent. Both BPET and PLA treatments displayed more obvious impacts on P profiles compared to PET due to the changes in MP bioavailability or sediment microenvironment. This study connects individual physiological responses to broader ecosystem services, showing that MPs alter P biogeochemical processes by disrupting the bioturbation activities of chironomid larvae.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on microplastic occurrence in aquatic environments: A three-year study in Taihu Lake Basin, China.

The impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on microplastic (MP) occurrence in aquatic environments deserves an in-depth study. In this study, the occurrence of MPs and environmental flux of plastics before (2019) and during (2020 and 2021) the pandemic were comparatively investigated in various aquatic compartments in the Taihu Lake Basin in China. The field-based investigations from 2019 to 2021 for Taihu Lake have shown that, at the onset of the outbreak, the MP abundance declined at a rate of 62.3 %, but gradually recovered to the pre-pandemic level. However, the amount of plastics being released into aquatic environments showed a declining trend in 2020 and 2021 compared to those in 2019, with decrease rates of 13.7 % and 15.8 %, respectively. Characterization analysis of MP particles and source apportionment framework implied that while the contributions of tire abrasion and domestic waste to MP occurrence were depleted owing to the reduction in human activity during the pandemic, weathering and fragmentation of retained plastics contributed to the recovery of stored MPs. This study provides insights into the anthropogenic influences on MP occurrence, and supports policymakers in managing and controlling plastic contamination in large freshwater systems in the "new normal" phase.

Dietary arginine supplementation enhances immune responses to inactivated Pasteurella multocida vaccination in mice.

The present study was conducted to determine the adjuvant effect of arginine in mice immunised with inactivated vaccine. Mice immunised with an inactivated Pasteurella multocida vaccine and fed diets supplemented with 0·2 % (vaccine-0·2 %) or 0·5 % (vaccine-0·5 %) arginine exhibited 100 % protection from a challenge with P. multocida serotype A (CQ2) at a dose of 4·4 × 105 colony-forming units (2LD50; median lethal dose), when compared with mice receiving no arginine supplementation. Meanwhile, antibody titres in the vaccine-0·2 % arginine group were much higher than those in the vaccine-oil adjuvant group before challenge and at 36 h post-infection. Furthermore, immunisation with the inactivated vaccine and dietary supplementation with 0·2 % arginine increased serum levels of glutathione peroxidase, in comparison with immunisation with the inactivated vaccine and an oil adjuvant. Collectively, dietary arginine supplementation confers an immunostimulatory effect in mice immunised with the inactivated P. multocida vaccine. The present results also indicate that optimal supplemental doses of arginine are 0·2-0·5 % in the mouse model.

Atmospheric microfibers dominated by natural and regenerated cellulosic fibers: Explanations from the textile engineering perspective.

A large number of synthetic fibers found in the environment have aroused public conern about microfiber pollution. However, more studies have found that the number of natural fibers and regenerated cellulose fibers in the environment is much higher than that of synthetic fibers. If humans are exposed to excessive amounts of these two types of fibers for a long time, they may also suffer physiological injury. However, this is often ignored by previous research on microfiber pollution. Recently, some publications attributed the dominating amounts of natural fiber and regenerated cellulosic fibers in the environment to the past yield advantage and low durability compared to synthetic fibers. This correspondence supports that view and further discusses the main reasons for the domination of natural and regenerated cellulosic fibers: their physicochemical properties, material sources, manufacturing processes (staple yarn and filament) and applications. This correspondence aims to arouse attention to the potential impact of natural fibers and regenerated cellulose fibers.

Effects of plastisphere on phosphorus availability in freshwater system: Critical roles of polymer type and colonizing habitat.

Biofilm covered microplastics (BMPs) can act as vectors for the transport of exogenous microbial groups to aquatic ecosystem. However, a consensus regarding the formation and development of BMPs and their effect on phosphorus (P) availability has not been reached. Herein, plastic particles made of fuel-based (PET) and biobased polymers (PLA) were deployed in water and hyporheic zones of an urban river for biofilm colonization. Then, BMPs were transferred to lab incubation to study their effects on the P availability. The results showed that different microplastic biofilms had various bacteria and phytoplankton compositions. Additionally, BMPs induced a shift in the microbial co-occurrence patterns co-differentiated by polymer type and colonizing habitats. Network analyses revealed that the structure of PLA BMPs was more robust, while PET colonized in the hyporheic zone reduced network complexity with looser connections between species, and stronger negatively correlated interactions. However, PET formed denser biofilms by the excretion of extracellular polymeric substances from microalgae, which contributed to the better capacity of P utilization. PET colonized in the water/hyporheic zone significantly decreased soluble reactive phosphate by 42.5 % and 30.8 %, respectively. The abovementioned results indicated that BMPs have the potential to disrupt nutrient availability. This study broadens our perspectives for the ecological effects of BMPs in the aquatic environment.

Aging of poly (lactic acid)/poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) blends under different conditions: Environmental concerns on biodegradable plastic.

Biodegradable plastics (BPs) have been used to replace conventional plastics owing to their environmental harmless and ease of degradation. However, the aging processes of BPs in different environments remain unclear. In this study, we used poly (lactic acid)/poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PLA/PBAT) films as model BPs and investigated the 30-d aging behavior of PLA/PBAT films under four conditions (i.e., air without ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, water without UV irradiation, air with UV irradiation, and water with UV irradiation). Our results showed that the aging of PLA/PBAT films was insignificant in all groups except the water with UV irradiation group. In the physical characterization, the PLA/PBAT films exhibited layered structures in water with UV irradiation condition, and the submicron- and nano-sized particles adhered to the bigger-sized fragments. In the chemical characterization, the carbonyl index (CI) of PLA/PBAT films in water with UV irradiation condition decreased from 3.84 to 1.36, and the oxygen-to-carbon (O/C) ratio reached a maximum of 1.78 at 20 d and declined to 0.49 at 30 d, indicating that the oxygen-containing functional groups underwent bond breaking and showed a rapid aging process. This is mainly attributed to the combined effect of hydrolysis and photolysis increases the contact area of PLA/PBAT films and accelerates the aging process. Furthermore, based on two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) analysis, we suggest that free radicals generated in water with UV irradiation conditions also accelerate the aging process of PLA/PBAT films. This study explored the aging processes of PLA/PBAT films under different conditions, which could aid in clarifying the environmental behavior and provide further information to assess the potential risks of BPs.

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products across Different Water Bodies in Taihu Lake Basin, China: Occurrence, Source, and Flux.

Although pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) have attracted great attentions, their occurrence characteristics across different water bodies at a basin scale remain poorly understood. To grasp a more comprehensive understanding of PPCP pollution from the perspective of the whole basin, the occurrence, spatial and seasonal variation, source, and flux of thirteen PPCPs across the different environmental compartments of the northern Taihu Lake Basin (TLB) were studied. The results showed that the non-therapeutic pharmaceuticals caffeine (CFI) and n, n-diethyl-m-toluamide (DEET) were the main components across the different environmental compartments. The total concentrations of detected PPCPs ranged from 0.2 to 2437.9 ng/L. Higher concentrations of PPCPs were observed in spring and autumn, which were mainly attributed to seasonal differences in PPCP consumption. Generally, pollution level was higher in industry and agriculture area and in the inner bay and southwest of Taihu Lake. Source apportionment indicated that untreated water was the main source of PPCPs in river waters of the northern TLB. Flux estimation showed that the mean annual flux of PPCPs from northern TLB to Taihu Lake in 2021 was 1.6 t/a, which was higher in comparison with other areas. Overall, the resulting data will be useful to enrich the research of PPCPs in freshwater for environmental investigations.

Sorption of selected pharmaceutical compounds on polyethylene microplastics: Roles of pH, aging, and competitive sorption.

Microplastics (MPs) as the carrier of pharmaceuticals in aquatic environments have been concerned in recent years. However, the influences of environmental factors on the sorption of pharmaceuticals onto MPs, particularly the effect of the simultaneous sorption by MPs of different pharmaceuticals in multi-solute systems are still unclear. This study investigated the influences of pH, aging of MPs, and competition of pharmaceuticals on the sorptions of sulfamethoxazole (SMX), propranolol (PRP), and sertraline (SER) onto polyethylene MPs. In the 96 h pH-dependent experiments, the sorptions of the three pharmaceuticals were mainly driven by hydrophobic interaction. Besides, the ionization states of the three pharmaceuticals varied with the pH ranging from 2.00 to 12.00, and electrostatic interaction would affect the sorption affinities of the pharmaceuticals in different ionization states. In the aged MPs experiments, the MPs aged by UV irradiation showed a stronger sorption capacity than the pristine ones. Across the MPs under different UV irradiation durations, the 6 d aged MPs showed the highest sorption percentages of 23.0% and 17.6% for SER and PRP, respectively; for SMX, the highest sorption percentage of 5.4% was recorded with the 10 d aged MPs. In the multi-solute systems, the sorption kinetics of the three pharmaceuticals fit well with the pseudo-second-order model. The sorption quantities of the three pharmaceuticals onto MPs followed the order of SER cations (18.70 µg g-1) > SMX anions (7.83 µg g-1) > PRP cations (3.80 µg g-1) at pH 7.00. The good fitting of the Freundlich model suggested a multilayer sorption of the three pharmaceuticals onto MPs. The SER with higher hydrophobicity would preferentially be adsorbed onto MPs and influenced the subsequently sorption processes of the other pharmaceuticals via electrostatic interactions. This may change the environmental fate of the contaminants, which should be carefully considered in future work.

A novel acidophilic, thermophilic iron and sulfur-oxidizing archaeon isolated from a hot spring of tengchong, yunnan, China.

A novel thermoacidophilic iron and sulfur-oxidizing archaeon, strain YN25, was isolated from an in situ enriched acid hot spring sample collected in Yunnan, China. Cells were irregular cocci, about 0.9-1.02 µm × 1.0-1.31 µm in the medium containing elemental sulfur and 1.5-2.22 µm × 1.8-2.54 µm in ferrous sulfate medium. The ranges of growth and pH were 50-85 (optimum 65) and pH 1.0-6.0 (optimum 1.5-2.5). The acidophile was able to grow heterotrophically on several organic substrates, including various monosaccharides, alcohols and amino acids, though the growth on single substrate required yeast extract as growth factor. Growth occurred under aerobic conditions or via anaerobic respiration using elemental sulfur as terminal electron acceptor. Results of morphology, physiology, fatty acid analysis and analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence indicated that the strain YN25 should be grouped in the species Acidianus manzaensis. Bioleaching experiments indicated that this strain had excellent leaching capacity, with a copper yielding ratio up to 79.16% in 24 d. The type strain YN25 was deposited in China Center for Type Culture Collection (=CCTCCZNDX0050).

[Spatiotemporal Distributions and Ecological Risk Assessments of Typical Antibiotics in Surface Water of Taihu Lake].

Using solid phase extraction-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, antibiotics belonging to four classes (i.e. sulfonamides, quinolones, tetracycline, and macrolides) in the surface water of Taihu Lake were monitored monthly for a year. Moreover, the potential ecological risks of antibiotics in Taihu Lake were assessed. During the one-year monitoring, all the eighteen target antibiotics were detected to some extent in the surface water. The detection rates of five sulfonamides (sulfamethoxazole, sulfathiazole, sulfadiazine, sulfadimethazine, and trimethoprim) were higher than 50%. The concentrations of quinolones in the surface water were relatively higher. The average and medium concentrations of ciprofloxacin were 13.0 ng·L-1 and 13.5 ng·L-1, respectively. There were significant differences in the antibiotic pollution during the different months, with the average concentrations of the target antibiotics ranging from 7.3 to 33.5 ng·L-1. The concentration levels were lower from June to October, while higher concentrations were observed from February to May and in November. In the surface water of Taihu Lake, the spatial variations of antibiotics among the 20 sampling sites were not significant, with the average concentrations ranging from 13.0 to 14.3 ng·L-1. During the one-year monitoring, the rates of medium and high risks that the antibiotics posed to algae reached 57.5%. The ecological risks of antibiotics were more severe in April and November, and the quinolones may be the dominant risk factor. This issue should be carefully considered by management authorities.