FAIR environmental and health registry (FAIREHR)- supporting the science to policy interface and life science research, development and innovation.

The environmental impact on health is an inevitable by-product of human activity. Environmental health sciences is a multidisciplinary field addressing complex issues on how people are exposed to hazardous chemicals that can potentially affect adversely the health of present and future generations. Exposure sciences and environmental epidemiology are becoming increasingly data-driven and their efficiency and effectiveness can significantly improve by implementing the FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable) principles for scientific data management and stewardship. This will enable data integration, interoperability and (re)use while also facilitating the use of new and powerful analytical tools such as artificial intelligence and machine learning in the benefit of public health policy, and research, development and innovation (RDI). Early research planning is critical to ensuring data is FAIR at the outset. This entails a well-informed and planned strategy concerning the identification of appropriate data and metadata to be gathered, along with established procedures for their collection, documentation, and management. Furthermore, suitable approaches must be implemented to evaluate and ensure the quality of the data. Therefore, the 'Europe Regional Chapter of the International Society of Exposure Science' (ISES Europe) human biomonitoring working group (ISES Europe HBM WG) proposes the development of a FAIR Environment and health registry (FAIREHR) (hereafter FAIREHR). FAIR Environment and health registry offers preregistration of studies on exposure sciences and environmental epidemiology using HBM (as a starting point) across all areas of environmental and occupational health globally. The registry is proposed to receive a dedicated web-based interface, to be electronically searchable and to be available to all relevant data providers, users and stakeholders. Planned Human biomonitoring studies would ideally be registered before formal recruitment of study participants. The resulting FAIREHR would contain public records of metadata such as study design, data management, an audit trail of major changes to planned methods, details of when the study will be completed, and links to resulting publications and data repositories when provided by the authors. The FAIREHR would function as an integrated platform designed to cater to the needs of scientists, companies, publishers, and policymakers by providing user-friendly features. The implementation of FAIREHR is expected to yield significant benefits in terms of enabling more effective utilization of human biomonitoring (HBM) data.

Fingerprinting Chemical Markers in the Mediterranean Orange Blossom Honey: UHPLC-HRMS Metabolomics Study Integrating Melissopalynological Analysis, GC-MS and HPLC-PDA-ESI/MS.

(1) Background: Citrus honey constitutes a unique monofloral honey characterized by a distinctive aroma and unique taste. The non-targeted chemical analysis can provide pivotal information on chemical markers that differentiate honey based on its geographical and botanical origin. (2) Methods: Within the PRIMA project "PLANT-B", a metabolomics workflow was established to unveil potential chemical markers of orange blossom honey produced in case study areas of Egypt, Italy, and Greece. In some of these areas, aromatic medicinal plants were cultivated to enhance biodiversity and attract pollinators. The non-targeted chemical analysis and metabolomics were conducted using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS). (3) Results: Forty compounds were disclosed as potential chemical markers, enabling the differentiation of the three orange blossom honeys according to geographical origin. Italian honey showed a preponderance of flavonoids, while in Greek honey, terpenoids and iridoids were more abundant than flavonoids, except for hesperidin. In Egyptian honey, suberic acid and a fatty acid ester derivative emerged as chemical markers. New, for honey, furan derivatives were identified using GC-MS in Greek samples. (4) Conclusions: The application of UHPLC-HRMS metabolomics combined with an elaborate melissopalynological analysis managed to unveil several potential markers of Mediterranean citrus honey potentially associated with citrus crop varieties and the local indigenous flora.

Occurrence and human health risk assessment of mineral elements and pesticides residues in bee pollen.

Bee pollen contains a diversity of bioactive components. Nevertheless, since pollen is retrieved from a variety of plants, including the cultivated ones which are subjected to agrochemical treatments, its contamination is unavoidable. In this context, 45 samples of pollen were analysed with optimized analytical methods for trace and macro elements (ICP-MS), pesticides and metabolites residues (LC & GC-MS/MS) content. According to the results, potassium and iron were the most abundant in terms of concentration and frequency of detection, while the contribution of the most hazardous elements, such as lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury, to the total concentration of trace elements was lower than 1%. For pesticides, coumaphos was the most frequently detected in the examined samples (22%), followed by propargite, azoxystrobin, dimethoate and cypermethrin. Non-carcinogenic health risk assessment demonstrated in the majority of cases negligible risk for adults and children. On the contrary, carcinogenic risk assessment considering a worst case scenario disclosed nickel and in less extent chromium and arsenic, as risk drivers, exhibiting in several samples carcinogenic risk values for adults above the safety threshold. Yet, regarding that both adults and children unlikely will daily consume such pollen quantities, especially on a long-term basis, an overestimation of risk should be appraised.

Detection, Isolation, and 1H NMR Quantitation of the Nitrile Glycoside Sarmentosin from a Bryophyllum pinnatum Hydro-Ethanolic Extract.

Bryophyllum pinnatum (Lam) Pers. (Crassulaceae) is widely used in folk medicine as leaf juice, aqueous, or hydro-ethanolic extracts. It is also listed as a medicinal plant in several countries such as France and Brazil. The main reported constituents are flavone glycosides, especially those with the rare 3-O-α-l-arabinopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-α-l-rhamnopyranoside moiety. Despite several phytochemical screenings indicating the presence of cyanide derivatives or alkaloids, there are no reports of nitrogenous metabolite characterization from this plant species. Nevertheless, the occurrence and the type of such compounds are of particular interest, as they may account for some of the numerous biological activities and ethnomedicinal uses described for B. pinnatum and could be regarded as chemical/taxonomic markers. Consequently, a hydro-ethanolic extract of B. pinnatum was investigated by using UHPLC-HRMS/MS and the nitrile glucoside sarmentosin was detected for the first time within the genus Bryophyllum/Kalanchoe. Considering the wide use of B. pinnatum and its closely related species for health purposes, the target metabolite was isolated by a combination of centrifugal partition chromatography in elution/extrusion mode and MPLC in order to confirm its structure. A linear, selective, precise, fast, and reliable 1H NMR quantitation method was then developed and validated and may become a tool for easy quality assessment of the plant species. The amount of sarmentosin was determined as 2.07% of the examined sample. Sarmentosin was also detected in Kalanchoe laciniata, confirming the occurrence of this compound within the genus.

A systems-based approach to the environmental risk assessment of multiple stressors in honey bees.

The European Parliament requested EFSA to develop a holistic risk assessment of multiple stressors in honey bees. To this end, a systems-based approach that is composed of two core components: a monitoring system and a modelling system are put forward with honey bees taken as a showcase. Key developments in the current scientific opinion (including systematic data collection from sentinel beehives and an agent-based simulation) have the potential to substantially contribute to future development of environmental risk assessments of multiple stressors at larger spatial and temporal scales. For the monitoring, sentinel hives would be placed across representative climatic zones and landscapes in the EU and connected to a platform for data storage and analysis. Data on bee health status, chemical residues and the immediate or broader landscape around the hives would be collected in a harmonised and standardised manner, and would be used to inform stakeholders, and the modelling system, ApisRAM, which simulates as accurately as possible a honey bee colony. ApisRAM would be calibrated and continuously updated with incoming monitoring data and emerging scientific knowledge from research. It will be a supportive tool for beekeeping, farming, research, risk assessment and risk management, and it will benefit the wider society. A societal outlook on the proposed approach is included and this was conducted with targeted social science research with 64 beekeepers from eight EU Member States and with members of the EU Bee Partnership. Gaps and opportunities are identified to further implement the approach. Conclusions and recommendations are made on a way forward, both for the application of the approach and its use in a broader context.

Nematicidal Activity of Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) Assisted by Phytochemical Analysis.

To date, there has been great demand for ecofriendly nematicides with beneficial properties to the nematode hosting plants. Great efforts are made towards the chemical characterization of botanical extracts exhibiting nematicidal activity against Meloidogyne spp., but only a small percentage of these data are actually used by the chemical industry in order to develop new formulates. On the other hand, the ready to use farmer produced water extracts based on edible plants could be a sustainable and economic solution for low income countries. Herein, we evaluate the nematicidal potential of Stevia rebaudiana grown in Greece against Meloidogyne incognita and Meloidogyne javanica, two most notorious phytoparasitic nematode species causing great losses in tomato cultivation worldwide. In an effort to recycle the plant's remnants, after leaves selection for commercial use, we use both leaves and wooden stems to test for activity. In vitro tests demonstrate significant paralysis activity of both plant parts' water extracts against the second-stage juvenile (J2) of the parasites; while, in vivo bioassays demonstrated the substantial efficacy of leaves' powder (95% at 1 g kg-1) followed by stems. Interestingly, the incorporation of up to 50 g powder/kg of soil is not phytotoxic, which demonstrates the ability to elevate the applied concentration of the nematicidal stevia powder under high inoculum level. Last but not least, the chemical composition analyses using cutting edge analytical methodologies, demonstrated amongst components molecules of already proven nematicidal activity, was exemplified by several flavonoids and essential oil components. Interestingly, and to our knowledge, for the flavonoids, morin and robinin, the anthocyanidin, keracyanin, and a napthalen-2-ol derivative is their first report in Stevia species.

Comparative UHPLC-HRMS Profiling, Toxicological Assessment, and Protection Against H2O2-Induced Genotoxicity of Different Parts of Opuntia ficus indica.

Opuntia ficus indica has been an important dietary source and a traditionally used medicinal plant. Given the promising health-promoting properties of this plant, a comparative toxicological assessment and antioxidant bioevaluation of extracts from different parts of the plant were carried out in relation to their chemical profile. Toxicity was examined at multiple endpoints using the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT), Comet and the γH2AX In-Cell Western Assay, while hyphenated ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS) analysis was carried out to identify main constituents. None of the extracts showed any cytotoxic and genotoxic effect on cell lines used, apart from the flower extract in HepG2 cells at the highest concentration tested (2.5 mg/mL). Both fruit flesh and seed extracts demonstrated a prominent protective effect against H2O2-induced genotoxicity in almost all concentrations tested, while extracts originated from flowers and cladodes were effective only at the low non-cytotoxic (0.312 and 0.625 mg/mL) and high (1.25 and 2.5 mg/mL) concentrations, respectively. In total, 2 phenolic acids, 12 flavonoids, along with 3 feruloyl derivatives and the plant pigment indicaxanthin, were tentatively identified by UHPLC-HRMS analysis. Phenolic acids (compounds 1 and 2) were mainly distributed in cladodes (64.6%), while flavonoids (3-14) in the flowers (81.8%). Overall, the highest amount of total flavonoids (22.76 ± 0.015 mg of quercetin equivalent [QE]/g) and total phenolics (62.80 ± 0.009 mg gallic acid equivalents [GAE]/g) was found in the flower extract. Flavonoid glycosides have not been detected in the seeds and the flesh, while the fruit seed extract contained mainly feruloyl derivatives. Our data provide convincing evidences for the lack of cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of O. ficus indica aqueous extracts and, in parallel, support the potential for further exploitation of this plant in the food supplement or functional food sector.

Pesticide residues in honeybees, honey and bee pollen by LC-MS/MS screening: reported death incidents in honeybees.

The aim of this study was to investigate reported cases of honeybee death incidents with regard to the potential interrelation to the exposure to pesticides. Thus honeybee, bee pollen and honey samples from different areas of Greece were analyzed for the presence of pesticide residues. In this context an LC-ESI-MS/MS multiresidue method of total 115 analytes of different chemical classes such as neonicotinoids, organophosphates, triazoles, carbamates, dicarboximides and dinitroanilines in honeybee bodies, honey and bee pollen was developed and validated. The method presents good linearity over the ranges assayed with correlation coefficient values r(2)≥0.99, recoveries ranging for all matrices from 59 to 117% and precision (RSD%) values ranging from 4 to 27%. LOD and LOQ values ranged - for honeybees, honey and bee pollen - from 0.03 to 23.3 ng/g matrix weight and 0.1 up to 78 ng/g matrix weight, respectively. Therefore this method is sufficient to act as a monitoring tool for the determination of pesticide residues in cases of suspected honeybee poisoning incidents. From the analysis of the samples the presence of 14 active substances was observed in all matrices with concentrations ranging for honeybees from 0.3 to 81.5 ng/g, for bee pollen from 6.1 to 1273 ng/g and for honey one sample was positive to carbendazim at 1.6 ng/g. The latter confirmed the presence of such type of compounds in honeybee body and apicultural products.