Application of non-lethal bioSPME-LC-MS/MS for the detection of human pharmaceuticals in soft corals: A survey at the North Nilandhe atoll (Maldives).

At present the information regarding the occurrence of human pharmaceuticals (PhaCs) in coral reefs and their potential impacts on the associated fauna is limited. To optimize the collection of data in these delicate environments, we employed a solid-phase microextraction (bioSPME) and liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) procedure that enabled in vivo determinations in soft corals. Specifically, we researched the antibiotics Ofloxacin Sulfamethoxazole and Clarithromycin, the anti-inflammatory Diclofenac Propyphenazone Ketoprofen and Amisulpride, the neuroactive compounds Gabapentin-lactam, the beta-blocker Metoprolol and the antiepileptic Carbamazepine. Reproducibility was between 2.1% and 9.9% and method detection limits LODs) were between 0.2 and 1.6 ng/g and LOQs between 0.8 and 5.4 mg/g. The method was then applied to establish a baseline for the occurrence of these compounds in the Maldivian archipelago. Colonies of Sarcophyton sp. and Sinularia sp. were sampled along an inner-outer reef transect. Five of the ten targeted PhaCs were identified, and 40% of the surveyed coral colonies showed the occurrence of at least one of the selected compounds. The highest concentrations were found inside the atoll rim. Oxoflacin (9.5 ± 3.9 ng/g) and Ketoprofen (4.5 ± 2.3 ng/g) were the compounds with the highest average concentrations. Outside the atoll rim, only one sample showed contamination levels above the detection limit. No significant differences were highlighted among the two surveyed soft coral species, both in terms of average concentrations and bioconcentration factors (BCFs).

Production of microalgal-based carbon encapsulated iron nanoparticles (ME-nFe) to remove heavy metals in wastewater.

The integration of microalgae-bacteria consortia within existing wastewater treatment plants as alternative biological treatment could be an interesting option to improve the sustainability of these facilities. However, the fate of the produced biomass is decisive to make that option economically attractive. The present study aimed to valorize the microalgae grown at a pilot scale and used for the treatment of the centrate from municipal sewage sludge, producing microalgal-based iron nanoparticles (ME-nFe), by hydrothermal carbonization. The final product had high carbon content, strong sorbent power, and reducing properties, due to the presence of zerovalent iron. Different synthesis conditions were tested, comparing iron (III) nitrate nonahydrate (Fe (NO3)3·9H2O) and ammonium iron (III) sulfate dodecahydrate (NH4 Fe (SO4)2·12 H2O) as iron sources, four different Fe/C molar ratios (0.02, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2), and three process temperatures (180, 200, 225 °C). Based on the characterization of all the prototypes, the best one (having a specific area of 110 m2g-1) was chosen and tested for the removal of selected heavy metals by Jar tests. The removal of copper, zinc, cadmium, and nickel from the treated effluent from the wastewater treatment plant was 99.6%, 97.8%, 96.4%, and 80.3%, respectively, also for very low starting concentrations (1 mg L-1). The removal of total chromium, on the contrary, was only 12.4%. Thanks to the magnetic properties, the same batch of ME-nFe was recovered and used effectively for three consecutive Jar tests.

Strategic complexity and cognitive skills affect brain response in interactive decision-making.

Deciding the best action in social settings requires decision-makers to consider their and others' preferences, since the outcome depends on the actions of both. Numerous empirical investigations have demonstrated variability of behavior across individuals in strategic situations. While prosocial, moral, and emotional factors have been intensively investigated to explain this diversity, neuro-cognitive determinants of strategic decision-making and their relation with intelligence remain mostly unknown. This study presents a new model of the process of strategic decision-making in repeated interactions, first providing a precise measure of the environment's complexity, and then analyzing how this complexity affects subjects' performance and neural response. The results confirm the theoretical predictions of the model. The frequency of deviations from optimal behavior is explained by a combination of higher complexity of the strategic environment and cognitive skills of the individuals. Brain response correlates with strategic complexity, but only in the subgroups with higher cognitive skills. Furthermore, neural effects were only observed in a fronto-parietal network typically involved in single-agent tasks (the Multiple Demand Network), thus suggesting that neural processes dealing with cognitively demanding individual tasks also have a central role in interactive decision-making. Our findings contribute to understanding how cognitive factors shape strategic decision-making and may provide the neural pathway of the reported association between strategic sophistication and fluid intelligence.

Outdoor pilot-scale raceway as a microalgae-bacteria sidestream treatment in a WWTP.

This study aims at demonstrating the feasibility of using microalgae-bacteria consortia for the treatment of the sidestream flow of the supernatant from blackwater dewatering (centrate) in an urban wastewater treatment plant in Northern Italy. A 1200 L raceway reactor was used for the outdoor cultivation of a diverse community of Chlorella spp., Scenedesmus spp. and Chlamydomonas spp. in continuous operation mode with 10 days hydraulic retention time. During the trial, an average daily areal productivity of 5.5 ± 7.4 g TSS m-2 day-1 was achieved while average nutrient removal efficiencies were 86% ± 7% and 71% ± 10% for NH4-N and PO4-P, respectively. The microalgal nitrogen assimilation accounted for 10% of the nitrogen in the centrate while 34% was oxidized to nitrite and nitrate. The oxygen produced by microalgae fully covert the oxygen demand for nitrification. This suggests that the proposed process would reduce the aeration demand for nitrification in the water line of the plant, while producing algal biomass to be further valorized for energy or material recovery.

Representation effects in the centipede game.

We explore the effects on strategic behavior of alternative representations of a centipede game that differ in terms of complexity. In a laboratory experiment, we manipulate the way in which payoffs are presented to subjects in two different ways. In both cases, information is made less accessible relative to the standard representation of the game. Results show that these manipulations shift the distribution of take nodes further away from the equilibrium prediction. The evidence is consistent with the view that failures of game-form recognition and the resulting limits to strategic reasoning are crucial for explaining non-equilibrium behavior in the centipede game.

Assessing sarcopenia with vastus lateralis muscle ultrasound: an operative protocol.

BACKGROUND: Muscle ultrasound (MUS) has so far not been implemented for sarcopenia assessment in clinical geriatric practice due to allegedly low reproducibility of results in the absence of standardization of procedures. However, rigorous and standardized application of this technique yields highly reproducible results. Its application, especially if integrated with clinical evaluation and comprehensive geriatric assessment, proofs very useful for rapidly obtaining information on muscle mass and architecture. OBJECTIVE: Here, we present a standardized protocol for performing right vastus lateralis (RVL) MUS and measuring parameters of muscle size and architecture. METHODS: RVL muscle thickness (MT), fascicle length (FL), pennation angle (PA), echo-intensity (EI) and cross-sectional area (CSA) can be assessed with this protocol. A portable instrument equipped with a 5-cm long 3-11 mHz linear probe should be used with both B-mode real-time and extended-field-of-view (EFOV) techniques. Longitudinal B-mode and transverse EFOV images should be acquired during each exam, and analyzed with NIH-ImageJ software. CONCLUSIONS: This operative protocol represents a good compromise between the feasibility of MUS in clinical settings and the need of obtaining precise measurements of muscle parameters. Future studies should verify the reproducibility of the proposed technique, and its correlation with appendicular lean mass and parameters of muscle function.

SHBG and endothelial function in older subjects.

BACKGROUND: Endothelial dysfunction is predictor of cardiovascular diseases that have different prevalence in men and women before menopause. Sex hormones and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), novel risk factors for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases even in older individuals, might explain this difference. However, the relationship between these hormones and endothelial function has never been addressed in the elderly. METHODS AND RESULTS: 430 men and,424 women 70 years older of Prospective Study of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors study, with complete data on SHBG, testosterone(T), estradiol(E2), endothelium-independent vasodilation (EIDV), endothelium-dependent vasodilation(EDV), flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) and the pulse wave analysis (reflection index, RI) were evaluated. Multivariate regression analysis adjusted for confounders was used to assess the relationship between T, E2, SHBG and endothelial function. In men we found a positive relationship between SHBG and EDV (ß ± SE 3.60 ± 0.83, p<0.0001), EIDV (2.42 ± 0.58, p<0.0001) but not with FMD. The relationship between SHBG and EDV and EIDV was maintained after adjustment for sex (1.64 ± 0.47, p<0.001 and 1.79 ± 0.35, p<0.0006, respectively). After adjustment for confounders, the relationship between SHBG and EDV and EIDV was still statistically significant (2.63 ± 0.90 and 1.86 ± 0.63, p = 0.004 for both). In women SHBG and EIDV were positively associated (1.58 ± 0.46; p = 0.0007), and this relationship was independent of sex (1.79 ± 0.35; p<0.001). No significant interaction SHBG * SEX was found for EIDV (p = 0.72). In a combined analysis in two sexes, SHBG and EIDV were positively associated (1.13 ± 0.45; p = 0.01). SHBG was not associated with EDV, FMD and RI. No significant relationship was found between T or E2 and EDV, EIDV, FMD or RI in both sexes. CONCLUSIONS: In older men SHBG, but not T and E2, is positively and independently associated with EDV in resistance arteries. In both sexes, SHBG was positively and independently associated with EIDV.