Tributary inflows enhance the microplastic load in the estuary: A case from the Qiantang River.

Microplastics (MPs) in the surface water of the Qiantang River and its tributaries were investigated in this study, to evaluate the contribution of riverine discharge on emerging pollution load in the Hangzhou Bay. The abundance of MPs (mean 1183 ± 269 particles/m3) showed spatially and temporally heterogeneous in the surface water. Polyamide, polyester, and polyethylene teraphalate were the major components, accounting for 77.4% of all polymer types. Fiber was the most common shape, indicating the potential anthropogenic sources of MPs. The MPs flux from the Qiantang River to the Hangzhou Bay was estimated to be 2831 tons/year, implying the importance of riverine discharge in an estuarine bay. The inputs from the complicated tributaries system led to a 20-fold increase of MPs flux, and would significantly improve their budget of downstream and estuary, so we suggested the control and management on plastic pollution should be strengthened in all aspects.

Effect of imidazolium-based ionic liquids with varying carbon chain lengths on Arabidopsis thaliana: Response of growth and photosynthetic fluorescence parameters.

As green and novel solvents, ionic liquids (ILs) are popular in many industries, which may threaten ecosystems. The effects of three imidazolium-based ILs with different alkyl chain lengths, including 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C8mim]Cl), 1-decyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C10mim]Cl), and 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C12mim]Cl) on growth and photosystem of Arabidopsis thaliana were investigated. Root length, fresh weight, cell membrane permeability, and chlorophyll content of whole plant were significantly affected by ILs. Vein clearing, leaf chlorosis, and browning on the A. thaliana leaf abaxial surface occurred, with a dose-response relationship. The effect of ILs on whole plant increased with alkyl chain lengths. Chlorophyll fluorescence parameters of photosynthetic system II (PSII) were all affected in [C8mim]Cl and [C10mim]Cl treatments, electron-transfer was blocked, and photochemical energy conversion was damaged. There were no significant changes in chlorophyll fluorescence of newly-growing leaves in [C12mim]Cl treatment, but has severe effect on aged leaves. The number and size of starch granules and osmiophilic globules increased, plasmolysis and the chloroplast swelling occurred in [C8mim]Cl, [C10mim]Cl treatments and on aged leaves in [C12mim]Cl treatment, but no significant damages occurred on newly-growing leaves of [C12mim]Cl treatment, perhaps due to plant self-protection of plant. The results indicating the appropriate use of ILs is needed.

Anti-Proliferation Effect of Theasaponin E1 on the ALDH-Positive Ovarian Cancer Stem-Like Cells.

Ovarian cancer has the highest mortality rate of all gynecological malignancies and the five-year death rate of patients has remained high in the past five decades. Recently, with the rise of cancer stem cells (CSCs) theory, an increasing amount of research has suggested that CSCs give rise to tumor recurrence and metastasis. Theasaponin E1 (TSE1), which was isolated from green tea (Camellia sinensis) seeds, has been proposed to be an effective compound for tumor treatment. However, studies on whether TSE1 takes effect through CSCs have rarely been reported. In this paper, ALDH-positive (ALDH+) ovarian cancer stem-like cells from two platinum-resistant ovarian cancer cell lines A2780/CP70 and OVCAR-3 were used to study the anti-proliferation effect of TSE1 on CSCs. The ALDH+ cells showed significantly stronger sphere forming vitality and stronger cell migration capability. In addition, the stemness marker proteins CD44, Oct-4, Nanog, as well as Bcl-2 and MMP-9 expression levels of ALDH+ cells were upregulated compared with the original tumor cells, indicating that they have certain stem cell characteristics. At the same time, the results showed that TSE1 could inhibit cell proliferation and suspension sphere formation in ALDH+ cells. Our data suggests that TSE1 as a natural compound has the potential to reduce human ovarian cancer mortality. However, more research is still needed to find out the molecular mechanism of TSE1-mediated inhibition of ALDH+ cells and possible drug applications on the disease.

Electrochemical oxidation of quinoline aqueous solution on ß-PbO2 anode and the evolution of phytotoxicity on duckweed.

Electrochemical oxidation of quinoline on a ß-PbO2 electrode modified with fluoride resin and the comprehensive toxicity of intermediates formed during oxidation on duckweed were investigated in detail. The results showed that quinoline was initially hydroxylated at the C-2 and C-8 positions by hydroxyl radicals (·OH) electro-generated on a ß-PbO2 anode, yielding 2(1H)-quinolinone and 8-hydroxyquinoline, then undergoing ring cleavage to form pyridine, nicotinic acid, pyridine-2-carboxaldehyde and acetophenone, which were ultimately converted to biodegradable organic acids. NO3- was the final form of quinoline-N. The growth of duckweed exposed to the oxidized quinoline solution was gradually inhibited with the decrease in pH and the formation of intermediates. However, the growth inhibition of duckweed could be eliminated beyond 120 min of oxidation, indicating the comprehensive toxicity of the quinoline solution reduced when the amount of quinoline removed was above 80%. Additionally, the adjustment of the pH to 7.5 and the addition of nutrients to the treated quinoline solution before culturing duckweed could obviously alleviate the inhibition on duckweed. Thus, partial electrochemical degradation of quinoline offers a cost-effective and clean alternative for pretreatment of wastewater containing nitrogen-heterocyclic compounds before biological treatment. The duckweed test presents a simple method for assessing the comprehensive toxicity of intermediates.

[Effects of light quality on the growth characteristics and biochemical component of Chlorella pyrenoidosa].

Effect of light quality, including red light, blue light, white light, red and blue mixing light with ratios of 8: 1, 8:2 and 8 : 3, on the growth characteristics and biochenmical composition of Chlorella pyrenoidosa was investigated based on light emitting diode (LED). Results showed that Chlorella pyrenoidosa grew best under blue light, and the optical density, specific growth rate and biomass of Chlorella pyrenoidosa was about 2.4, 0.10 d(-1) and 0.64 g x L(-1), respectively, while the optical density of Chlorella pyrenoidosa was between 1.0 and 1.7, the specific growth rate was between 0.07-0.10 d(-1) and the biomass was between 0.27 and 0.38 g x L(-1) under other light quality after 30 days of cultivation. Under blue light, the optical density, specific growth rate and biomass of Chlorella pyrenoidosa was approximately 2.05 times, 1.33 times and 2.06 times higher than red light, respectively. Moreover, red and blue mixing light was conducive to the synthesis of chlorophyll a and ß-carotene of Chlorella pyrenoidosa, and blue light could promote the synthesis of chlorophyll b. Chlorophyll a and carotenoids content of Chlorella pyrenoidosa was 13.5 mg xg(-1) and 5.8 mg x g(-1) respectively under red and blue mixing light with a ratio of 8:1, while it was 8.4 mg x g(-1) and 3.6 mg x g(-1) respectively under blue light. Red and blue mixing light was more conducive to protein and total lipid content per dry cell of Chlorella pyrenoidosa. Protein and total lipid content was 489.3 mg x g(-1) and 311.2 mg x g(-1) under red and blue mixing light with a ratio of 8 : 3, while it was 400.9 mg x g(-1) and 231.9 mg x g(-1) respectively under blue light.

[Effects of applying tea seed meal and EDTA on the speciation transformation and phyto-availability of nickel and zinc in soil].

A pot experiment with sugarcane was conducted to study the effects of applying tea seed meal and EDTA on the speciation transformation and phyto-availability of nickel (Ni) and zinc (Zn) in soil. With the increasing application rate of tea seed meal, the biomass of sugarcane root, stem, and leaf increased gradually, but no significant difference was observed in the stem and leaf biomass between EDTA treatments and the control. Applying tea seed meal and EDTA increased the acid-soluble Ni and Zn contents in soil, and promoted the bioconcentration and translocation of Ni and Zn in sugarcane. Meanwhile, the strengthening effect increased gradually with the increasing application rate of tea seed meal. As compared with EDTA, tea seed meal was more efficient in improving the accumulation of Ni and Zn in sugarcane, and thus, made the sugarcane remove more Ni and Zn from soil. The Ni and Zn contents in sugarcane stem and leaf had significant positive correlations with the application rate of tea seed meal, while the Ni and Zn contents in sugarcane root were significantly negatively correlated with the application rate of tea seed meal.

[Study on the Chlorella pyrenoidosa cultivation technology based on the excess sludge utilization].

Microalgae cultivation based on the waste water or other reused waste can not only make rational use of the waste, but also provide cheap materials for microalgae production. In the present study, Chlorella pyrenoidosa was used to develop a new way for microalgae cultivation based on the mix culture media with different ratio of sludge extracts and SE (selenite enrichment). Results showed that after 14 d cultivation under the same cultivating condition, the absorbency of C. pyrenoidosa at 680 nm was 0. 858 and 0. 845, respectively, when the ratio between culture medium of SE and sludge extracts was 1:9 and 2:8, and the absorbency at 680 nm was 0.247 and 0.571, respectively, when the ratio between culture medium of SE and sludge extracts was 0:10 and 10:0. Our results also demonstrated that highest content of chlororphyll, beta-carotene and protein was achieved in C. pyrenoidosa cultivated in the mix medium between SE and sludge extracts with the ratio of 2: 8. Therefore, sludge extracts can be used as a good medium to cultivate C. pyrenoidosa, and the C. pyrenoidosa grew much better in this mix medium than in SE medium. In this study, the best condition for C. pyrenoidosa cultivation was achieved in the mix medium with 80% sludge extracts, and C. pyrenoidosa grew very well and the content of chlororphyll and protein was also high in the microalgae cell in this mixture medium.

Enhancing plant uptake of polychlorinated biphenyls and cadmium using tea saponin.

The potential of natural surfactant tea saponin to enhance uptake of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and cadmium (Cd) by Zea Mays L. and Saccharum officinarum L. was investigated. With addition of tea saponin at 0.01% in solution culture, the concentrations of PCB 14, PCB 18, PCB 77 and PCB 156 in root of corn seedling were 2.72, 2.68, 1.94 and 2.40 times as those of treatments without adding any surfactant, respectively. Application of tea saponin to the soil significantly elevated PCB 5 accumulation in shoots and roots (p<0.05) by sugarcanes. With addition of 0.3% tea saponin, Cd concentration was increased by 96.9% in roots, 156.8% in stems and 30.1% in leaves compared with the treatment without addition of surfactant in sugarcane grown in soil. Tea saponin had potential of assisting the uptake of PCBs and Cd by plants from water solution and soil.

Treatment of water-based printing ink wastewater by Fenton process combined with coagulation.

Attempts were made in this study to examine the efficiency of Fenton process combined with coagulation for treatment of water-based printing ink wastewater. Parameters affecting the Fenton process, such as pH, dosages of Fenton reagents and the settling time, were determined by using jar test experiments. 86.4% of color and 92.4% of chemical oxygen demand (COD) could be removed at pH 4, 50mg/l H(2)O(2), 25mg/l FeSO(4) and 30min settling time. The coagulation using polyaluminium chloride (PAC) and ferrous sulfate (FeSO(4)) was beneficial to improve the Fenton process treated effluent in reducing the flocs settling time, enhancing color and COD removal. The overall color, COD and suspended solids (SS) removal reached 100%, 93.4% and 87.2% under selected conditions, respectively. Thus this study might offer an effective way for wastewater treatment of water-based ink manufacturer and printing corporation.

Phytoremediation of ethion by water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) from water.

The potential of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) to remove a phosphorus pesticide ethion were investigated. The disappearance rate constants of ethion in culture solutions were 0.01059, 0.00930, 0.00294, and 0.00201 h-1 for the non-sterile planted, sterile planted, non-sterile unplanted, and sterile unplanted treatment, respectively, which were significantly different and implied that plant uptake and phytodegradation contributed 69% and that of microbial degradation took up 12% to the removal of the applied ethion. The accumulated ethion in live water hyacinth plant decreased by 55-91% in shoots and 74-81% in roots after the plant growing 1 week in ethion free culture solutions, suggesting that plant uptake and phytodegradation might be the dominant process for ethion removal by the plant. This plant might be utilized as an efficient, economical and ecological alternative to accelerate the removal and degradation of agro-industrial wastewater polluted with ethion.

Optimization of theaflavin biosynthesis from tea polyphenols using an immobilized enzyme system and response surface methodology.

Theaflavins were synthesized from tea polyphenols extracted from green tea using an immobilized polyphenol oxidase system. To optimize the production of theaflavins, response surface methodology was applied to determine the effects of five critical variables and their mutual interactions on theaflavin biosynthesis at five levels. A total of 52 individual experiments were performed and a statistical model predicted that the highest theaflavin concentration was 0.766 mg ml(-1) at optimized conditions. Using these optimal parameters under experimental conditions in three independent replicates, the average value of the biosynthesized theaflavin concentration reached 0.75 +/- 0.017 mg ml(-1) and matched the value predicted by the model.

[A review on phytoremediation of organic contaminants].

Plants can take up and accumulate most persistant chemicals such as PCBs and PAHs by roots. Some chemicals such as TNT, TCE, and most organic pesticides can be phytodegraded into polar metabolites, or assimilated to CO2 and water by some plants. On the other hand, more microorganisms in rhizosphere can enhance the degradation rate of organic contaminants in environment. The benefits and some issues on phytoremediation are also discussed.