Microplastics as an emerging menace to environment: Insights into their uptake, prevalence, fate, and sustainable solutions.

The inflated demand for plastic products has led to tremendous rise in plastic debris in different environmental matrices, thereby resulting in plastic pollution. This affects plants, animals, and even humans, as microplastics can enter the food chain and cause several health implications. Microplastics are the small plastic particles (size below 5 mm) that are largely debated nowadays owing to their environmental risk assessment. Their potential to interact with other toxic contaminants, their tendency to be ingested or taken up by living organisms and their longevity is a serious threat to our environment. However, despite wealth of recent information, still there is a gap, particularly in eco-toxicology studies, fate, prevalence and feasible solutions to cope up with the menace of microplastics pollution. This review unravels the environmental fate and behaviour of microplastics as well as their global distribution in the marine and terrestrial environment. Furthermore, we aim to contribute to the international debate on the microplastics global paradigm. We briefly suggest sustainable solutions and recommendations to achieve future research goals on microplastics. Our review reveals some of the newest biological (green algae and modified sponges) and physical (nano-particles and membrane treatment) remediation solutions to eradicate microplastics from different types of environment. This review presents a critical evaluation of the state of knowledge of micro-plastics and suggested some recommendations which can help in identifying some important key questions for future research.

Validation of a smartphone-based device to measure concentration, motility, and morphology in swine ejaculates.

Assessment of swine semen quality is important as it is used as an estimate of the fertility of an ejaculate. There are many methods to measure sperm morphology, concentration, and motility, however, some methods require expensive instrumentation or are not easy to use on-farm. A portable, low-cost, automated device could provide the potential to assess semen quality in field conditions. The objective of this study was to validate the use of Fertile-Eyez (FE), a smartphone-based device, to measure sperm concentration, total motility, and morphology in boar ejaculates. Semen from six sexually mature boars were collected and mixed to create a total of 18 unique semen samples for system evaluations. Each sample was then diluted to 1:4, 1:8, 1:10, and 1:16 (for concentration only) with Androhep Plus semen extender (n = 82 total). Sperm concentration was evaluated using FE and compared to results measured using a Nucleocounter and computer assisted sperm analysis (CASA: Ceros II, Hamilton Thorne). Sperm motility was evaluated using FE and CASA. Sperm morphological assessments were evaluated by a single technician manually counting abnormalities and compared to FE deep-learning technology. Data were analyzed using both descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, intra-assay coefficient of variance, and residual standard deviation [RSD]) and statistical tests (correlation analysis between devices and Bland-Altman methods). Concentration analysis was strongly correlated (n = 18; r > 0.967; P < 0.0001) among all devices and dilutions. Analysis of motility showed moderate correlation and was significant when all dilutions are analyzed together (n = 54; r = 0.558; P < 0.001). The regression analysis for motility also showed the RSD as 3.95% between FE and CASA indicating a tight fit between devices. This RSD indicates that FE can find boars with unacceptable motility (boars for example with less than 70%) which impact fertility and litter size. The Bland-Altman analysis showed that FE-estimated morphological assessment and the conventionally estimated morphological score were similar, with a mean difference of ~1% (%95 Limits of Agreement: -6.2 to 8.1; n = 17). The results of this experiment demonstrate that FE, a portable and automated smartphone-based device, is capable of assessing concentration, motility, and morphology of boar semen samples.

Comparative evaluation of Babesia bigemina truncated C-terminal rhoptry associated protein-1 and 200 kDa merozoite protein in indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Babesia bigemina is an intra-erythrocytic apicomplexan protozoon which causes an acute as well as chronic disease in cattle and is transmitted by ixodid ticks throughout the world. Due to low sensitivity of microscopy for detection of the parasite, there is a need for developing effective diagnostic tests that can be used to identify carrier animals in endemic areas. In the present study, C-terminal fragment of rhoptry associated protein-1 (RAP-1/CT) and 200 kDa merozoite protein (P200/CT) of B. bigemina were cloned into pET-32a(+) expression vector and expressed in Escherichia coli as thioredoxin-fusion proteins for use in an indirect ELISA. The rRAP-1/CT and rP200/CT showed no cross reactivity with plasma from cattle infected with other common parasites namely Theileria annulata, Trypanosoma evansi, Cryptosporidium parvum and Anaplasma marginale in the standardized ELISA. Examination of 116 blood samples collected from cattle suspected for haemoprotozoan infections revealed that 17 (14.6%), 46 (39.6%), 52 (44.8%) and 53 (45.7%) were positive for B. bigemina by microscopy, nested PCR, rRAP-1/CT based and rP200/CT based indirect ELISA, respectively. The diagnostic sensitivities of rRAP-1/CT and rP200/CT indirect ELISAs were 97.8% and 91.3%, while the diagnostic specificities were 90% and 84.3%, respectively, when nested PCR was taken as a reference test. An almost perfect agreement (Kappa value -0.859) between rRAP-1/CT ELISA and nested PCR results, and a substantial agreement (Kappa value -0.737) between rP200/CT ELISA and nested PCR were noticed. The findings of the present study suggest that rRAP-1/CT is a better diagnostic candidate antigen than rP200/CT for diagnosis of B. bigemina infection and it may be used in an ELISA for surveillance or diagnosis of B. bigemina infection in bovines.

Phylogenetic characterization of Setaria equina and its association with other filarids.

Molecular characterization studies on Setaria equina are limited. The present study aimed to characterize S. equina at the cytochrome c oxidase gene and to examine its phylogenetic relationships with other filarid species. Sequence analysis showed 100% nucleotide homology with an S. equina sequence from Italy (AJ544873). However, both sequences exhibited 7 nucleotide substitutions from a S. equina donkey isolate from Egypt (MK541847). Overall, S. equina formed a monophyletic sister group to Setaria tundra. All Setaria spp. examined formed a separate group on the phylogenetic tree that was related to corresponding Onchocerca spp. and Dirofilaria spp. clades. Human filarid worms-Brugia spp. and Wuchereria spp. grouped in a separate clade alongside Theilezia spp. Dipetalonema spp.-formed a separate group at the top of the tree.

Babesia (Theileria) equi genotype A among Indian equine population.

Equine piroplasmosis, caused by Babesia (Theileria) equi, is well reported from many parts of India. However, literature regarding its prevalence from semi arid India is limited. Alongside, there is complete absence of information about genetic characterization of B.(T.) equi and the associated genotypes from India. In the present study, the prevalence of B.(T.) equi was studied from semi arid India using 18S ribosomal gene based PCR assay. An overall prevalence rate of 10.46% was recorded. PCR was more sensitive and specific in comparison with blood smears. The found isolates were sequenced. These sequences were aligned and submitted into NCBI. All the isolates showed 100% homology with each other and represented a single haplotype. When compared with other isolates of B.(T.) equi across India and globe, using Genetool and Mega 6 softwares, they showed 99.5-99.2% and 95.7-97.0% homologies, respectively. A unique substitution of G by A at 206 nucleotide position was reported in all found isolates in comparison to earlier reported isolates from India. The studied isolates were found to be phylogenetically closer to isolates from USA and Trinidad than to other parts of the world. All the Indian isolates belonged to genotype A of B.(T.) equi.