Possible Options for Utilization of EU Biomass Waste: Pyrolysis Char, Calorific Value and Ash Content.

The application of biomass as a co-feed in coal power plants and in standalone biomass power plants, as well as in char production for soil remediation, is a currently important issue. This paper reports on the investigation of biochar formation from agricultural waste crops that are used for soil upgrading, but which do not meet the standards of EU crops, as well as largescale food processing waste. These were compared to test results from basket willow, which is commonly used for energy generation. Food industry waste is often produced in cities on a large scale and is generally easier to process due to lack of other stream components. The key parameters, namely, the content of volatiles, energy content of the formed biochar and the composition of the ash, were determined for a number of herbaceous materials locally available in the European Union. All of them can be used as a cheap source of biochar. A novel procedure of capturing volatiles and hence minimizing the PAH content in the biochar, as well as enabling the recovery of energy from the volatiles is presented. Knowledge of the composition and form of elements in ash is very important for designing ash management systems if co-combustion is implemented. The aim of this study was to determine if the types of biomass are better suited for biochar production or energy generation.

NOX4 downregulation leads to senescence of human vascular smooth muscle cells.

Senescence is a stress response characterized by an irreversible growth arrest and alterations in certain cell functions. It is believed that both double-strand DNA breaks (DSB) and increased ROS level are the main culprit of senescence. Excessive ROS production is also particularly important in the development of a number of cardiovascular disorders. In this context the involvement of professional ROS-producing enzymes, NADPH oxidases (NOX), was postulated. In contrary to the common knowledge, we have shown that not only increased ROS production but also diminished ROS level could be involved in the induction of senescence.Accordingly, our studies revealed that stress-induced premature senescence (SIPS) of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) induced by doxorubicin or H2O2, correlates with increased level of DSB and ROS. On the other hand, both SIPS and replicative senescence were accompanied by diminished expression of NOX4. Moreover, inhibition of NOX activity or decrease of NOX4 expression led to permanent growth arrest of VSMCs and secretion of interleukins and VEGF. Interestingly, cells undergoing senescence due to NOX4 depletion neither acquired DSB nor activated DNA damage response. Instead, transient induction of the p27, upregulation of HIF-1alpha, decreased expression of cyclin D1 and hypophosphorylated Rb was observed. Our results showed that lowering the level of ROS-producing enzyme - NOX4 oxidase below physiological level leads to cellular senescence of VSMCs which is correlated with secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Thus the use of specific NOX4 inhibitors for pharmacotherapy of vascular diseases should be carefully considered.