Expanding ecological assessment by integrating microorganisms into routine freshwater biomonitoring.

Bioindication has become an indispensable part of water quality monitoring in most countries of the world, with the presence and abundance of bioindicator taxa, mostly multicellular eukaryotes, used for biotic indices. In contrast, microbes (bacteria, archaea and protists) are seldom used as bioindicators in routine assessments, although they have been recognized for their importance in environmental processes. Recently, the use of molecular methods has revealed unexpected diversity within known functional groups and novel metabolic pathways that are particularly important in energy and nutrient cycling. In various habitats, microbial communities respond to eutrophication, metals, and natural or anthropogenic organic pollutants through changes in diversity and function. In this review, we evaluated the common trends in these changes, documenting that they have value as bioindicators and can be used not only for monitoring but also for improving our understanding of the major processes in lotic and lentic environments. Current knowledge provides a solid foundation for exploiting microbial taxa, community structures and diversity, as well as functional genes, in novel monitoring programs. These microbial community measures can also be combined into biotic indices, improving the resolution of individual bioindicators. Here, we assess particular molecular approaches complemented by advanced bioinformatic analysis, as these are the most promising with respect to detailed bioindication value. We conclude that microbial community dynamics are a missing link important for our understanding of rapid changes in the structure and function of aquatic ecosystems, and should be addressed in the future environmental monitoring of freshwater ecosystems.

Current practice in regional anaesthesia in South America: An online survey. / Práctica actual de la anestesia regional en América del Sur: encuesta en línea.

OBJECTIVE: A survey was conducted in order to obtain a profile of the practice of regional anesthesia in South America, and determine the limitations of its use. METHODS: After institutional ethics committee approval, a link to an online questionnaire was sent by e-mail to anaesthesiologists in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú, and Uruguay. The questionnaire was processed anonymously. RESULTS: A total of 1,260 completed questionnaires were received. The results showed that 97.6% of the anaesthesiologists that responded used regional anaesthesia in clinical practice, 66.9% performed peripheral nerve block (PNB) regularly, 21.6% used continuous PNB techniques, and 4.6% used stimulating catheters. The primary source of training was residency programs. As regards PNB, the most common performed were interscalene (52.3%), axillary (45.1%), femoral (43.2%), and ankle block (43%). As regards the localisation technique employed, 16% used paraesthesia, 44.2% used a peripheral nerve stimulator, and 18.1% ultrasound guidance. CONCLUSIONS: Regional anaesthesia and PNB are commonly used among South American anaesthesiologists. Considering that each country has its own profile for use, this profile should guide training in clinical practice, especially in residency programs.

Taste thresholds for salt in fasting patients.

Since it has been controversial whether in man changes in taste sensitivity for salt occur in relation to changes in extracellular volume, as has been described in animals, we assessed saline acuity in human volunteers undergoing a predictable pattern of external sodium balance. Our results demonstrate that taste thresholds for salt did not vary despite oppositely directed changes in renal sodium excretion and sodium balance.

Environmental side effects of pharmaceutical cocktails: what we know and what we should know.

Cocktails of pharmaceuticals are released in the environment after human consumption and due to the incomplete removal at the wastewater treatment plants. Pharmaceuticals are considered as contaminants of emerging concern and, a plethora of journal articles addressing their possible adverse effects have been published during the past 20 years. The emphasis during the early years of research within this field, was on the assessment of acute effects of pharmaceuticals applied singly, leading to results regarding their environmental risk, potentially not realistic or relevant to the actual environmental conditions. Only recently has the focus been shifted to chronic exposure and to the assessment of cocktail effects. To this end, this review provides an up-to-date compilation of 57 environmental and human toxicology studies published during 2000-2014 dealing with the adverse effects of pharmaceutical mixtures. The main challenges regarding the design of experiments and the analysis of the results regarding the effects of pharmaceutical mixtures to different biological systems are presented and discussed herein. The gaps of knowledge are critically reviewed highlighting specific future research needs and perspectives.

Is the evaluation of "traditional" physicochemical parameters sufficient to explain the potential toxicity of the treated wastewater at sewage treatment plants?

Water scarcity is one of the most important environmental and public health problems of our century. Treated wastewater reuse seems to be the most attractive option for the enhancement of water resources. However, the lack of uniform guidelines at European and/or Mediterranean level leaves room for application of varying guidelines and regulations, usually not based on risk assessment towards humans and the environment. The benefits of complementing the physicochemical evaluation of wastewater with a biological one are demonstrated in the present study using Cyprus, a country with extended water reuse applications, as an example. Four organisms from different trophic levels were used for the biological assessment of the wastewater, namely, Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, Daphnia magna, Artemia salina and Vibrio fischeri. The physicochemical assessment of wastewater based on "traditional" chemical parameters indicated that the quality of the wastewater complies with the limits set by the relevant national guidelines for disposal. The ecotoxicological assessment, however, indicated the presence of toxicity throughout the sampling periods and most importantly an increase of the toxicity of the treated wastewater during summer compared to winter. The resulting poor correlation between the physicochemical and biological assessments demonstrates that the two assessments are necessary and should be performed in parallel in order to be able to obtain concrete results on the overall quality of the treated effluent. Moreover, a hazard classification scheme for wastewater is proposed, which can enable the comparison of the data sets of the various parameters deriving from the biological assessment in a comprehensive way.

Biodegradation potential of ofloxacin and its resulting transformation products during photolytic and photocatalytic treatment.

The release of pharmaceuticals in the environment, as parent compounds, metabolites and transformation products, and the consequent risks posed to living organisms due to the unintended exposure of the latter to these chemicals are nowadays of increasing scientific concern. The development of advanced oxidation processes able to degrade these substances is in the core of the current research objectives, the main target being the removal of these compounds from wastewaters. Often the focus is on the removal of the parent compound only. However, these processes can form transformation products. Knowledge on the risk related to such transformation products is scarce. Among others, knowledge on their toxic effects and their biodegradability is of importance not only when they are present in the environment but also for the assessment of the advanced oxidation processes' efficiency applied for their degradation. Photolytic (UV irradiation) and photocatalytic treatment (UV irradiation in the presence of TiO(2)) of the fluoroquinolone ofloxacin were applied, and the biodegradability of the formed products was investigated using the Closed Bottle test (OECD 301 D). Various transformation products, formed both during the photo(cata)lytic treatment and the Closed Bottle test, were identified using chromatographic analysis with an ultra high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) system. The transformation products formed during the phototreatments were found to be non-readily biodegradable as the biodegradation percentages were close to zero. The persistence of the various photo(cata)lytic transformation products during the Closed Bottle test may be attributed to the fluorine present in all the transformation products formed. The transformation products identified suggest that two transformation routes were present: decarboxylation and opening of the piperazinyl ring. Interestingly, it was observed that in the presence of a readily biodegradable carbon source (sodium acetate), the biodegradation percentage increased drastically for some of the photolytically treated samples. This was not the case for the photocatalytically treated samples, in which also mineralization of the parent compound was achieved faster. Further research is needed, however, in order to increase the understanding of the conditions that may lead to less potent and persistent substances during the application of such engineered or natural processes.

Chronic ecotoxic effects to Pseudomonas putida and Vibrio fischeri, and cytostatic and genotoxic effects to the hepatoma cell line (HepG2) of ofloxacin photo(cata)lytically treated solutions.

Ofloxacin (OFL), a broad-spectrum and widespread-used photolabile fluoroquinolone, is frequently found in treated wastewaters, aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems leading to increasing concern during the past decades regarding its effects to the environment and human health. The elimination of OFL and other xenobiotics by the application of advanced oxidation processes using photolytic (PL) and photocatalytic (PC) treatments seems promising. However, an integrated assessment scheme is needed, in which, not only the removal of the parent compound, but also the effects of the photo-transformation products (PTPs) are investigated. For this purpose, in the present study, a chronic ecotoxic assessment using representative bacteria of marine and terrestrial ecosystems and a cytostatic and genotoxic evaluation using hepatoma cell line were performed. PL and PC treatments of OFL were applied using UV radiation. The photo-transformation of OFL during the treatments was monitored by DOC measurements and UPLC-MS/MS analysis. The chronic ecotoxicity of OFL and treated samples was evaluated using Pseudomonas putida and Vibrio fischeri; whereas the cytostasis and genotoxicity were estimated by the cytokinesis-block micronucleus assay (CBMN). The main results suggest that photo-transformation of OFL took place during these treatments since the concentration of OFL decreased when the irradiation time increased, as quantified by UPLC-MS/MS analysis, and this was not coupled with an analogous DOC removal. Furthermore, nine compounds were identified as probable PTPs formed through piperazinyl dealkylation and decarboxylation. The ecotoxicity of treated solutions to the bacteria studied decreased while the cytostasis to the hepatoma cell line remained at low levels during both treatments. However, the genotoxicity to the hepatoma cell line demonstrated a different pattern in which treated samples induced a greater number of MNi for the 4-16 min of irradiation (p<0.05) during both treatments. After 64 min of irradiation, the effects decreased to non genotoxic levels (p<0.05). These findings suggest that UV radiation for various treatment processes (catalytic or not), such as disinfection, may create genotoxic by-products. Therefore, in relevant technical applications, the residence time during treatment should receive special attention.

Transformation products of pharmaceuticals in surface waters and wastewater formed during photolysis and advanced oxidation processes - degradation, elucidation of byproducts and assessment of their biological potency.

The significance of transformation products of pharmaceuticals resulting from the parent compounds during natural and technical photolytic processes and advanced oxidation processes has only recently started to attract the interest of the scientific community. Even though relevant studies have now started to produce important knowledge, still many gaps exist that hinder the in-depth and broad understanding of the extent of the potential problems stemming from the presence of such compounds in the environment and the applicability of such techniques for wastewater and potable water treatment. The great diversity of pharmaceutical compounds, the variety of processes and conditions applied by the various research groups active in the field, and the endless list of potential biological endpoints that could potentially be explored, coupled with the limitations related to the analytical capabilities presently available, are some of the crucial parameters that characterize this challenging research direction. This review paper tries to highlight some of the most relevant studies performed so far and to summarize the parameters that prevent scientists from reaching comprehensive conclusions in relation to the formation, fate, and effects of transformation products of pharmaceutical compounds during photo-driven and advanced oxidation processes.

The risks associated with wastewater reuse and xenobiotics in the agroecological environment.

Treated wastewater reuse for irrigation, landscape and surface or groundwater replenishment purposes is being widely implemented. Although the reuse practice is accompanied by a number of benefits relating to the enhancement of water balances and soil nutrition by the nutrients existing in the treated effluents, a number of unanswered questions are still related to this practice. Besides the lack of knowledge in respect to possible elemental interactions that may influence the accumulation of heavy metals and other elements in the soil and the subsequent uptake by plants and crops, during the last several years, the technological progress in respect to analytical chromatographic methods has enabled the identification and quantitation of a number of organic xenobiotic compounds in treated wastewater. Therefore it is now known that the effluents' remaining organic matter most usually expressed as Chemical Oxygen Demand consists of a number of biorecalcitrant organic xenobiotic compounds including potential endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs), pharmaceuticals, etc. It is also widely accepted that the currently applied treatment processes for urban wastewater abatement fail to completely remove such contaminants and this lead to their subsequent release in the terrestrial and aquatic environment through disposal and reuse applications. The number of studies focusing on the analysis and the toxicological assessment of such compounds in the environment is constantly increasing the aim being to bridge the various knowledge gaps associated with these issues. The existing knowledge in respect to the relevant existing legislation framework, the types of elements and chemicals of concern, the uptake of xenobiotic pollutants and also that of other neglected chemical elements along with their potential environmental interactions constitute the focus of the present review paper. The review addresses the problems that might be related to the repeated treated wastewater release in the environment for reuse applications in respect to the wastewater residual load in heavy metals, accumulating in soil and plants and especially in their edible parts, in xenobiotic compounds, including EDCs, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, drugs' metabolites, illicit drugs, transformation products, and also genes resistant to antibiotics.

Validation of questionnaires to estimate adherence to the Mediterranean diet and life habits in older individuals in Southern Spain.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to determine the nutritional behaviour of an elderly urban population in Southern Spain, estimating their degree of adherence to the Mediterranean. DIET DESIGN: A population-based cross-sectional nutritional survey, recruiting a representative sample of elderly inhabitants. The study sample comprised 260 people. The mean age was 73.60 yrs for the men and 72.25 yrs for the women. Around 70% lived with their family. RESULTS: The questionnaires used were first validated by using the Bland-Altman plot and the Wilcoxon test for paired samples. The degree of adherence to the Mediterranean Diet was around 50%, similar to findings in other Mediterranean populations. We highlight the mean consumption of milk and milk products (300-317 g/day) and of fruit/vegetables (250 g/day), which are slightly below recommendations. Our study subjects were all autonomous in their movements and were physically independent: 80% reported that they performed some type of physical activity. CONCLUSION: In this study, both adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and physical activity were considered as components of a healthy life. In summary, a majority of this elderly population was slightly overweight, considered themselves to be in good health.

Drugs degrading photocatalytically: Kinetics and mechanisms of ofloxacin and atenolol removal on titania suspensions.

The conversion of the antibiotic ofloxacin and the beta-blocker atenolol by means of TiO(2) photocatalysis was investigated. Irradiation was provided by a UVA lamp at 3.37x10(-6)einstein/s photon flux, while emphasis was given on the effect of catalyst type and loading (50-1500mg/L), initial substrate concentration (5-20mg/L), initial pH (3-10) and the effect of H(2)O(2) (0.07-1.4mM) as an additional oxidant on substrate conversion and mineralization in various matrices (i.e. pure water, groundwater and treated municipal effluent). Conversion was assessed measuring sample absorbance at 288 and 224nm for ofloxacin and atenolol, respectively, while mineralization measuring the dissolved organic carbon. Degussa P25 TiO(2) was found to be more active than other TiO(2) samples for either substrate degradation, with ofloxacin being more reactive than atenolol. Conversion generally increased with increasing catalyst loading, decreasing initial substrate concentration and adding H(2)O(2), while the effect of solution pH was substrate-specific. Reaction rates, following a Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetic expression, were maximized at a catalyst to substrate concentration ratio (w/w) of 50 and 15 for ofloxacin and atenolol, respectively, while higher ratios led to reduced efficiency. Likewise, high concentrations of H(2)O(2) had an adverse effect on reaction, presumably due to excessive oxidant scavenging radicals and other reactive species. The ecotoxicity of ofloxacin and atenolol to freshwater species Daphnia magna was found to increase with increasing substrate concentration (1-10mg/L) and exposure time (24-48h), with atenolol being more toxic than ofloxacin. Photocatalytic treatment eliminated nearly completely toxicity and this was more pronounced for atenolol.