Road traffic accidents (RTAs) are accountable for 1.2 million deaths and road safety is the part of sustainable development goals, which aims to provide a safe, accessible, affordable, and sustainable transport system by 2030. This study discovered the nexus of road traffic fatalities (RTFs) with its determinants in Asia, Europe, and America. Vector error correction model established the causality of RTFs (Asia, Europe), urbanization (Asia), physicians (Asia, Europe), traffic law enforcement index (Europe, America), vehicles (America), and paved roads (America). Short-run bidirectional causality of RTFs was established with educational expenditures (Asia, Europe), GNI (Europe), and urbanization (Europe). The fall in RTFs was 0.359% (Europe) and 0.957% (America) for 1% rise in GNI. The RTFs were decreased by 0.498% (Europe) and 0.390% (America) due to 1% rise in urbanization. Education shows 0.952% reduction in RTFs in Europe. The 1% increase in the number of physicians causes 0.793% reduction in RTFs in America. The RTFs were increased by 0.617% and 1.705% for 1% rise in the number of vehicles in Asia and America. The fall in RTFs was 3.604%, 0.134%, and 0.950% for 1% rise in paved roads in Asia, Europe, and America, respectively. Results show a reduction of 0.744% (Asia), 0.712% (Europe), and 0.312% (America) in RTFs due to 1% increase in traffic law enforcement index. The governments of all countries should expand and improve their paved road network and increase the enforcement of traffic laws. The government should make strict traffic laws like regular inspection of vehicles, strict inspection for the driving license, electronic challan, and medical fitness of drivers. The government should ensure the medical checkup of drivers at subsidized rates. It is useful to include the traffic rules in the educational syllabus due to the significant role of law enforcement in road safety. The government should use different media channels for the awareness of the public about loss due to road accidents.

Breast cancer is a global public health problem where it is the second most prevalent cancer. Historical cancer treatment with graviola has been reported. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of graviola on 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)–induced rat breast cancer. Fifty female Wistar rats were allocated into four groups: control group (gastro-gavaged by sesame oil), DMBA-treated group (gastro-gavaged a single dose of DMBA [50 mg/kg body mass, diluted in 1 ml sesame oil]) at the age 57 days, DMBA+G37-treated group (gastro-gavaged a single dose of DMBA [50 mg/kg body mass, diluted in 1 ml sesame oil]) at the age of 57 days plus graviola (200 mg/kg body mass) two times weekly (p.o.) at the age of 37 days till the end of the experiment, and DMBA+G57-treated group (received a single dose of DMBA [50 mg/kg body mass, diluted in 1 ml sesame oil]) plus graviola (200 mg/kg body mass) two times weekly at the age of 57 days until the end of the experiment. After the 30-week experimental period, blood samples were collected. Then, animals were sacrificed to determine the apoptotic indices, antioxidant status, and mammary gland tumor marker (CA 15-3). The DMBA upregulated the expression of one of the main anti-apoptotic genes: B-cell lymphoma protein 2 (BCL2) and estrogen receptor alpha (ER-α) gene. Moreover, it significantly increased breast lipid peroxidation and serum CA 15-3 but decreased breast antioxidant enzymatic activities (glutathione peroxidase, glutathione S-transferase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase). Nevertheless, administration of DMBA and graviola especially DMBA+G37 induced apoptosis through at least 1.5-fold in gene expression levels of pro-apoptotic genes: BCL2-associated X protein (BAX), tumor suppressor gene (P53), and cysteinyl-aspartic acid-protease-3 (caspase-3). A critical role of P53 in the regulation of the BCL2 and BAX has been reported. These proteins can determine if the cell undergoes apoptosis or cancels the process. Once the BAX gene activates caspase-3, there is no irreversible way toward cell death. Also, graviola ameliorated the DMBA effects on antioxidant enzymatic activities and tumor marker CA 15-3. This study concludes that graviola ameliorated DMBA-induced breast cancer potentially through upregulating apoptotic genes, downregulating the ER-α gene, increasing antioxidants, and decreasing lipid peroxidation levels.

The aim of this study was to examine the biogas production and the adsorption aspect of microorganism from different coals. Coal samples were obtained from Qianqiu mine and Guandi mine. Microbial populations were cultured from the coal mine drainage. After an anaerobic reaction period at about 35 °C, adsorption rate was determined by the spectrophotometer, while a scanning electron microscopy was used to observe the microorganisms on the coal and the headspace methane was analyzed using gas chromatography. Results show that the coal rank and particle size serve as important factors influencing the adsorption of microorganism and biogenic methane production. With decreasing particle size, the Qianqiu coal produced a considerable adsorption rate between 75 and 79%, while the adsorption rate of Guandi coal was between 52 and 74%. Meanwhile, the density of microorganisms from the Qianqiu coal surface demonstrated a higher level of adsorption than that of Guandi coal following the scanning electron microscopy images. Additionally, Qianqiu coal produced a higher level of biogas production (391.766–629.199 μmol/g) than that of Guandi coal (292.835–393.744 μmol/g) and the Qianqiu coal also generated a higher concentration of methane during the incubation. When the adsorption rate decreasing, the biogas production from various pulverized coals appeared to be decreased and demonstrated a positive correlation to the adsorption rate. The results of this study suggest that the adsorption behavior of microorganisms is closely related to the effect of coal biodegradation and contributes to the biogenic methane production potential.

The occurrence and fate of antibiotic compounds in water can adversely affect human and animal health; hence, the removal of such substrates from soil and water is indispensable. Herein, we described the synthesis method of mesoporous carbon (MPC) via the pyrolysis route from a coordination polymer Fe-based MIL-53 (or MIL-53, shortly). The MPC structure was analyzed by several physical techniques such as SEM, TEM, BET, FT–IR, VSM, and XRD. The response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to find out the effects of initial concentration, MPC dosage, and pH on the removal efficiency of trimethoprim (TMP) and sulfamethoxazole (SMX) antibiotics in water. Under the optimized conditions, the removal efficiencies of TMP and SMX were found to be 87% and 99%, respectively. Moreover, the adsorption kinetic and isotherm studies showed that chemisorption and the monolayer adsorption controlled the adsorption process. The leaching test and recyclability studies indicated that the MPC structure was stable and can be reused for at least four times without any considerable change in the removal efficiency. Plausible adsorption mechanisms were also addressed in this study. Because of high maximum adsorption capacity (85.5 mg/g and 131.6 mg/g for TMP and SMX, respectively) and efficient reusability, MPC is recommended to be a potential adsorbent for TMP and SMX from water media.

A valuable method for the efficient removal of sulphonamides from wastewater using protein powder extracted from the seeds of Moringa stenopetala is presented in this study. The surface morphology, crystallinity and functional groups of protein powder were characterised by SEM, XRD, FTIR and Raman spectrometry. Parameters that affect the removal of sulphonamides, such as concentration, the adsorbent dosage and pH, were optimised. The method was applied to a real wastewater sample collected from the Daspoort Wastewater Treatment Plant located in Pretoria, South Africa. The percentage removal under optimum conditions was observed to be 86.4 to 95.1% for the aqueous solution of a mixture of standards and from 83.0 to 90.5% and 75.2 to 87.7 % for the effluent and influent wastewater samples respectively. Therefore, proteins extracted from Moringa stenopetala seeds demonstrated to be effective and environmentally friendly material for possible application in water treatment in general and wastewater treatment in particular.

Farmland soil sprayed with organophosphorus pesticides (OPs) annually was investigated for the identification and characterization of OP-degrading microorganisms. Six bacterial strains were identified, including Brevundimonas faecalis MA-B12 and Alcaligenes faecalis subsp. parafaecalis MA-B13 for methamidophos degradation, Citrobacter freundii TF-B21 and Ochrobactrum intermedium TF-B23 for trichlorfon degradation, Ochrobactrum intermedium DV-B31 for dichlorvos degradation, and Bacillus cereus for dimethoate degradation. The optimal biodegradation conditions for OPs were obtained at pH 7.0 and incubation temperature ranging from 28 to 37 °C. In an 8-day batch test, biodegradation of the four OPs all followed first-order kinetics, with biodegradation rates ranging from 58.08 to 96.42%. Functional genes responsible for OPs degradation were obtained, including ophB, ampA, opdE, opd, opdA, and mpd. As these strains were indigenous strains isolated from farmland soils, they can be potentially used as bacterial consortium for the bioremediation of mixed OP-contaminated soils. A time-course genotoxicity assessment of the degradation products was done by a bacterial whole-cell bioreporter, revealing that biodegradation of trichlorfon, dichlorvos, and dimethoate resulted a decreased genotoxicity within 5 days, which, however, significantly increased on day 8. The result demonstrated that more toxic products may be produced during the biodegradation processes of OPs, and more attention should be put not only on the pesticides themselves, but also on the toxic effects of their degradation products. To the best of our knowledge, this is for the first time that the genotoxicity of OP degradation products was evaluated by the bioreporter assay, broadening our understanding on the genotoxic risks of OPs during biodegradation process. Graphical Abstract

The article Temporal trends of contaminants in Arctic human populations, written by Khaled Abass, Anastasia Emelyanova and Arja Rautio, was originally published electronically on the publisher’s internet portal (currently SpringerLink) on 25 August 2018 without open access.

The main objectives of the present study are to introduce new, ecologically safe, and natural compounds for controlling red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, and to understand the possible mode of action of these compounds. Therefore, the insecticidal and repellent activities of two phenylpropenes and six monoterpenes have been evaluated against the adults of T. castaneum. The inhibitory effects of these compounds on the activity of adenosine triphosphatases (ATPases) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) were also tested. In fumigant toxicity assay, (−)-terpinen-4-ol (LC₅₀ = 20.47 μl/l air) and α-terpinene (LC₅₀ = 23.70 μl/l air) exhibited the highest toxicity without significant differences between them. Moreover, (−)-menthone and p-cymene showed strong toxicity, while (−)-citronellal, trans-cinnamaldehde, and eugenol were not active. In contact toxicity assay, the two phenylpropenes, trans-cinnamaldehde and eugenol, had the highest toxicity with same LC₅₀ value of 0.02 mg/cm². The monoterpenes and phenylpropenes showed pronounced repellent effect on the adults of T. castaneum at 0.001 mg/cm² with (−)-menthone, trans-cinnamaldehyde, and α-terpinene being the most effective after 2 h of exposure. Repellent activity depended on compound, exposure time, and concentration. On the other hand, the tested compounds exhibited strong inhibition of ATPases form the larvae of T. castaneum as their IC₅₀ values ranged between 1.74 and 19.99 mM. In addition, (−)-citronellal (IC₅₀ = 9.82 mM) and trans-cinnamaldehde (IC₅₀ = 23.93 mM) caused the highest inhibitory effect on AChE, while α-pinene (IC₅₀ = 53.86) and p-cymene (IC₅₀ = 68.97 mM) showed the weakest inhibitory effect. The results indicated that the tested phenylpropenes and monoterpenes had the potential to be developed as natural insecticides and repellents for controlling T. castaneum.

The removal of contaminants by iron-based nanomaterials was inevitably affected by the natural organic matter (NOM), which is one of the most abundant material on earth and exists in natural waters. This study was performed to investigate the main influence of humic acid (HA, representing NOM) on the behavior and reactivity of Ni/Fe nanoparticles in the removal of deca-brominated diphenyl ether (BDE209). Generally, the inhibitory effect of HA on the removal of BDE209 by Ni/Fe showed greater significance with an increase of HA concentration. The zeta potential and sedimentation experiments showed that the HA enhanced the dispersion and stabilization of Ni/Fe particles; however, the removal of BDE209 was found to be inhibited. Moreover, the corrosion capacity of the Ni/Fe nanoparticles showed a positive correlation with the effect of HA on the reactivity of Ni/Fe nanoparticles. Meanwhile, typical quinone compounds in HA had an adverse effect on the removal of BDE209. Additionally, the competitive adsorption experiments and characterization illustrated that the adsorption of HA by Ni/Fe nanoparticles was superior to BDE209. Overall, it was proposed that the corrosion of Ni/Fe was reduced as the contact between the nanoparticles and H₂O was hindered due to the surface of Ni/Fe was occupied by the adsorbed HA, and thus inhibited the reactivity of Ni/Fe nanoparticles in the removal of BDE209.