As an emerging pollutant, uranium poses serious concerns to ecological and human health. The kidney has been established as a major deposition site and the most sensitive target organ for uranium poisoning, and the underlying toxicological mechanisms have been associated with oxidative stress and mitochondrial respiration. However, the identities of key molecular targets in uranium-induced toxicity remain elusive. In this study, we comprehensively evaluated the in vitro effects of uranium on ten critical enzymes in the mitochondrial respiration pathway and discovered that respiratory chain complex IV (cytochrome c oxidase) and complex V (ATP synthase) were strongly inhibited. The inhibitory effects were validated with mitochondria from human renal proximal tubule cells—the most affected renal site in uranium poisoning. The IC₅₀ values (around 1 mg/L) are physiologically relevant, as they are comparable to known kidney accumulation levels in uranium poisoning. In addition, these inhibitory effects could explain the well-documented uranium-induced reactive oxygen species generation and mitochondrial alterations. In conclusion, cytochrome c oxidase and ATP synthase are possibly key molecular targets underlying the toxic effects of uranium.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are pollutants of global concern in coastal environments. They have a wide range of biological toxicity and due to their inherent properties, can easily bioaccumulate in organisms and concentrate in the environment. This work evaluated, in an integrated way, the seasonal PAH distribution patterns in sediments and four bioindicators fish species in a highly impacted estuary of Argentina; besides, their bioaccumulation patterns were assessed for the first time as indicator of ecological risk. The highest PAH levels in fish were found for Ramnogaster arcuata with an average of 64 ng g⁻¹ w.w., followed by Micropogonias furnieri (45 ng g⁻¹ w.w.), Cynoscion guatucupa (28 ng g⁻¹ w.w.), and Mustelus schmitti (16 ng g⁻¹ w.w.). Fish presented the highest PAH levels in fall with a predominance of petrogenic PAHs in colder seasons and pyrolytic PAHs in warmer seasons. Sediments presented an average of 233 ng g⁻¹ d.w. with the same seasonal composition pattern of the fish tissues. Additionally, the data suggested that the main source of PAHs are wastewater discharges. The bioaccumulation factor (BAF) of PAHs in the tested fishes were found to range from 0.3 to 8. The highest values were observed during fall and winter, while bioaccumulation did not occur in moist spring and summer samples, which would suggest a high biotransformation process during these seasons. Results suggested that class III of juvenile C. guatucupa and M. furnieri, and adults R. arcuata are more sensitive bioindicators of chronic PAH contamination and that their bioaccumulation is independent of the compound hydrophobicity; this could have a positively influence on the criteria used for biological monitoring programs along the Atlantic coast. In addition, the presented BAF data on the target species will serve as a useful pollution indicator for South Atlantic coastal fish.

Urea is one of the most commonly used nitrogen fertilizers in agricultural soil and is easily decomposed by soil urease resulting in ammonium release. The produced ammonium can be volatilized or converted to nitrate, which is susceptible to leaching, leading to groundwater contamination unless used by plants. Hence, it is important to control the release of nitrogen from the urea. Pyroligneous acid inhibited the urease activity and decreased ammonium release up to 80% compared to the control. Amidase including asparaginase and glutaminase is an enzyme that catalyzes hydrolysis of amide group, similar to urease. Therefore, the effect of pyroligneous acid on the inhibition of soil amidase was also tested and the results showed that pyroligneous acid competitively inhibited asparaginase while glutaminase was not inhibited. However, inhibitory effect of pyroligneous acid on asparaginase was negligible compared to the urease. The application of pyroligneous acid with a smaller amount of urea for controlled nitrogen release during Chinese cabbage growth showed that dry biomass and nutrient contents of Chinese cabbage were similar to the case of the conventional urea application. The nitrogen utilization efficiency (NUE) was highest for 33% less amount of urea supply with pyroligneous acid (2.21) compared to conventional treatment (1.81). Consequently, the use of pyroligneous acid with urea enhances nitrogen use efficiency while also protecting environments from non-point source contamination.

POCIS is the most widely applied passive sampler of polar organic substances, because it was one of the first commercially available samplers for that purpose on the market, but also for its applicability for a wide range of substances and conditions. Its main weakness is the variability of sampling performance with exposure conditions. In our study we took a pragmatic approach and performed in situ calibration for a set of 76 pharmaceuticals and their metabolites in five sampling campaigns in surface water, covering various temperature and flow conditions. In individual campaigns, RS were calculated for up to 47 compounds ranging from 0.01 to 0.63 L d⁻¹, with the overall median value of 0.10 L d⁻¹. No clear changes of RS with water temperature or discharge could be found for any of the investigated substances. The absence of correlation of experimental RS with physical-chemical properties in combination with the lack of mechanistic understanding of compound uptake to POCIS implies that practical estimation of aqueous concentrations from uptake in POCIS depends on compound-specific experimental calibration data. Performance of POCIS was compared with grab sampling of water in seven field campaigns comprising multiple sampling sites, where sampling by both methods was done in parallel. The comparison showed that for 25 of 36 tested compounds more than 50% of POCIS-derived aqueous concentrations did not differ from median of grab sampling values more than by a factor of 2. Further, for 30 of 36 compounds, more than 80% of POCIS data did not differ from grab sampling data more than by a factor of 5. When accepting this level of accuracy, in situ derived sampling rates are sufficiently robust for application of POCIS for identification of spatial and temporal contamination trends in surface waters.

Oil spills can result in changes in chemical concentrations along coastlines. In prior work, these concentration changes were used to evaluate the date sediment was impacted by oil (i.e., oil exposure date). The objective of the current study was to build upon prior work by using the oil exposure date to compute oil spill chemical (OSC) concentrations in shoreline sediments before and after exposure. The new method was applied to OSC concentration measures collected during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill with an emphasis on evaluating before and after concentrations in muddy versus sandy regions. The procedure defined a grid that overlaid coastal areas with chemical concentration measurement locations. These grids were then aggregated into clusters to allow the assignment of chemical concentration measurements to a uniform coastal type. Performance of the method was illustrated for ten chemicals individually by cluster, and collectively for all chemicals and all clusters. Results show statistically significant differences between chemical concentrations before and after the calculated oil exposure dates (p < 0.04 for each of the 10 chemicals within the identified clusters). When aggregating all chemical measures collectively across all clusters, chemical concentrations were lower before oil exposure in comparison to after (p < 0.0001). Sandy coastlines exhibited lower chemical concentrations relative to muddy coastlines (p < 0.0001). Overall, the method developed is a useful first step for establishing baseline chemical concentrations and for assessing the impacts of disasters on sediment quality within different coastline types. Results may be also useful for assessing added ecological and human health risks associated with oil spills.

The presence of higher concentrations of heavy metals in water affects its quality with a concomitant adverse effect on its users thus their removal is paramount. A novel adsorbent, PN-Fe₃O₄-IDA derived from the chemical modification of peanut husk (a low-cost agricultural biomass produced in significant quantities globally) using magnetic nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄) and iminodiacetic acid was utilized for the remediation of heavy metals in aqueous solution. Analytical techniques vis-à-vis the Fourier-Transform Infrared, Scanning Electron Microscope, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray Diffraction were applied for the characterization of PN-Fe₃O₄-IDA. Results from the characterization studies showed that PN-Fe₃O₄-IDA possessed a mesoporous structure, a heterogeneous surface and functional groups such as carboxylic acid and a tertiary nitrogen atom which enhanced its adsorption capacities as well as magnetic properties which ensured its easy removal from the solution using a magnet. The maximum uptake of Pb and Cu onto PN-Fe₃O₄-IDA was 0.36 and 0.75 mmol g⁻¹ (at 318 K) respectively with the chemisorption process being the major reaction pathway for the processes. The synthesized adsorbent exhibits significant adsorption capacity for the selected pollutants as well as some unique features which promotes its use as an adsorbent for wastewater remediation processes.

Stroke and fine particulate matter (PM₂.₅) are two important public health concerns worldwide. Although numerous studies have reported the associations between PM₂.₅ and stroke, scientific evidence in China is incomplete, particularly the effect of PM₂.₅ on the acute incidence and national acute health burdens of stroke attributed to PM₂.₅ pollution. This study identified about 131,947 registered patients and 23,018 deaths due to stroke in 10 counties located in various regions from 2013 to 2017. Using a time-stratified case-crossover design, this study evaluated the associations between short-term exposure to PM₂.₅ and the risks of acute incidence and mortality for different types of stroke on the same spatiotemporal scale. With a 10 μg/m³ increase in the PM₂.₅ concentration, the acute incidence risk increased by 0.37% (0.15%, 0.60%) for stroke, 0.46% (0.21%, 0.72%) for ischemic stroke, and −0.13% (−0.73%, 0.48%) for hemorrhagic stroke. The corresponding values for the mortality risk were 0.71% (0.08%, 1.33%), 1.09% (0.05%, 2.14%), and 0.43% (−0.44%, 1.31%) for stroke, ischemic stroke and hemorrhagic stroke, respectively. Compared with the other groups, females and patients aged over 64 years presented higher incidence and mortality risks, while the group aged >75 years may exhibit a greater risk of mortality. Based on the estimated effects, we evaluated 43,300 excess deaths and 48,800 acute incidences attributed to short-term PM₂.₅ exposure across China in 2015. This study provided robust estimates of PM₂.₅-induced stroke incidence and mortality risks, and susceptible populations were identified. Excess mortality and morbidity attributed to short-term PM₂.₅ exposure indicate the necessity to implement health care and prevention strategies, as well as medical resource allocation for noncommunicable diseases in regions with high levels of air pollution.

Aquatic organisms that inhabit coastal environments are generally exposed to multiple mixtures of chemicals. The single and mixture toxicity of nine trace metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn) to the rotifer Proales similis were examined at four different salinities (5, 15, 25, and 35 ppt). Chronic toxicity reproductive tests were performed using an application factor (AF) of 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 by multiplying the 24-h LC₅₀ values of each metal. The metal mixture treatments were: T1, As–Cd–Cr–Cu–Fe–Hg–Ni–Pb–Zn; T2, As–Cd–Hg–Pb and; T3, Cr–Cu–Fe–Ni–Zn. The LC₅₀ values ranged between 5 and 4140 μg L⁻¹ in the following order: Hg > Cu > Fe > Pb > Cd > Zn > As > Cr > Ni in low salinity and Hg > Cu > Fe > Pb > Zn > As > Cd > Cr > Ni in high salinity conditions. In all cases, acute toxicity was higher at a salinity of 5 ppt compared to 35 ppt. Chronic toxicity tests indicated that single metal toxicity intensified as the AF increased and as salinity decreased. Regardless of salinity, Pb at 0.4 AF was the most toxic metal. Proales similis evidenced a higher growth in the As treatments (0.1 and 0.2 AF) at 35 ppt compared to controls. Furthemore, the T1 and T2 treatments were the most toxic, and in most cases, they induced a synergistic effect. Antagonism effects were detected in the T3 treatment at 25 and 35 ppt. The present data highlights the importance of the examination of pollution in natural environmental conditions in which many aquatic invertebrates endure.

The environment of a large-scale vegetable production area can be exposed to antibiotic residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) via animal manure and irrigation with contaminated water, which can facilitate the dissemination of ARB. However, the occurrence of ARB in plantation areas and their dissemination in this environment remain largely unexplored. In total, 382 samples including those from vegetable (n = 106), soil (n = 87), well water (n = 24), river water (n = 20), river sediments (n = 20), farmer feces (n = 58) and farmer hands (n = 67) were collected in 2019 from a large-scale cultivation area in Shandong, China. Selective agar plates were used to screen for carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and whole-genome sequencing and Southern blotting were used to characterise isolates and mobile genetic elements carrying carbapenem resistance determinants. A total of nine NDM-5-producing isolates of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Citrobacter spp. were identified from environmental sources and human feces, all of which were multidrug-resistant. Single nucleotide polymorphism analysis suggested clonal transmission of carbapenem-resistant Citrobacter sedlakii within greenhouse soils in the area. Eight of the isolates carried closely related or identical IncX3 plasmids carrying blaNDM₋₅, which were shown to be conjugative via filter mating experiments, indicating the highly transmissible nature of this genetic element. Isolates of E. coli and Citrobacter freundii were detected in the feces of local farm workers and contained similar IncX3 plasmids with blaNDM₋₅ environmental isolates, suggesting a potential risk of CRE transfer from the work environment to the farm workers. Thus, further research is required to investigate the potential health risks associated with environmental exposure to CRE in vegetable cultivation areas.