The objectives of this study were to characterize the electric conductivity (EC), total dissolved salts (TDS), highly soluble salts (HSS), less soluble salts (LSS), cations (Na⁺, K⁺, Ca⁺⁺ and Mg⁺⁺) and anions (Cl⁻, NO⁻₃, SO⁻⁻₄, PO⁻⁻⁻₄) profiles in non-agricultural coastal land in Gaza Strip and to evaluate the effect of trees in salinity. Six locations were selected randomly in coastal zone in Gaza Strip and used for soil profile digging. Soil samples were collected from different layers between 0 and 150 cm depth, air dried and kept in plastic bags at lab temperature. Ten grams of soil were mixed with 25 mL distilled water and kept under shaking for 24 h, then EC, pH and TDS were determined. Then additional 25 ml distilled water was added to each bottle and kept for additional 24 h of shaking. EC and TDS were determined again. Then the soil filtrates were collected by centrifugation and used to determine cations and anions. Results showed that concentrations of TDS, HSS and LSS were higher at the top soil layer than at deeper soil layers. Concentrations of cations and anions have similar trends to TDS, HSS and LSS. Behavior of cations and anions in the soil profiles under trees were different from those in open field. Comparing between the data of soil profiles under trees (site 2 and 5) and those in the open field (sites 1, 3, 4 and 6) showed slight effects on availability of cations and anions. Strong correlations were found between cations and anions in soil profiles under trees, and week correlations were found in soil profile in open field. In conclusion the coastal soil profiles are characterized with elevated levels of TDS, HSS and LSS in the top soil layers. Accumulations of salts were more pronounced in top soil layers. These properties suggest high potential damage to the ecosystem.

In this study, a laboratory scale experiment for the treatment of synthetic molasses wastewater using a combination of an anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) and a two-stage down-flow hanging sponge (TSDHS) reactor (ABR–TSDHS system) was conducted. The TSDHS comprised a closed-type first-stage down-flow hanging sponge (first DHS) for desulfurization and an open-type second-stage DHS (second DHS) for post-treatment of effluent from the ABR and first DHS. Effluent from the second DHS was sprinkled on top of the first DHS, whereas biogas produced from the ABR was supplied to its bottom. A chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency of 88.3% was found for the ABR–TSDHS system during the final treatment phase. The ABR achieved a maximum organic loading rate (OLR) of 3.70 kg COD/(m³ day). Most of the organic matter was degraded in the first compartment of the ABR, with methane-producing archaea as its main consumer. The biogas generated by the ABR contained high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (up to 4,500 ppm). In the TSDHS, the first DHS achieved 87.3% hydrogen sulfide removal via dissolution into sprinkled effluent water. Dissolved sulfide in the first DHS effluent was oxidized to sulfate in the second DHS in the absence of aeration. In addition, 85.0% of the ammonia and 57.7% of the total nitrogen were removed in the second DHS via biological reactions, including sulfur-based autotrophic denitrification. Therefore, the ABR–TSDHS system can be applied to not only molasses wastewater treatment but also the desulfurization of the produced biogas.

Corbicula fluminea (C. fluminea) is one of the mollusc species commonly eaten as a popular snack in Kelantan, Malaysia. This species contributes to the local economic activity. However, the handling process of C. fluminea at different processing stages (raw, smoke and selling stages) is believed to have affected the nutritional value in their soft tissue. Hence, this study aims to provide information about the chemical content (moisture, crude fat, ash, crude protein and carbohydrate) of C. fluminea and fatty acid of smoked C. fluminea at different processing stages. Samples were collected from Pasir Mas and Tumpat, Kelantan, Malaysia. The chemical content analysis was carried out based on the Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) standard procedures. The results have indicated that moisture (80.93 ± 0.37%) and crude fat (10.82 ± 0.21%) in C. fluminea were significantly higher (p < 0.05) at the raw stage. On the other hand, the ash (2.09 ± 0.03%) and crude protein (9.45 ± 0.42%) were significantly higher (p < 0.05) at smoked stage. Meanwhile, carbohydrate (3.39 ± 0.49%) was significantly higher (p < 0.05) at the selling stage. The fatty acid percentage of smoked C. fluminea indicates that the total saturated fatty acid (SFA) content was higher than the total of both monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). The obtained data indicates that the composition percentage of omega-6 (n-6) in PUFA is significantly greater than omega-3 (n-3). The n-6/n-3 ratio of smoked C. fluminea is 2.95–3.11 and therefore can be considered as a healthy diet. The findings of this study can improve consumers’ health through sufficient nutrient consumption and also provide economic benefits by increasing sellers’ income in Kelantan.

Photocatalysis is one of the most promising advanced oxidation processes due to the capability of solid catalyst to continuously produce oxidant species under light irradiation. The use of conventional UV lamps is high cost intensive, which undermines the possible implementation in developing countries. Visible light active photocatalysts can overcome these challenges and find a market opportunity for competitive technology implementation. This work proposes the synthesis of visible light active catalyst following a facile sol-gel synthesis that introduces CuSO₄ as dopant in TiO₂. Results present complete abatement of methylene blue in 120 min of treatment under 50 mW cm⁻² of blue light (λ = 450 nm), while commercial P25 TiO₂ presented null abatement under identical conditions. Synthesis parameters including dopant level and calcination temperature allowed defining optimum synthesis conditions based on material characteristics modification and catalytic activity enhancement. A doping level of 0.21 mol% CuSO₄ was identified as optimum condition to enable visible light photocatalysis of doped TiO₂ catalysts calcined at 300 °C. Finally, operational parameters were evaluated defining a wide range of pH operation under 3.0 g L⁻¹ of catalyst dose to treat up to 20 g L⁻¹ of highly recalcitrant phenothiazine dye. These optimum conditions allowed complete dye removal under visible light after 120 min of treatment.

Investigation of probable toxic effects of acetamiprid (ACMP) on kidney and comparative analysis of the probable protective effects of vitamin E and melatonin were conducted in the present study. The ethics committee approval was obtained from Inonu University Medical Faculty Ethics Committee. Fifty Balb-c mice were randomly assigned to control, corn oil, ethyl alcohol, ACMP, ACMP + melatonin, ACMP + vitamin E, and ACMP + melatonin + vitamin E groups. At the end of the experiments, rat kidney tissues were incised under anesthesia. Blood samples and kidney tissues were examined. After 21 days of ACMP administration, it was observed that malondialdehyde (MDA), total oxidant status (TOS), BUN, creatinine, IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α levels, histopathological damage, and Caspase-3 immunoreactivity scores increased, and glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and total antioxidant status (TAS) levels decreased, and histopathological damages were observed. Melatonin and vitamin E administration led to improvements in oxidative stress parameters, renal functions, inflammatory markers, and histopathological findings. ACMP administration led to nephrotoxicity in rat kidney tissues. Although melatonin and vitamin E administrations were effective on ACMP nephrotoxicity separately, co-administration of both was quite effective. Concomitant use of melatonin and vitamin E could be effective on prevention of toxicity.

The aim of this study was to examine the contents of calcium, chlorine, chromium, iron, manganese, molybdenum, potassium, rubidium, strontium, sulfur, tin, and zinc in the bones of the alpine bullhead (Cottus poecilopus) related to its vertical distribution in the mountain river Javorinka. This river is located on the northern side of the High Tatras, the West Carpathians. Sampling took place during 2017, 2018, and 2019. One hundred three individuals of bullheads were collected. Only deceased individuals were selected for sampling; there was no deliberate harm to any sampled individuals. Weight, body length, and head length and width were measured. The amounts of Ca, Rb, and Mo were significantly dependent on the altitude and the fish size. At higher altitudes, there are smaller fish that colonize more inaccessible waters with smaller habitat flow options and these smaller fish contain relatively more Ca, Rb, and Mo in their skulls than large fish. The presence of Mn, Sr, and Zn was related to the altitude. Concentrations of Zn and Sr increase with altitude in the alpine bullhead skulls. The amounts of S, Cl, K, Cr, Sn, and Mo did not differ among fish living at different elevations.

This study was conducted to analyze the residue levels of tepraloxydim in banana and sweet orange. Successive liquid–liquid extraction and cartridge clean-up method for tepraloxydim determination in banana and sweet orange were developed and validated by HPLC. The developed method was validated, and the recovery and LOQ of tepraloxydim were 79.3–99.5% and 0.02 mg kg⁻¹, respectively. Among the 48 banana and 34 sweet orange samples, tepraloxydim was detected in two (0.03 mg kg⁻¹) and four samples (0.03–0.05 mg kg⁻¹), respectively. A risk assessment of tepraloxydim in banana and sweet orange was conducted by calculating the percent ratio of estimated daily intake (EDI) and acceptable daily intake (ADI). The ADI of tepraloxydim was 0.05 mg kg⁻¹ day⁻¹, and the EDIs of it from banana and sweet orange were 6.3 × 10⁻⁶ and 5.1–8.5 × 10⁻⁶, respectively. The percent of EDI to ADI of tepraloxydim was 0.013 and 0.010–0.017%, respectively. These results showed that the tepraloxydim levels in this study might not be harmful to human beings.

Italian ryegrass (Lolium multifolorum Lam.) has a potential phytoextraction capacity for cadmium (Cd), which is considered as the most toxic heavy metal (HM) pollutant in the farmland. The promotion effect of urea application on Italian ryegrass growth has been clarified, while it is not clear whether and how urea application affects Cd accumulation in Italian ryegrass under Cd stress. A 2-year pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of urea application on Cd accumulation and related mechanisms by uptake inhibition and kinetics experiments. The results showed that both shoot biomass and Cd concentration under Cd stress were increased by up to 213.37% and 84.74% in 2016 and 38.15% and 47.11% in 2017 after urea application, respectively. The shoot Cd accumulation reached maximum value (910.23 and 630.09 μg pot⁻¹ in 2016 and 2017, respectively) at the level of 300 kg ha⁻¹ urea. Superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) activities were significantly increased by urea application. Compared with control group, urea application significantly improved inhibition ratio of 2, 4-dinitrophenol (DNP) rather than LaCl₃ and Ca²⁺. Cadmium uptake kinetics experiment showed that urea application significantly decreased the Kₘ value and improved the α value (P < 0.01), but no significant effect on the Vₘₐₓ value (P > 0.05). In conclusion, we proposed that the higher affinity to Cd²⁺ of the membrane transporter after urea application promoted the active uptake of Cd, which contributed to the effective Cd accumulation capacity in Italian ryegrass.

Weak-base pretreatment of wheat straw was investigated for its ability to improve biomethane production. Anaerobic digestion (AD) was performed on wheat straw pretreated with 3%, 5%, or 7% Na₂CO₃ as a weak base. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) spectra demonstrated disruption of lignocellulosic structures by pretreatment. In the 5% Na₂CO₃ treatment group, cellulose and hemicellulose were retained effectively, with efficient removal of lignin. The removal rates of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin were 27.9%, 20.4%, and 31.0%, respectively, after 5% Na₂CO₃ pretreatment. The methane content (53.3–77.3%) was improved in the 5% Na₂CO₃ treatment group, with maximum methane production (307.9 L/kg VS) that was 41.6% higher than that of the untreated sample. Cellulose and hemicelluloses were degraded 59.3% and 56.3% after AD. It took 20 days to reach 80% of the maximum cumulative methane production for the 5% Na₂CO₃ pretreatment group, which was 4 days faster than the untreated group. These results indicate that 5% Na₂CO₃ pretreatment improve the lignocellulose structure of wheat straw, allowing better biodegradability of wheat straw in AD for increased biogas production, enhanced methane content, and decreased digestion time.

The effect of Zataria multiflora (Z. multiflora) on serum cytokine, chemokines, and respiratory symptoms in the veterans exposed to sulfur mustard (SM) more than two decades (27–30 years) ago was conducted in 2018. Thirty-four patients were randomly assigned to the placebo group (P, mean age (54.40 ± 5.51)) and two treated groups with Z. multiflora extract 5 and 10 mg/kg/day (Z5 and 10; mean age, 58.50 ± 3.60 and 55.18 ± 4.11, respectively). Serum levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), epidermal growth factor (EGF), forced expiratory volume-one second (FEV₁), and respiratory symptoms including chest wheeze (CW), night wheeze (NW), night cough (NC), and cough and wheeze during exercise (ECW) were assessed at the baseline (phase 0), 1 and 2 months after starting treatment (phase I and II, respectively). The value of FEV₁ was significantly increased in Z10 in phase I and II compared with that in phase 0 (p < 0.01 for both) and in Z5 in phase II compared with phase I and 0 (p < 0.001for both). All respiratory symptoms significantly decreased in Z5 and 10 in phase I and II compared with those in phase 0 (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001). Serum levels of TNF-α and VEGF were decreased in Z5 and 10 in phase I and II compared with those in phase 0 (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001). Serum levels of MCP-1 and EGF were decreased in Z10 in phase I and II compared with those in phase 0 (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001). The percent change of respiratory symptoms, serum levels of cytokines during the treatment period, was significantly improved in the treated groups compared with that in the placebo group. Two months’ of treatment with Z. multiflora improved cytokine levels, respiratory symptom, and FEV₁ values in SM-exposed patients.