Recent studies have demonstrated that bisphenol A (BPA) has an adverse or toxic effect on the kidney. This study was designed to evaluate the ability of quercetin (QUER) to prevent BPA-induced mitochondrial dysfunction. Thirty-two healthy adult male Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups, as follows: control group (olive oil), BPA group (250 mg/kg), BPA þ QUER group (250 mg/kg + 75 mg/kg), and QUER group (75 mg/kg). All treatments were orally administered for 14 days. Kidney mitochondria were isolated by administration of the different centrifugation method. Uric acid and creatinine were considered to be biomarkers of nephrotoxicity. The ameliorative effects of QUER on BPA toxicity were evaluated by determining the glutathione (GSH) content, CAT, the damage to the mitochondrial membrane, the reactive oxygen species (ROS), and lipid peroxidation (LPO). Administration of BPA significantly decreased kidney weight. In the kidney, BPA can deplete GSH content and CAT activity, increase the mitochondrial ROS formation, and enhances LPO and mitochondrial membrane damage. The pretreatment of mitochondria with QUER has the ability to reduce the toxic effects of BPA in isolated mitochondria. These findings suggest a potential role for QUER in protecting mitochondria from oxidative damage in kidney tissue.

Pd-only three-way catalysts with improved catalytic activity for NO elimination were prepared. In order to explore the catalytic reaction rules of NO reduction under a three-way catalytic system, a series of single reactions related to NO reduction were evaluated. It was found that the reaction temperatures of NO + H₂ or NO + CO or NO + C₃H₆ reactions were below 250 °C, while that of NO + C₃H₈ was up to 350 °C. Thus, the reaction NO + C₃H₈ served as the key reaction in determining the purification efficiency of NO at the high-temperature stage. By in situ FTIR, we proposed that three possible steps were involved in NO + C₃H₈ reaction. The first step was the oxidation of C₃H₈ and NO to acetone and nitrate species by active oxygen species, respectively (C₃H₈ + O* → C₃H₆O, NO + O* → NO₃⁻). XPS results revealed that the amount of active oxygen species in Pd/CeO₂-ZrO₂-Al₂O₃ (Pd/CZA, 73.7%) was much higher than that in Pd/CeₓZr₁₋ₓO₂+Al₂O₃ (Pd/CZ+A, 64.1%). This was in line with the higher reaction efficiency of the first step over Pd/CZA. Then the NO + C₃H₈ reaction was accelerated by the first step, which consequently contributed to the higher NO elimination efficiency of Pd/CZA.

The rice husk ash (RHA) was used as an alternative source of silica for the synthesis of the functionalized mesoporous material, which was used in the removal of the PAHs naphthalene (Nap), benzo[b]fluoranthene (B[b]F), benzo[k]fluoranthene (B[k]F), and benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) from aqueous media. The PABA-MCM-41 (RHA) was characterized using FTIR, TGA, SAXS, and N₂ adsorption–desorption analyses. Removal experiments were performed to determine the initial concentrations, individual adsorption in comparison with the mixture of the PAHs, PABA-MCM-41 (RHA) amount, pH, time, and temperature, and the results obtained were statistically analyzed. The PABA-MCM-41 (RHA) presented the SBET, VT, and DBJH values of 438 m² g⁻¹, 0.41 cm³ g⁻¹, and 3.59 nm, respectively, and good thermal stability. The qₑ values found in the kinetic equilibrium for the PAHs mixture followed increasing order: Nap < B[a] P < B[k]F < B[b]F, with removal percentages of 89.08 ± 0.00, 93.85 ± 0.28, 94.54 ± 0.10, and 97.80 ± 0.05%, respectively. Graphical abstract

Glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) is crucial for the accumulation of soil organic carbon (SOC), and contributes to the formation of soil aggregates. However, it remains unclear whether GRSP is involved in altering the stability of soil aggregates in the long-term tea planting process. The relationship between the distribution of GRSP and soil aggregates in tea plantations is poorly studied. We compared the distribution of SOC and GRSP in aggregates in tea plantations of different ages (18, 25, 33, and 55 years) and those in an abandoned land and investigated their potential contribution to the soil aggregate stability. Tea plantation was found to be beneficial for the accumulation of SOC and GRSP compared to the abandoned land. The content of SOC significantly increased after tea plantation, especially in surface soil (0–20 cm), and the increase range was 21.79%–46.51%, due to the centralized management of tea plantations. The content of total glomalin-related soil protein (T-GRSP) and easily extractable glomalin-related soil protein (EE-GRSP) varied with the increasing tea plantation age. The T-GRSP content was higher in 25-year-old tea plantation, while EE-GRSP was gradually decreased with the increasing age of the tea plantation, and T-GRSP had better correlation with SOC than EE-GRSP. Long-term tea plantation (after 33 years) was not conducive to the preservation of GRSP. The distribution of GRSP in the tea plantation soils differed greatly among the aggregates, with the 0.25–1-mm aggregate having less GRSP, which might be related to the distribution of soil fungi in the aggregates. There was a significant correlation between T-GRSP and mean weight diameter (MWD; P < 0.05) in the whole soil, whereas EE-GRSP had no correlation with the MWD of the aggregates. The T-GRSP content was correlated closely with the stability of soil aggregates in the tea plantations, and their relationship was dependent on the aggregate scale. Our results show that the T-GRSP content in the tea plantation soils has important effects on the formation and stability of aggregates in this region, which was one of the factors affecting the structure and quality of tea plantation soil. Improving GRSP is an effective way for the both SOC sequestration and soil health after long-term tea plantation.

Depending on the actual number of soil-based on-site wastewater treatment system (OWTS) in an area, on-site sanitation may be a significant source of pollutants and a threat to groundwater. Even in the case of a system functioning correctly, here, a sand filter substituted for the in-situ soil, as the treated effluent may reach to the water table, it is necessary evaluating in situ how much the sand and underneath soil respectively contribute to pollutant removal. On the plot of a household in a small rural community, the functioning of a real scale OWTS was monitored for 1.5 years. This system, composed of a septic tank connected to a 5 × 5 m² and 0.7-m thick aerobic sand filter was equipped with soil hydrodynamic probes (water content and matrix potential) during construction. By using the instantaneous profile method of water content, the intermittent infiltrated flux was determined across the sand-pack according to position and time. Treated water infiltrates into underneath soil acting as post-treatment. Quality of interstitial liquid from the sand and the soil was analysed each month on a 12-h pumping sample obtained through porous plates. Results of water fluxes and concentrations provide an estimate of the annual flux to the vadose zone and groundwater of metals, nutrients and some organic micro-pollutants (parabens and triclosan) through the OWTS and subsoil.

Versatile polyethyleneimine (PEI)-coated Fe₃O₄ magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have been synthesized by a one-step solvothermal method. The morphologies, structures, and properties of MNPs prepared for different reaction times have been characterized through various techniques. The synthesized MNPs were then used to separate emulsified oil and cationic and anionic heavy metal ions from the aqueous environment; moreover, the effects of the temperature, pH, and ionic strength of aqueous media, the solvothermal reaction time, and the number of reuse cycles on the removal efficiency have been investigated in detail. The results showed that pseudo-second-order kinetics and the Langmuir isotherm well described the adsorption processes of Cu(II) and Cr(VI). The Langmuir model yielded maximum adsorption capacities of 66.6 mg g⁻¹ for Cu(II) and 54.5 mg g⁻¹ for Cr(VI) at pH 5.0 and 25 °C. The synthetic MNPs could also efficiently separate diesel oil or olive oil droplets stabilized by sodium dodecyl sulfate from aqueous media. Moreover, these MNPs could be recycled five times without showing significant loss in separation efficiency. Notably, the synthesized PEI-coated MNPs could simultaneously separate emulsified oil and cationic and anionic heavy metal ions from multicomponent wastewater. Such versatile PEI-coated MNPs displayed good affinity towards emulsified oil and cationic and anionic heavy metal ions, showing great potential for practical applications in the treatment of complicated industrial wastewater matrices. Graphical abstract Simultaneous separation of emulsified oil and cationic and anionic heavy metal ions from aqueous media by using polyethyleneimine-coated Fe₃O₄ magnetic nanoparticles.

The environmental and human health risk posed by veterinary antibiotics is of global concern. Antibiotic uptake by herbal plants has been studied, but little is known about perennial woody fruit crops. Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.), a longevial fruit tree, is routinely fertilized with animal manure and, therefore, may be at risk of antibiotic uptake into its fruits. This study investigated the degradation of chlortetracycline and doxycycline present in manure used to amend orchard soil, and their subsequent assimilation by litchi plant, as affected by manure application rate. The results show that half-lives of chlortetracycline and doxycycline in soil were decreased by increased manure rate, with an average of 27 and 59 days, respectively. Chlortetracycline was readily transported to litchi shoots and increased with the growth of litchi plants. Doxycycline predominantly remained in the roots, and underwent growth dilution in the plants. The two tetracyclines could not be detected in fruits from litchi trees when applied with manures, at various rates, over 2 years. For litchi, chlortetracycline may pose human health risk through manure application, but doxycycline is unlikely to do so. Long-term field experiments are required to monitor antibiotic accumulation in fruits of perennial fruit trees fertilized with animal manure.

Traffic accident may bring vehicle fire in the street canyons. With its high temperature and numerous hazardous materials, the smoke produced by the vehicle fire may cause serious damage to the human body and the properties nearby, such as the glass curtain walls of buildings. The influence of the ambient air flow speed and street aspect ratio on the dispersion of fire smoke in street canyon has been analyzed by FDS software and theoretical analysis in this study. The impact of different windward building heights and different ambient air flow speeds u₀ on the fire smoke were investigated. The results show that the fire smoke tilts towards the opposing direction of the ambient air flow within the street canyon, while the ambient air flow is perpendicular to the windward building. The results indicate that the critical re-entrainment velocity decreases at first, and then increases until it attains a constant with the building height ratio H₁/H₂. Finally, a predictive model of the critical re-entrainment velocity was developed under different building height ratios H₁/H₂.

Disinfection of water and wastewater strongly contributes to solving the problem of water shortage in arid/semi-arid areas; cheap and ecofriendly approaches have to be used to meet water quality standards. In the present study, a green synthesis of iron nanoparticles (INPs) under aerobic and anaerobic conditions via nitrate reductases (NAP/NAR) enzymes produced by Proteus mirabilis strain 10B were employed for this target. The biosynthesized INPs were characterized; UV-Vis spectroscopy revealed surface plasmon resonance at 410 (aerobic) and 265 nm (anaerobic). XRD indicated crystalline magnetite ((MNPs) aerobically synthesized) and zerovalent INPs (ZVINPs anaerobically synthesized). EDX demonstrated strong iron signal with atomic percentages 73.3% (MNPs) and 61.7% (ZVINPs). TEM micrographs illustrated tiny, spherical, periplasmic MNPs (1.44–1.92 nm) and cytoplasmic ZVINPs with 11.7–60.8 nm. Zeta potential recorded − 31.8 mV (ZVINPs) and − 66.4 mV (MNPs) affirming colloidal stability. Moreover, the disinfection power of INPs was evaluated for standards organisms and real water (fresh, sea and salt mine) and wastewater (municipal, agricultural and industrial) samples. The results reported that INPs displayed higher antagonistic effect than iron precursor, 700 and 850 μg/mL of MNPs and ZVINPs, respectively, was sufficient to show a drastic algicidal effect on algal growth. Both types of INPs demonstrated obvious dose-dependent antibiofilm efficiency. Due to their smaller size, MNPs were more efficient than ZVINPs at the suppression of microbial growth in all examined water samples. Overall, MNPs showed superior antagonistic activity, which promotes their exploitation in enhancing water/wastewater quality.

An enrichment process was employed by applying high ibuprofen concentration in an immobilized cell bioreactor in order to favor the ibuprofen-degrading community present in activated sludge. Experimental data showed the ability of the immobilized cell bioreactor to achieve high ibuprofen removal efficiencies (98.4 ± 0.3%), the tendency of the enriched biomass to acidify the treated liquor, and the inhibition of the nitrification process. Illumina sequencing revealed a massive increase in the relative abundance of Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria (from 29.1 to 80.8%) and a dramatic decrease in the proportion of Bacteroidetes, Planctomycetes, and Verrucomicrobia (from 42.7 to 2.1%) when pure ibuprofen served as the sole carbonaceous feeding substrate. This shift in the feeding conditions resulted in the predominance of Novosphingobium and Rhodanobacter (25.5 ± 10.8% and 25.2 ± 3.0%, respectively) and demonstrated a specialized ibuprofen-degrading bacterial community in activated sludge, which possessed the selective advantage to cope with its degradation. To the best of our knowledge, this bioreactor system was capable of effectively treating the highest ibuprofen concentration applied in wastewater treatment plants.