Mercury heavy metal pollution has become an important environmental problem worldwide. Accumulation of mercury ions by plants may disrupt many cellular functions and block normal growth and development. To assess mercury heavy metal toxicity, we performed an experiment focusing on the responses of Eichhornia crassipes to mercury-induced oxidative stress. E. crassipes seedlings were exposed to varying concentrations of mercury to investigate the level of mercury ions accumulation, changes in growth patterns, antioxidant defense mechanisms, and DNA damage under hydroponics system. Results showed that plant growth rate was significantly inhibited (52 %) at 50 mg/L treatment. Accumulation of mercury ion level were 1.99 mg/g dry weight, 1.74 mg/g dry weight, and 1.39 mg/g dry weight in root, leaf, and petiole tissues, respectively. There was a decreasing trend for chlorophyll a, b, and carotenoids with increasing the concentration of mercury ions. Both the ascorbate peroxidase and malondialdehyde contents showed increased trend in leaves and roots up to 30 mg/L mercury treatment and slightly decreased at the higher concentrations. There was a positive correlation between heavy metal dose and superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase antioxidative enzyme activities which could be used as biomarkers to monitor pollution in E. crassipes. Due to heavy metal stress, some of the normal DNA bands were disappeared and additional bands were amplified compared to the control in the random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) profile. Random amplified polymorphic DNA results indicated that genomic template stability was significantly affected by mercury heavy metal treatment. We concluded that DNA changes determined by random amplified polymorphic DNA assay evolved a useful molecular marker for detection of genotoxic effects of mercury heavy metal contamination in plant species.

The photolysis of the antimicrobial triclocarban (TCC) in aqueous systems under simulated sunlight irradiation was studied. The effects of several abiotic parameters, including solution pH, initial TCC concentration, presence of natural organic matter, and most common inorganic anions in surface waters, were investigated. The results show that the photolysis of TCC followed pseudo-first-order kinetics. The TCC photolysis rate constant increased with increasing solution pH and decreasing the initial TCC concentration. Compared with the TCC photolysis in pure water, the presence of aqueous bicarbonate, nitrate, humic acids, and its sodium salt decreased the TCC photolysis rate, but fulvic acid increased the TCC photolysis rate. The electron spin resonance and reactive oxygen species scavenging experiments indicated that TCC may undergo two different types of phototransformation reactions: direct photolysis and energy transfer to generate¹O₂. The main degradation products were tentatively identified by gas chromatography interfaced with mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and a possible degradation pathway was also proposed.

Composite washing of cadmium (Cd)- and lead (Pb)-contaminated agricultural soil from Hunan province in China using mixtures of chlorides (FeCl₃, CaCl₂) and citric acid (CA) was investigated. The concentrations of composite washing agents for metal removal were optimized. Sequential extraction was conducted to study the changes in metal fractions after soil washing. The removal of two metals at optimum concentration was reached. Using FeCl₃mixed with CA, 44 % of Cd and 23 % of Pb were removed, and 49 and 32 % by CaCl₂mixed with CA, respectively. The mechanism of composite washing was postulated. A mixture of chlorides and CA enhanced metal extraction from soil through the formation of metal–chloride and metal–citrate complexes. CA in extract solutions promoted the formation of metal–chloride complexes and reduced the solution pH. Composite washing reduced Cd and Pb in Fe–Mn oxide forms significantly. Chlorides and CA exerted a synergistic effect on metal extraction during composite washing.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are used in a wide range of products of all day life. Due to their toxicological potential, an emerging focus is directed towards their exposure to humans. This study investigated the PFAS load of consumer products in a broad perspective. Perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids (C₄, C₆–C₈, C₁₀-PFSA), carboxylic acids (C₄–C₁₄-PFCA) and fluorotelomer alcohols (4:2, 6:2; 8:2 and 10:2 FTOH) were analysed in 115 random samples of consumer products including textiles (outdoor materials), carpets, cleaning and impregnating agents, leather samples, baking and sandwich papers, paper baking forms and ski waxes. PFCA and PFSA were analysed by HPLC-MS/MS, whereas FTOH were detected by GC/CI-MS. Consumer products such as cleaning agents or some baking and sandwich papers show low or negligible PFSA and PFCA contents. On the other hand, high PFAS levels were identified in ski waxes (up to about 2000 μg/kg PFOA), leather samples (up to about 200 μg/kg PFBA and 120 μg/kg PFBS), outdoor textiles (up to 19 μg/m² PFOA) and some other baking papers (up to 15 μg/m² PFOA). Moreover, some test samples like carpet and leather samples and outdoor materials exceeded the EU regulatory threshold value for PFOS (1 μg/m²). A diverse mixture of PFASs can be found in consumer products for all fields of daily use in varying concentrations. This study proves the importance of screening and monitoring of consumer products for PFAS loads and the necessity for an action to regulate the use of PFASs, especially PFOA, in consumer products.

Despite the increasing occurrence of ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation, its molecular mechanism is poorly documented in higher plants compared to other environmental stress. In present study, the influence of supplemental UV-B radiation on photosynthetic performance and antioxidant enzymes in rice (Oryza sativa L.) was investigated. Supplemental UV-B radiation reduced net photosynthetic rate in rice flag leaves during senescence stage. By means of the JIP-test, it was found that the potential of processing light energy through the photosynthetic machinery was slightly inhibited by the increased thermal dissipation. Furthermore, 18 thylakoid membrane protein spots were differentially expressed (5-fold or greater variation compared to the control) in supplemental UV-B-treated rice. These identified proteins were involved in various cellular responses and metabolic processes including photosynthesis, stress defense, Calvin cycle, and others of unknown functions. Taken together, these results suggested that physiological changes that resulted from supplemental UV-B radiation were linked to the light reaction, carbon metabolism, and antioxidant enzymes in rice leaves during senescence stage.

The effects of different hydroponic conditions (such as concentration of thorium (Th), pH, carbonate, phosphate, organic acids, and cations) on thorium uptake by Brassica juncea var. foliosa were evaluated. The results showed that acidic cultivation solutions enhanced thorium accumulation in the plants. Phosphate and carbonate inhibited thorium accumulation in plants, possibly due to the formation of Th(HPO₄)²⁺, Th(HPO₄)₂, or Th(OH)₃CO₃⁻with Th⁴⁺, which was disadvantageous for thorium uptake in the plants. Organic aids (citric acid, oxalic acid, lactic acid) inhibited thorium accumulation in roots and increased thorium content in the shoots, which suggested that the thorium-organic complexes did not remain in the roots and were beneficial for thorium transfer from the roots to the shoots. Among three cations (such as calcium ion (Ca²⁺), ferrous ion (Fe²⁺), and zinc ion (Zn²⁺)) in hydroponic media, Zn²⁺had no significant influence on thorium accumulation in the roots, Fe²⁺inhibited thorium accumulation in the roots, and Ca²⁺was found to facilitate thorium accumulation in the roots to a certain extent. This research will help to further understand the mechanism of thorium uptake in plants.

Little is known about the biosorption and bioaccumulation capacity of thallium (Tl) by microorganisms that occur in Tl-polluted soil. The present study focused on characterizing the biosorption and bioaccumulation of Tl by Tl-tolerant fungi isolated from Tl-polluted soils. Preliminary data showed a positive correlation between the biomass and the biosorbed Tl content. The Tl-tolerant strains were capable of bioaccumulating Tl, up to 7189 mg kg⁻¹ dry weight. The subcellular distribution of Tl showed obvious compartmentalization: cytoplasm ≫ cell wall > organelle. The majority of Tl (up to 79 %) was found in the cytoplasm, suggesting that intracellular compartmentalization appeared to be responsible for detoxification. These findings further suggest the applicability of the fungal isolates for cleanup of Tl in Tl-polluted water and soil.

Monochloroacetic acid (MCA) is a chemically stable and biologically toxic pollutant. It is often generated during the production of the pesticide dimethoate. Conventional wastewater treatment processes have difficulty degrading it. In this work, the dechlorination effects of Ni-Fe bimetal prepared using ball milling (BM) technology for the high concentrations of MCA in wastewater were examined. The MCA in aqueous solution was found to be degraded efficiently by the Ni-Fe bimetal. However, S-(methoxycarbonyl) methyl O, O-dimethyl phosphorodithioate (SMOPD) in wastewater, a by-product of the dimethoate production process, significantly inhibited the reductive dechlorination activity of Ni-Fe bimetal. Increasing the reaction temperature in the MCA wastewater enhanced the reduction activity of the Ni-Fe bimetal effectively. Oxygen was found to be unfavorable to dechlorination. Sealing the reaction to prevent oxidation was found to render the degradation process more efficient. The process retained over 88 % efficiency after 10 treatment cycles with 50 g/L of Ni-Fe bimetal under field conditions.

Inhalation of silica (SiO₂) in occupational exposures can cause pulmonary fibrosis (silicosis), lung function deficits, pulmonary inflammation, and lung cancer. Current risk assessment models, however, cannot fully explain the magnitude of silica-induced pulmonary disease risk. The purpose of this study was to assess human health risk exposed to airborne silica dust in Taiwan ceramics manufacturing. We conducted measurements to characterize workplace-specific airborne silica dust in tile and commodity ceramic factories and used physiologically based alveolar exposure model to estimate exposure dose. We constructed dose–response models for describing relationships between exposure dose and inflammatory responses, by which health risks among workers can be assessed. We found that silica contents were 0.22–33.04 % with mean concentration ranges of 0.11–5.48 and 0.46–1763.30 μg m⁻³, respectively, in commodity and tile ceramic factories. We showed that granulation workers in tile ceramic factory had the highest total SiO₂ lung burden (∼1000 mg) with cumulative SiO₂ lung burden of ∼4 × 10⁴ mg-year. The threshold estimates with an effect on human lung inflammation and fibrosis are 407.31 ± 277.10 (mean ± sd) and 505.91 ± 231.69 mg, respectively. For granulation workers, long-term exposure to airborne silica dust for 30–45 years was likely to pose severe adverse health risks of inflammation and fibrosis. We provide integrated assessment algorithms required to implement the analyses and maintain resulting concentration of silica dust at safety threshold level in the hope that they will stimulate further analyses and interpretation. We suggest that decision-makers take action to implement platforms for effective risk management to prevent the related long-term occupational disease in ceramics manufacturing.