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We compared nerve blockade with and without the InfinitiTM needle guide in an ultrasound in-plane porcine simulation. We recruited 30 anaesthetists with varying blockade experience. Using the guide, the needle tip was more visible (for a median (IQR [range]) of 67 (56-100]) % of the time; and invisible for 2 (1-4 [0-19]) s) than when the guide was not used (respectively 23 (13-43 [0-80]) % and 25 (9-52 [1-198]) s; both p < 0.001). The corresponding block times were 8 (6-10 [3-28]) s and 32 (15-67 [5-225]) s, respectively; p < 0.001. The needle guide reduced the block time and the time that the needle was invisible, irrespective of anaesthetist experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of soil characteristics and oil types as well as the efficacy of two fertilizer formulations and three bioaugmentation packages in improving the bioremediation of oil-contaminated soils were assessed as a means of ex situ treatment selection and optimization through seven laboratory microcosm studies. The influence of bioremediation on leaching of oil from the soil was also investigated. The studies demonstrated the benefits of biostimulation to overcome nutrient limitation, as most of the soils were nutrient depleted. The application of both liquid and pelleted slow-release N and P fertilizers increased both the hydrocarbon biodegradation rates (by a factor of 1.4 to 2.9) and the percentage of hydrocarbon mass degraded (by>30% after 12 weeks and 80% after 37 weeks), when compared with the unamended soils. Slow-release fertilizers can be particularly useful when multiple liquid applications are not practical or cost-effective. Bioaugmentation products containing inoculum plus fertilizer also increased biodegradation by 20% to 37% compared with unamended biotic controls; however, there was no clear evidence of additional benefits due to the inocula, compared with fertilizer alone. Therefore biostimulation is seen as the most cost-effective bioremediation strategy for contaminated soils with the levels of crude oil and refined products used in this study. However, site-specific considerations remain essential for establishing the treatability of oil-contaminated soils. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Aims: To investigate the factors affecting benzene biodegradation and microbial community composition in a contaminated aquifer. Methods and Results: We identified the microbial community in groundwater samples from a benzene-contaminated aquifer situated below a petrochemical plant. Eleven out of twelve groundwater samples with in situ dissolved oxygen concentrations between 0 and 2·57 mg l−1 showed benzene degradation in aerobic microcosm experiments, whereas no degradation in anaerobic microcosms was observed. The lack of aerobic degradation in the remaining microcosm could be attributed to a pH of 12·1. Three groundwaters, examined by 16S rRNA gene clone libraries, with low in situ oxygen concentrations and high benzene levels, each had a different dominant aerobic (or denitrifying) population, either Pseudomonas, Polaromonas or Acidovorax species. These groundwaters also had syntrophic organisms, and aceticlastic methanogens were detected in two samples. The alkaline groundwater was dominated by organisms closely related to Hydrogenophaga. Conclusions: Results show that pH 12·1 is inimical to benzene biodegradation, and that oxygen concentrations below 0·03 mg l−1 can support aerobic benzene-degrading communities. Significance and Impact of the Study: These findings will help to guide the treatment of contaminated groundwaters, and raise questions about the extent to which aerobes and anaerobes may interact to effect benzene degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To isolate benzene-degrading strains from neutral and alkaline groundwaters contaminated by benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes (BTEX) from the SIReN aquifer, UK, and to test their effective pH range and ability to degrade TEX. Methods and Results: The 14 isolates studied had an optimum pH for growth of 8, and could degrade benzene to below detection level (1 μg l−1). Five Rhodococcus erythropolis strains were able to metabolize benzene up to pH 9, two distinct R. erythropolis strains to pH 10, and one Arthrobacter strain to pH 8·5. These Actinobacteria also degraded benzene at least down to pH 5·5. Six other isolates, a Hydrogenophaga and five Pseudomonas strains, had a narrower pH tolerance for benzene degradation (pH 6 to 8·5), and could metabolize toluene; in addition, the Hydrogenophaga and two Pseudomonas strains utilized o-, m- or p-xylenes. None of these strains degraded ethylbenzene. Conclusions: Phylogenetically distinct isolates, able to degrade BTX compounds, were obtained, and some degraded benzene at high pH. Significance and Impact of the Study: High pH has previously been found to inhibit in situ degradation of benzene, a widespread, carcinogenic groundwater contaminant. These benzene-degrading organisms therefore have potential applications in the remediation or natural attenuation of alkaline waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arylsulphatase, β-1,3 glucanase, phosphatase and urease responded differently to γ-irradiation (5-50 Mrad) in air-dried and moist soils. In all instances phosphatase was the most stable. The variability between enzymes may be due to inherent biochemical and stuctural characteristics or to their location within the soil microenvironment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioremediation was investigated as a method of treating a mixture ofForties Crude Oil and Heavy Fuel Oil stranded on Bullwell Bay, Milford Haven, UK after the grounding of the Sea Empress in 1996. A randomised block design in triplicate was used to test the efficacy of two bioremediation treatments: a weekly application of mineral nutrients dissolved in seawater and a single application of a slow-release fertilizer. Each treatment supplied an equivalent amount of nitrogen and phosphorus. Concentrations of residual hydrocarbons normalised to thebiomarker 17a(H),21p(H)-hopane showed that after two months the oil was significantly (p<0.001) more biodegraded in the treated plots than in the controls. On average, the oil in the nutrient amended plots was 37% more degraded than that found in the controls. There was no evidence that the bioremediation treatments increased the toxicity of the oiled sediment. The results confirm that bioremediation can be used to treat a mixture of crude and heavy fuel oil on a pebble beach. In particular, the data suggest that the application of a slowreleasefertilizer alone may be a cost-effective method of treating low-energy, contaminated shorelines after a spill incident. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]