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A simple and an available method is proposed for the identification and authentication of milk using a test device, a smartphone, and chemometric analysis. For the identification by the region of origin and the species of milk (cow, goat, sheep, etc.) and authentication (authenticity, falsification of milk), acid-base indicator papers and test papers are used to determine the total hardness and total alkalinity of water and chloride and sulfate ions. Two indicator systems are proposed. In the first test system, 16 indicator zones are used, of which 12 zones are acid-base indicators with a color change in the pH range of 3-9, and 4 are indicator zones, the color change of which depends on the concentration of calcium ions and chloride, sulfate, carbonate, and hydrocarbonate ions. The second test system uses fluorescent indicators, as well as the intrinsic fluorescence of milk on cellulose paper and a thin silica layer. In this case, the indicator zones of the matrix are irradiated with monochromatic ultraviolet light (365 nm) after applying milk samples to them. A device and a method for measuring the colorimetric characteristics of test systems using a smartphone are proposed. The data array (the sum of the RGB channel values) is processed using the XLSTAT software. The use of chemometric analysis made it possible to establish the authenticity of milk, identify it by the region of origin, and reveal facts of milk falsification by dilution with water, the use of vegetable fats, and emulsification with surfactants. The manufacturers of pasteurized milk were identified and a possibility of determining its fat content by the data array of RGB colorimetric parameters is proved., Author(s): V. G. Amelin [sup.1] [sup.2] , Z. A. Ch. Shogah [sup.1] , D. S. Bol'shakov [sup.3] , A. V. Tret'yakov [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.171855.f, 0000 0000 9825 6119, [...]

Test systems based on polymer nanofibers obtained by electrospinning are developed for the determination of nickel ions in natural and waste waters. The detection of the analytical signal of test systems can be carried out both visually and by colorimetry. Polyacrylonitrile and fluoroplastic are used as a polymer matrix, and rubeanic acid, pyridylazonaphthol, dimethylglyoxime, and [alpha]-furyldioxime are used as reagents. The immobilization of the reagents into the matrix is carried out by adding them to the polymer spinning solution before the start of the fiber manufacturing process. The optimal conditions for obtaining test systems (composition of the spinning solution, electrospinning parameters, the nature of the polymer and the reagent) and for recording the analytical signal (pH, color parameter, and signal recording time) are chosen. The parameters of calibration dependences for the determination of nickel ions using various test systems are determined, and their selectivity with respect to ions of other heavy metals is studied. It is shown that a test system based on polyacrylonitrile (mass fraction of polymer in the spinning solution 12%) and rubeanic acid (reagent concentration in the spinning solution 0.05 M) ensures the determination of nickel ions in the concentration range 1 x 10.sup.-6 M-0.01 M. The developed test systems are used to determine nickel ions in natural, tap and waste waters. An advantage of the proposed test systems is the simplicity of test fabrication, the absence of sample preparation, and the possibility of conducting analysis in the field., Author(s): N. S. Komova [sup.1] [sup.2], A. I. Danchuk [sup.1], V. V. Galushka [sup.1], A. M. Pavlov [sup.1], A. A. Serdobintsev [sup.1], T. Yu. Rusanova [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) Institute [...]

Context: The evaluation of ionic conductivity through atomistic modeling typically involves calculating diffusion coefficients, which often necessitates simulations spanning several hundreds of nanoseconds. This study introduces a less computationally demanding approach based on non-equilibrium molecular dynamics applicable to a wide range of systems., Method: Ionic conductivity is determined by evaluating the Joule heating effect recorded during non-equilibrium molecular dynamics (NEMD) simulations. These simulations which involve applying a uniform electric field using classical force fields in LAMMPS are conducted within the MedeA software environment. The conductivity value for a specific temperature can thus be obtained from a single simulation together with an estimation of the associated uncertainty. Guidelines for selecting NEMD parameters such as electric field intensity and initial temperature are proposed to satisfy linear irreversible transport., Results: The protocol presented in this study is applied to four different types of systems, namely, (i) molten NaCl, (ii) NaCl and LiCl aqueous solutions, (iii) solution of ionic liquid with two solvents, and (iv) NaX zeolites in the anhydrous and hydrated states. The main advantages of the proposed protocol are simplicity of implementation (eliminating the need to store individual ion trajectories), reliability (low electric field, linear response, no perturbation of the equations of motion by a thermostat), and a wide range of applications. The estimated contribution of field-induced drift motion of ions to kinetic energy appears very low, justifying the use of standard kinetic energy in the method. For each system, the reported influence of temperature, ion concentration, solvent nature, or hydration is correctly predicted., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The bioluminescent luciferin-luciferase reaction is based on the oxidation of D-luciferin by oxygen in the presence of ATP and magnesium ions, catalyzed by firefly luciferase. The possibilities of using this reaction to study the influence of external effectors of a physical and chemical nature (temperature exposure, additions of drugs, membrane-active compounds, etc.) on living cells (prokaryotes and eukaryotes) are considered. Examples of the use of test systems based on living cells producing thermostable firefly luciferase for monitoring cellular homeostasis are given. The study of the kinetics of changes in the concentration of ATP and luciferase inside and outside cells made it possible to determine in dynamics the metabolic activity, cytotoxicity, and survival of cells under conditions of cellular stress, to study the processes of ATP synthesis/hydrolysis, and to evaluate the effectiveness of lytic agents in changing the permeability of the cell membrane., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© International Union for Pure and Applied Biophysics (IUPAB) and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2022.)

In ankylosing spondylitis, the pathological metabolism of the bone tissue is regulated by various proteins; of these, Dkk-1 protein, an antagonist of the Wnt-signaling pathway, is of particular interest. We compared the methods of Dkk-1 detection in the blood serum of patients with ankylosing spondylitis (conventional ELISA and aptamer/antibody assay) and analyzed the relationship between Dkk-1 level and structural progression of ankylosing spondylitis and secondary osteoporosis. Dkk-1 levels in patients were significantly increased and depended on the stage of the disease, but not on the presence/absence of osteoporosis. Thus, Dkk-1 is a potential serum marker of progression of ankylosing spondylitis reflecting a tendency to structural progression of the disease before the appearance of radiographic changes. The results obtained by both methods practically coincided, which suggests good prospects for applying DNA aptamer-based test system., (© 2022. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Table 2 in the originally published article is not correct and is a duplicate of Table 3. The error happened during typesetting. The correct Table 2 is shown below.

Fast identification of pathogens directly from positive blood cultures is of highest importance to supply an adequate therapy of bloodstream infections (BSI). There are several platforms providing molecular-based identification, detection of antimicrobial resistance genes, or even a full antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST). Two of such test systems allowing rapid diagnostics were assessed in this study: The Biofire FilmArray® and the Genmark ePlex®, both fully automated test system with a minimum of hands-on time. Overall 137 BSI episodes were included in our study and compared to conventional culture-based reference methods. The FilmArray® is using one catridge including a panel for the most common bacterial and fungal BSI pathogens as well as selected resistance markers. The ePlex® offers three different cartridges for detection of Gram-positives, Gram-negatives, and fungi resulting in a broader panel including also rare pathogens, putative contaminants, and more genetic resistance markers. The FilmArray® and ePlex® were evaluated for all 137 BSI episodes with FilmArray® detecting 119 and ePlex® detecting 128 of these. For targets on the respective panel of the system, the FilmArray® generated a sensitivity of 98.9% with 100% specificity on Gram-positive isolates. The ePlex® system generated a sensitivity of 94.7% and a specificity of 90.7% on Gram-positive isolates. In each case, the two systems performed with 100% sensitivity and specificity for the detection of Gram-negative specimens covered by each panel. In summary, both evaluated test systems showed a satisfying overall performance for fast pathogen identification and are beneficial tools for accelerating blood culture diagnostics of sepsis patients.

In numerous cases, the German health-related indication value (HRIV) concept has proved its practicability for the assessment of drinking water relevant trace substances (Umweltbundesamt 2003). The HRIV is based on the toxicological profile of a substance. An open point of the HRIV concept has been the assignment of standardized test procedures to be used for the assessment. The level of the HRIV is at its lowest as soon as the genotoxicity of the substance is detected. As a single test on its own, it is not sufficient enough to assess the human toxicological relevance of a genotoxic effect or exclude it in the case of a negative result; a reasonable test battery was required, technically oriented towards the already harmonized international, hierarchical evaluation for toxicological assessment of chemicals. Therefore, an important aim of this project was to define a strategy for the genotoxicological assessment of anthropogenic trace substances. The basic test battery for genotoxicity of micropollutants in drinking water needs to fulfill several requirements. Although quick test results are needed for the determination of HRIV, a high degree of transferability to human genotoxicity should be ensured. Therefore, an in vitro genotoxicity test battery consisting of the Ames fluctuation test with two tester strains (ISO 11350), the umu test and the micronucleus test, or from the Ames test with five tester strains (OECD 471) and the micronucleus test is proposed. On the basis of selected test substances, it could be shown that the test battery leads to positive, indifferent, and negative results. Given indifferent results, the health authority and the water supplier must assume that it is a genotoxic substance. Genetically modified tester strains are being sensitive to different chemical classes by expression of selected mammalian key enzymes for example nitroreductase, acetyltransferase, and glutathione-S-transferase. These strains may provide valuable additional information and may give a first indication of the mechanism of action. To check this hypothesis, various additional strains expressing specific human-relevant enzymes were investigated. It could be shown that the additional use of genetically modified tester strains can enhance the detectable substance spectrum with the bacterial genotoxicological standard procedures or increase the sensitivity. The additional use provides orienting information at this level as a lot of data can be obtained quite quickly and with little effort. These indications of the mechanism of action should be however verified with a test system that uses mammalian cells, better human cells, to check their actual relevance. The selection of appropriate additional tester strains has to be defined from case to case depending on the molecular structure and also still requires some major expertise.

The paper presents a formalized statement of the problem of selecting parameters and construction of a genomic classifier for medical test systems with mathematical methods of machine learning without the use of biological and medical knowledge. A method is proposed to solve this problem. The results of testing the method using microarray datasets containing information on genome-wide transcriptome of the samples of estrogen positive breast tumors are discussed. Testing showed that the quality of classification provided by the constructed test system and implemented on the basis of assessments of expression of 12 genes is not inferior to the quality of classification carried out by such test systems as OncotypeDX and MammaPrint.

Human pharmaceutical active ingredients that are orally or parenterally administered may be metabolised in the body and after excretion may be further transformed in the receiving environmental compartments. The optimal outcome from an environmental point of view-complete mineralisation-is rarely observed. Small molecule pharmaceuticals are commonly not readily biodegradable according to Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 301 tests. However, primary transformation is often observed. To gain information on the transformation of active ingredients in the environment, long-term studies like transformation in aquatic water/sediment systems according to OECD guideline 308 are required for the environmental risk assessment for human active pharmaceutical ingredients. Studies received until mid 2010 as part of the dossiers for marketing authorisation applications were evaluated concerning transformation products. The evaluation revealed that in 70% of the studies, at least one transformation product (TP) is formed above 10% of the originally applied dose, but in only 26% of the studies are all TP identified. The evaluation also revealed that some TP of pharmaceutical active ingredients show a considerably longer DT₅₀ compared to the parent compound. An example is the TP (val)sartan acid that is formed from an antihypertensive compound.

We have examined the use of RNA interference as a means of downregulating gene expression and provide the first comparison of shRNA and artificial miRNA constructs for transgenic livestock. Several in vitro assays were performed to identify the most effective RNAi constructs. shRNA and miRNA constructs achieved significant downregulation of two porcine target genes: the milk whey protein beta-lactoglobulin and the tumour suppressor p53. Results of different assays were, however, sometimes at variance, indicating that no one assay can be relied upon to predict the effectiveness of an RNAi construct. Our findings are that screening of RNAi constructs is most informative if carried out in primary cells that express the target gene and are competent for somatic cell nuclear transfer. Importantly, the use of miRNA constructs makes tissue specific gene knockdown in large animals a realistic possibility.

Fagot and Paleressompoulle (2009) published an automated learning device for monkeys (ALDM) to test the cognitive functions of nonhuman primates within their social groups, but the efficiency of the ALDM procedure with large groups remains unknown. In the present study, 10 ALDM systems were provided ad lib to a troop of 26 semi-free-ranging baboons that were initially naive with computerized testing. The test program taught baboons to solve two-alternative forced choice (2AFC) and matching-to-sample (MTS) tasks. A million trials were recorded for the group during a period of 85 days (Experiment 1). Their analysis shows that 75% of the baboons participated at high frequencies and quickly learned the 2AFC and MTS tasks. In Experiment 2, we compared the baboons' behavior when the ADLM systems were either accessible or closed. ALDM reduced frequencies of object-directed behaviors, but had no overt consequence on social conflicts. In Experiment 3, we tested the process of the global or local attributes of visual stimuli in MTS-trained baboons in order to illustrate the efficiency of ALDM for behavioral studies requiring complex experimental designs. Altogether, the results of the present study validate the use of ALDM to efficiently test monkeys in large social groups. ALDM has a strong potential for a variety of scientific disciplines, including for biomedical research. Supplemental materials for this article may be downloaded from http://brm.psychonomic-journals.org/content/supplemental.

Background, Aim, and Scope: Many-if not all-organisms depend on so-called infochemicals, chemical substances in their surroundings which inform the receivers about their biotic and abiotic environment and which allow them to react adequately to these signals. Anthropogenic substances can interfere with this complex chemical communication system. This finding is called infochemical effect. So far, it is not known to what extent anthropogenic discharges act as infochemicals and influence life and reproduction of organisms in the environment because adequate testing methods to identify chemicals which show the infochemical effect and to quantify their effects have not been developed yet. The purpose of this article is to help and find suitable test designs., Main Features: Test systems used in basic research to elucidate the olfactory cascade and the communication of environmental organisms by infochemicals are plentiful. Some of them might be the basis for a quantified ecotoxicological analysis of the infochemical effect. In principle, test systems for the infochemical effect could be developed at each step of the chemosensory signal transduction and processing cascade., Results: Experimental set-ups were compiled systematically under the aspect whether they might be usable for testing the infochemical effect of single chemicals in standardized quantifying laboratory experiments. For an appropriate ecotoxicological assessment of the infochemical effect, experimental studies of many disciplines, such as molecular biology, neurobiology, physiology, chemical ecology, and population dynamics, should be evaluated in detail before a decision can be made which test system, respectively which test battery, might be suited best. The test systems presented here are based on the knowledge of the genetic sequences for olfactory receptors, binding studies of odorants, signal transmission, and reactions of the receivers on the level of the organisms or the populations. The following basic approaches are conceivable to identify the role of an infochemical: binding studies to the odorant-binding protein or to the odorant receptor binding protein (e.g., by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemical studies), measurement of electrical signals of the receptor cells in the tissue (e.g., electroolfactograms, electroantennograms), registration of phenotypic changes (e.g., observation under the microscope), behavioral tests (e.g., in situ online biomonitoring, use of T-shaped olfactometers, tests of avoidance responses), measurement of population changes (e.g., cell density or turbidity measurements), and multispecies tests with observation of community structure and community function. The main focus of this study is on aquatic organisms., Discussion: It is evident that the infochemical effect is a very complex sublethal endpoint, and it needs further studies with standardized quantitative methods to elucidate whether and to what extent the ecosystem is affected. The collection of approaches presented here is far from being complete but should serve as a point of depart for further experimental research., Conclusions: This article is the first to compare various approaches for testing the infochemical effect. The development of a suitable test system will not be easy as there are a multitude of relevant chemicals, a multitude of relevant receptors, and a multitude of relevant reactions, and it must be expected that the effective concentrations are very low. The chemical communication is of utmost importance for the ecosystem and justifies great endeavors to find solutions to these technical problems., Recommendations and Perspectives: The infochemical effect is a new chapter in ecotoxicology. Will a new endpoint, the so-called infochemical effect, be required in addition to the actual standard test battery of Annex 5 to Commission Directive 92/69/EEC (EC 1992)? Finding the answer to this question is a big challenge that could be met by a comprehensive research project.

The European Directive 98/79/EC for in vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVD) regulates the marketing and post marketing surveillance of IVD in the European Economic Area. Manufacturers have to inform the responsible Competent Authorities about incidents and field corrective actions related to IVD. In Germany, the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) is the responsible Competent Authority for most IVD, while a small subset of IVD, specified in Annex II of the Directive 98/79/EC for immune hematological and infectiological testing as well as tissue typing, is under the responsibility of the Paul-Ehrlich-Institute (PEI). Until the end of 2005 the BfArM received a total of 653 notifications regarding IVD. From these 115 related to IVD for analysis of the infection status (reagents, control materials, calibrators, culture media and analyzing equipment). Most of the reports originated from manufacturers (57.4 %), while other sources of reports played only minor roles. Product failures of test reagents, control materials, calibrators as well as culture media were frequently caused by manufacturing errors and biological contamination. Analyzing equipment was typically affected by software malfunction. Through the investigations of the manufacturers product failures were confirmed in most cases and consequently corrective actions were performed in the large majority of incidents. The corrective actions frequently included customer information, product recalls, changes in the production process and/or the quality management or software upgrades for the analyzing equipment. Our data suggest that the existing system for post marketing surveillance is an important tool to ensure product safety of IVD even though it should be further optimized in the future.

Antimutagenic, anticlastogenic, and bioprotective effect of polysaccharide glucomannan (GM) isolated from Candida utilis was evaluated in four model test systems. The antimutagenic effect of GM against 9-aminoacridine (9-AA)- and sodium azide (NaN3)-induced mutagenicity was revealed in the Salmonella typhimurium strains TA97 and TA100, respectively. GM showed anticlastogenic effect against N-nitroso-N'-methylurea (NMU) induced chromosome aberrations in the Vicia sativa assay. The bioprotective effect of GM co-treated with methyl-methane-sulphonate (MMS) was also established in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii repair deficient strains uvs10 and uvs14. The statistically significant antimutagenic potential of GM was not proved against 4-nitro-quinoline-1-oxide (4-NQO)-induced mutagenicity in Saccharomyces cerevisiae D7 assay. It may be due to bioprotectivity of alpha-mannan and beta-glucan, which are integral part of S. cerevisiae cell walls. Due to the good water solubility, low molecular weight (30 kDa), antimutagenic/anticlastogenic, and bioprotective activity against chemical compounds differing in mode of action, GM appears to be a promising natural protective (antimutagenic) agent.

Analysing immunologically relevant structures of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a glycoprotein hormone, has bearing on a variety of clinical features. These structures are of importance for the establishment of immunometric assays for the diagnosis and monitoring of pregnancy and hCG producing tumours. Moreover, the development of fertility regulating vaccines by the use of one of the subunits of hCG (hCG beta) or a synthetic peptide corresponding to the carboxyl-terminal peptide thereof (hCG beta CTP, beta 109-145) requires detailed knowledge of the antigenic properties of hCG. It appeared that 16 different antigenic epitopes are localized on the protein backbone of hCG and that the carbohydrate moieties do not contribute significantly to the immunological properties of this hormone. Reduced and carboxylmethylated subunits of hCG, i.e., hCG alpha and hCG beta, express only 1 alpha- and 2 beta-epitopes, the majority of antigenic determinants being destroyed by this chemical procedure. Epitopes of hCG are thus predominantly dependent on the intact tertiary or quaternary structure of the protein. The urinary low molecular weight fragment of hCG beta (hcG beta cf), a predominant molecular fraction in the urine of pregnant women or patients with various tumours expresses 7 out of 9 epitopes of hCG beta (beta 1- beta 7), whereas two antigenic determinants, beta 8 and beta 9, are localized on the hCG beta CTP.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Pre-marketing assessments of chemicals regarding their potential environmental impacts contain numerous sources of error and uncertainties. Practices and methods for the evaluation of environmental risks posed by individual pre-selected agents seem unsuitable for detecting unexpected trends in the environment. This is particularly so in view of the multitude of anthropogenic assaults on the environment and their complex interactions. Therefore, requirements for symptom-oriented biological effect-test systems, 'bioprobes', capable of reacting sensitively to environmental changes of unknown origin were conceived. Bioprobes designed to detect biological effects should respond to a broad spectrum of anthropogenic chemicals. They are environmental quality measuring devices consisting of cultivated organisms, cells, organelles or biomolecules in combination with recording units. In contrast to traditional biotests for chemical testing, bioprobes are deliberately exposed to selected segments of the environment for certain periods of time. During and after such exposures, changes of defined biological states or process rates-'observation elements'-are registered.

In order to evaluate the effect of biological response modifiers on NK- and NK-like activity, interferons were tested in the single cell cytotoxicity assay (SCCA) with various effector/target combinations. alpha Interferon (IFN-alpha) significantly augmented the cytolysis of K 562 in vitro by non-adherent peripheral blood lymphocytes of normal donors without any influence on the binding capacity. Similarly, in vivo, the intraperitoneal administration of gamma Interferon (IFN-gamma) to patients with ovarian carcinomas resulted in a significant increase in the autologous cytotoxicity in the ascitic compartment. Nevertheless the autologous total killer activity was not improved owing to the countercurrent trend of the conjugate formation. Moreover, we detected a discrepancy in the development of the autologous and allogenic parameters as a result of the strong effects of the peritumorally administered IFN on the effusion tumour cells. In order to investigate the role of epidermal NK-like activity in immunosurveillance we tested epidermal cells as effectors against K 562 and the long-term cultured melanoma cell line RIMA. The SCCA detected the ability of conjugate formation without any cytotoxicity, augmentable significantly and in a dose-related manner by IFN-gamma, as the only one of ten tested biological response modifiers.

Methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus can be difficult to recognize because it may be expressed in only a small portion of the population. The optimal reference to use in comparing different test systems is controversial. In this study MIC values of less than or equal to 4 mg/l as observed in two experiments, each including 12 test systems (24 h incubation), were used to define strains as methicillin-susceptible. This strict standard was used to compare 24 quantitative and 36 agar diffusion test systems applied to 61 strains. These test systems included six agar media (Mueller Hinton, Oxoid and BBL; and Iso-Sensitest, Oxoid; all with and without 5% NaCl), three broth media of the same type, two incubation temperatures (30 degrees C and 37 degrees C), two incubation times (24 h and 48 h) and five disc types [methicillin 10 micrograms (M 10), three types of methicillin 5 micrograms (M 5) and oxacillin 1 microgram (O 1)]. Standardized high inocula were used. It was concluded that 24 h incubation is preferable to 48 h; at 24 h, differences in recognition of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among 12 quantitative test systems were not statistically significant; incubation at 30 degrees C gave slightly better results in diffusion tests. Reproducibility of quantitative data (Friedman test) was better on Mueller Hinton media (p less than 0.001) than on Iso-Sensitest medium in both dilution and agar diffusion test systems. The rank order of discs was M 5 greater than M 10 greater than O 1 (p less than 0.001). An inhibition zone of less than 13 mm with a M 5 micrograms (BBL) disc should be interpreted as MRSA.

Purpose: Cefiderocol susceptibility testing (AST) represents an open challenge for clinical microbiology. Herein, we evaluated the performance of the UMIC ® Cefiderocol broth microdilution (BMD) test and disc diffusion on Gram-negative species., Methods: UMIC ® Cefiderocol BMD test, disc diffusion and reference BMD were in parallel performed on a collection of 256 clinical isolates. Categorical agreement (CA), essential agreement (EA), bias, major errors (MEs) and very major errors (VMEs) were calculated for both AST methods., Results: The UMIC ® Cefiderocol BMD strip exhibited an EA < 90% (85.5%), a CA higher than 90% (93.7%) and a low number of VMEs (n = 4, 4.2%) and MEs (n = 12, 7.4%). UMIC ® Cefiderocol identified 96.2% of the resistant isolates [Enterobacterales, (39/40); P. aeruginosa (19/19); A. xylosoxidans (5/6); S. maltophilia (5/6); Burkholderia spp. (8/8)]. Disc diffusion showed a high CA (from 94.9 to 100%) regardless of disc manufacturer in Enterobacterales, P. aeuroginosa, A. baumannii and S. maltophilia. However, high rates of results falling in the area of technical uncertainty (ATU) were observed in Enterobacterales (34/90, 37.8%) and P. aeruginosa (16/40, 40%). Disc diffusion showed a poor performance in A. xylosoxidans and Burkholderia spp. if PK/PD breakpoint was used (overall, 5/9 VMEs; in contrast, the use of P. aeruginosa-specific breakpoints resulted in 100% of CA with 24.6% of results in the ATU)., Conclusion: In conclusion, disc diffusion and UMIC ® Cefiderocol are valid methods for the determination of cefiderocol susceptibility. Given the high number of results in the ATU by disc diffusion, a combined use of both AST methods may represent a solution to overcome the challenge of cefiderocol susceptibility testing in routine microbiology laboratories., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Four types of reactions (azo coupling, protolytic and oxidative condensation, ion association), accompanied by the formation of hydrophobic colored analytical forms of corresponding organic analytes, are proposed on an example of biologically active substances (aromatic amines, [alpha]-amino acids, antibiotics of aminoglycoside and [beta]-lactam series, anionic surfactants). It is shown that, in these systems, the hydrophobicity of both the initial reactants, e.g., tetrafluoroborates of diazonium salts, and analytical forms (azo compounds, Schiff bases, Ruemann's purpura, ion associates with surfactants) can be increased. Possibilities of various methods for the derivatization of organic analytes with the formation of colored analytical forms with increased hydrophobicity for the best fixation on solid matrices and the development of test systems on their basis, which can be used to control the quality of various samples with rather good performance characteristics, are considered., Author(s): T. A. Sokolova [sup.1] , I. V. Kosyreva [sup.1] , S. Yu. Doronin [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) Chernyshevsky Saratov National Research State University, , 410012, Saratov, Russia Biologically active [...]

Osteosarcopenia is an emerging clinical condition highly prevalent in the older people. Affected subjects due to their intrinsic skeletal fragility and propensity to falls are at elevated risk of hip fractures which can increase morbidity and mortality. Strategies for attenuating the impact of predisposing factors on hip fractures are not yet well defined and should derive from multidisciplinary care and collaborations. Our aim was to narratively review available data on the preventive role of vitamin D and hip protectors on hip fractures in older patients with sarcopenia. Older subjects are at high risk of vitamin D deficiency and of falls due to several concomitant factors besides osteosarcopenia. Vitamin D protective actions against hip fractures may be mediated by both skeletal (increased mineralization) and extra-skeletal (reduced risk of falls) actions. Hip protectors may act downstream attenuating the effects of falls although their use is still not yet enough widespread due to the suboptimal compliance obtained by traditional hard devices. Concomitant use of vitamin D and hip protectors may represent an effective strategy in the prevention of hip fractures which need to be tested in ad hoc designed clinical trials., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Animal manure application to soils is considered to be one of the main cause of antibiotic and bacterial pathogen spread in the environment. Pig livestock, which is the source of one of the most used fertilizer for cultivated land, is also a hotspot for antibiotics and antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Besides harsh chemical and physical sanitization treatments for the abatement of antibiotics and bacterial load in livestock waste, more sustainable and environmentally friendly strategies need to be considered. In this context, the use of natural substances which are proved useful for pest and disease control is currently under exploration for their role in the reduction of bacterial pathogen population. Among these, plants and derived products from the Brassicaceae family, characterized by the presence of a defensive glucosinolate-myrosinase enzymatic system, have been successfully exploited for years in agriculture using the so-called biofumigation technique against crop diseases. Although the application of biofumigation to suppress a range of soil borne pests has been well documented, no studies have been examined to reduce bacterial population in animal waste. In the present study, the release and the antibacterial activity of bioactive compounds deriving from different Brassicaceae defatted seed meals against pathogens and bacterial population in pig manure is addressed. Rapistrum rugosum and Brassica nigra defatted seed meals were found to be the most active products against tested pathogens and able to significantly reduce the bacterial load in the manure., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Diquat dibromide is a comprehensive herbicide commonly used in the cultivation of cotton, soybeans, and other crops to combat unwanted weeds. In this study, the half-maximal effective concentration (EC 50 ) value of diquat dibromide was determined 60 mg/L in the Allium root growth inhibition test. ½ × EC 50 (30 mg/L), EC 50 (60 mg/L), and 2 × EC 50 (120 mg/L) concentrations of diquat dibromide were applied to Allium cepa L. bulbs for 72 h to investigate the dose-dependent toxic effects. To determine the toxic effects cytogenetic, biochemical and physiological parameters were used. Physiological effects were investigated by determination of the percentage of rooting, relative injury rate, root length, and weight gain. Genetic effects were evaluated by the frequency of chromosomal abnormalities (CAs), micronucleus (MN) formation, mitotic index (MI) rate, and comet assay. Biochemical parameters were evaluated with antioxidant enzyme activities and lipid peroxidation by determining malondialdehyde (MDA) level, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, catalase (CAT) activity, and glutathione (GSH) level. Also, chlorophyll pigment contents (a, b, and total) in green leaves were calculated to elucidate the effect of diquat dibromide on plants and the biosphere. The findings show that increasing doses of diquat dibromide caused a decrease in all physiological parameters and MI ratio, promoting MN and CAs and tail DNA formation in genetic parameters. It was determined by the increases in MDA level, SOD, and CAT activities and decreases in GSH levels that diquat dibromide administration caused oxidative stress depending on the dose. Also, chlorophyll pigment levels (a, b, and total) measured in leaf tissues decreased with the application dose. Considering that the toxic effects caused by diquat dibromide and that organisms other than unwanted plants will be exposed during the application, its use should be abandoned and biocontrol methods should be used instead. In cases where use is compulsory, doses that will not harm the environment and organisms should be determined and used., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Improper disposal of municipal solid waste led to the release of heavy metals into the environment through leachate accumulation, causing a range of health and environmental problems. Phycoremediation, using microalgae to remove heavy metals from contaminated water, was investigated as a promising alternative to traditional remediation methods. This study explored the potential of Scenedesmus sp. as a phycoremediation agent for heavy metal removal from landfill leachate. The study was conducted in batch, continuous, and membrane bioreactor (MBR). In the batch system, Scenedesmus sp. was added to the leachate and incubated for 15 days before the biomass was separated from the suspension. In the continuous system, Scenedesmus sp. was cultured in a flow-through system, and the leachate was continuously fed into the system with flow rates measured at 120, 150, and 180 mL/h for 27 days. The MBR system was similar to the continuous system, but it incorporated a membrane filtration step to remove suspended solids from the treated water. The peristaltic pump was calibrated to operate at five different flow rates: 0.24 L/h, 0.30 L/h, 0.36 L/h, 0.42 L/h, and 0.48 L/h for the MBR system and ran for 24 h. The results showed that Scenedesmus sp. was effective in removing heavy metals such as lead (Pb), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), and zinc (Zn) from landfill leachate in all three systems. The highest removal efficiency was observed for Ni, with a removal of 0.083 mg/L in the MBR and 0.068 mg/L in batch mode. The lowest removal efficiency was observed for Zn, with a removal of 0.032 mg/L in the MBR, 0.027 mg/L in continuous mode, and 0.022 mg/L in batch mode. The findings depicted that the adsorption capacity varied among the studied metal ions, with the highest capacity observed for Ni (II) and the lowest for Zn (II), reflecting differences in metal speciation, surface charge interactions, and affinity for the adsorbent material. These factors influenced the adsorption process and resulted in varying adsorption capacities for different metal ions. The study also evaluated the biomass growth of Scenedesmus sp. and found that it was significantly influenced by the initial metal concentration in the leachate. The results of this study suggest that Scenedesmus sp. can be used as an effective phycoremediation agent for removing heavy metals from landfill leachate., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Fungicides are pesticides that are frequently used in agriculture because of their action against fungal diseases. However, the widespread application of pesticides around the world raises environmental and public health concerns, since these compounds are toxic and can pose risks to ecosystems and human health. The aim of this study was to evaluate the phytotoxic, cytogenotoxic, and biochemical effects of azoxystrobin and carbendazim on Lactuca sativa L. and their physiological effects on Phaseolus vulgaris L. by analyzing the cell cycle and chromosomal and nuclear alterations in L. sativa; the biochemical effects of azoxystrobin and carbendazim on Phaseolus vulgaris L. and their physiological effects on Phaseolus vulgaris L. by analyzing the cell cycle and chromosomal and nuclear alterations in L. sativa; the biochemical effects by analyzing the activity of antioxidant enzymes in L. sativa; and the physiological effects by analyzing chlorophyll content and chlorophyll a fluorescence in P. vulgaris. It was observed that both fungicides were phytotoxic and cytotoxic, reducing root growth and the mitotic index, cytogenotoxic, increasing the occurrence of chromosomal alterations, as well as inducing oxidative stress and an increase in chlorophyll fluorescence emission and altered energy absorption in the plants used as a test system. In view of this, studies such as the one presented here indicate that the use of pesticides, even in small quantities, can lead to damage to the metabolism of plant organisms., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Interaction of microbiota with hybrid vaterite-pectin microparticles as an attractive multifunctional vehicle for mucosal delivery should not provoke inflammation. Our purpose was to study the reaction of bacteria E. coli strain Mg1655 and isolate SharL from a patient with Crohn disease on the cultivation with hybrid microparticles and vaterite, and the subsequent activation of neutrophils. Vaterite-pectin microparticles enhanced leakage of ATP from bacteria. For E. coli Mg1655, the concentration of DNA decreased, while intracellular ATP increased. For E. coli SharL, the intracellular ATP decreased with simultaneous growth of DNA. Bacteria and microparticles together did not enhance activation of neutrophils in comparison with the particles per se in the medium without serum and in comparison with bacteria in the medium supplemented with serum; microparticles did not reduce functional activity of neutrophils., (© 2024. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

DNA adduction in the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was investigated after exposure to the fungicide penconazole and the reference genotoxic compound benzo(a)pyrene, for validating yeasts as a tool for molecular toxicity studies, particularly of environmental pollution. The effect of the toxicants on the yeast's growth kinetics was determined as an indicator of cytotoxicity. Fermentative cultures of S. cerevisiae were exposed to 2 ppm of Penconazole during different phases of growth; while 0.2 and 2 ppm of benzo(a)pyrene were applied to the culture medium before inoculation and on exponential cultures. Exponential respiratory cultures were also exposed to 0.2 ppm of B(a)P for comparison of both metabolisms. Penconazole induced DNA adducts formation in the exponential phase test; DNA adducts showed a peak of 54.93 adducts/10 9 nucleotides. Benzo(a)pyrene induced the formation of DNA adducts in all the tests carried out; the highest amount of 46.7 adducts/10 9 nucleotides was obtained in the fermentative cultures after the exponential phase exposure to 0.2 ppm; whereas in the respiratory cultures, 14.6 adducts/10 9 nucleotides were detected. No cytotoxicity was obtained in any experiment. Our study showed that yeast could be used to analyse DNA adducts as biomarkers of exposure to environmental toxicants., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

Widespread adoption of lithium-ion batteries in electronic products, electric cars, and renewable energy systems has raised severe worries about the environmental consequences of spent lithium batteries. Because of its mobility and possible toxicity to aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, lithium, as a vital component of battery technology, has inherent environmental problems. Leaching of lithium from discharged batteries, as well as its subsequent migration through soil and water, represents serious environmental hazards, since it accumulates in the food chain, impacting ecosystems and human health. This study thoroughly analyses the effects of lithium on plants, including its absorption, transportation, and toxicity. An attempt has been made to examine how lithium moves throughout plants through symplastic and apoplastic pathways and the factors that affect lithium accumulation in plant tissues, such as soil pH and calcium. This review focuses on the possible toxicity of lithium and its impact on ecosystems and human health. Aside from examining the environmental impacts, this review also emphasizes the significance of proper disposal and recycling measures in order to offset the negative effects of used lithium batteries. The paper also highlights the need for ongoing research to develop innovative and sustainable techniques for lithium recovery and remediation., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)