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Regularly touched surfaces are usually contaminated with microorganisms and might be considered as fomites. The same applies for spectacles, but only little is known about their microbial colonization. Previous cultivation-based analyses from our group revealed a bacterial load strongly dominated by staphylococci. To better account for aerotolerant anaerobes, slow growing and yet-uncultivated bacteria, we performed an optimized 16S rRNA gene sequencing approach targeting the V1-V3 region. 30 spectacles were swab-sampled at three sites, each (nosepads, glasses and earclips). We detected 5232 OTUs affiliated with 19 bacterial phyla and 665 genera. Actinobacteria (64%), Proteobacteria (22%), Firmicutes (7%) and Bacteroidetes (5%) were relatively most abundant. At genus level, 13 genera accounted for 84% of the total sequences of all spectacles, having a prevalence of more than 1% relative abundance. Propionibacterium (57%), Corynebacterium (5%), Staphylococcus (4%), Pseudomonas, Sphingomonas and Lawsonella (3%, each) were the dominant genera. Interestingly, bacterial diversity on the glasses was significantly higher compared to nosepads and earclips. Our study represents the first cultivation-independent study of the bacteriota of worn spectacles. Dominated by bacteria of mostly human skin and epithelia origin and clearly including potential pathogens, spectacles may play a role as fomites, especially in clinical environments.

Games and exercises are among the main elements of the arsenal of TO. The games and exercises are designed to activate the senses, engage the expressivity of the body, research bodily mechanization, and reflect about oneself and about bodies in context. Here we invite three experienced practitioners to discuss, from their concrete practice, the importance of games and exercises in relation with TO poetics, ethics, and aesthetics.

Surfaces with regular contact with the human body are typically contaminated with microorganisms and might be considered as fomites. Despite spectacles being widespread across populations, little is known about their microbial contamination. Therefore, we swab-sampled 11 worn spectacles within a university setting as well as 10 worn spectacles in a nursing home setting. The microbial load was determined by aerobic cultivation. All spectacles were found to be contaminated with bacteria, with nose pads and ear clips having the highest density, i.e. at sites with direct skin contact. Summed over all sites, the median microbial load of the university spectacles (1.4 ± 10.7 x 10(3) CFU cm-2) did not differ significantly from the spectacles tested in the nursing home (20.8 ± 39.9 x 10(3) CFU cm-2). 215 dominant bacterial morphotypes were analyzed by MALDI biotyping. 182 isolates could be assigned to 10 genera, with Staphylococcus being the most common. On genus-level, bacterial diversity was greater on nursing home spectacles (10 genera) compared to the university environment (2 genera). Four cleaning methods were investigated using lenses artificially contaminated with Escherichia coli, Micrococcus luteus, a 1:2 mixture of E. coli and M. luteus, and Staphylococcus epidermidis (the dominant isolate in our study), respectively. Best cleaning results (99% -100% median germ reduction) were obtained using impregnated wipes; dry cleaning was less effective (85% -90% median germ reduction). Finally, 10 additional worn university spectacles were cleaned with wipes impregnated with an alcohol-free cleaning solution before sampling. The average bacterial load was significantly lower (0.09 ± 0.49 x 10(3) CFU cm-2) compared to the uncleaned university spectacles previously investigated. Spectacles are significantly contaminated with bacteria of mostly human skin origin-including significant amounts of potentially pathogenic ones and may contribute to eye infections as well as fomites in clinical environments.

INTRODUCTION Phthalates are a group of synthetic plasticizers that are ubiquitous environmental pollutants with toxic and endocrine disrupting characteristics. DEHP is the most commonly used plasticizer in the world and is still applied to stem cell transfusion bags used for storage of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (CD34+ HSPC), which are transferred during stem cell transplantation. Here we examined the effect of DEHP on vitality of CD34+ HSPC as well as stem cell specific properties like migration and differentiation capacity - both important for successful stem cell transplantations. MATERIAL AND METHODS CD34+ HSPC were incubated for 24 h and 72 h with DEHP concentrations ranging from 1 μg/ml to 250 μg/ml. DEHP was diluted in DMSO. Migration rate was analyzed along an SDF-1α gradient using Transwell migration inserts. Differentiation of CD34+ HSPC was investigated after two weeks in methylcellulose with colony stimulating factors. Apoptosis rate was measured via Annexin V and 7-AAD staining. RESULTS 24 h of incubation with 10 μg/ml DEHP led to a significant (p < 0.01) decrease in migration rate of CD34+ HSPC (70.70% ± 7.53% ) with a minimum migration rate of 48.33% ± 6.72% in relation to control after incubation with 100 μg/ml DEHP for 72 h. Incubation with the highest tested DEHP concentrations (50 and 100 μg/ml) significantly (p < 0.05) altered colony formation rate and cell type distribution. Apoptosis rate of CD34+ HSPC significantly (p < 0.05) increased after incubation with concentrations of 10 μg/ml DEHP for 24 h (1.46 ± 0.19) with a maximum apoptosis rate of 2.71 ± 0.66 after 24 h incubation with the highest DEHP concentration (250 μg/ml) in relation to control. CONCLUSIONS As shown, DEHP takes impact on migration rate, apoptosis rate, and differentiation of CD34+ HSPC. As these are functions with an important role in stem cell transplantations, the usage of DEHP-free stem cell transfusion bags should be considered.

A reliable and sensitive analytical method for the determination of estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2), and the synthetic hormone 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2) has been established. Samples are concentrated using automated solid-phase extraction and analysis is performed by liquid chromatography with detection by tandem mass spectrometry. Recoveries of all analytes were between 93% and 107%, and limits of quantification (LOQs) between 0.1 and 0.4 ng/L for purified sewage, and surface, ground, and drinking water, and between 1 and 2 ng/L in case of raw sewage. For the investigation of estrogen release into the environment and its behavior during sewage and surface water treatment, and during ground water recharge, samples from municipal waste water treatment plants (WWTPs), a surface water treatment plant, a bank filtration site, and a ground water enrichment (GWE) pond were analyzed. El was found in the raw waste water with an average concentration of 157 ng/L, whereas E2 and EE2 were found with mean concentrations of only 18 and 9 ng/L, respectively. Sewage treatment by municipal WWTPs affected a removal of EE2 (76%), El (92%), and E2 (94%). In the investigated surface water of Berlin, only E1 could be detected at concentrations around or below 1 ng/L. E2 and EE2 were not present in the Berlin surface water above the LOQ of 0.2 ng/L, respectively. Surface water treatment also leads to a significant removal of E1 (> 80%). In the ground water samples from the GWE site near Lake Tegel, only a few samples contained detectable concentrations of E1. These samples were collected from a shallow monitoring well located very close to the bank of the pond. Even a short distance between the bank and observation wells led to concentrations of El below the LOQ showing the potential of ground water recharge systems for the retention of estrogenic steroids depending on the environmental setting.

Bank filtration and artificial ground water recharge are important, effective, and cheap techniques for surface water treatment and removal of microbes, as well as inorganic, and some organic, contaminants. Nevertheless, physical, chemical, and biological processes of the removal of impurities are not understood sufficiently. A research project titled Natural and Artificial Systems for Recharge and Infiltration attempts to provide more clarity in the processes affecting the removal of these contaminants. The project focuses on the fate and transport of selected emerging contaminants during bank filtration at two transects in Berlin, Germany. Several detections of pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) in ground water samples from bank filtration sites in Germany led to furthering research on the removal of these compounds during bank filtration. In this study, six PhACs including the analgesic drugs diclofenac and propyphenazone, the antiepileptic drugs carbamazepine and primidone, and the drug metabolites clofibric acid and 1-acetyl-1-methyl-2-dimethyl-oxamoyl-2-phenylhydrazide were found to leach from the contaminated streams and lakes into the ground water. These compounds were also detected at low concentrations in receiving public supply wells. Bank filtration either decreased the concentrations by dilution (e.g., for carbamazepine and primidone) and partial removal (e.g., for diclofenac), or totally removed PhACs (e.g., bezafibrate, indomethacine, antibiotics, and estrogens). Several PhACs, such as carbamazepine and especially primidone, were readily transported during bank filtration. They are thought to be good indicators for evaluating whether surface water is impacted by contamination from municipal sewage effluent or whether contamination associated with sewage effluent can be transported into ground water at ground water recharge sites.

INTRODUCTION Softeners like phthalate esters are ubiquitous in the environment and have been detected in transfusion bags, though there is only a limited amount of studies on the effect of phthalates on blood cells. This study seeks to determine effects on cell migration of human promyelocytic leukemia cells (HL-60) incubated with di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) at concentrations found in blood bags. MATERIAL AND METHODS HL-60 cells were incubated with DEHP concentrations ranging from 0.1 μg/ml to 1000 μg/ml, diluted in DMSO, over 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h. Migration rate was analyzed along an SDF-1α gradient using Transwell migration inserts. RESULTS Of the applied concentrations 100 μg/ml, 250 μg/ml, 500 μg/ml, and 1000 μg/ml showed a significant decrease in migration rates relative to DMSO control at all measuring points (p < 0.05), with relative migration rates between 37.87 % for 100 μg/ml and 25.34 % for 1000 μg/ml relative to DMSO after 24 h of stimulation and 19.73 % for 100 μg/ml and 14.69 % for 1000 μg/ml respectively after 72 h of incubation. CONCLUSION Our results indicate HL-60 to be a suitable in vitro model for examining effects of DEHP on the migration of blood and nucleated cells at concentrations found in blood bags.