Search

Studies on the prevalence of burnout in professionals in service organizations who work in direct contact with the clients or users of the organization have concluded that burnout is a serious health disorder that has increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A significant advantage of the Spanish Burnout Inventory (SBI) over other instruments is that it provides a broader conceptualization of burnout by including feelings of guilt as a dimension of burnout to explain its development. However, the measurement invariance of the SBI across countries has not been investigated. The purpose of this study was to test the measurement invariance of the SBI among professionals across 17 countries and regions in Europe, Latin America, and Asia, and in different languages. All the countries showed a good fit to the four-factor model, except the Indian sample, which was excluded from the measurement invariance study. Using the alignment method, it was possible to verify the scalar measurement invariance of the four SBI factors across 15 countries and one Spanish region (16 samples). The comparison of estimated latent means indicates that France is the country with the lowest scores on the Enthusiasm factor and the highest scores on the negative factors (Exhaustion, Indolence, and Guilt). In contrast, the Andean countries, Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador, show the highest latent means on the Enthusiasm factor and the lowest means on the negative factors. These results support the validity of the SBI in the countries and regions in Europe and Latin America included in this study.

Lagging chromosomes in E-cadherin defective cell exposed to foretinib leading to failed cytokinesis

The cell adhesion glycoprotein E-cadherin (CDH1) is commonly inactivated in breast tumors. Precision medicine approaches that exploit this characteristic are not available. Using perturbation screens in breast tumor cells with CRISPR/Cas9-engineered CDH1 mutations, we identified synthetic lethality between E-cadherin deficiency and inhibition of the tyrosine kinase ROS1. Data from large-scale genetic screens in molecularly diverse breast tumor cell lines established that the E-cadherin/ROS1 synthetic lethality was not only robust in the face of considerable molecular heterogeneity but was also elicited with clinical ROS1 inhibitors, including foretinib and crizotinib. ROS1 inhibitors induced mitotic abnormalities and multinucleation in E-cadherin–defective cells, phenotypes associated with a defect in cytokinesis and aberrant p120 catenin phosphorylation and localization. In vivo, ROS1 inhibitors produced profound antitumor effects in multiple models of E-cadherin–defective breast cancer. These data therefore provide the preclinical rationale for assessing ROS1 inhibitors, such as the licensed drug crizotinib, in appropriately stratified patients.Significance: E-cadherin defects are common in breast cancer but are currently not targeted with a precision medicine approach. Our preclinical data indicate that licensed ROS1 inhibitors, including crizotinib, should be repurposed to target E-cadherin–defective breast cancers, thus providing the rationale for the assessment of these agents in molecularly stratified phase II clinical trials. Cancer Discov; 8(4); 498–515. ©2018 AACR.This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 371

Supplementary Tables

Supplementary Figures

Supplementary Figure legends and methods

The occurrence, long-range atmospheric transport and deposition of micro and nano plastics (MNPLs) remains un-quantified for the oceanic atmosphereopen ocean. Here we show the characterisation of MNPLs and the aerosol composition (PM10) in a north-south Atlantic transect from Vigo (Spain) to Punta Arenas (Chile). The analytical procedure to assess the composition of MNPLs consisted of a double suspect screening approach of the polymers and additives, the two constituents of plastics. Polymers were analysed by size exclusion chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry using an atmospheric pressure photoionization source operated in positive and negative conditions (HPLC(SEC)-APPI(+/-)-HRMS). Plastic additives were screened with high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry using an electrospray ionisation source (HPLC-ESI(+/-)-HRMS). The most common polymers were polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyisoprene (PI), and polystyrene (PS), with the highest polymer concentration being 51.7 ng·m-3 of PI. The air mass back trajectories showed the variable influence of oceanic and terrestrial air masses. These differences were reflected in the aerosol composition with different contributions of Saharan dust, sea spray aerosol, organic/elemental carbon, and MNPLs. Results showed that samples largely influenced by sea-spray and air masses originating from coastal South America and the north Atlantic subtropical gyre were more contaminated by MNPLs. Moreover, this information was complemented by the characterisation of the largest particles using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and µ-Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (µ-FTIR). This work provides the first field evidence of the long-range transport of MNPLs in most of the Atlantic Ocean, as the result of dynamic coupling between the lower atmosphere and the surface ocean. Sea-spray formation arises as a key driver for the aerosolisation of MNPLs, and atmospheric transport followed by dry deposition may modulate the occurrence of MNPLs in large oceanic regions, issues that will require future research efforts., This work was supported by IMAGE (ref. PID2020-116789RB-C41) and ANTOM (PGC2018-096612-B-100) research projects from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (Spain). Albert Vega-Herrera gives thanks for his grant PRE2018-083989 from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (Spain). The authors also thank the crew on board R/V “Sarmiento de Gamboa” and technicians from UTM-CSIC for their technical support during the sampling campaign. IDAEA-CSIC is a Severo Ochoa Centre of Research Excellence (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, (Spain); Project CEX2018–000794-S).

Graphene and graphene oxide are emerging nanomaterials with a rising number of innovative applications in nanotechnology. The entry of graphene and its derivatives into the environment seems an unavoidable consequence of their increasing relevance in industry and academia and, in this context, it is important to carefully assess the environmental risk of these emitted carbon nanomaterials. The present chapter aims to summarise the recent advances in the study of the colloidal behaviour of graphene and graphene oxide dispersions in artificial and natural waters, focusing on the environmental factors that dictate their stability in the water column and/or their distribution in the sediments. The analytical approaches that are currently employed to analyse graphene and graphene oxide aggregates will also be reviewed.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability and construct validity of the Valencian/Catalonian version of the Spanish Burnout Inventory (SBI) in a sample of non-university teachers from the Valencia province (Spain). The sample consisted of 1359 teachers (67.2% were women). This instrument contains 20 items distributed into four dimensions: Enthusiasm toward the job (5 items), Psychological exhaustion (4 items), Indolence (6 items) and Guilt (5 items). The psychometric properties were examined through the following analyses: confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and reliability (Cronbach’s alpha). All items achieved appropriate values for both statistical and psychometric parameters, just as the four scales did. The four-factor model consistent with the Spanish original obtained a good data model fit: AGFI =.926, NNFI = .919, CFI = .930, RMSEA = .053 (.050-.057) . The Cronbach's alpha value was acceptable for the four scales of the instrument. These results contribute to the cross-cultural psychometric validation of the questionnaire, allowing to conclude that the CESQT, in Valencian / Catalan, is a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating the SQT in non-university teaching personnel.

This study was designed to assess the psychometric properties of a brief version of the Frankfurt Emotion Work Scale (FEWS) adapted to Spanish in a sample of teachers, taking into consideration gender differences. Method: The sample consisted of 9020 teachers of public education in the Valencian Community (Mage = 45.33 years, SD = 9.15; 72.5% female). Results: The psychometric properties are adequate. It consists of 12 items grouped into six factors that explain 79.54% of the variance. Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability coefficients (CRC) for the full scale are adequate: α = 0.79; CRC = 0.90. Confirmatory Factorial Analyses also confirm the structure of the scale (χ2 = 890.36, S-B χ2 = 747.38, df = 39, NFI = 0.945, NNFI = 0.911, CFI = 0.947, IFI = 0.947, MFI = 0.925, and RMSEA = 0.069). Convergent and discriminant validity were also probed. Finally, a gender effect over Emotional labour was found, there was a difference between gender in the scale and all of the dimensions of the questionnaire, with higher values on women. Conclusions: according to the results of this study, the use of this diagnostic tool for Spanish non-university teachers appears to be justified.

Microplastics (MPLs) are emerging persistent pollutants affecting drinking water systems, and different studies have reported their presence in tap water. However, most of the work has a focus on particles in the 100-5 µm range. Here, a workflow to identify and quantify polymers of micro and nanoplastics (MNPLs), with sizes from 0.7 to 20 µm in tap water, is presented. The analytical method consisted of water fractionated filtration followed by toluene ultrasonic-assisted extraction and size-exclusion chromatography, using an advanced polymer chromatography column coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry with atmospheric pressure photoionization source with negative and positive ionization conditions (HPLC(APC)-APPI(±)-HRMS) and normal phase chromatography HILIC LUNA® column and electrospray ionisation source in positive and negative mode (HPLC(HILIC)-ESI(±)-HRMS). The acquisition was performed in full scan mode, and the subsequent tentative identification of MNPLs polymers has been based on increasing the confirmation level, including the characterisation of monomers by using Kendrick Mass Defect (KMD) analysis, and confirmation and quantification using standards. This approach was applied to assess MNPLs in tap water samples of the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (BMA), that were collected from August to October 2020 from home taps of volunteers distributed in the 42 postal codes of the BMA. Polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyisoprene (PI), polybutadiene (PBD), polystyrene (PS), polyamide (PA), and polydimethylsiloxanes (PDMS) were identified. PE, PP, and PA were the most highly detected polymers, and PI and PBD were found at the highest concentrations (9,143 and 1,897 ng/L, respectively). A principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted to assess differences in MNPLs occurrence in drinking water, that was provided from the two drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) suppliers. Results showed that no significant differences (at 95% confidence level) were established between the drinking water supplies to the different areas of the BMA., This work was supported by IMAGE project (PID2020-116789RB) from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, and by the Ajuntament de Barcelona (Institut de Cultura, Pla Barcelona Ciencia 2019. #19S01446–006). Albert Vega-Herrera thanks his grant PRE2018–083989 from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation. The authors also thank R. Chaler and A. García for their technical support during the analyses that were performed with the Acquity HPLC and Q-Exactive instruments. IDAEA-CSIC and ISGlobal are Severo Ochoa Centre of Research Excellence (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation; Project CEX2018–000794-S, and CEX2018–000806-S, respectively).

Bioplastics made of renewable sources provide an excellent alternative to fossil-based materials. However, similar or greater quantities of plastic additives than fossil-based plastics are used in the formulations of bioplastics to improve their performance and barrier properties. Nowadays, there is an increasing concern about sources of chemical exposure. However, there is an important knowledge gap regarding complex additive mixtures, particularly in bio-based materials. In this study, we have characterised the presence of plastic additives in single-use materials (collected from retail shops in Spain), which are made of the most common bio-based biodegradable materials, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(hydroxybutyrate) (PHB), in contrast with a fossil-based plastic material that is extensively made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE). The approach consisted of the pulverization of material in the nano-micro range (100 nm-10 μm), with the materials being extracted using different solvents and ultrasonic-assisted solvent extraction (UASE). 100% of the additives in the material cannot be extracted, but since they were performed in the same condition for all materials can inform about the fingerprint of primary organics and the relative abundances between the different materials. The extracts were analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry equipped with a heated electrospray ionisation source operated in positive and negative ionisation conditions (HPLC-HESI(+/-)-HRMS), separately, using a suspect screening approach. A total number of 203 additives were tentatively identified (confidence level 2) in the bioplastics items of this study. An average of 123 plastic additives were found in PLA items and 121 in PHB items. Plasticisers were the most abundant additives; the phthalates group was the most commonly found, while 63 plastic additives were confirmed by standards and quantified. In parallel, the cytotoxicity of plastic particles in terms of cell viability and oxidative stress was studied using A549 alveolar basal epithelial cells, and the toxicity of the different extracts was also established using HepG2 adenocarcinoma cells. The main results of this study demonstrate that the plastic particles did not show a significant reduction in cell viability, but oxidative stress was significant, with PLA being the material that showed the highest effect. On the other hand, extracts of plastic particles did not show inhibition of cell viability except for HDPE extract, but the different extracts produced oxidative stress, with PLA showing the highest effect. Although the item showing the highest concentrations of additives was the extract of PLA material while also showing the most elevated oxidative stress, the low migration of toxicants from plastic materials ensures their safe use. However, this also supports the idea that bioplastics can contain many toxic substances in their formulations, some of which are unknown and should be studied in more depth., This work was supported by IMAGE (ref. PID2020-116789RB-C41) from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, and Sinergia 2021 project within the frame of CEX2018-000794-S IDAEA-projects. Katerina Savva gives thanks her grant from Severo Ochoa (CEX2018-000794-S). IDAEA-CSIC is a Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence, CEX2018-000794-S funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033.

The MYC proto-oncogene is among the most commonly dysregulated genes in human cancers. We report screening data from the iMYC trial, an ongoing phase II study assessing ibrutinib monotherapy in advanced pretreated MYC- and/or HER2-amplified oesophagogastric cancer, representing the first attempt to prospectively identify MYC amplifications in this tumour type for the purposes of therapeutic targeting.Screening utilising a fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) assay for assessment of tumour MYC amplification has been instituted. An experimental digital droplet polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) assay to assess MYC amplification in both tumour and circulating-tumour (ct)DNA has been developed and investigated.One hundred thirty-five archival tumour specimens have undergone successful FISH analysis with 23% displaying evidence of MYC amplification. Intertumour heterogeneity was observed, with the percentage of cancer cells harbouring MYC amplification ranging widely between samples (median 51%, range 11-94%). Intratumoural clonal diversity of MYC amplification was also observed, with a significant degree of variance in amplification ratios (Bartlett's test for equal variance p 0.001), and an association between greater variance in MYC amplification and improved outcome with prior first-line chemotherapy. ddPCR was most accurate in quantifying MYC amplification in tumour-derived DNA from cases with a high proportion (70%) of amplified cells within the tumour specimen but was not reliable in samples containing a low proportion of amplified cells or in ctDNA.Our results illustrate the utility of FISH to assess MYC amplification prospectively for a biomarker-selected trial by providing reliable and reproducible results in real time, with a high degree of heterogeneity of MYC amplification observed. We show that ddPCR can potentially detect high-level MYC amplifications in tumour tissue.

This study aims to analyse the psychometric properties of the resources scales of the UNIPSICO questionnaire for the Valencian/Catalan version. The sample was 1359 teachers from public centres in the province of Valencia. Data collection was carried out using the UNIPSICO questionnaire scales that evaluate psychosocial factors of resources at work (30 items), which are grouped into five scales: Resources (7 items), Social support at work (6 items), Feedback (8 items), Autonomy (5 items), and Transformational leadership (4 items). A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed and Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega values were calculated for the scales. All items presented adequate statistical and psychometric values. The five-factor model that reproduces the original structure of the questionnaire presented an adequate fit to the data, and gender invariance. The Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega values were acceptable for the five scales of the instrument. These results contribute to the psychometric validation of the questionnaire and they permit the conclusion that the resources scales of the UNIPSICO questionnaire translated into the Valencian/Catalan language are a reliable and valid instrument to assess psychosocial risks in non-university teaching personnel., El objetivo de este estudio es analizar las propiedades psicométricas de las escalas de recurso de la Batería UNIPSICO del contexto de trabajo en valenciano/catalán. La muestra estuvo formada por 1359 participantes, todos ellos docentes de centros públicos de la provincia de Valencia. La recogida de datos se realizó mediante las escalas de la Batería UNIPSICO que evalúan factores psicosociales de recurso en el trabajo (30 ítems) que se agrupan en 5 escalas: Disponibilidad de recursos (7 ítems), Apoyo social en el trabajo (6 ítems), Retroinformación o feed-back (8 ítems), Autonomía (5 ítems), y Liderazgo transformacional (4 ítems). Se realizó un análisis factorial confirmatorio (AFC) y se calcularon los valores alfa de Cronbach para las escalas. Todos los ítems presentaron valores estadísticos y psicométricos adecuados. El modelo de cinco factores que reproduce la estructura original del cuestionario presentó un ajuste adecuado a los datos. El valor del alfa de Cronbach resultó aceptable para las cinco escalas del instrumento. Estos resultados contribuyen a la validación psicométrica transcultural del cuestionario, permitiendo concluir que las escalas de recurso de la batería UNIPSICO, en valenciano/catalán resulta un instrumento fiable y válido para evaluar los riesgos psicosociales en personal docente no universitario.AbstractThe aim of this study is to analyse the psychometric properties of the resources scales of the UNIPSICO questionnaire for Valencian / Catalan version. The sample was 1,359 teachers from public centres in the province of Valencia. Data collection was carried out using the UNIPSICO questionnaire scales that evaluate psychosocial factors of resources at work (30 items) that are grouped into 5 scales: Resources (7 ítems), Social support at work (6 ítems), Feed-back (8 ítems), Autonomy (5 ítems), and Transformational leadership (4 ítems). A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed and Cronbach's alpha values were calculated for the scales. All items presented adequate statistical and psychometric values. The five-factor model that reproduces the original structure of the questionnaire presented an adequate fit to the data. The Cronbach's alpha value was acceptable for the five scales of the instrument. These results contribute to the cross-cultural psychometric validation of the questionnaire and they enable to conclude that the resources scales of the UNIPSICO questionnaire translated to Valencian / Catalan language are a reliable and valid instrument to assess psychosocial risks in non-university teaching personnel.

To analyse the psychometric properties of the demand scales of the UNIPSICO questionnaire in in Valencian / Catalan language.The sample consisted of 2114 participants from public administration centres of Generalitat Valenciana in Valencia. Data were collected using the UNIPSICO questionnaire, which is grouped into six scales that measure psychosocial risk factors related to job demands (33 items): role conflict (5 items), role ambiguity (5 items), workload (6 items), interpersonal conflicts (6 items), inequity in social exchanges (5 items), and work-family and family-work conflict (6 items). We performed confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and measured Cronbach alpha and McDonald omega coefficients for the scales.All items had adequate statistical and psychometric values. The six-factor model that reproduces the original structure of the questionnaire presented an adequate fit to the data, and gender invariance. The Cronbach alpha and McDonald omega coefficients were acceptable for the six scales of the instrument.These results contribute to the psychometric validation of the questionnaire and allow us to conclude that the demand scales of the UNIPSICO questionnaire translated to Valencian / Catalan language are reliable and possess construct validity for the assessment of psychosocial risk factors in government employees.Analizar las propiedades psicométricas de las escalas de demandas de la batería UNIPSICO del contexto de trabajo en valenciano/catalán. Método: La muestra la constituyen 2114 trabajadores de centros públicos de la Generalitat Valenciana, de la provincia de Valencia. La recogida de datos se realizó mediante las escalas de la batería UNIPSICO que evalúan factores psicosociales de demandas en el trabajo (33 ítems), que se agrupan en 6 escalas: Conflicto de rol (5 ítems), ambigüedad de rol (5 ítems), carga de trabajo (6 ítems), conflictos interpersonales (6 ítems), inequidad en los intercambios sociales (5 ítems), y conflicto trabajo-familia/familia-trabajo (6 ítems). Se realizó un análisis factorial confirmatorio (AFC) y se calcularon los valores alfa de Cronbach y omega de McDonald para las escalas.Todos los ítems presentaron valores estadísticos y psicométricos adecuados. El modelo de seis factores que reproduce la estructura original del cuestionario presentó un ajuste adecuado a los datos, con invarianza de sexo. El valor del alfa de Cronbach y omega de McDonald resultó aceptable para las seis escalas del instrumento.Estos resultados contribuyen a la validación psicométrica del cuestionario, permitiendo concluir que las escalas de demandas de la batería UNIPSICO, en valenciano/catalán resulta un instrumento fiable y con consistencia interna para evaluar los riesgos psicosociales en personal que trabaja en la administración.

Humans are exposed to micro and nanoplastics (MNPLs) through inhalation, ingestion and, to a lesser extent, dermal contact. In recent years, new insights indicate the potential of MNPLs to cause damages to human health. Particle toxicity can include oxidative stress, inflammatory lesions, and then increased internalization or translocation through tissues. On the other hand, plastic additives are used in plastic particles, once internalized, can release toxic substances. It is noteworthy that the potential effects of MNPLs encompass a wide range of polymers and chemical additives, showing various physicochemical and toxicological properties, and the size, shape and surface properties are other variables influencing their effects. In spite of the research carried out recently, MNPLs research is in its early stages, and further investigation is required. In this review article, the knowledge of human exposure routes and the recent results on the toxicological effects of MNPLs in human health are presented and discussed. Finally, the current limitations and the main gaps in the body of knowledge are summarised.

There is a worldwide growing use of chemicals by our developed, industrialized, and technological society. More than 100,000 chemical substances are thus commonly used both by industry and households. Depending on the amount produced, physical-chemical properties, and mode of use, many of them may reach the environment and, notably, the aquatic receiving systems. This may result in undesirable and harmful side-effects on both the human and the ecosystem's health. Mediterranean rivers are largely different from Northern and Central European rivers in terms of hydrological regime, climate conditions (e.g. air temperature, solar irradiation, precipitation), and socio-economics (e.g. land use, tourism, crop types, etc.), with all these factors leading to differences in the relative importance of the environmental stressors, in the classes and levels of the pollutants found and their environmental fate. Furthermore, water scarcity might be critical in affecting water pollution because of the lowered dilution capacity of chemicals. This work provides raw chemical data from different families of microcontaminants identified in three selected Mediterranean rivers (the Sava, Evrotas, and Adige) collected during two sampling campaigns conducted in 2014 and 2015 in three different matrices, namely, water, sediments, and biota (fish). More than 200 organic micropollutants were analyzed, including relevant groups like pharmaceuticals, personal care products, perfluorinated compounds, pesticides, pyrethroid insecticides, flame retardants, and persistent organic pollutants. Data obtained were summarized with some basic statistics for all compound families and matrices analyzed. Observed occurrence and spatial patterns were interpreted both in terms of compound physical-chemical properties and local environmental pressures. Finally, their spatial distribution was examined and their ecotoxicological risk in the water phase was assessed. This allowed locating, at each basin, the most polluted sites (“hot spots”) and identifying the respective river basin specific pollutants (RBSPs), prioritizing them in terms of the potential ecotoxicological risk posed to the aquatic ecosystems., This work has been supported by the European Communities EU 7th Framework Programme Funding under Grant agreement no. 603629-ENV-2013-6.2.1-Globaqua and partly by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Consolidate Research Group 2017-SGR-01404) and by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Projects CEX2018-000794-S and IBERAQUA-NET RED2018-102737-T). Special thanks are due to all partners of the GLOBAQUA consortium and the peer review panel for ensuring quality results and a fruitful collaboration within the frame of the project.

In this work a suspect-screening approach was employed to assess the polymers and plastic additives of micro(nano)plastics (NPL/MPLs) of size ranges from the nm range to 20 μm present in seawater from the top 5 cm of the Mar Menor lagoon during two sampling campaigns (summer and winter), as well of other potentially adsorbed compounds onto the plastic particles surfaces and suspended material. The identification of NPL/MPLs has been based on characteristic Kendrick Mass Defect analysis for each polymer type in mass spectra. The applied methodology allowed to identify NPLs/MPLs of polystyrene (PS), polyethylene (PE), polyisoprene (PI), polybutadiene (PBD), polypropylene (PP), polyamides (PA), polyvinylchloride (PVC), n-isopropylacrylamide (PNIPAm), and polydimethylsiloxanes. In addition, PS, PE, PI, PBD, PP, PA, and PVC were confirmed with standards, and the equivalent concentrations were quantified. The results of this study showed that most frequently found compounds were PP, PE, PA and PNIPAm, while the compound found at higher concentrations was by far PP reaching the 9,303 ± 366 ng/mL in one of the samples. A total number of 135 chemical compounds were tentatively identified, 74 of them plastic additives and compounds used in the polymers manufacture or coming from the polymer’s decomposition. In relation to plastic additives, the more frequently tentatively identified compounds were plasticizers such as phthalates group; stabilizers such as antioxidants (e.g., distearyl 3,3′-thiodipropionate, 2,5-di-tert-butylhydroquinone), and UV filters as benzotriazoles. Several flame retardants of the group of phosphates were as well detected. The other compounds tentatively identified in the samples were pharmaceuticals, pesticides, food additives, flavors and natural products that were attached onto the plastic particles and particulate matter from surrounding waters. In regards to the seasonal variation, during the summer a major number of compounds were tentatively detected, while de concentrations of polymers were slightly higher in winter. The spatial distribution showed higher contamination in the southern part of the coastal lagoon., This work was supported by the PLAS-MED project (CTM201 7-89701-C3-1-R and CTM2017-89701-C3-3-R) from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Digital Transformation and by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Selenastrum capricornutum and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii were tested for possible biodegradation of the hormones β-estradiol (E2) and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2) when cultured in anaerobic digester centrate (ADC). Neither ADC nor the hormones had a negative or toxic effect on the microalgae growth but enhanced it. E2 and EE2 biodegradation was evaluated under different culture conditions. After 7 days of treatment, between 88% and 100% of E2 was removed by S. capricornutum. Overall, 42 and 54% of the removal was attributed to biodegradation processes, while the rest of the removal was due to adsorption onto the algae biomass. For EE2, removals between 60 and 95%, depending on the culture conditions, were achieved, with biodegradation accounting for 20-54% of the removal. E2 and EE2 were completely removed in the experiments performed with C. reinhardtii, except for EE2 in the presence of ADC, which decreased to 76%. However, C. reinhardtii presented higher adsorption percentages: 86% and 71% after 7 days for E2 and EE2, respectively. Transformation products (TPs) of E2 and EE2 generated in each treatment were also monitored. Two TPs were tentatively proposed as degradation products of E2 and EE2 by the algae. In addition, the removal of 26 endocrine disruptors and related pollutants present in the centrate was also monitored: bisphenol A was completely removed, whereas tris(2-butoxyethyl)phosphate was only removed in the absence of hormones.

Psychosocial risks at work are an important occupational problem since they can have an impact on workers' health, productivity, absenteeism, and company profits. Among their consequences, burnout stands out for its prevalence and associated consequences. This problem is particularly noteworthy in the case of teachers. The aim of the study was to analyze the influence of some psychosocial factors (demand and resource variables) and risks in burnout development, taking into consideration the levels of burnout according to the Spanish Burnout Inventory (SBI). This paper contributes to advancing knowledge on this issue by analyzing the influence of work characteristics and personal characteristics on the progress of burnout. The sample consisted of 8,235 non-university teachers (2,268 men 27.5% and 5,967 women 72.5%), aged 22 to 70 (M= 45.16,SD= 9.18). For this purpose, statistical modeling by logistic regression was used. The results of this study showed that No burnout level was positively related with resources variables and negatively with demand variables. In the Medium-High levels and the higher levels of burnout (i.e., Profile 1 and Profile 2), there is a positive relation with demand variables and a negative one with resource variables. In conclusion, demand variables cause an increase in the burnout levels, influencing positively the movements between the levels of No burnout to Medium-High levels of burnout and Medium-High levels to Profile 1. At the same time, resource variables had a negative influence on burnout. However, the results in the movement between Profile 1 and Profile 2 were not expected. The variable Imbalance had a negative relationship with the movement between Profile 1 to Profile 2, and Social support and Autonomy at work had a positive relationship with this movement. Therefore, when professionals feel higher levels of burnout, lack of imbalance together with social support and autonomy could contribute to increased feelings of guilt and risk of higher burnout.

Two different methodologies were combined to evaluate the risks that antibiotics can pose in the environment; i) an effect-based methodology based on microbial growth inhibition and ii) an analytical method based on liquid-chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The first approach was adapted and validated for the screening of four antibiotic families, specifically macrolides/β-lactams, quinolones, sulfonamides and tetracyclines. The LC-MS method was applied for the identification and quantification of target antibiotics; then, the obtained results were combined with ecotoxicological data from literature to determine the environmental risk. The two methodologies were used for the analysis of antibiotics in water samples (wastewater, river water and seawater) and biofluids (fish plasma and mollusk hemolymph) in two monitoring campaigns undertaken in the Ebro Delta and Mar Menor Lagoon (both in the Mediterranean coast of Spain). Both approaches highlighted macrolides (azithromycin) and quinolones (ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin) as the main antibiotics in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents with potential risk for the environment. However, no risk for the aquatic life was identified in the river, lagoon and seawater as antibiotic levels were much lower than those in WWTP effluents. Fish from Ebro River were the organisms presenting the highest antibiotic concentration when compared with bivalves (mussels) from the Mediterranean Sea and gastropods (marine snails) from the Mar Menor Lagoon. The effect-based methodology successfully determined antibiotic risk in wastewater, but its applicability was less clear in environmental waters such as seawater, due to its high detection limits. Improving sample preconcentration could increase the method sensibility. Overall, combination of both methodologies provides comprehensive insights in antibiotic occurrence and risk associated in areas under study., This work has received funding from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness through the PLAS-MED (CTM2017-89701-C3-2-R) project. Authors acknowledge the support from the Economy and Knowledge Department of the Catalan Government through Consolidated Research Group (ICRA-ENV 2017 SGR 1124 and 2017-SGR-1404-Water and Soil Quality Unit). The authors acknowledge the IEO & CSIC staff for their help in the sampling campaigns. Albert Serra-Compte acknowledges the FI-DGR research fellowship from the Catalan Government (2018FI_B2_00170) and the Nereus Cost Action grant. Sara Rodriguez-Mozaz acknowledges the Ramon y Cajal program (RYC-2014-16707) and Diana Álvarez-Muñoz the support of the project XENOMETABOLOMIC (CTM2015-73179-JIN) (AEI/FEDER/UE). Authors kindly acknowledge Generalitat DGPAM (Fisheries Department). The authors also acknowledge support from CERCA Programme/Generalitat de Catalunya.

The removal of 27 endocrine-disrupting compounds and related compounds (suspect effect) from a reverse osmosis concentrate using an alternative decontamination method based on a fungal treatment involving Trametes versicolor was assessed. In addition to chemical analysis, the toxicity of the treated water during the treatment was monitored using a bioluminescence inhibition test and estrogenic and anti-estrogenic tests. The compounds 1H-benzotriazole (BTZ) and two tolyltriazoles (TTZs), 4-methyl-1H-benzotriazole (4-MBTZ) and 5-methyl-1H-benzotriazole (5-MBTZ), were present in the reverse osmosis concentrate at the highest concentrations (7.4 and 12.8 μg L−1, respectively) and were partially removed by the fungal treatment under sterile conditions (58% for BTZ and 92% for TTZs) and non-sterile conditions, although to lesser extents (32% for BTZ and 50% for TTZs). Individual biotransformation studies of BTZ and the TTZs by T. versicolor in a synthetic medium and further analysis via on-line turbulent flow chromatography coupled to an HRMS-Orbitrap allowed the tentative identification of the transformation products (TPs). Six TPs were postulated for BTZ, two TPs were postulated for 4-MBTZ, and four TPs were postulated for 5-MBTZ. Most of these TPs are suggested to have been generated by conjugation with some sugars and via the methylation of the triazole group. Only TP 148 A, postulated to be derived from the biotransformation of BTZ, was observed in the effluent of the bioreactor treating the reverse osmosis concentrate. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd, This work has been supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (project CTQ2010-21776-C02 and CTM2013-48545-C2), co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and supported by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Consolidated Research Groups: Catalan Institute for water Research 2014 SGR 291 and 2014 SGR 476). The Department of Chemical Engineering of the Universitat Aut?noma de Barcelona (UAB) is a member of the Xarxa de Refer?ncia en Biotecnologia de la Generalitat de Catalunya. M. Badia-Fabregat acknowledges the predoctoral grant from UAB. ML acknowledges her Juan de la Cierva Incorporacion fellowship (JdC-2014-21736), and SRM acknowledges her Ramon y Cajal fellowship (RyC-2014-16707), both from the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness.

The evaluation of wastewater treatment capabilities in terms of removal of water pollutants is crucial when assessing water mitigation issues. Not only the monitoring of target pollutants becomes a critical point, but also the transformation products (TPs) generated. Since these TPs are very often unknown compounds, their study in both wastewater and natural environment is currently recognized as a tedious task and challenging research field. In this study, a novel automated suspect screening methodology was developed for a comprehensive assessment of the TPs generated from nine antibiotics during microalgae water treatment. Three macrolides (azithromycin, erythromycin, clarithromycin), three fluoroquinolones (ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin) and three additional antibiotics (trimethoprim, pipemidic acid, sulfapyridine) were selected as target pollutants. The analysis of samples was carried out by direct injection in an on-line turbulent flow liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (TFC-LC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS/MS) system, followed by automatic data processing for compound identification. The screening methodology allowed the identification of 40 tentative TPs from a list of software predicted intermediates created automatically. Once known and unknown TPs were identified, degradation pathways were suggested considering the different mechanisms involved on their formation (biotic and abiotic). Results reveal microalgae ability for macrolide biotransformation, but not for other antibiotics such as for fluoroquinolones. Finally, the intermediates detected were included into an in-house library and applied to the identification of tentative TPs in real toilet wastewater treated in a microalgae based photobioreactor (PBR). The overall approach allowed a comprehensive overview of the performance of microalgae water treatment in a fast and reliable manner: it represents a useful tool for the rapid screening of wide range of compounds, reducing time invested in data analysis and providing reliable structural identification.

Sewage sludge reuse will become crucial for the sustainability of agriculture, given the increasing population and the lack of essential nutrients for crop growth. Nevertheless, this practice raises some concerns, due to the large amounts of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) present in sewage sludge, including pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), microplastics (MPs), engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), flame retardants, plasticizers, metals, antibiotic resistance bacteria (ARB) and resistance genes (ARGs). These CECs may adversely affect the environment and, ultimately, human health through the consumption of crops grown under sludge-amended soils. This chapter reviews the potential environmental and human health risks associated with sewage sludge reuse in agriculture, by focusing on relevant classes of CECs, such as PPCPs, MPs, carbon-based ENMs and considering ARBs and ARGs, a topic so far poorly addressed. The risks discussed focus on the contamination of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems and on CECs uptake by crops intended for human consumption. Finally, technological strategies to improve sludge treatment, and thus minimize such risks, are briefly discussed.

The potential of microplastics (MPLs) in marine ecosystems to adsorb and transport other micropollutants to biota, contributing to their entry in the food chain, is a primary cause of concern. However, these interactions remain poorly understood. Here, we have evaluated the adsorption/desorption behaviour of marker polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), onto MPL surfaces of three widely used polymers&mdash, polystyrene (PS), polyethylene (PE), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The range of MPL sizes ranged from 1 to 600 &mu, m. The adsorption/desorption was evaluated in sediment/water systems in marine microcosms emulating realistic environmental conditions for 21 days. The adsorption percentages ranged from 20 to 60%. PCBs with a lower degree of chlorination showed higher adsorption percentages because of conformational impediments of PCBs with high-degree chlorination, and also by their affinity to be adsorbed in sediments. Glassy plastic polymers as PET and PS showed a superior affinity for PCBs than rubbery polymers, such as PE. The polymers that can bond PCBs by &pi, &pi, interactions, rather than van der Waals forces showed better adsorption percentages, as expected. Finally, the adsorption/desorption behaviour of selected PCBs onto MPLs was fitted to a Freundlich isotherm model, with correlations higher than 0.8 in most of the cases.

During the last years, the use of different omics techniques to evaluate the toxic effects of contaminants has increased. In the specific case of metabolomics, it has been applied for assessing the toxicity of chemicals of industrial origin considered persistent organic pollutants such as flame retardants (FRs) and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). In this sense, this chapter offers a revision of the most commonly used metabolomics strategies for the evaluation of the toxicity of organic substances from industrial origin. These strategies are based on in vivo and in vitro experiments through the exposition to a single contaminant or to a mixture of contaminants. In the case of in vitro experiments for FRs, human hepatotoxic cell lines HepG2/C3A and mouse preadipocyte T3-L1 are the most frequently used due to their versatility. For PFASs, adrenocortical cell line is the most used one. Regarding in vivo experiments, aquatic organisms like microalgae, microcrustacean (i.e., Daphnia magna), filterers like bivalves, and fishes are used. The experiments with terrestrial organisms include earthworm–soil ecosystem (Wang et al., 2018b), chickens (Wigh, 2017), mice, and rats, and some works deal with humans in cohort studies. In general, the biomarkers identified are related to system activation of the stress defenses like adipogenesis, as well as carbohydrate and amino acid metabolisms, sugar metabolites, and energy molecules.

The so-called marine litter, and in particular microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs), are ubiquitously distributed and recognised as an emerging risk for the environment and human health. It is known that marine environments are one of the most impacted areas and among them; coastal zones are the most contaminated ones. They are subjected to population pressure, tourism, harbours, desalination plants, marine traffic and fish farms. This review is focused on the Mediterranean Sea, currently considered one hot spot of microplastics pollution in the world, as a consequence of the high number of plastic marine litter generating activities and its characteristic morphology of semi-enclosed sea. MPs and NPs have been detected not only in surface water and water columns but also in sediments, deep seafloor, and biota including fish and seafood for human consumption. Because of this, different European legislation initiatives have been launched during the last years in order to prevent MPs and NPs contamination and to face derived problems. Finally, this review summarises the main problems and shortcomings associated to MPs and NPs analyses such as their identification and quantification or the necessity of standardised protocols., This work was supported by the project PLAS-MED (CTM2017-89701-C3) from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund, ERDF). Authors thank Generalitat de Catalunya through Consolidated Research Group (ICRA-ENV 2017 SGR 1124). Lúcia H.M.L.M. Santos thanks the Juan de la Cierva program (IJCI-2017-32747) and Sara Rodríguez-Mozaz thanks the Ramon y Cajal program (RYC-2014-16707).

A comprehensive monitoring of a broad set of antibiotics in the final effluent of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) of 7 European countries (Portugal, Spain, Ireland, Cyprus, Germany, Finland, and Norway) was carried out in two consecutive years (2015 and 2016). This is the first study of this kind performed at an international level. Within the 53 antibiotics monitored 17 were detected at least once in the final effluent of the WWTPs, i.e.: ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, enrofloxacin, orbifloxacin, azithromycin, clarithromycin, sulfapyridine, sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, nalidixic acid, pipemidic acid, oxolinic acid, cefalexin, clindamycin, metronidazole, ampicillin, and tetracycline. The countries exhibiting the highest effluent average concentrations of antibiotics were Ireland and the southern countries Portugal and Spain, whereas the northern countries (Norway, Finland and Germany) and Cyprus exhibited lower total concentration. The antibiotic occurrence data in the final effluents were used for the assessment of their impact on the aquatic environment. Both, environmental predicted no effect concentration (PNEC-ENVs) and the PNECs based on minimal inhibitory concentrations (PNEC-MICs) were considered for the evaluation of the impact on microbial communities in aquatic systems and on the evolution of antibiotic resistance, respectively. Based on this analysis, three compounds, ciprofloxacin, azithromycin and cefalexin are proposed as markers of antibiotic pollution, as they could occasionally pose a risk to the environment. Integrated studies like this are crucial to map the impact of antibiotic pollution and to provide the basis for designing water quality and environmental risk in regular water monitoring programs, We thank all the wastewater treatment plant staff and other collaborators who made this work possible. We would also thank Virginie Keller and Andrew Johnson for their help in the data processing. Funding: This work was financed by the Water JPI through the national funding agencies supporting the consortium WaterJPI/0001/2013 STARE—“Stopping Antibiotic Resistance Evolution” (Cyprus, RPF; Germany, BMBF; Spain, MINECO; Finland, AKA; Ireland, EPA; Norway, RCN; Portugal, FCT). Authors acknowledge the support from the Economy and Knowledge Department of the Catalan Government through Consolidated Research Group (ICRA-ENV 2017 SGR 1124 and 2017-SGR-1404-Water and Soil Quality Unit). S.R.-M. acknowledges the Ramon y Cajal program (RYC-2014-16707). I.V.-M. was supported by the FCT grant SFRH/BPD/87360/2012. Laura Rodriguez de la Ballina is acknowledged for her help in the design of graphical abstract.