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Purpose: The present work aimed to fill some knowledge gaps on the effects on non-target natural soil microbial communities of the sulfamethoxazole (SMX) antibiotic potentially found in cattle manure digestate. Both soil prokaryotic and fungal community under different conditions were analyzed using molecular ecology methods. Methods: A previous microcosm experiment with a soil amended with a cattle manure digestate (3% dry mass) and spiked with SMX (20 mg/kg soil) was used for this in-depth study. Microbial live cell abundances were assessed by direct epifluorescence microscope methods. The microbial community structures were studied by DNA extraction and amplification using 16S rRNA primers targeting the V3-V4 region (for prokaryotes) and ITS1 (for fungi); Alpha-diversity indices (Chao1, Shannon and Evenness) were also estimated. Moreover, a prediction functional analysis was performed on prokaryotic 16S rRNA amplicon data with PICRUSt2 in order to predict possible variations in some microbial functioning. Results: Adding digestate to soil promoted both microbial abundance and some bacterial groups. The co-presence of SMX initially lowered these positive effects and decreased diversity. However, at day 61, the antibiotic was almost all removed and the microbial abundance and prokaryotic and fungal diversity showed increased values. Conclusion: The antibiotic detrimental effects on prokaryotic cells were transient and some resistant bacteria (e.g., Sphingomonas, Skermanella), presumably introduced into the soil with the digestate, were able to remove SMX. Moreover, the digestate long-term effect was to favor some fungal groups such as Basidiomycota. The presence of the genus Trichoderma (Ascomycota), able to transform antibiotics, does not exclude also as possible involvement of this fungus in SMX removal.

Livestock and aquaculture activities involve the use of antibiotics. The use of manure and digestate in agricul-tural practices can introduce antibiotics and promote resistant bacteria into terrestrial and aquatic environ-ments. Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) is one of the most commonly prescribed and consumed sulfonamide antibiotic for its ability to inhibit both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. However, current knowledge about its persistence and effects on natural microbial communities are quite scarce. We investigated in microcosm laboratory experiments the effects on the structure and functioning of a soil natural microbial community treat-ed with cattle manure in presence/absence of the antibiotic SMX (20 mg/kg). At fixed times (0, 7, 13, 20, 60 days) microbiological abundance, viability, activity and SMX residual concentrations (ASE extraction and HPLC-UV detection) were analysed. Moreover, the microbial community diversity was investigated with NGS analyses. The results showed that although SMX had an initial acute negative effect on the cell abundance and viability, the antibiotic was then degraded in just a few days. The microbial community composition was influenced by the different treatments and the effect on different bacterial groups will be shown

Livestock raising in most countries involves the use of antibiotics in veterinary practices and to increase animal productivity ("production-purpose uses") (1. These compounds are designed to be quickly excreted from the threated body, through animal feces, either unaltered or as metabolites. The use of livestock manure or of the digestate (anaerobic digestion of the manure) as amending and fertilizer in agricultural practices, implicates the introduction of antibiotics, antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) in terrestrial ecosystem (2. Due to their continual input into the environment and antimicrobial nature, antibiotics are classified as emerging pseudo-persistent organic pollutants (pseudo-POPs) (3. Unlike the other conventional POPs, antibiotics not only can kill or inhibit natural bacterial population involved in ecosystem functioning, but also cause the appearance and rapid spread of resistant bacteria in the environment (4. Indeed antibiotics, ARB and ARGs are recently included in the contaminant list of emerging concern (5. The synthetic compound sulfamethoxazole (SMX) is one of the most popularly prescribed and consumed antibiotics in human and veterinary medicines leading to its presence in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. SMX is bacteriostatic, inhibiting the synthesis of folic acid metabolism and causing bone marrow suppression. This compound is among the top ten drugs with high priority identified in the European assessment of pharmaceuticals and personal care compounds (6. The current knowledge about the persistence and the potential effects of SMX addition on the natural microbial community of an agricultural soil are still scarce. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the possible degradation of SMX and the response of the microbial community of a cattle manure amended and SMX-treated soil. Microcosm biodegradation experiments were performed by using microbiologically active (containing the natural microbial community) or sterilized cattle manure amended soil. The role of the natural microbial community on the degradation of the antibiotic and the effects of the latter on the microbial structure and functioning were investigated. Furthermore, a molecular marker for antibiotic resistance (7, the intI 1 gene was also analyzed.

The atmospheric concentrations of gaseous HNO3, HCl and NH3 and their relative salts have been measured during two field campaigns in the winter and in the summer of 2007 at Beijing (China), as part of CAREBEIJING (Campaigns of Air Quality Research in Beijing and Surrounding Region). In this study, annular denuder technique used with integration times of 2 and 24h to collect inorganic and soluble PM2.5 without interferences from gas-particle and particle-particle interactions. The results were discussed from the standpoint of temporal and diurnal variations and meteorological effects. Fine particulate Cl-, NH4+ and SO24- exhibited distinct temporal variations, while fine particulate NO3- did not show much variation with respect to season. Daily mean concentrations of fine particulate NH4+ and SO42- were higher during summer (12.30 ?gm-3 and 18.24 ?gm-3, respectively) than during winter (6.51 ?gm-3 and 7.50 ?gm-3, respectively). Daily mean concentrations of fine particulate Cl- were higher during winter (2.94 ?gm-3) than during summer (0.79 ?gm-3), while fine particulate NO3- showed similar both in winter (8.38 ?gm-3) and in summer (9.62 ?gm-3) periods. The presence of large amounts of fine particulate NO3- even in summer are due to higher local and regional concentrations of NH3 in the atmosphere available to neutralize H2SO4 and HNO3, which is consistent with the observation that the measured particulate species were neutralized. The composition of fine particulate matter indicated the domination of (NH4)2SO4 during winter and summer periods. In addition, the high relative humidity conditions in summer period seemed to dissolve a significant fraction of HNO3 and NH3 enhancing fine particulate NO3- and NH4+ in the atmosphere. All measured particulate species showed diurnal similar patterns during the winter and summer periods with higher peaks in the early morning, especially in summer, when humid and stable atmospheric conditions occurred. These diurnal variations were affected by wind direction suggesting regional and local source influences. The fine particulate species were correlated with NOx and PM2.5, supporting the hypothesis that traffic may be also an important source of secondary particles.

The CMS Experiment is defining its Computing Model and is experimenting and testing the new distributed features offered by many Grid Projects. This report describes use by CMS of the early-deployed systems of LCG (LCG-0 and LCG-1). Most of the used features here discussed came from the EU implemented middleware, even if some of the tested capabilities were in common with the US developed middleware. This report describes the simulation of about 2 million of CMS detector events, which were generated as part of the official CMS Data Challenge 04 (Pre-Challenge-Production). The simulations were done on a CMS-dedicated testbed (CMS-LCG-0), where an ad-hoc modified version of the LCG-0 middleware was deployed and where the CMS Experiment had a complete control, and on the official early LCG delivered system (with the LCG-1 version). Modifications to the CMS simulation tools for events produc tion where studied and achieved, together with necessary adaptations of the middleware services. Bilateral feedback (between CMS and LCG middleware) played an important role in making progress (including bugs corrections). Fractions of successful processing of simulation jobs ranged from 70% to 90%. Most of the failure reasons were identified, with RLS instability being the greatest cause of failure. Evaluation of the LCG-1 middleware is also presented and discussed. The progress of the new functionalities introduced and the better-distributed organization of services were tested and eventually stressed. While the overall efficiency decreased in the early implementation of the system in respect of the LCG-0 testbed, a consistent success rate of 50-60% was achieved. One of the major difficulties for the simulation of CMS events on the LCG-1 system was identified to be the consistent configuration of the distributed sites.

One of the fundamental concepts in Grid computing is the creation of Virtual Organizations (VO's): a set of resource consumers and providers that join forces to solve a common problem. Typical examples of Virtual Organizations include collaborations formed around the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) experiments. To date, Grid computing has been applied on a relatively small scale, linking dozens of users to a dozen resources, and management of these VO's was a largely manual operation. With the advance of large collaboration, linking more than 10000 users with a 1000 sites in 150 counties, a comprehensive, automated management system is required. It should be simple enough not to deter users, while at the same time ensuring local site autonomy. The VO Management Service (VOMS), developed by the EU DataGrid and DataTAG projects[1, 2], is a secured system for managing authorization for users and resources in virtual organizations. It extends the existing Grid Security Infrastructure[3] architecture with embedded VO affiliation assertions that can be independently verified by all VO members and resource providers. Within the EU DataGrid project, Grid services for job submission, file- and database access are being equipped with fine- grained authorization systems that take VO membership into account. These also give resource owners the ability to ensure site security and enforce local access policies. This paper will describe the EU DataGrid security architecture, the VO membership service and the local site enforcement mechanisms Local Centre Authorization Service (LCAS), Local Credential Mapping Service(LCMAPS) and the Java Trust and Authorization Manager., Talk from the 2003 Computing in High Energy and Nuclear Physics (CHEP03), La Jolla, Ca, USA, March 2003, 7 pages, LaTeX, 5 eps figures. PSN TUBT005

The accidental contamination of food and food packaging surfaces with SARS-CoV-2 is of increasing concern among scientists and consumers, particularly in relation to fresh foods that are consumed without further cooking. The use of chemical sanitizers is often not suitable for these kinds of commodities, therefore, a non-thermal sanitation technology could help to increase safety in relation to the food supply chain. Cold plasma has proven to be a promising strategy for virus inactivation. This research is aimed at evaluating the ability of a cold plasma sanitation system to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 RNA on packaged foods. Two different plastic materials were investigated and subjected to 5- and 10-min exposure to plasma after experimental inoculum of the RNA. In addition to viral degradation, possible changes in the performance of the materials were evaluated. Shelf-life of the foods, after exposure of the packages to plasma, was also investigated. Results showed that 10 min of exposure was sufficient to almost completely eliminate the viral RNA from package surfaces. The treatment did not produce any significant variation in packaging material performance or the shelf-life of the tested packaged products, indicating the potentiality of this treatment for the decontamination of packaged products.

A wide use of foaming agents as lubricants is required in mechanized tunneling. Their main component, the anionic surfactant sodium lauryl ether sulphate (SLES), can remain in residual concentrations in soil debris, influencing their potential reuse as by-product. This study aimed at evaluating the environmental fate and effects of a foaming product used for conditioning soils collected from real excavation sites, in the presence/absence of an anti-clogging polymer, both containing SLES. Soil microcosm experiments were set-up and incubated for 28 days. Over time, soils and their water extracts (elutriates) were collected to perform both ecotoxicological tests (Vibrio fischeri, Lepidium sativum, Eisenia foetida, Hetereocypris incongruens, Danio rerio) and SLES analysis. The results showed that, just after conditioning, SLES did not exert any hazardous effect on the organisms tested except for the bacterium V. fischeri, which was the most sensitive to its presence. However, from day seven the toxic effect on the bacterium was never observed thanks to the SLES decrease in the elutriates (&lt, 2 mg/L). SLES degraded in soils (half-lives from 9 to 25 days) with higher disappearance rates corresponding to higher values of microbial abundances. This study highlights the importance of site-specific studies for assessing the environmental reuse of spoil materials.