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Imidacloprid (IMI), as an emerging pollutant, is frequently detected in pesticide wastewater. Cobalt-based single-atom catalysts (Co-SACs) doped with sulfur atoms can serve as an efficient strategy to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) and degrade organic pollutants. The paper employed density functional theory and computational toxicology to deeply explore the mechanism and ecotoxicity of IMI when S atoms were introduced into Co-SACs for PMS activation. The result demonstrated that PMS can be preferentially decomposed into SO 4 •- , HO • , and 1 O 2 based on Co-S 4 -C 0 active-center. It exhibited the most positive charge (+0.91 e - ), highest electron transfer (0.84 e - ), most negative adsorption energy (E ads = -53.85 kcal/mol), and longer O-O bond (1.48 Å). In the degradation processes of IMI, HO • -addition at the C2 sites and HO • -abstract at the H6 sites had the lowest Gibbs free barrier with 6.64 kcal/mol and 6.22 kcal/mol, respectively. Hydroxylation products were readily formed. Route 3 and 7 were the formation pathways of important experimental intermediates (PC3-4). Eco-toxicity assessment showed that most degradation products were completely harmless to aquatic toxicity. PC1-2, PC1-2, PC3-1, PC3-3, PC4-1 and PC4-2 showed similar and higher mutagenicity and bioaccumulation factors to the IMI. Therefore, Route 1, 3 and 4 contributed to the potential health risks. This study not only elucidated the atomic level relationship between PMS and Co-SACs, but also contributed to understanding the detailed degradation mechanism of IMI and the ecotoxicity of TPs. The finding provides theoretical support for environmental impacts of pesticide wastewater during advanced oxidation treatments., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Panacis Quinquefolii Radix (PQR) is often illegally sulfur fumigated to extend shelf life and improve appearance, but existing regulations of detecting SO 2 residues do not accurately identify desulfurized sulfur-fumigated PQR (SF-PQR). Although sulfur-containing derivatives (SCDs) have been reported in some sulfur-fumigated herbs, there is a lack of research on the generation mechanisms and toxicity of SCDs. Our previous study reported the nephrotoxicity of SF-PQR, and there is an urgent necessity to illuminate the mechanism of toxicity as well as its association with SCDs., Aim of the Study: To investigate the transformation pattern of chemical components and SCDs in SF-PQR, and to disclose the linkage between SCDs and SF-PQR nephrotoxicity., Materials and Methods: The extracts of PQR (before and after SF) were detected by the UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS method, and SCDs were screened as quality markers (Q-markers). The composition of sulfur combustion products was examined by ion chromatography to exploit the conversion mechanism of SCDs. After administration of PQR extracts to mice for two weeks, serum was collected for GC-MS-based untargeted metabolomics study to mine for differential metabolites. The upstream genes were traced by network analysis to probe toxicity targets. Molecular docking was used to uncover the interactions between SCDs and the targets., Results: Thirty-three compounds were identified and 11 SCDs of saponins were screened, including four SO 3 sulfonation products and five H 2 SO 3 sulfonation products. Metabolomics study showed significant alterations in serum biochemistry of SF-PQR group, with substantial increases in fumarate and 2-heptanone content, and induced disturbances in glycerolipid metabolism and phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan biosynthesis in mice. Network analysis revealed that the key toxicity targets were DECR1, PLA2G1B, and CAT. Molecular docking indicated that SCDs had stable interaction forces with the above three toxicity targets., Conclusion: SF-PQR caused kidney damage by affecting glycerolipid metabolism and phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan biosynthesis. Eleven SCDs were potential nephrotoxic substances and Q-markers for identifying SF-PQR. This study is the first to systematically elucidate the mechanism of SF-PQR-related nephrotoxicity, providing a robust basis for the construction of new quality control standards and a global prohibition of sulfur fumigation., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Soils and oak trees (Quercus brantii Lindl.) in Zagros forests are suffering from the air pollution caused by the Ilam Gas Refinery. Thus, for the first time, we investigated the contamination level of sulfur and trace elements in these ecosystems. Sampling of soil and tree leaves was carried out in different seasons of 2019 and at different distances from the gas refinery. The results showed that soils and leaves at the various distances compared with control distance (10,000 m) were more affected by the gas refinery. Distance from the pollution source and physicochemical properties of soils were the main factors affecting contamination of soil elements contents. The soils with pollution load indices (PLI) of 4.54 were in the highly polluted category. Sulfur was at highly polluted category in soils and were highly enriched in trees. The trees mainly absorbed studied elements via their aerial organs. Our findings indicated that oak trees with the highest value of metal accumulation index are influence tools for monitoring various elements in the polluted air produced by the gas refinery. It is recommended that the ecosystem components near the refinery be studied to accurately evaluate disorders in the food chain., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

In this study, 11 low/uncontaminated (including Lufa 2.2) and 9 contaminated field soils with varying geophysical and physicochemical characteristics were evaluated for toxicities based on oxygen consumption of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB). Oxygen consumption of the low/uncontaminated soils ranged between 7.9 mL and 9.5 mL, while contaminated soils ranged between 0.4 mL and 5.4 mL. Inherent test variability (CV i ), variation due to soil natural properties (CV ns ) and minimal detectable difference (MDD) values ranged 1.2%-3.9%, 3.5%-16.9%, and 2.1%-4.3%, respectively. The toxicity threshold of 20% was established for soil toxicity based maximal tolerable inhibition (MTI). All the contaminated soils were found to be toxic and showed inhibition between 42% and 100% above the 20% threshold value. Increased proportions of clay and slit enhanced the of inhibitory effect of contaminants on SOB by reducing the oxygen consumption. Current study provides a suitable method for the rapid toxicity assessment of contaminated field soils with the advantages of ease of handling and rapidity without employing elutriates and sophisticated equipments and tools., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Although Cd is threatening to the environment, animal, and human, the eco-friendly approach to mitigate the Cd-toxicity in alfalfa was barely studied. Therefore, this study aims at elucidating the role of S, a crucial macroelement, in alleviating Cd toxicity in alfalfa plants. The supplementation of S in Cd-stressed alfalfa reversed the detrimental effect on plant biomass, chlorophyll synthesis, and protein concentration. Interestingly, S surplus restored the photosynthetic kinetics, such as Fv/Fm, Pi_ABS, and Mo values in leaves of Cd-stressed alfalfa. Further, Cd-induced adverse effect on membrane stability, cell viability, and redox status was restored due to S under Cd stress. The exogenous S not only increased S status and the expression of sulfate transporters (MsSULRT1;2 and MsSULTR1;3), but also decreased the Cd concentration in the shoot by retaining elevated Cd in root tissue. Further analysis revealed the upregulation of MsGS (glutathione synthetase) and MsPCS1 (phytochelatin synthase) genes along with the increased concentration of glutathione and phytochelatin, predominantly in roots subjected to S surplus under Cd stress. The subcellular Cd analysis showed elevated Cd in the cell wall but not in the vacuole. It suggests that S-induced elevated glutathione enables the phytochelatin to bind with excess Cd leading to subcellular sequestration in the cell wall of roots. Also, S stimulates the S-metabolites and GR enzyme that coordinately counteracts Cd-induced oxidative damage. These findings can be utilized to popularize the application of S and to perform breeding/transgenic experiments to develop Cd-free forage crops., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

International shipping is responsible for the release of numerous contaminants to the air and the marine environment. In order to reduce airborne emissions, a global 0.5 % sulphur limit for marine fuels was implemented in January 2020. Recently, a new generation of so-called hybrid fuels that meet these new requirements have appeared on the market. Studies have shown that these fuels have physical properties that make conventional clean-up methods difficult, but few have studied their effects on marine life. We conducted short and long-term microcosm experiments with natural mesozooplankton communities exposed to the water accommodated fractions (WAFs) of the hybrid fuel RMD80 (0.1 % sulphur) and a Marine Gas Oil (MGO). We compared the toxicity of both fuel types in 48h short-term exposures, and studied the effects of the hybrid fuel on community structure over two generations in a 28-day experiment. The F0 generation was exposed for eight days and the F1 generation was raised for 22 days without exposure. GC-MS and GC-FID analysis of the WAFs revealed that the hybrid fuel was dominated by a mixture of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and poly aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), whereas the MGO was mainly composed of VOCs. We observed significant short-term effects on copepod egg production from exposure to 25 % hybrid fuel WAF, but no effects from the MGO WAF at equivalent WAF dilution. In the long-term experiment with RMD80, the feeding rate was initially increased after exposure to 0.5-1.1 % hybrid fuel WAF, but this did not increase the copepod egg production. Significant change in community structure was observed after eight days in the F0 community at 0.5-3.3 % WAF. Indications of further alterations in species abundances was observed in the F1 community. Our results demonstrate that the MGO is a less toxic low-sulphur alternative to the hybrid fuel for marine zooplankton, and that a hybrid fuel spill could result in altered diversity of future generations of copepod communities., (Copyright © 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this study, the effects of doping of CQDs with alternative functional groups (dopants) were evaluated through embryonic development of zebrafish (Danio rerio). The CQDs were synthesized using simple and low-cost sources: Non-doped (citric acid was used as the carbon source), nitrogen-doped (N-doped) and nitrogen, sulfur-co-doped (N,S-doped). The CQDs induced significant toxicity to zebrafish (>150 μg/mL) and the toxic effects were dose-dependent. The N,S-doped CQDs were the most toxic (LD50 = 149.92 μg/mL), followed by the N-doped CQDs (LD50 = 399.95 μg/mL) while the non-doped CQDs were the least toxic (LD50 = 548.48 μg/mL) of the three. The growth rate (GR) was affected following the toxicity pattern (GR NS-doped N-doped non-doped blanc ), which, in turn, greatly depends on the type of dopant. Morphological malformations, such as pericardial edema, yolk sac edema, tail and spinal curvature were observed to zebrafish embryos as the toxicity, concentration and exposure time to the nanomaterial increased. Behavioral analysis showed that locomotor activity increases as the toxicity of the nanomaterial rises. The differences in toxicity, growth rate and malfunctions of CQDs were attributed to their doping with different heteroatoms. The N,S-doped CQDs, unequivocally, exhibited the most pronounced effects., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The chemical composition of EPS (Extracellular Polymeric Substances) produced by Bacillus vallismortis sp. and its adsorption performance on typical heavy metal were studied under Na 2 S stress/induction at different concentrations. Its structure was characterized by three-dimensional fluorescence spectrogram (3D-EEM), infrared spectrum (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results showed that, when the Na 2 S stress/induction intensity was 20 mg/L, the protein concentration was nearly doubled compared with Control-EPS (EPS produced by Bacillus vallismortis sp. without exogenous sulfur stress); furthermore, the 3D-EEM results also demonstrated that there was an increase in the protein content, with the -SH content reaching 154.36 μmol/L, which was 48.2% higher than before stress (104.15 μmol/L). Under this condition, S-EPS (EPS produced by Bacillus vallismortis sp. stressed by exogenous sulfur) exhibited the best adsorption effect on Cu(II), with the theoretical maximum adsorption capacity reaching 1428.57 mg/g EPS. FTIR and XPS analyses revealed that the -SH, CO, N-H played a major role in the adsorption of Cu(II); among those, -SH played a key role. Moreover, the adsorption capacity of Cu(II) by S-EPS was correlated with the content of sulfhydryl protein; indeed, the exogenous sulfur stress/induction can effectively regulate the chemical composition of EPS and improve its adsorption performance, which can be crucial in the prevention and control of heavy metal pollution., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare that we do not have any commercial or associative interest that represents a conflict of interest in connection with the work submitted., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon dots (N, S-CQDs) with high fluorescent, water-soluble, low-toxicity properties were synthesized by microwave-assisted hydrothermal approach. The prepared N, S-CDs exhibited high selectivity in detection of tetracyclines (TCs) and displayed a fast-responsive fluorescence quenching signal in the mixture, which are mainly attributed to the inner filter effect (IFE). The synthesized N, S-CQDs are successfully used as a fluorescent nanoprobe for the determination of CTC in milk samples (with excitation/emission maxima at 373/424 nm). The limit of detection (LOD) is 71 ng mL -1 , and the recoveries of spiked samples range from 96 to 104% with a relative standard deviations (RSDs) less than 2.7% (n = 3). Additionally, the cytotoxicity and optical imaging performance of N, S-CQDs were preliminarily evaluated. The results indicate the low-toxicity and good biocompatibility of the N, S-CQDs and their promising future as fluorescent-imaging agents in pharmaceutical analysis. Graphical Abstract Synthesis flowchart and application of nitrogen and sulfur dual-doped carbon quantum dots.

Urban yellow dust deposition is a common phenomenon in many parts of the world, which is sometimes called "sulfur shower," "sulfur rain," or "pollen storm." Most people, especially those living in the vicinity of industrial facilities, wrongly perceive the yellow dust as sulfur when in fact it is pollen. The misunderstanding increases risk perception as people believe the "yellow powder" is a serious threat to their health. Based on simple observations, it is virtually impossible to differentiate sulfur from pollen, so risk communication should consider the chemical, biological, and toxicological aspects of these agents. In this review, we clarify that industrial emissions of sulfur are under the form of sulfides, oxides, and other volatile compounds which are gaseous and noncolored, and we explain that it is chemically impossible for gaseous sulfur to become solid yellow sulfur under normal environmental conditions. We also describe pollen and its release from trees, shrubs, and herbs a process influenced by atmospheric conditions. We suggest take-home messages that risk communicators may use when explaining the phenomenon to their communities.

A rapid, sensitive, and selective fluorometric assay is described for the determination of chromium(VI) in real waters and living cells. The method is making use of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur tri-doped carbon dots (NPS-CDs) which have absorption/emission maxima at 360/505 nm/nm. Cr(VI) has an absorption maximum at 350 nm and causes an inner filter effect (IFE) on the blue fluorescence of the NPS-CDs. The NPS-CDs were hydrothermally synthesized using p-aminobenzenesulfonic acid and tetrakis(hydroxymethyl)phosphonium chloride as precursors. The NPS-CDs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and several spectroscopic methods. They are biocompatible and negligibly cytotoxic when tested with HeLa cells and MCF-7 cells even after 48 h of incubation. The NPS-CDs were used as fluorescent probes for Cr(VI). The detection limit is 0.23 μM (three times standard deviation versus slope), and the linear response covers the 1 to 500 μM chromate concentration range. The NPS-CDs were applied to the determination of Cr(VI) in real waters and living cells (HeLa and MCF-7) and gave satisfying results. Graphical abstractSchematic representation of hydrothermal synthesis of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur tri-doped carbon dots (NPS-CDs) for Cr(VI) detection via inner filter effect (IFE). NPS-CDs were applied to the determination of Cr(VI) in living cells (HeLa and MCF-7) with satisfying results.

In 2020, the global cap of maximum allowable sulphur content in marine fuel will be reduced from the current 3.5% to 0.5%. Another way to reduce the sulphur emissions is to install a seawater scrubber that cleans exhausts but instead release acidic water containing nutrients and contaminants back to the marine environment. In the current study, scrubber washwater was tested on a Baltic Sea microplankton community. A significant increase in chlorophyll a, particulate organic phosphorus (POP), carbon (POC) and nitrogen (PON) were observed when the community was exposed to 10% scrubber washwater for 13 days as compared to the control. A laboratory experiment with the filamentous cyanobacteria Nodularia spumigena and the chain-forming diatom Melosira cf. arctica showed negative responses in photosynthetic activity (EC10 = 8.6% for N. spumigena) and increased primary productivity (EC10 = 5.5% for M. cf. arctica), implying species-specific responses to scrubber washwater discharge., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Nitrogen, sulfur, or oxygen heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (NSO-HETs) and short-chained alkyl phenols (SCAPs) are commonly detected in groundwater at contaminated sites and in the surrounding environment. It is now scientific consensus that these chemicals pose a risk to human and ecosystem health. However, toxicity data are comparably fragmentary, and only few studies have addressed the ecotoxicity of NSO-HETs and SCAPs in a systematic and comparative fashion. To overcome this shortcoming, we tested 18 SCAPs, 16 NSO-HETs, as well as the homocyclic hydrocarbons indane and indene in the Microtox® assay with Aliivibrio fischeri, the growth inhibition test with Desmodesmus subspicatus, the acute immobilization assay with Daphnia magna, as well as the fish embryo toxicity test with embryos of the zebrafish (Danio rerio). Because of the physicochemical properties of the tested chemicals (limited water solubility, volatility, and sorption to test vessels), actual exposure concentrations in test media and their dissipation over time were analytically quantified by means of gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. Analytically corrected effect levels (median effect and lethal concentrations) ranged from 0.017 to 180 mg L -1 , underlining the environmental relevance of some NSO-HETs and SCAPs. Para-substituted phenols showed the overall greatest toxicities in all 4 toxicity tests. We provide, for the first time, a complete high-quality data set in support of better environmental risk assessments of these chemicals. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:1343-1355. © 2019 SETAC., (© 2019 SETAC.)

Persulfate salts are broadly used as industrial chemicals and exposure to them causes occupational asthma, occupational rhinitis and contact dermatitis. However, the mechanisms underlying these toxic actions are not fully elucidated. Transient receptor potential (TRP) vanilloid 1 (V1), ankyrin 1 (A1) and melastatin 8 (M8) are non-selective cation channels preferentially expressing sensory neurons. These channels are known to be involved in respiratory and skin diseases. In the present study, we investigated the effects of sodium persulfate on these TRP channels. In wild-type mouse sensory neurons, persulfate evoked [Ca 2+ ] i increases that were inhibited by removal of extracellular Ca 2+ or blockers of TRPA1 but not by those of TRPV1 and TRPM8. Persulfate failed to evoke [Ca 2+ ] i responses in neurons from TRPA1(-/-) mice, but did evoke them in neurons from TRPV1(-/-) mice. In HEK 293 cells expressing mouse TRPA1 (mTRPA1-HEK), persulfate induced [Ca 2+ ] i increases. Moreover, in HEK 293 cells expressing mouse TRPV1 (mTRPV1-HEK), a high concentration of persulfate also evoked [Ca 2+ ] i increases. Similar [Ca 2+ ] i responses were observed in HEK 293 cells expressing human TRPA1 and human TRPV1. Current responses were also elicited by persulfate in mTRPA1- and mTRPV1-HEK. Analysis using mutated channels revealed that persulfate acted on electrophilic agonist-sensitive cysteine residues of TRPA1, and it indirectly activated TRPV1 due to the external acidification, because of the disappearance of [Ca 2+ ] i responses in acid-insensitive mTRPV1 mutant. These results demonstrate that persulfate activates nociceptive TRPA1 and TRPV1 channels. It is suggested that activation of these nociceptive channels may be involved in respiratory and skin injuries caused by exposure to this industrial sulfur compound. Thus, selective TRPA1 and TRPV1 channel blockers may be effective to remedy persulfate-induced toxic actions., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Restoration potential of mine wastes or approaches to improve soil conditions and to ameliorate phytotoxicity on these sites may be simulated in standardized greenhouse experiments. Plants can be cultivated side by side on materials from different origins in dilution series with defined admixtures of certain aggregates. Mine wastes used in the present study originated from Fenice Capanne (FC, Tuscany, Italy) and Altenberg (ALT, Saxony, Germany). Tailings of the Italian site contain high concentrations of lead, zinc, arsenic and sulphur while tin, wolfram, molybdenum and lithium are highly elevated in the German mine waste. We tested growth responses of five crop species and analyzed concentrations of various metals and nutrients in the shoot to evaluate the toxicity of the FC mine waste and found oilseed rape being the most and corn the least resistant crop. Interestingly, oilseed rape accumulated seven times higher levels of lead than corn without showing adverse effects on productivity. In a subsequent comparison of FC and ALT mine waste, we cultivated different species of buckwheat (Fagopyrum spec.), a fast growing genus that evolved in mountain areas and that has been shown to be tolerant to low pH and high concentrations of metals. We found that the FC mine waste was more toxic than the ALT substrate in F. tataricum and F. esculentum. However, lower admixtures of FC material (10%) resulted in stronger growth reductions than higher proportions (25%) of the mine waste which was primarily related to the slightly lower pH and higher availability of essential metals due to the admixture of sand. These results confirm the importance of managing the soil chemical and physical characteristics of wastelands and call for the development of assisted reclamation to prepare sites for regular biomass production., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The herbs with sulfur-fumigation may induce chemical transformation thus causing harmful effects on patients. In the current study, the difference of physicochemical property from sulfur-fumigated Smilax glabra Roxb. polysaccharides (SSGRP) and non-fumigated Smilax glabra Roxb. polysaccharides (NSGRP) were characterized and compared, such as external appearance, dissolvability, extraction yield, glucose content, inorganic elements analysis, UV and IR scanning spectrum. Additionally, the immunotoxicity and mechanisms of SSGRP and NSGRP on immune response of murine abdominal RAW264.7 macrophage cells were evaluated by cell viability, flow cytometry, quantitative real-time PCR and western blotting analyses. The results demonstrated that NSGRP could not affect the proliferation of RAW264.7 cells but SSGRP could effectively inhibit the cells viability by inducing apoptosis. SSGRP could also up-regulated the mRNA expression of apoptosis factors including Bax and caspase-8. Further investigation elucidated that NSGRP exhibited excellent immunomodulatory activity of RAW264.7 cells, however, SSGRP might inhibit the activity through down-regulating the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) mRNA expression as well as blocking the phosphorylation of phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). In conclusion, our study suggested that sulfur-fumigation displayed significant immune toxicity on immune response of murine abdominal RAW264.7 macrophages, and the study provided new insights in controlling the sulfur-fumigation processing and storage method in Chinese herbal medicines., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Sulfur-induced polioencephalomalacia (PEM) is an important disease affecting cattle in certain geographical regions. However, the pathogenesis of brain damage is not completely understood. We previously observed that excess dietary sulfur may influence thiamine status and altered thiamine metabolism may be involved in the pathogenesis of sulfur-induced PEM in cattle. In this study, we evaluated the activities of thiamine-dependent enzymes [α-ketogluterate dehydrogenase (α-KGDH) and pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH)] and cytochrome c oxidase (COX) in the cerebral cortex of sulfur-induced PEM-affected cattle ( n = 9) and clinically normal cattle ( n = 8, each group) exposed to low or high dietary sulfur [LS = 0.30% versus HS = 0.67% sulfur on a dry matter (DM) basis]. Enzyme activities in PEM brains were measured from the brain tissue regions and examined using ultraviolent (UV) light illumination to show fluorescence or non-fluorescence regions. No gross changes under regular or UV light, or histopathological changes indicative of PEM were detected in the brains of cattle exposed to LS or HS diets. The PDH, α-KGDH, and COX activities did not differ between LS and HS brains, but all enzymes showed significantly lower ( P < 0.05) activities in UV-positive region of PEM brains compared with LS and HS brains. The UV-negative regions of PEM brain had similar PDH activities to LS and HS brains, but the activities of α-KGDH and COX were significantly lower than in LS and HS brains. The results of this study suggest that reduced enzyme activities of brain PHD, α-KGDH, and COX are associated with the pathogenesis of sulfur-induced PEM.

North East region of India suffers from high sulphur coal mine overburden (OB) and plants those survive under such condition have adopted to such harsh environment. Here, we have investigated the effect of coal mine OB substrate on biochemical, physiological and growth of two shrubs Cassia (Cassia sofera L.) and Dhaincha (Sesbania rostrata L.); two tree species Gomari (Gmelina arborea L.) and Sisso (Dalbergia sisso L.); and two monocots Citronella Grass (Cymbopogon winterianus Jowitt) and Lemon Grass (Cymbopogon citratus L). The mine OB was found to be acidic (pH 2.0) with no true soil behavior, 12.5% sulphur and more than double the trace and heavy metals compared to normal control soil. Overall, high lipid peroxidation, membrane damage, peroxidase, glutathione reductase, ascorbate peroxidase, superoxide dismutase enzymes activities along with osmolyte proline and total soluble sugar was found in mine OB plants compared to control plants. While antioxidant activities were higher, nitrate reductase activity was significantly low but reduced leaf area, total shoot and root biomass. However, the responses of antioxidant activities in mine OB plants and control plants did not follow a standard pattern of higher activities in roots followed by old>young leaves or vice versa. Further, in mine OB plants, lipid peroxidation was found significantly higher for young citronella leaves. The levels of higher glutathione reductase was found in roots than the leaves except for old leaves in Gomari while ascorbate peroxidase was found in the leaves than the roots. Overall, all the species showed higher antioxidant enzyme activities, osmolyte accumulation and membrane damage possibly due to acidity and significantly higher limit of trace and heavy metals in mine OB substrate.

Background: Fungicide residues on fruit may adversely affect yeast during cider fermentation, leading to sluggish or stuck fermentation or the production of hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S), which is an undesirable aroma compound. This phenomenon has been studied in grape fermentation but not in apple fermentation. Low nitrogen availability, which is characteristic of apples, may further exacerbate the effects of fungicides on yeast during fermentation. The present study explored the effects of three fungicides: elemental sulfur (S 0 ) (known to result in increased H 2 S in wine); fenbuconazole (used in orchards but not vineyards); and fludioxonil (used in post-harvest storage of apples)., Results: Only S 0 led to increased H 2 S production. Fenbuconazole (≥0.2 mg L -1 ) resulted in a decreased fermentation rate and increased residual sugar. An interactive effect of yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN) concentration and fenbuconazole was observed such that increasing the YAN concentration alleviated the negative effects of fenbuconazole on fermentation kinetics., Conclusion: Cidermakers should be aware that residual fenbuconazole (as low as 0.2 mg L -1 ) in apple juice may lead to stuck fermentation, especially when the YAN concentration is below 250 mg L -1 . These results indicate that fermentation problems attributed to low YAN may be caused or exacerbated by additional factors such as fungicide residues, which have a greater impact on fermentation performance under low YAN conditions. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry., (© 2016 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.)

Although Fe-S clusters may assemble spontaneously from elemental iron and sulfur in protein-free systems, the potential toxicity of free Fe 2+ , Fe 3+ , and S 2- ions in aerobic environments underscores the requirement for specialized proteins to oversee the safe assembly of Fe-S clusters in living cells. Prokaryotes first developed multiprotein systems for Fe-S cluster assembly, from which mitochondria later derived their own system and became the main Fe-S cluster suppliers for eukaryotic cells. Early studies in yeast and human mitochondria indicated that Fe-S cluster assembly in eukaryotes is centered around highly conserved Fe-S proteins (human ISCU) that serve as scaffolds upon which new Fe-S clusters are assembled from (i) elemental sulfur, provided by a pyridoxal phosphate-dependent cysteine desulfurase (human NFS1) and its stabilizing-binding partner (human ISD11), and (ii) elemental iron, provided by an iron-binding protein of the frataxin family (human FXN). Further studies revealed that all of these proteins could form stable complexes that could reach molecular masses of megadaltons. However, the protein-protein interaction surfaces, catalytic mechanisms, and overall architecture of these macromolecular machines remained undefined for quite some time. The delay was due to difficulties inherent in reconstituting these very large multiprotein complexes in vitro or isolating them from cells in sufficient quantities to enable biochemical and structural studies. Here, we describe approaches we developed to reconstitute the human Fe-S cluster assembly machinery in Escherichia coli and to define its remarkable architecture., (© 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

This paper presents the levels of sulphur, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and potentially toxic trace elements in soils surrounding the Plomin coal-fired power plant (Croatia). It used domestic superhigh-organic-sulphur Raša coal from 1970 until 2000. Raša coal was characterised by exceptionally high values of S, up to 14%, making the downwind southwest (SW) area surrounding the power plant a significant hotspot. The analytical results show that the SW soil locations are severely polluted with S (up to 4%), and PAHs (up to 13,535ng/g), while moderately with Se (up to 6.8mg/kg), and Cd (up to 4.7mg/kg). The composition and distribution pattern of PAHs in the polluted soils indicate that their main source could be airborne unburnt coal particles. The atmospheric dispersion processes of SO2 and ash particles have influenced the composition and distribution patterns of sulphur and potentially toxic trace elements in studied soils, respectively. A possible adverse impact of analysed soil on the local karstic environment was evaluated by cytotoxic and genotoxic methods. The cytotoxicity effects of soil and ash water extracts on the channel catfish ovary (CCO) cell line were found to be statistically significant in the case of the most polluted soil and ash samples. However, the primary DNA-damaging potential of the most polluted soil samples on the CCO cells was found to be within acceptable boundaries., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Human activities have resulted in lead and sulfur accumulation in paddy soils in parts of southern China. A combined soil-sand pot experiment was conducted to investigate the influence of S supply on iron plaque formation and Pb accumulation in rice (Oryza sativa L.) under two Pb levels (0 and 600 mg kg(-1)), combined with four S concentrations (0, 30, 60, and 120 mg kg(-1)). Results showed that S supply significantly decreased Pb accumulation in straw and grains of rice. This result may be attributed to the enhancement of Fe plaque formation, decrease of Pb availability in soil, and increase of reduced glutathione (GSH) in rice leaves. Moderate S supply (30 mg kg(-1)) significantly increased Fe plaque formation on the root surface and in the rhizosphere, whereas excessive S supply (60 and 120 mg kg(-1)) significantly decreased the amounts of iron plaque on the root surface. Sulfur supply significantly enhanced the GSH contents in leaves of rice plants under Pb treatment. With excessive S application, the rice root acted as a more effective barrier to Pb accumulation compared with iron plaque. Excessive S supply may result in a higher monosulfide toxicity and decreased iron plaque formation on the root surface during flooded conditions. However, excessive S supply could effectively decrease Pb availability in soils and reduce Pb accumulation in rice plants., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Sulfur deficiency and toxicity in livestock is associated with decreased performance and diseases. However, little is known about the diagnostics of sulfur status in dairy herds. The objectives of this study were to describe sulfur concentrations in feed rations in German dairy herds, to assess associations between feed sulfur concentrations and health and milk yield, to determine suitable laboratory diagnostic methods of sulfur status, and to propose reference values for the assessment of sulfur status in different sample media., Materials and Methods: Between 2006 and 2014, a total of 569 dairy herds were visited. Blood, urine, and hair samples were obtained from 10 animals per group in the groups -3 to 0, 0 to 1, 3 to 5, and 15 to 18 weeks post partum (p. p.) (farms > 200 animals) or -3 to 0, 0 to 5, and 6 to 20 weeks p. p. (farms ≤ 200 animals). Pooled whole blood, serum, plasma, urine, and hair samples (n = 5663) were analyzed by ICP-OES. The sulfur content of the total mixed ration (TMR) of the group -3 to 0 weeks p. p. was determined in a certified feed laboratory (n = 625). Data analyses were performed using ANOVA, Chi-squared test and Spearman-correlation. Reference values were determined using the 2.5% and 97.5% percentiles., Results: Median sulfur concentration in the feed rations was 2.3 g/kg dry matter (DM). Deficiency (< 1.6 g/kg DM; 31% of farms) and oversupply (> 4.0 g/kg DM; 11% of farms) of sulfur in feed rations were regularly diagnosed. Sulfur deficiency was associated with reduced milk yield (p  <   0.001), retained placenta (OR  =   1.74; p  =  0.037), milk fever (OR  =  2.68; p  <  0.001) and silent heat (OR  = 2.56; p   =  0.014). Positive correlations were found between sulfur concentration in feed rations and sulfur content in urine (r  =  0.50), serum (r  =  0.17), plasma (r  =  0.18) and whole blood (r = 0.16). Reference values for sulfur diagnostics in dairy herds were proposed., Conclusion and Clinical Relevance: Diagnostics of sulfur status in dairy herds is relevant for veterinary practitioners and can be performed using TMR analysis and clinical laboratory parameters. Urine can be considered a short-term parameter, serum, plasma, and whole blood as intermediate parameters, and hair as a long-term parameter for the evaluation of the sulfur status.

Background: The health effects of suspended particulate matter (PM) may depend on its chemical composition. Associations between maternal exposure to chemical constituents of PM and newborn's size have been little examined., Objective: We aimed to investigate the associations of exposure to elemental constituents of PM with term low birth weight (LBW; weight < 2,500 g among births after 37 weeks of gestation), mean birth weight, and head circumference, relying on standardized fine-scale exposure assessment and with extensive control for potential confounders., Methods: We pooled data from eight European cohorts comprising 34,923 singleton births in 1994-2008. Annual average concentrations of elemental constituents of PM ≤ 2.5 and ≤ 10 μm (PM2.5 and PM10) at maternal home addresses during pregnancy were estimated using land-use regression models. Adjusted associations between each birth measurement and concentrations of eight elements (copper, iron, potassium, nickel, sulfur, silicon, vanadium, and zinc) were calculated using random-effects regression on pooled data., Results: A 200-ng/m3 increase in sulfur in PM2.5 was associated with an increased risk of LBW (adjusted odds ratio = 1.36; 95% confidence interval: 1.17, 1.58). Increased nickel and zinc in PM2.5 concentrations were also associated with an increased risk of LBW. Head circumference was reduced at higher exposure to all elements except potassium. All associations with sulfur were most robust to adjustment for PM2.5 mass concentration. All results were similar for PM10., Conclusion: Sulfur, reflecting secondary combustion particles in this study, may adversely affect LBW and head circumference, independently of particle mass., Citation: Pedersen M, Gehring U, Beelen R, Wang M, Giorgis-Allemand L, Andersen AM, Basagaña X, Bernard C, Cirach M, Forastiere F, de Hoogh K, Gražulevičienė R, Gruzieva O, Hoek G, Jedynska A, Klümper C, Kooter IM, Krämer U, Kukkonen J, Porta D, Postma DS, Raaschou-Nielsen O, van Rossem L, Sunyer J, Sørensen M, Tsai MY, Vrijkotte TG, Wilhelm M, Nieuwenhuijsen MJ, Pershagen G, Brunekreef B, Kogevinas M, Slama R. 2016. Elemental constituents of particulate matter and newborn's size in eight European cohorts. Environ Health Perspect 124:141-150; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1409546.

Metabolic pathways of aerobic bacteria able to assimilate sulfur can provide biocatalysts for biodesulfurization of petroleum and of other sulfur-containing pollutants. Of major interest is the so-called "4S pathway," in that C-S bonds are specifically cleaved leaving the carbon skeleton of substrates intact. This pathway is carried out by four enzymes, named Dsz A, B, C, and D. In view of a possible application of recombinant Dsz enzymes in biodesulfurization treatments, we have investigated the structural features of enzymes cloned from a Rhodococcus strain isolated from polluted environmental samples and their resistance to temperature (20-95 °C) and to organic solvents (5, 10, and 20 % v/v methanol, acetonitrile, hexane, and toluene). Changes in protein structures were assessed by circular dichroism and intrinsic fluorescence spectroscopy. We found that all Dsz proteins are unfolded by temperatures in the range 45-60 °C and by all solvents tested, with the most dramatic effect being produced by toluene. These results suggest that stabilization of the biocatalysts by protein engineering will be necessary for developing biodesulfurization technologies based on Dsz enzymes.

Haloalkaliphilic microorganisms that grow optimally at high-pH and high-salinity conditions can be found in natural environments such as soda lakes. These globally spread lakes harbour interesting anaerobic microorganisms that have the potential of being applied in existing technologies or create new opportunities. In this review, we discuss the potential application of haloalkaliphilic anaerobic microbial communities in the fermentation of lignocellulosic feedstocks material subjected to an alkaline pre-treatment, methane production and sulfur removal technology. Also, the general advantages of operation at haloalkaline conditions, such as low volatile fatty acid and sulfide toxicity, are addressed. Finally, an outlook into the main challenges like ammonia toxicity and lack of aggregation is provided.

Sulfur has been widely used for centuries as a staple for pest and disease management in agriculture. Presently, it is the largest-volume pesticide in use worldwide. This review describes the sources and recovery methods for sulfur, its allotropic forms and properties and its agricultural uses, including development and potential advantages of nanosulfur as a fungicide. Chemical and microbial reactivity, interactions in soil and water and analytical methods for determination in environmental samples and foodstuffs, including inexpensive analytical methods for sulfur residues in wine, beer and other food/beverage substrates, will be reviewed. The toxicology of sulfur towards humans and agriculturally important fungi is included, with some restrictions on use to promote safety. The review concludes with areas for which more research is warranted., (© 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.)

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of adding ferric ammonium citrate (FAC; 300 mg ferric Fe/kg DM) to a 0.51% S diet on diet digestibility, mineral balance, and 56-d performance of steers fed a high concentrate diet. Angus-crossbred steers (n = 18) were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatments: 1) control diet (0.21% S; CON), 2) CON + sodium sulfate (0.51% S; high S [HS]), and 3) the HS diet + 300 mg of ferric Fe from FAC/kg DM (0.51% S; HS+Fe). This study included 2 phases, 1) a metabolism trial (d -1 to 20) and 2) a 56-d feedlot trial (d 22 to 79). In phase 1, 2 groups of 9 steers (370 ± 9.5 kg) were adapted to diet (10 d) and metabolism stalls (5 d), and following the adaptation period, a 5-d total collection of feces and urine was conducted. Feed offered and refused was recorded daily, and diet digestibility and retention of Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn was determined. In phase 2, steers (384 ± 11.9 kg) were individually fed their respective diet in feedlot pens for 56 d and ADG was determined. From each steer, jugular blood and a liver biopsy were collected on d -1, 41, and 72 and d -1 and 72, respectively, for mineral content. Ruminal hydrogen sulfide concentrations (n = 18) were determined on d -1, 9, 23, 31, 41, 51, 61, and 72. In phase 1, DMI (P = 0.02), fecal output (P = 0.06), and intake of Cu, Mn, and Zn (P ≤ 0.04) were less in steers consuming the high S diets than CON, but DM and OM digestibility and urine excretion of minerals were not different (P ≥ 0.12) due to treatment. As a percent of intake, urinary excretion of Cu tended (P = 0.07) to be greater in the HS steers than the CON and HS+Fe steers, which did not differ (P = 0.74). In phase 2, BW, ADG, and G:F were not different (P ≥ 0.29) due to treatment, but DMI was lesser (P < 0.01) in the HS+Fe steers than CON and HS steers, which did not differ (P = 0.13). Ruminal hydrogen sulfide concentrations were greater (P < 0.01) in the steers fed high S diets than CON but were not different (P = 0.86) among the high S diets. Plasma Cu, Fe, and Zn concentrations were not different (P ≥ 0.27) due to treatment on all days. Final liver Cu concentrations were lesser (P < 0.01) in the steers fed high S diets compared with the CON, while liver Fe, Mn, and Zn concentrations did not differ (P ≥ 0.28) among treatments. In conclusion, adding Fe to a high S diet did not affect DM or OM digestibility or trace mineral absorption and status of steers relative to the HS diet alone.

Recent literature indicates that the elemental sulfur occurring in organic extracts of sediment samples can be toxic to the bacierium Vibrio fischeri, used in standard Microtox (R) bioassays. This observation was tested by means of the solvent extraction of 14 freshwater sediment samples front rivers tributary to Lake Geneva (Switzerland-France), measuring both Microtox toxicity and the elemental sulfur concentration of the extracts. Aliquots of these sediment extracts were further treated to remove the sulfur by adding acid-activated copper to the crude extracts; for 18 h in one case, and for 116 h in an other. The results were a significant amount of the observed acute toxicity in the Microtox assay of 81% of sample extracts (n = 42, crude and after cleanup) was due to elemental sulfur, and despite a median decrease of 99.1% of elemental sulfur in the extracts subject to a 116-h cleanup, sulfur toxicity was not completely excluded for 57% (8/14) of the samples. Clearly, the Microtox methodology needs to be amended tomore accurately assess the potential impact of organic pollutants insediments when solvent extracts are used. This will help to cut downon costly and unnecessary remedial actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of vitamin C (VC) supplementation for an average of 102 d before harvest on finishing performance and blood metabolites of steers receiving a 40% dry distillers grains plus solubles diet (0.55% S). Yearling, Angus-cross steers (n = 140) were blocked by initial BW (432 ± 25.5 kg), stratified within blocks by intramuscular fat (3.6% ± 0.30%) determined by ultrasonography, and assigned to treatments (5 steers/pen, 7 pens/treatment). Treatments included 1) no VC control (CON), 2) 5 g VC • steer(-1) • d(-1) (5VC), 3) 10 g VC • steer(-1) • d(-1) (10VC), and 4) 20 g VC • steer(-1) • d(-1) (20VC). Jugular blood was collected from 2 steers/pen before feeding at the beginning and end of the 102-d study, and steers were harvested by block on 3 separate dates (d 91, 105, and 112). Sulfur intake linearly decreased (P = 0.01) as VC inclusion increased (59.2, 57.7, 57.0, and 54.8 ± 0.79 g S • steer(-1) • d(-1) for CON, 5 VC, 10 VC, and 20 VC, respectively). The CON cattle had greater (P < 0.01) DMI than the VC-supplemented cattle. Inclusion of VC did not influence ADG or final BW, resulting in a tendency for a linear increase (P = 0.08) in G:F as VC inclusion increased (0.150, 0.152, 0.158, and 0.160 ± 0.004 for CON, 5 VC, 10 VC, and 20 VC, respectively). Ending (2 d before harvest) plasma ascorbate showed a quadratic effect (P < 0.05) because of lesser concentrations exhibited by 5 VC cattle (1,186 µg/L) compared with the CON (1,454 µg/L), 10 VC (1,304 µg/L), and 20 VC (1,436 µg/L; SEM ± 64.8) cattle. Ending plasma insulin concentrations of CON cattle tended (P = 0.07) to be less than the VC-supplemented cattle. Plasma glucose and NEFA concentrations were not affected (P ≥ 0.23) by VC inclusion. Hot carcass weight, 12th-rib back fat, marbling, and quality grade were not affected (P ≥ 0.27) by VC inclusion. Increasing VC inclusion linearly increased (P = 0.02) rib eye area (84.9, 86.5, 88.7, and 89.1 cm(2) ± 1.17 for CON, 5 VC, 10 VC, and 20 VC, respectively), corresponding to a linear decrease (P = 0.02) in yield grade with increasing inclusions of VC. A tendency (P = 0.06) for a quadratic effect on KPH was observed, in which values generally increased from CON (2.27%) to 5 VC (2.37%) to and 10 VC (2.39%), then decreased in 20 VC (2.20%). In conclusion, VC supplementation to a high-S diet for an average of 102 d before harvest has limited effects on blood metabolites but increased rib eye area and tended to increase feed efficiency of yearling steers.

The spatial distribution and toxic effects of cadmium (Cd) in the joint presence of sulfur (S) in rice seedling remain almost unknown. Therefore, the indoor experiments test runs were performed to determine the accumulation and toxicity of Cd in presence of S for the first time. The results showed that S supply significantly reduced the Cd accumulation and toxicity due to the decrease of Cd availability. XRF observation results illustrated that in the single Cd treatments, Cd mainly distributed in the bottom of root, while equably existed in the shoot. Additionally, S addition could facilitate Cd transfer to the top of shoot and finally form the similar distribution trend for S and Cd, suggesting that S might increase the synthesis of thiol pool (such as PCs, GSH and NPT) and then chelate Cd, which further affected Cd translocation. Such observations have provided the useful information of potential ecotoxicological effects of Cd contamination in the environment., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Sulphur-induced polioencephalomalacia (sPEM), a neurological disorder affecting ruminants, is frequently associated with the consumption of high-sulphur (S) water and subsequent poor performance. Currently, there is no economical method for S removal from surface water sources, and alternative water sources are typically neither readily available nor cost-effective. Determination of genes differentially expressed in response to high-S water consumption may provide a better understanding of the physiology corresponding to high dietary S and ultimately lead to the development of treatment and prevention strategies. The objective of this study was to determine changes in gene expression in the liver, an organ important for S metabolism, of fibre-fed steers consuming high-S water. For this study, liver tissues were collected on the final day of a trial from yearling steers randomly assigned to low-S water control (566 mg/kg SO4 ; n = 24), high-S water (3651 mg/kg SO4 ; n = 24) or high-S water plus clinoptilolite supplemented at either 2.5% (n = 24) or 5.0% (n = 24) of diet dry matter (DM). Microarray analyses on randomly selected healthy low-S control (n = 4) and high-S (n = 4; no clinoptilolite) steers using the Affymetrix GeneChip Bovine Genome Array revealed 488 genes upregulated (p < 0.05) and 154 genes downregulated (p < 0.05) in response to the high- vs. low-S water consumption. Real-time RT-PCR confirmed the upregulation (p < 0.10) of seven genes involved in inflammatory response and immune functions. Changes in such genes suggest that ruminant animals administered high-S water may be undergoing an inflammation or immune response, even if signs of sPEM or compromised health are not readily observed. Further study of these, and other affected genes, may deliver new insights into the physiology underlying the response to high dietary S, ultimately leading to the development of treatments for high S-affected ruminant livestock., (© 2012 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.)

Using dendroisotopic techniques, we show the recovery of Juniperus virginiana L. (eastern red cedar) trees in the Central Appalachian Mountains from decades of acidic pollution. Acid deposition over much of the 20th century reduced stomatal conductance of leaves, thereby increasing intrinsic water-use efficiency of the Juniperus trees. These data indicate that the stomata of Juniperus may be more sensitive to acid deposition than to increasing atmospheric CO2. A breakpoint in the 100-y δ(13)C tree ring chronology occurred around 1980, as the legacy of sulfur dioxide emissions declined following the enactment of the Clean Air Act in 1970, indicating a gradual increase in stomatal conductance (despite rising levels of atmospheric CO2) and a concurrent increase in photosynthesis related to decreasing acid deposition and increasing atmospheric CO2. Tree ring δ(34)S shows a synchronous change in the sources of sulfur used at the whole-tree level that indicates a reduced anthropogenic influence. The increase in growth and the δ(13)C and δ(34)S trends in the tree ring chronology of these Juniperus trees provide evidence for a distinct physiological response to changes in atmospheric SO2 emissions since ∼1980 and signify the positive impacts of landmark environmental legislation to facilitate recovery of forest ecosystems from acid deposition.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is one of the most widely used photocatalysts for the degradation of organic contaminants in water and air. Visible light (VL) activated sulfur-doped TiO2 (S-TiO2) and nitrogen-fluorine-codoped TiO2 (N-F-TiO2) were synthesized by sol-gel methods and characterized. Their photoinactivation performance was tested against Escherichia coli under solar simulated light (SSL) and VL irradiation with comparison to commercially available TiO2. Undoped Degussa-Evonik P-25 (P-25) and Sigma-TiO2 showed the highest photocatalytic activity toward E. coli inactivation under SSL irradiation, while S-TiO2 showed a moderate toxicity. After VL irradiation, Sigma-TiO2 showed higher photoinactivation, whereas S-TiO2 and P-25 showed moderate toxicity. Oxidative stress to E. coli occurred via formation of hydroxyl radicals leading to lipid peroxidation as the primary mechanism of bacterial inactivation. Various other biological models, including human keratinocytes (HaCaT), zebrafish liver cells (ZFL), and zebrafish embryos were also used to study the toxicity of TiO2 NPs. In conclusion, N-F-TiO2 did not show any toxicity based on the assay results from all the biological models used in this study, whereas S-TiO2 was toxic to zebrafish embryos under all the test conditions. These findings also demonstrate that the tested TiO2 nanoparticles do not show any adverse effects in HaCaT and ZFL cells.

Nanosized elemental sulfur (ES) is already reported to exert superior antimicrobial efficacy than micron-sized ES, which encourages their use in drugs and therapeutics. The aim of the present study is to explore the possible route and mode of antimicrobial action of orthorhombic (α-SNPs) and monoclinic (β-SNPs) allotropes of sulfur, respectively, at their nano-dimensions. The antimicrobial efficacy of α- and β-SNPs was determined against both the conventionally ES-resistant and ES-susceptible fungi and bacteria. Both the SNPs inhibited the microbial growth, irrespective of their resistance profile to ES and caused significant deformities on the microbial cell surfaces. However, the extent of antimicrobial efficacy was found to be optimum for α-SNPs, which can be attributed to their size, shape, and surface modification. Subsequent transcript profiling, metabolite profiling, and enzymatic analyses revealed that α- and β-SNPs impaired a cluster of mitochondrial enzymes involved in cellular respiration and oxidative phosphorylation. ES and SNPs stress were found to elicit the NADPH-dependent glutathione reductase mediated ES-detoxification response in fungi and caused them to undertake the glyoxylate shunt in favor of energy conservation. A simultaneous study was also undertaken to assess the biocompatible or bio-adverse properties of SNPs in terms of their cytotoxic and genotoxic effects against the human derived lung fibroblast cell line (MRC-5). The present study hence explores the antimicrobial physiology of two novel functional materials and demonstrates their compatibility as a future putative antimicrobial drug.

The aim of research was monitoring of the main atmospheric air pollutants concentration on Adjara Autonomous Republic territory in order to determine their role in causing different diseases. The following atmospheric air pollutants have been determined in Batumi: dust, carbon monoxide, sulfur and nitrogen dioxide. The number of diseases registered in Adjara Autonomous Republic, which may be linked to the air pollution, has been studied. These are the following: chronic and nonspecific bronchitis, asthma and asthma status diseases, allergic rhinitis, trachea-, bronchi- and lung malignant tumor. In order to reduce the number of risk-factors significant attention should be paid to the proper functionality of the vehicles and systematic observations should continue on the chemical pollution of the air to make proper decisions to reduce the number of diseases.

Sulfur fumigation (SF) in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a highly efficient and important traditional preservation method in China. This method has generated a great deal of concern and has been disputed in the last few years because of its uncertain safety. SF can alter the quality of TCMs by damaging the bioactive compounds, changing chemical profiles, and generating detrimental exogenous materials. However, SF is still widely used in the herbal medicinal industry because of its various benefits, such as its pesticidal and anti-bacterial effects, easy operation, and low-cost. This review contains the current situation, chemical mechanism and reactions during SF, the pharmacological and pharmacokinetic research, and the influence of quality caused by SF. In addition, a quantification-operation sulfur fumigation device (QOSFD), which can maintain the quality of TCMs by controlling the SF processing parameters, has been designed and introduced. The key technologies of this device involve controlling the O(2) content and the temperature of SO(2) as well as the quantification of sulfur in SF. This device can reduce the possibility of reaction between bioactive compounds and sulfur/sulfurous acid, as well as control the limitation of SO(2) residues. The QOSFD is regarded as a promising preservation technique in the field of TCM, medicinal materials, agriculture, and fruit industry., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Background: A cutaneous adverse drug reaction is a skin eruption secondary to the intake of a drug, be it prescribed by a medical practitioner or taken as auto-medication for a given ailment. In this document we present an original case of Stevens-Johnson's syndrome secondary to the ingestion of gunpowder., Patients and Methods: A 22-year-old female student was hospitalised for diffuse and painful skin eruptions for the previous three days. She had complained six days earlier of an allergic reaction to pineapples, an allergy she had presented for quite a long time. In an attempt to remedy the situation, her mother made her drink a solution made of gunpowder bought at a market mixed with some water. On the third day of this "treatment", the patient noticed eruptions on her skin. These were initially maculopapular, later becoming erosive, and she had a mild fever. Later, a variety of eruptions appeared on the skin, from hyper-pigmented macular papules to blisters and erosive lesions with no Nicolsky sign. These lesions spared the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet. The mucosa of the conjunctivae, nose, buccal cavity, vulva, vagina and anus were severely affected. This clinical presentation was typical of Steven Johnson syndrome. The patient had stopped taking the "treatment" when she noticed the first lesions. On therapy, the outcome was favourable, except for severe complications such as synechiae with diffuse dyschromia., Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge this is the first time gunpowder has been incriminated in Stevens-Johnson's syndrome., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: After the implementation of a regulation restricting sulfur to 0.5% by weight in fuel on July 1, 1990, in Hong Kong, sulfur dioxide (SO2*) levels fell by 45% on average and as much as 80% in the most polluted districts (Hedley et al. 2002). In addition, a reduction of respiratory symptoms and an improvement in bronchial hyperresponsiveness in children were observed (Peters et al. 1996; Wong et al. 1998). A recent time-series study (Hedley et al. 2002) found an immediate reduction in mortality during the cool season at six months after the intervention, followed by an increase in cool-season mortality in the second and third years, suggesting that the reduction in pollution was associated with a delay in mortality. Proportional changes in mortality trends between the 5-year periods before and after the intervention were measured as relative risks and used to assess gains in life expectancy using the life table method (Hedley et al. 2002). To further explore the relation between changes in pollution-related mortality before and after the intervention, our study had three objectives: (1) to evaluate the short-term effects on mortality of changes in the pollutant mix after the Hong Kong sulfur intervention, particularly with changes in the particulate matter (PM) chemical species; (2) to improve the methodology for assessment of the health impact in terms of changes in life expectancy using linear regression models; and (3) to develop an approach for analyzing changes in life expectancy from Poisson regression models. A fourth overarching objective was to determine the relation between short- and long-term benefits due to an improvement in air quality., Methods: For an assessment of the short-term effects on mortality due to changes in the pollutant mix, we developed Poisson regression Core Models with natural spline smoothers to control for long-term and seasonal confounding variations in the mortality counts and with covariates to adjust for temperature (T) and relative humidity (RH). We assessed the adequacy of the Core Models by evaluating the results against the Akaike Information Criterion, which stipulates that, at a minimum, partial autocorrelation plots should be between -0.1 and 0.1, and by examining the residual plots to make sure they were free from patterns. We assessed the effects for gaseous pollutants (NO2, SO2, and O3), PM with an aerodynamic diameter < or = 10 microm (PM10), and its chemical species (aluminum [Al], iron [Fe], manganese [Mn], nickel [Ni], vanadium [V], lead [Pb], and zinc [Zn]) using the Core Models, which were developed for the periods 5 years (or 2 years in the case of the sensitivity analysis) before and 5 years after the intervention, as well as in the10-year (or 7-year in the case of the sensitivity analysis) period pre- and post-intervention. We also included an indicator to separate the pre- and post-intervention periods, as well as the product of the indicator with an air pollution concentration variable. The health outcomes were mortality for all natural causes and for cardiovascular and respiratory causes, at all ages and in the 65 years or older age group. To assess the short- and long-term effects, we developed two methods: one using linear regression models reflecting the age-standardized mortality rate D(j) at day j, divided by a reference D(ref); and the other using Poisson regression models with daily mortality counts as the outcome variables. We also used both models to evaluate the relation between outcome variables and daily air pollution concentrations in the current day up to all previous days in the past 3 to 4 years. In the linear regression approach, we adjusted the data for temperature and relative humidity. We then removed season as a potential confounder, or deseasonalized them, by calculating a standard seasonal mortality rate profile, normalized to an annual average of unity, and dividing the mortality rates by this profile. Finally, to correct for long-term trends, we calculated a reference mortality rate D(ref)(j) as a moving average of the corrected and deseasonalized D(j) over the observation window. Then we regressed the outcome variable D(j)/D(ref) on an entire exposure sequence {c(i)} with lags up to 4 years in order to obtain impact coefficient f(i) from the regression model shown below: deltaD(j)/D (ref) = i(max)sigma f(i) c(j - i)(i = 0). The change in life expectancy (LE) for a change of units (deltac) in the concentration of pollutants on T(day)--representing the short interval (i.e., a day)--was calculated from the following equation (deltaL(pop) = average loss in life expectancy of an entire population): deltaL(pop) = -deltac T(day) infinity sigma (j = 0) infinity sigma f(i) (i = 0). In the Poisson regression approach, we fitted a distributed-lag model for exposure to previous days of up to 4 years in order to obtain the cumulative lag effect sigma beta(i). We fit the linear regression model of log(LE*/LE) = gamma(SMR - 1) + alpha to estimate the parameter gamma by gamma, where LE* and LE are life expectancy for an exposed and an unexposed population, respectively, and SMR represents the standardized mortality ratio. The life expectancy change per Ac increase in concentration is LE {exp[gamma delta c(sigma beta(i))]-1}., Results: In our assessment of the changes in pollutant levels, the mean levels of SO2, Ni, and V showed a statistically significant decline, particularly in industrial areas. Ni and V showed the greatest impact on mortality, especially for respiratory diseases in the 5-year pre-intervention period for both the all-ages and 65+ groups among all chemical species. There were decreases in excess risks associated with Ni and V after the intervention, but they were nonsignificant. Using the linear regression approach, with a window of 1095 days (3 years), the losses in life expectancy with a 10-microg/m3 increase in concentrations, using two methods of estimation (one with adjustment for temperature and RH before the regression against pollutants, the other with adjustment for temperature and RH within the regression against pollutants), were 19.2 days (95% CI, 12.5 to 25.9) and 31.4 days (95% CI, 25.6 to 37.2) for PM10; and 19.7 days (95% CI, 15.2 to 24.2) and 12.8 days (95% CI, 8.9 to 16.8) for SO2. The losses in life expectancy in the current study were smaller than the ones implied by Elliott and colleagues (2007) and Pope and colleagues (2002) as expected since the observation window in our study was only 3 years whereas these other studies had windows of 16 years. In particular, the coefficients used by Elliott and colleagues (2007) for windows of 12 and 16 years were non-zero, which suggests that our window of at most 3 years cannot capture the full life expectancy loss and the effects were most likely underestimated. Using the Poisson regression approach, with a window of 1461 days (4 years), we found that a 10-microg/m3 increase in concentration of PM10 was associated with a change in life expectancy of -69 days (95% CI, -140 to 1) and a change of -133 days (95% CI, -172 to -94) for the same increase in SO2. The effect estimates varied as expected according to most variations in the sensitivity analysis model, specifically in terms of the Core Model definition, exposure windows, constraint of the lag effect pattern, and adjustment for smoking prevalence or socioeconomic status., Conclusions: Our results on the excess risks of mortality showed exposure to chemical species to be a health hazard. However, the statistical power was not sufficient to detect the differences between the pre- and post-intervention periods in Hong Kong due to the data limitations (specifically, the chemical species data were available only once every 6 days, and data were not available from some monitoring stations). Further work is needed to develop methods for maximizing the information from the data in order to assess any changes in effects due to the intervention. With complete daily air pollution and mortality data over a long period, time-series analysis methods can be applied to assess the short- and long-term effects of air pollution, in terms of changes in life expectancy. Further work is warranted to assess the duration and pattern of the health effects from an air pollution pulse (i.e., an episode of a rapid rise in air pollution) so as to determine an appropriate length and constraint on the distributed-lag assessment model.

Sulphur is an essential macronutrient for plant growth, development and response to various abiotic and biotic stresses due to its key role in the biosynthesis of many S-containing compounds. Sulphate represents a very small portion of soil S pull and it is the only form that plant roots can uptake and mobilize through H(+)-dependent co-transport processes implying sulphate transporters. Unlike the other organically bound forms of S, sulphate is normally leached from soils due to its solubility in water, thus reducing its availability to plants. Although our knowledge of plant sulphate transporters has been growing significantly in the past decades, little is still known about the effect of the arbuscular mycorrhiza interaction on sulphur uptake. Carbon, nitrogen and sulphur measurements in plant parts and expression analysis of genes encoding putative Medicago sulphate transporters (MtSULTRs) were performed to better understand the beneficial effects of mycorrhizal interaction on Medicago truncatula plants colonized by Glomus intraradices at different sulphate concentrations. Mycorrhization significantly promoted plant growth and sulphur content, suggesting increased sulphate absorption. In silico analyses allowed identifying eight putative MtSULTRs phylogenetically distributed over the four sulphate transporter groups. Some putative MtSULTRs were transcribed differentially in roots and leaves and affected by sulphate concentration, while others were more constitutively transcribed. Mycorrhizal-inducible and -repressed MtSULTRs transcripts were identified allowing to shed light on the role of mycorrhizal interaction in sulphate uptake.

Objectives: To elucidate the antibacterial efficacy of chemically synthesized and custom-made sulphur nanoparticles (SNPs) of two different sizes and surface modifications against a number of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacilli (GNB) harbouring the New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase 1 enzyme (NDM-1)., Methods: Antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolates was determined. The strains were evaluated for the presence of carbapenemases, β-lactamases, 16S rRNA methylases and integrons. Chemically synthesized, polyethylene-glycol (PEG)-stabilized SNPs of 10 nm and custom-made non-capped SNPs of 60 nm were physicochemically characterized and evaluated for their antibacterial efficacy against multidrug-resistant GNB using the agar dilution method (ADM) and the broth microdilution method (BMD). The cytotoxicity of the chemically synthesized SNPs was evaluated with a human-derived hepatoma (HepG2) cell line using a WST-1 assay kit., Results: All isolates were multidrug-resistant and possessed NDM-1 along with other β-lactamases, 16S rRNA methylases and integron 1. Chemically synthesized PEGylated SNPs showed a bactericidal effect against all tested strains at a concentration between 9.41 and 18.82 mg/L using BMD. The ADM data revealed that SNPs had uniform MICs (18.82 mg/L) for all tested strains. On the other hand, custom-made SNPs failed to impart any antibacterial effect at the equivalent concentrations of chemically synthesized SNPs. The WST-1 assay revealed no significant cytotoxicity of the PEGylated SNPs even at the highest concentration (94.08 mg/L)., Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempted study to show the effectiveness of nanoparticles against multidrug-resistant GNB harbouring NDM-1.

Unlabelled: Outdoor particulate matter (PM(10)) is associated with detrimental health effects. However, individual PM(10) exposure occurs mostly indoors. We therefore compared the toxic effects of classroom, outdoor, and residential PM(10). Indoor and outdoor PM(10) was collected from six schools in Munich during teaching hours and in six homes. Particles were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Toxicity was evaluated in human primary keratinocytes, lung epithelial cells and after metabolic activation by several human cytochromes P450. We found that PM(10) concentrations during teaching hours were 5.6-times higher than outdoors (117 ± 48 μg/m(3) vs. 21 ± 15 μg/m(3), P < 0.001). Compared to outdoors, indoor PM contained more silicate (36% of particle number), organic (29%, probably originating from human skin), and Ca-carbonate particles (12%, probably originating from paper). Outdoor PM contained more Ca-sulfate particles (38%). Indoor PM at 6 μg/cm(2) (10 μg/ml) caused toxicity in keratinocytes and in cells expressing CYP2B6 and CYP3A4. Toxicity by CYP2B6 was abolished with the reactive oxygen species scavenger N-acetylcysteine. We concluded that outdoor PM(10) and indoor PM(10) from homes were devoid of toxicity. Indoor PM(10) was elevated, chemically different and toxicologically more active than outdoor PM(10). Whether the effects translate into a significant health risk needs to be determined. Until then, we suggest better ventilation as a sensible option., Practical Implications: Indoor air PM(10) on an equal weight base is toxicologically more active than outdoor PM(10). In addition, indoor PM(10) concentrations are about six times higher than outdoor air. Thus, ventilation of classrooms with outdoor air will improve air quality and is likely to provide a health benefit. It is also easier than cleaning PM(10) from indoor air, which has proven to be tedious., (© 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.)

The rapid growth of the biofuels industry in the Midwest in the past 10 years has created an increased supply of corn coproduct feed for animals. This article discusses the tolerance and toxicology of biofuels coproducts in ruminants, including polioencephalomalacia, sulfur toxicosis, sulfur metabolism, mycotoxins, antibiotic residue, and biodiesel by-product toxicosis., (Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Thirty-five soil samples were taken from unconfined mine waste, stream sediments, and surfaces unoccupied by mining and presumably unaffected by it, in a sulphur-mining zone surrounded by carbonate material and characterized by a semi-arid climate with short torrential storms. These samples were analysed and the results compared to estimate the spread of pollution in the landscape and to assess potential environmental risk. The mean concentrations of S, Zn, Cd, Pb, and As in mine waste were between 3.5-fold (As) and 50-fold (S) greater than unaffected soils. Oxidation of S led to a sharp drop in pH, strong weathering of minerals, and solubilisation of the constituent elements, forming a toxic acidic mine drainage with highly concentrated pollutants that were discharged into the drainage channels. Successive acid mine drainage into the soil on the valley floor spreads acidification and pollution downstream. The high carbonate content in surrounding soils played an important role in the increase of the pH and precipitation of S, Pb, and Al of the affected soils. Meanwhile, high mobility of Zn, Cd and As under basic conditions and a low Fe concentration explain the broad spread of these elements, as high concentrations were detected in soil more than 2000 m from the source. Only the soil solutions from near the waste dump (first 500 m) were highly phytotoxic, and moderately phytotoxic from 500 to 1500 m away. The concentration of pollutants in the leachates was clearly higher than in soil solutions, even in the soils located over 2000 m from the source, implying that the size of the polluted area will increase with time., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Chondrokola Rosh (CKR) is a traditional metallic Ayurvedic preparation widely used by the rural and ethnic people of Bangladesh in dysuria. It is a preparation of various roasted metals (Hg and Cu), non-metal (sulphur and Mica) and medicinal herbs. Considering the controversy over the risk of toxic heavy metals in Ayurvedic herbo-mineral preparations, toxicological parameters on liver functions were investigated. A single dose of 100mg/kg body weight of the preparation was administered orally to the rats of both sexes for ninety days. In this evaluation a statistically significant (p<0.001) increase of serum albumin levels in male (17%) and female (15%) rat groups were observed. On the other hand, the plasma bilirubin level was decreased 50% and 28% respectively in both rats groups. But no remarkable differences were observed in plasma protein, sGPT, sGOT and ALP activities from their corresponding control values. This study showed that CKR had no remarkable toxic effect on liver of the animals despite the presence of traces of transformed heavy metals.

Despite great progress made in the past 25 years, acid deposition continues to cause widespread damage to the environment in Europe and eastern North America. Legislation to limit emissions of sulfur and nitrogen compounds in Europe is now under revision. The most recent protocol was based in part on the critical loads concept. The new protocol may also take into consideration the time delays between dose and response inherent in natural ecosystems. Policy decisions to reduce adverse effects on ecosystems entail a trade-off: quick response will require deeper cuts in emissions and thus higher costs, whereas lower costs with lesser cuts in emissions will give slower response. Acidification of lakes and damage to fish populations in Norway is used as an example. Under current legislation for emission reductions, surface waters will continue to slowly recover, but for many decades lakes in about 18% of Norway will continue to have water quality insufficient to support healthy populations of brown trout and other indicator organisms. Additional emission reductions can speed up the rate and degree of recovery.

Tyre artificial reefs were deposited in a marine protected area (Vallauris-Golfe Juan Bay, France) located along the NW Mediterranean coast, during the early 80's. The potential toxic effects of the tyre artificial reefs were investigated using transplantation of marine mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis, to stations located above tyre blocks (St1, St2) or reference site (StR). Mussels transplanted to different stations presented the following sequence of mortality: St1 > St2 > StR. Principal Component Analysis, taking into account metal accumulation (cadmium, copper and zinc) and biomarker (SOD, CAT, GST and AChE activities, TBARS and MT levels, Condition Index) responses in mussel tissues indicated a clear separation between the three stations. St1 organisms were significantly more affected by tyre reefs than those from other stations. Such an integrated monitoring study represents a key approach to assess in situ the biological impact of >25 year-old tyre artificial reefs., (2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)