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In this study, elemental abundances of As, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, and Zn in the 30 composite sediment samples from Jamuna River, Bangladesh were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer to assess their contamination level, toxicity, and ecological risks in both summer and winter season. In the summer season, mean concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, and Zn in sediment samples were 2.82, 1.13, 25.30, 8.63, 22.01, 4.58, and 68.82 mg/kg, respectively. In the winter season, mean concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, and Zn were 3.83, 1.48, 43.22, 13.86, 35.63, 8.48, and 100.27 mg/kg, respectively. The mean concentrations of all elements were found lower than the sediment quality guidelines values of probable effect level (PEL), effect range medium (ERM), and toxic effect thresholds (TET) in both seasons. There was a significant variation in elemental concentrations between wet and dry seasons and also between upstream and downstream sites (P < 0.05). Principal component analysis showed Zn, Cr, and Pb; As and Cu; and Cd and Co might have originated from the same geogenic source. The pollution evaluation indices showed consistent outcomes of almost no pollution for As, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, and Zn, but moderately to strongly polluted for Cd in all seasons. The contamination level of elements follows the decreasing order of Cd > Zn > Cu > As > Co > Cr > Pb for both seasons. The elemental toxicity in the sediments follows the order of Cd > Cr > Zn > As > Cu > Pb, with a very high risk for Cd while a minimal risk for other elements. The ecological threats of the toxic elements were found moderate to very high. Therefore, the findings of our study concluded that the ecological condition of the Jamuna River posed a considerable risk for human health and living organisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current antibiotics are increasingly losing their effectiveness against multidrug-resistant pathogenic bacteria, necessitating the search for new antibiotics. Endophytic fungi are widely recognized as valuable sources of structurally novel secondary metabolites with diverse biological activities. In this study, an endophytic fungus, designated KRL01, was isolated from a leaf of Capparis carandas. The strain was identified as Aspergillus giganteus through analysis of its internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA sequence. Subsequently, the fungus was cultured in a rice medium and extracted using ethyl acetate. A novel metabolite, named penicimenolide G (1), was isolated from the extract using chromatography. Compound 1 demonstrated potent antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, including those resistant to the standard antibiotic amoxicillin. [Display omitted] • Novel metabolite penicimenolide G (1) isolated from endophytic fungus Aspergillus giganteus. • Novel metabolites Penicimenolide G (1) belongs to resorcylic acid lactones family. • Penicimenolide G exhibited significant antibacterial activity against drug-resistant pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractMicroplastics (MPs) possess a strong capacity to adsorb and biodegrade slowly, resulting in substantial harm to the environment and potential health risks. In recent years, a flourishing study of MPs has led to valuable advancements. This review article presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of global microplastic pollution, providing a deep understanding of published data, current progress, research trends, and focal points. We conducted extensive searches in the Scopus and Web of Science Core Collection databases from 2012 to 2021, utilizing the widely used R software for analysis. Our findings demonstrate a significant increase in micro(nano)plastic publications, with a growth rate of 73.0% from 2012 to 2021. China emerges as the predominant contributor in this field. The journal Science of the Total Environment has published the highest proportion of relevant articles (16.1%) and received the most citations (9801). The analysis further emphasizes polymer products and MPs as key research areas in the past decade. This study serves as a fundamental basis for future investigations into micro(nano)plastic pollution’s impacts on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice is the staple food of Bangladeshi people and is consumed at least twice a day. Thus, the presence of toxic metals in rice grains has become a major public health concern in Bangladesh. The present research was conducted to investigate the concentrations of toxic metals in rice grains and their possible human health risks in the Tangail district of Bangladesh. Toxic metals were measured by using an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS), and the mean concentrations of toxic metals in rice samples were found in order of Cr > Pb > Ni > As > Cu > Cd. The concentrations of Cr, Pb, As, and Cd in the studied rice grain samples exceeded the FAO/WHO standard values for food samples by 100%, whereas the Ni concentrations by 10%. The principal component analysis (PCA) revealed significant anthropogenic contributions of Cr, Ni, As, and Pb concentrations in rice grains. The metal concentrations in rice grain samples showed strong significant correlations by forming primary clusters with each other. The estimated daily intake (EDI) values of Cr, Ni, As, Cd, and Pb from all samples were higher than the maximum tolerable daily intake (MTDI) allowed. The total targeted hazard quotient (TTHQ) values of Cu, Ni, As, Cd, and Pb also exceeded the threshold value of 1.00, indicating a potential non-carcinogenic risk. The estimated target carcinogenic risk of As was higher than the USEPA threshold level 10−4 (0.0001) indicating increased risk of cancer for adults and children in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted to assess the potential ecological and human health risk of toxic metals in agricultural soils near the industrial areas of Bangladesh. In this study, six toxic metals (chromium, nickel, copper, arsenic, cadmium, and lead) were assessed in 58 soil samples of five different sampling sites around the industrial areas of Jhenaidah and Kushtia districts in Bangladesh. Toxic metals were measured using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. Potential ecological and human health risk were assessed through enrichment factor (EF), contamination factor (Cfi), geoaccumulation index (Igeo), pollution load index (PLI), toxic unit analysis, chronic daily intake through exposure pathway, hazard quotient, and hazard index. The mean concentrations of Cr, Ni, Cu, As, Cd, and Pb were found to be 5.78, 21.0, 31.8, 8.05, 1.20, and 19.2 mg/kg, respectively. Metals concentrations were found below the recommended value set by Dutch standard, Canadian guidelines, and Australian guidelines except Cd. Principal component analysis indicates that most of the metals in agricultural soils are coming from industrial sector. The mean values of EF, Igeo, Cfi, PLI, and toxic units were found safe level for all metals except Cd. In the view of potential ecological risk (PER), soils from all sampling sites indicated moderate to very high PER. Total target hazard quotients for all the studied metals in total sampling sites were <1 and cancer risk values were <10−6 indicating low noncarcinogenic and cancer risk for adult and children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]