Notes

Upacicalcet: 1st Endorsement.
Trp metabolism dysregulation caused by the changed colonic microbiota may subsequently impact other intestinal segments or even living organisms. Our study provides new evidence indicating a potential influence of early TCDD exposure on the colonic microbiota and metabolism.Pentachlorophenol (PCP) is an endocrine-disrupting chemical that is ubiquitously found in the environment. Few studies have reported PCP exposure in pregnant women and its association with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). This nested case-control study aimed to determine the concentration of urinary PCP in early pregnancy and explore the association between PCP exposure and GDM risk. This study included 293 GDM cases and 586 non-GDM controls matched by fetal sex and maternal age from a birth cohort in Wuhan, China. PCP concentrations in spot urine samples collected between 8 and 16 weeks of gestation were measured by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Conditional logistic regression was used to assess the association between PCP exposure and the odds ratio of GDM. The median concentrations of specific gravity-adjusted PCP in controls and cases were 0.70 and 0.80 ng/mL, respectively, with no significant differences (P > 0.05). The multivariate-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) (95% confidence intervals) for GDM across quartiles of urinary PCP were 1 (reference), 1.63 (1.06-2.50), 1.70 (1.11-2.61), and 1.35 (0.87-2.08), respectively, showing a potential "inverted-U" shaped association. In addition, PCP levels and maternal age or fetal sex had significant interactions with GDM risk (both P for interaction less then 0.05). Among older women and those carrying female fetuses, the ORs of GDM risk were higher. This study suggests that pregnant women in central China are widely exposed to PCP, and this is the first time to report that PCP exposure may increase the risk of GDM (with potential effect modifications by maternal age and fetal sex). The association observed is in agreement with PCP's "inverted-U" anti-estrogenic effect in vivo; thus, such an effect in humans at environmentally relevant doses should be studied further.Airborne microplastics (MPs) have been sampled globally, and their concentration is known to increase in areas of high human population and activity, especially indoors. Respiratory symptoms and disease following exposure to occupational levels of MPs within industry settings have also been reported. It remains to be seen whether MPs from the environment can be inhaled, deposited and accumulated within the human lungs. This study analysed digested human lung tissue samples (n = 13) using μFTIR spectroscopy (size limitation of 3 μm) to detect and characterise any MPs present. In total, 39 MPs were identified within 11 of the 13 lung tissue samples with an average of 1.42 ± 1.50 MP/g of tissue (expressed as 0.69 ± 0.84 MP/g after background subtraction adjustments). The MP levels within tissue samples were significantly higher than those identified within combined procedural/laboratory blanks (n = 9 MPs, with a mean ± SD of 0.53 ± 1.07, p = 0.001). Of the MPs detected, 12 polymer types were identified with polypropylene, PP (23%), polyethylene terephthalate, PET (18%) and resin (15%) the most abundant. MPs (unadjusted) were identified within all regions of the lung categorised as upper (0.80 ± 0.96 MP/g), middle/lingular (0.41 ± 0.37 MP/g), and with significantly higher levels detected in the lower (3.12 ± 1.30 MP/g) region compared with the upper (p = 0.026) and mid (p = 0.038) lung regions. After subtracting blanks, these levels became 0.23 ± 0.28, 0.33 ± 0.37 and 1.65 ± 0.88 MP/g respectively. The study demonstrates the highest level of contamination control and reports unadjusted values alongside different contamination adjustment techniques. These results support inhalation as a route of exposure for environmental MPs, and this characterisation of types and levels can now inform realistic conditions for laboratory exposure experiments, with the aim of determining health impacts.Bismuth (Bi) is considered a "green metal" as its toxicity has been reported to be lower than other metals, particularly lead. Even though the low presence in the environment, an increase of Bi concentrations in soil and wastewater is predictable due to its enhanced uses for many industrial and medical applications. Therefore, given the little literature on the matter, particularly in plants, information on the effects of Bi on living organisms is needed. In this study, seeds of garden cress (Lepidium sativum L.), a model plant for ecotoxicological assays (OECD), were exposed to increasing Bi concentrations (0 to 485 mg L-1 Bi(NO3)3·5H2O in deionised water) in petri plates. After 72 h, the percent germination index (GI%) revealed no effects at the lowest Bi concentrations, while a slight toxicity occurred at 242 and 485 mg L-1 Bi nitrate. A significant reduction of the root length was observed in Bi-treated seedlings, especially at the highest Bi concentrations. Consistently, the Alkaline Comet Assay revealed a genotoxic effect induced by Bi exposure in garden cress seedlings. A Bi concentration-dependent metal accumulation in plantlets was also observed, with a Bi concentration higher than 1200 mg kg-1 found in plantlets at the highest Bi concentration assayed. The toxicity effects observed in the study were discussed, as contribution to the expansion of knowledge on Bi ecotoxicity and genotoxicity in plants.Increasing urbanisation is one of the primary drivers of land-use change that threaten biodiversity. Wild bee communities have been reported with contrasting responses to urbanisation, with varying effects on abundance and taxonomical diversity. The suite of functional traits exhibited by wild bee species might determine their persistence in urban areas. Urbanisation thus can impose an environmental filter with potential consequences on the functional and phylogenetical diversity of wild bee communities. Here, we sampled 2944 wild bee specimens from 156 species in 29 sites located along an urbanisation gradient using a replicated design in three mid-sized cities in the Loire valley (France). We show that urban landscape cover has a negative effect on overall species richness and taxonomical diversity indices, while total abundance remains constant. Species loss was taxon dependent, mainly driven by Andrenidae and Halictidae. ABT737 Only a few species, especially of the genus Lasioglossum, were positively affected by the urban landscape cover. Urban and peri-urban areas differed in their composition of bee assemblages. Species turnover was the main component of beta diversity, driving community dissimilarities through the urban gradient. Urbanisation favours bees with small body sizes, social structure and extended flight periods but did not affect the phylogenetic or the functional diversity of communities. Our findings have implications for understanding the factors involved in the environmental filter exerted through the urban gradient on bee communities helping to implement conservation measures and managing urban spaces for bees.Microplastics (MPs) are present in all environments, and concerns over their possible detrimental effects on flora and fauna have arisen. Density separation (DS) is commonly used to separate MPs from soils to allow MP quantification; however, it frequently fails to extract high-density MPs sufficiently, resulting in under-estimation of MP abundances. In this proof-of-concept study, a novel three-stage extraction method was developed, involving high-gradient magnetic separation and removal of magnetic soil (Stage 1), magnetic tagging of MPs using surface modified iron nanoparticles (Stage 2), and high-gradient magnetic recovery of surface-modified MPs (Stage 3). The method was optimised for four different soil types (loam, high‑carbon loamy sand, sandy loam and high-clay sandy loam) spiked with different MP types (polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polytetrafluoroethylene) of different particle sizes (63 μm to 2 mm) as well as polyethylene fibres (2-4 mm). The optimised method achieved average recoveries of 96% for fibres and 92% for particles in loam, 91% for fibres and 87% for particles in high‑carbon loamy sand, 96% for fibres and 89% for particles in sandy loam, and 97% for fibres and 94% for particles in high-clay sandy loam. These were significantly higher than recoveries achieved by DS, particularly for fibres and high-density MPs (p less then 0.05). To demonstrate the practical application of the HGMS method, it was applied to a farm soil sample, and high-density MP particles were only recovered by HGMS. Furthermore, this study showed that HGMS can recover fibre-aggregate complexes. This improved extraction method will provide better estimates of MP quantities in future studies focused on monitoring the prevalence of MPs in soils.Nanopesticides are attracting increasing attention as a promising technology in agriculture to improve insecticidal efficacy, decrease pesticides uses, and reduce potential environmental impacts. We synthesized mesoporous silica nanoparticles, i.e., Mobil Composition of Matter No.48 (MCM-48), with different sizes (63-130 nm), charges (-22 to 12 mV), and hydrophobicity (water contact angle 29-103°) to assess their loading amount and release of a typical poorly soluble halogenated pyrethroid (i.e., lambda-cyhalothrin particles, LCNS). The smallest MCM-48 displayed relatively higher loading amount of LCNS (~16%) compared to the larger MCM-48 nanoparticles, likely because of its higher pore volume (1.46 cm3 g-1) and pore size (3.56 nm). LCNS loading amount was further improved to ~26% and ~36% after -NH2 (positively charged) and -CH3 (hydrophobic) functionalization, respectively, probably due to hydrogen bonding, electrostatic, and hydrophobic interactions with LCNS. Loading LCNS in MCM-48 nanoparticles also significantly improved its dispersion in water and ultraviolet (UV) light stability, with a 3-7 times longer half-life than that of free LCNS. Although the -NH2 and -CH3 modifications of MCM-48 slightly decreased the UV stability of LCNS, they significantly decreased the release efficiency of LCNS, possibly because of their stronger interactions with LCNS. In addition, the insecticidal effects of LCNS-loaded MCM-48 were more efficient and longer than those of free LCNS. The findings clarify the relationships between physicochemical properties and performance of mesoporous silica nanoparticles, and will inform the rational design of materials for controlled release of pesticides and sustainable control of pests.In the context of global climate governance, as the biggest carbon emitter, China bears momentous responsibility for mitigating emissions. Especially after the carbon neutrality target is proposed, it is urgent for China to seek a feasible pathway to achieve net-zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2060. With the aims of exploring the net-zero emission pathways, an integrated prediction model incorporating the extreme learning machine (ELM) network, the Aquila optimizer (AO) technique, and the Elastic Net (EN) regression method is constructed. Then the prediction model is employed to project CO2 emissions and forest carbon sinks during 2021-2060 under the nine designed scenarios. The simulation results reveal that China has the potential to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions by 2060 under the combined effects of reducing emissions and increasing forest carbon sinks. Specifically, the total CO2 emissions will be peaked at 11441 million tons CO2 (MtCO2) in 2029. The post-peak carbon reduction rate should be 8% per year, and the average annual forest carbon sink is required to be 209.
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