Salinity modulation of neodymium and dysprosium toxicity in mussels: A comprehensive analysis of adult and sperm responses.

Neodymium (Nd) and dysprosium (Dy) are among the most commonly used rare earth elements (REEs) worldwide, leading to their increased concentrations in aquatic environments, with potential impacts on organisms. Additionally, organisms are also subjected to environmental stressors, such as salinity shifts, which can not only directly impact their health but also modulate the impacts of contaminants. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of Nd and Dy on adult mussels and sperm of the species Mytilus galloprovincialis after 28 days and 30 min of exposure, respectively.

Nickel-Based Cocatalysts on Titanium-Doped Hematite Empower Direct Photoelectrochemical Valorisation of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural.

The photoelectrochemical oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), a biomass-derived intermediate, to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a key building block for industrial applications, is a well-studied anodic reaction. This photoelectrochemical (PEC) conversion typically requires an electron mediator, such as TEMPO, regardless of the semiconductor used. Various electrocatalysts can also perform this reaction electrochemically, without additional organic species in the electrolyte.

Extreme abiotics drive sediment biocomplexity along pH gradients in a shallow submarine volcanic vent.

Volcanic emissions in shallow vents influence the biogeochemistry of the sedimentary compartment, creating marked abiotic gradients. We assessed the spatial dynamics of the sediment compartment, as for the composition and origin of organic matter and associated prokaryotic community, in a volcanic shallow CO vent (Vulcano Island, Italy). Based on elemental (carbon, nitrogen content and their ratio) and isotopic composition (δC, δN and δS), the contribution of vent-derived organic matter (microbial mats) to sedimentary organic matter was high close to the vent, while the marine-derived end-members (seagrasses) contributed highly at increasing distance.

Combined effects of fluoroquinolone antibiotic enrofloxacin and rising sea temperatures on the health of the Mediterranean mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis): Exploring physiological, biochemical, and energetic balance dynamics.

Human activity exposes organisms in marine ecosystems to numerous stressors, including rising seawater temperatures and antibiotic contamination. The present study investigated the impacts of environmentally relevant concentrations of the fluoroquinolone (FQ) antibiotic enrofloxacin (ENR), specifically 5 and 500 ng/L, in Mytilus galloprovincialis under ambient (20 °C) and predicted warming (25 °C) conditions after 14 days of exposure, followed by a 14-day recovery period in the absence of ENR. The chemical analyses revealed significant variability in bioaccumulation in mussel tissues.

Zeolite Additives for Flexible Packaging Polymers: Current Status Review and Future Perspectives.

Zeolites are interesting inorganic additives that could be employed for plastic packaging applications. Polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) are intensively used for packaging as they provide great performance at low cost, even though they have poor environmental sustainability and may be more valorized. Biodegradable polymers may therefore represent a more eco-friendly alternative, but still, they have limited applications due to their generally inferior properties.

Rheological and Mechanical Properties and Spinning Behavior of a Starch-Based Biodegradable Polymer.

Over the last few years, the interest in biodegradable polymers has been increasing for several reasons, mainly because of the concerns about environmental protection and the reduction of emissions, especially those related to non-renewable fossil-based resources. Therefore, special attention has increased for the development of environment-friendly polymers such as biodegradable/compostable polymers, especially when they come from renewable resources, since this would help in further reducing energy consumption during their life cycle, as well as the overall environmental impact. Thus, every biopolymer should be accurately investigated in terms of its processability and main technological properties in order to find the most suitable applications.

Short alkyl-chained Imidazolium-based Ionic Liquids: Promising green solution or potential environmental threat?

Ionic Liquids (ILs) are currently applied in a wide variety of fields, with promising outcomes in microalgae high value biocompounds extraction. The occurrence of these compounds in natural water systems, with their characteristic stability and low biodegradability, becomes a threat worthy of attention. In the present study, Dunaliella tertiolecta, Isochrysis galbana and Rhinomonas reticulata were exposed to 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([BMIM] TfN) for 72, 168 and 264 h, at 20 and 25 °C.

Innovative method for provenance studies in cultural heritage: A new algorithm based on observables from high-resolution Raman spectra of red ochre.

Red ochre, typically derived from iron oxides and hematite, has been used since Pleistocene times for a range of different applications, practical as well as symbolic, including cave paintings and use in prehistoric burials. The importance to discover new methods for provenance determination, based on non-destructive portable techniques, represents a new challenge in the field of diagnostics of cultural heritage. This study presents the data obtained from the analysis of several non-flaked tools and ochre-stained bones, showing evidence of ochre processing at the Mesolithic site of S'omu e S'Orku in Sardinia (Italy).

Veterinary fluoroquinolones as emerging contaminants in marine environments: study of biochemical responses in subcellular fractions of the Mediterranean mussel ().

Fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQs) are emerging pollutants frequently detected in aquatic environments. However, their impact on marine invertebrates remains underexplored. This study investigated the responses at subcellular level in the Mediterranean mussel () exposed to three veterinary FQs, marbofloxacin (MARB), sarafloxacin (SARA), and difloxacin (DI), at concentrations considered relevant to environmental conditions.

2-Ethylhexyl-4-methoxycinnamate on marine and coastal environments: A comprehensive review of its environmental significance and biological impact.

Marine and coastal environments are constantly subjected to increasing pressures associated with population growth, industrialization development, pollution and higher demand feeding society's consumerism. Among these pressures, there has been an increasing concern towards UV filters occurrence in aquatic ecosystems due to a greater use of personal care products (PCPs). 2-ethylhexyl-4-methoxycinnamate (EHMC) is one of the most used UV filters in sunscreen formulations, yet few reports address its effects in biota.

Tuning Biodegradation of Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) at Mild Temperature by Blending with Poly (butylene succinate-co-adipate) (PBSA) or Polycaprolactone (PCL).

Biobased plastics are fully or partially made from biological resources but are not necessarily biodegradable or compostable. Poly (lactic acid) (PLA), one of the most diffused bioplastics, is compostable in industrial environments, but improving degradation in home composting conditions, in soil and in seawater could be beneficial for improving its end of life and general degradability. Blends obtained by the extrusion of PLA with different amounts of poly (butylene succinate-co-adipate) (PBSA) or poly (caprolactone) (PCL) were characterized in terms of their home composting, soil, marine and freshwater biodegradation.

Effect of Mild Conditions on PVA-Based Theta Gel Preparation: Thermal and Rheological Characterization.

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), possessing a strong ability to form hydrogels, has been widely used for various pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. In particular, the use of PVA-PEG in the form of theta gels for altered cartilage treatment has attracted an enormous amount of attention in the last 20 years. In this paper, we prepared 42 PVA-PEG in the form of theta gels at room temperature in an aqueous environment, testing the crystallization occurrence at basic pH (10 or 12).

5-Hydroxymethyl Furfural Oxidation by Perylene Diimide-Sensitized Electrodes Boosted by Photoinduced Doping.

We explored the electrochemical behavior of antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO) and perylene diimide (PDI)-sensitized ATO (ATO-PDI) for the (2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl)oxyl (TEMPO) mediated conversion of 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF) to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a value-added substrate for alternative polymer synthesis. We first showed that ATO displayed good electrocatalytic properties towards TEMPO, affording a quasi-reversible response with a heterogeneous rate constant on the order of 2×10 cm s. We then evaluated the performance of ATO under exhaustive electrolysis of HMF in basic aqueous electrolyte, reaching 80 % Faradaic Efficiency (FE) for FDCA production.

Electrodeposition of Sn-Ru Alloys by Using Direct, Pulsed, and Pulsed Reverse Current for Decorative Applications.

Pulsed current has proven to be a promising alternative to direct current in electrochemical deposition, offering numerous advantages regarding deposit quality and properties. Concerning the electrodeposition of metal alloys, the role of pulsed current techniques may vary depending on the specific metals involved. We studied an innovative tin-ruthenium electroplating bath used as an anti-corrosive layer for decorative applications.

Subcellular tissues-specific responses of Mytilus galloprovincialis to fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

The study aimed to investigate the in vitro effects of the fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQs) Ciprofloxacin (CIP), Enrofloxacin (ENR) and Danofloxacin (DAN) on the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations. In vitro exposure was performed on subcellular fractions of the digestive gland and gills through a multi-biomarker approach, which included the assessment of cellular damage, antioxidant and biotransformation enzyme activities, neurotoxicity, and DNA single-strand breaks (DNAssb). Results showed a decrease in protein carbonyl content in the gills when exposed to all concentrations of ENR.

Comparison of different fragmentation techniques for the production of true-to-life microplastics.

Microplastics are small plastic particles found widely in the environment, posing significant challenges as diverse environmental contaminants. Their pervasive presence and potential impacts on ecosystems and human health underscore the importance of research in this field. However, working with microplastics in the laboratory and field can be challenging due to the difficulty in creating particles that are similar to those found in the environment.

Nanostructured Affinity Membrane to Isolate Extracellular Vesicles from Body Fluids for Diagnostics and Regenerative Medicine.

Electrospun regenerated cellulose (RC) nanofiber membranes were prepared starting from cellulose acetate (CA) with different degrees of substitution. The process was optimized to obtain continuous and uniformly sized CA fibers. After electrospinning, the CA membranes were heat-treated to increase their tensile strength before deacetylation to obtain regenerated cellulose (RC).

Parametric resonance brain model.

The paper introduces a parametric resonance model for characterizing some features of the brain's electrical activity. This activity is assumed to be a fundamental aspect of brain functionality underpinning functions from basic sensory processing to complex cognitive operations such as memory, reasoning, and emotion. A pivotal element of the proposed parametric model is neuron synchronization which is crucial for generating detectable brain waves.

ON-OFF Switching of Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution by Built-in Pt-Nitrogen-Carbon Reticular Heterojunctions.

COF engineering with a built-in, high concentration of defined N-doped sites overcomes the "black-box" drawback of conventional trial-and-error N-doping methods (used in polymeric carbon nitride and graphene), that hamper a directed evolution of functional carbon interfaces based on structure-reactivity guidelines. The cutting-edge challenge is to dissect the many complex and interdependent functions that originate from reticular N-doping, including modification of the material optoelectronics, band alignments, interfacial contacts and co-localization of active-sites, producing a multiple-set of effectors that can all play a role to regulate photocatalysis. Herein, an ON-OFF gated photocatalytic H evolution (PHE) is dictated by the Pt-N-carbon active sites and probed with a dual COF platform, based on stable β-ketoenamine connectivities made of triformylphloroglucinol (Tp) as the acceptor knots and 1,4-diaminonaphtalene (Naph) or 5,8-diaminoisoquinoline (IsoQ) as donors.

Pitfalls in Photochemical and Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO to Energy Products.

The photochemical and photoelectrochemical reduction of CO is a promising approach for converting carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals (materials) and fuels. A key issue is ensuring the accuracy of experimental results in CO reduction reactions (CO2RRs) because of potential sources of false positives. This paper reports the results of investigations on various factors that may contribute to erroneous attribution of reduced-carbon species, including degradation of carbon species contained in photocatalysts, residual contaminants from synthetic procedures, laboratory glassware, environmental exposure, and the operator.

Laser-induced graphene-based aptasensor for the selective detection of Escherichia coli in urine samples.

A Laser-Induced Graphene-based (LIG) electrode covalently functionalized with an aptamer (P12-55) was used to develop an aptasensor detecting Escherichia coli in urine samples. Recent strides in material science have spotlighted LIG for exceptional attributes like robust mechanical resistance, superior conductivity, extensive surface area, and facile synthesis/patterning on various polymeric substrates. Variations in the aptasensor charge transfer resistance upon interaction with bacterial cells were evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

Process scale-up simulation and techno-economic assessment of ethanol fermentation from cheese whey.

Background: Production of cheese whey in the EU exceeded 55 million tons in 2022, resulting in lactose-rich effluents that pose significant environmental challenges. To address this issue, the present study investigated cheese-whey treatment via membrane filtration and the utilization of its components as fermentation feedstock. A simulation model was developed for an industrial-scale facility located in Italy's Apulia region, designed to process 539 m/day of untreated cheese-whey.