High-resolution modelling of particulate matter chemical composition over Europe: brake wear pollution.

In today's rapidly evolving society, the sources of atmospheric particulate matter (PM) emissions are shifting significantly. Stringent regulations on vehicle tailpipe emissions, in combination with a lack of control of non-exhaust vehicular emissions, have led to an increase in the relative contribution of non-exhaust PM in Europe. This study analyzes the spatial distribution, temporal trends, and impacts of brake wear PM pollution across Europe by modeling copper (Cu) concentrations at a high spatial resolution of ∼250 m which is a key tracer of brake-wear emissions.

Reactions of ,- and ,-Azoles and -Azolines with Ozone: Kinetics and Mechanisms.

,- and ,-azoles and -azolines are common functional groups in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and natural products. Their fate during ozone-based water treatment processes is unknown due to a lack of kinetic and mechanistic information on their reactions with ozone. Apparent second-order rate constants of 12 model compounds were determined at pH 7: oxazoles react 2 orders of magnitude faster ( = 9 × 10-5 × 10 Ms, depending on their substituents) than thiazoles ( = 1 × 10-2 × 10 Ms).

A test of specific adaptation to symbiont-conferred host resistance in natural populations of a parasitoid wasp.

Parasitoids are important natural enemies of insects, imposing strong selection for the evolution of resistance. In aphids, the heritable defensive endosymbiont Hamiltonella defensa is a key determinant of resistance, making symbiont-conferred defense a potential target for specific adaptation by parasitoids. We tested this hypothesis in the aphid parasitoid Lysiphlebus fabarum and four of its host species, Aphis fabae fabae, A.

Food contact articles as source of micro- and nanoplastics: a systematic evidence map.

Micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) in foodstuffs lead to widespread human exposure and are often linked to environmental contamination. However, the role of plastics in food contact articles (FCAs) has received less attention, despite being a known source. Thus, we compiled a systematic evidence map of MNPs present in foodstuffs in contact with all types of plastic FCAs.

Ozonation of wastewater effluent by the MEMBROX contactor: Micropollutants abatement and bromate mitigation.

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are significant sources of micropollutants, potentially adversely affecting freshwater ecosystems. Ozonation is an effective way to abate micropollutants during treatment of wastewater effluent, however, the presence of bromide may lead to bromate, a potentially carcinogenic byproduct. The applicability of a hollow fiber porous membrane-based ozone contactor (MEMBROX) was assessed for wastewater effluent treatment for the simultaneous abatement of micropollutants and bromate mitigation by investigating the effects of operating conditions (e.

Characterization of Organic Nitrogen by Chlorination, Ozonation, and Stable Isotope Analysis of Nitrate.

During oxidation, nitrogenous species in dissolved organic matter (DOM) are critical in the formation of nitrogenous, potentially toxic disinfection byproducts, but their chemical identity remains poorly understood. Here, we developed three complementary approaches to identify and quantify reactive amines in model compounds and DOM, including aliphatic primary and secondary amines, aryl-type primary amines, amino acids, and terminal peptidic amino groups. With the chloramine formation assay, the total reactive amines were quantified for the main subgroups.

Retrospective Wastewater Tracking of Measles Outbreak in Western Switzerland in Winter 2024.

Measles outbreaks remain a significant public health challenge, despite high vaccination coverage in many regions. Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) offers a noninvasive and community-level approach to monitoring the circulation of pathogens, including the measles virus. Here, we retrospectively applied a duplex digital PCR assay to distinguish between wild-type and vaccine strains of the measles virus in wastewater samples available from an existing national WBS program.

Two new cichlid species of the genus from rocky reefs of Lake Victoria, Tanzania (Perciformes, Cichlidae).

Lake Victoria is home to a unique and taxonomically understudied species flock of endemic haplochromine cichlid fishes, with many morphologically specialized trophic groups and many different species in each of them. One of several mollusk-eating trophic groups are the pharyngeal snail-crushers of the genus Regan, 1920. Currently, six species from Lake Victoria have been described in this genus, none of which occupies rocky shores and reefs.

Prophage induction and quorum sensing enhance biofilm stability and resistance under ammonia-oxidizing bacteria-mediated oxidative stress.

Ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and prophage-carrying bacteria are prevalent in water treatment and reuse systems, yet their interactions and implications for biofilm formation and microbial risks remain insufficiently understood. Here, we demonstrate that oxidative stress arising from the metabolism of the AOB Nitrosomonas europaea induces prophage activation in lysogenized Escherichia coli (λ+). This activation triggers cellular lysis, leading to the release of intracellular components (e.

Changes in meat consumption can improve groundwater quality.

Large-scale, centralized livestock production is recognized as a significant contributor to environmental pollution, including groundwater contamination. Here we assess the impact of traditional meat production on nitrate contamination in groundwater across the contiguous USA from 1985 to 2020. In addition, we evaluate potential changes in groundwater quality resulting from the substitution of traditional meat sources with three alternative meat options.

Enzymatic carbon-fluorine bond cleavage by human gut microbes.

Fluorinated compounds are used for agrochemical, pharmaceutical, and numerous industrial applications, resulting in global contamination. In many molecules, fluorine is incorporated to enhance the half-life and improve bioavailability. Fluorinated compounds enter the human body through food, water, and xenobiotics including pharmaceuticals, exposing gut microbes to these substances.

Micro- and nanoplastic size affects uptake and digestive tract region residence time in black soldier fly larvae during food waste bioconversion.

Black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens L.) larvae (BSFL) are promising recycling agents of food waste nutrients. However, BSFL ingest micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) present in food waste, consequently introducing them into the food chain when BSFL-derived products are used as feeds or fertilizers.

Antagonism as a foraging strategy in microbial communities.

In natural habitats, nutrient availability limits bacterial growth. We discovered that bacteria can overcome this limitation by acquiring nutrients by lysing neighboring cells through contact-dependent antagonism. Using single-cell live imaging and isotopic markers, we found that during starvation, the type VI secretion system (T6SS) lysed neighboring cells and thus provided nutrients from lysing cells for growth.

Resilience of deep aquifer microbial communities to seasonal hydrological fluctuations.

The influence of seasonal variations in temperature and precipitation on subsurface biogeochemical processes remains poorly understood. In the Lavey-les-Bains thermal system in the Swiss Alps, annual variations in electrical conductivity are observed to depths of 500 m, suggesting a potential link to surface environmental changes. Here we show, through year-round analyses of stable water isotopes, noble gases, and conductivity, that seasonally varying contributions of shallow groundwater from the Rhône alluvial aquifer mix with deep groundwater.

Development and application of a targeted phosphoproteomics method for analysing the mTOR pathway dynamics in zebrafish PAC2 cell line.

The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signalling pathway plays a crucial role in regulating cellular growth and proliferation. While extensively studied in mammals, the phosphorylation dynamics of this pathway in non-mammalian model organisms remain largely unexplored, often due to the scarcity of suitable antibodies to measure (phosphorylated) proteins of interest. To address this gap, we developed an antibody-independent targeted phosphoproteomics method applying liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to quantify the abundance and phosphorylation levels of mTOR pathway-related proteins in zebrafish (Danio rerio), using the permanent cell line PAC2 as a model system.

Conserved specificity of extracellular wastewater peptidases revealed by multiplex substrate profiling by mass spectrometry.

Unlabelled: Peptide-based chemicals are promising for numerous applications including home and personal care and medical treatments. To better understand and control the environmental fate of peptide-based chemicals, in-depth knowledge on the specificity of wastewater peptidases is needed. Here, we employed multiplex substrate profiling by mass spectrometry to obtain specificity profiles of extracellular peptidases derived from influent and aeration tanks of three full-scale wastewater treatment plants.

The mutant selection window of moxifloxacin and bedaquiline resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Global health is threatened by the rise of antibiotic resistance. Bacteria of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (Mtbc) are a major contributor to this antibiotic crisis, with about 450,000 new multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) cases per year. This study investigates resistance evolution by defining the resistance mutant selection window (MSW) for the important MDR-TB treatment drugs moxifloxacin and bedaquiline.

Human flourishing in the context of farm characteristics and occupational hazards - Baseline findings from the FarmCoSwiss cohort.

Introduction And Objectives: In Switzerland, little is known about farmers' wellbeing. Based on cross-sectional baseline data from the Swiss agricultural health cohort FarmCoSwiss, we carried out a study to investigate farmers' flourishing i.e.

Foresight 2035: a perspective on the next decade of research on the management of Legionella spp. in engineered aquatic environments.

The disease burden from Legionella spp. infections has been increasing in many industrialized countries and, despite decades of scientific advances, ranks amongst the highest for waterborne diseases. We review here several key research areas from a multidisciplinary perspective and list critical research needs to address some of the challenges of Legionella spp.

Brain-associated alterations of Hippo pathway transcription in early maturing Atlantic salmon.

Background: Pubertal timing is a key life history trait, shaped by ecological pressures to balance reproductive success and survival. Emerging evidence suggests a link between adiposity and early maturation, potentially through hormonal signaling pathways governing puberty timing. The timing of sexual maturation in Atlantic salmon has a strong genetic basis in addition to being linked with environmental shifts and lipid reserves.

Risk-reward trade-off during carbon starvation generates dichotomy in motility endurance among marine bacteria.

Copiotrophic marine bacteria contribute to the control of carbon storage in the ocean by remineralizing organic matter. Motility presents copiotrophs with a risk-reward trade-off: it is highly beneficial in seeking out sparse nutrient hotspots, but energetically costly. Here we studied the motility endurance of 26 marine isolates, representing 18 species, using video microscopy and cell tracking over 2 days of carbon starvation.

Insights into respiratory illness at the population level through parallel analysis of pharmaceutical and viral markers in wastewater.

Wastewater as a medium contains information on both circulating pathogens and drug consumption at the population level. This study combines tracking of respiratory viruses and quantification of pharmaceuticals as untargeted indicators of symptoms related to acute respiratory infections and influenza-like illnesses such as coughing, fever and pain. From January 2021 to June 2024, raw wastewater samples from ten locations covering 23% of the Swiss population were analysed.

Permafrost and Freshwater Systems in the Arctic as Tipping Elements of the Climate System.

The Arctic is warming several times faster than the rest of the globe. Such Arctic amplification rapidly changes hydrometeorological conditions with consequences for the structuring of cold-adapted terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Arctic ecosystems, which have a relatively small buffering capacity, are particularly susceptible to hydrometeorological regime shifts thus frequently undergo system-scale transitions.

Monitoring the Multiple Stages of Climate Tipping Systems from Space: Do the GCOS Essential Climate Variables Meet the Needs?

Many components of the Earth system feature self-reinforcing feedback processes that can potentially scale up a small initial change to a fundamental state change of the underlying system in a sometimes abrupt or irreversible manner beyond a critical threshold. Such tipping points can be found across a wide range of spatial and temporal scales and are expressed in very different observable variables. For example, early-warning signals of approaching critical transitions may manifest in localised spatial pattern formation of vegetation within years as observed for the Amazon rainforest.