•Because mercury tends to bioaccumulate in the food chain, it can affect human health.•To abate mercury, the adsorptive removal is the most simple and fitting methodology.•Here we reviewed the ...application of nanomaterials for the sorptive removal of Hg(II) ions.•Novel nanomaterials were classified to promote understanding of such processes.•The underlying obstacles in nanomaterial technology are assessed for its future development.
The prolific growth of modern industrial practices has been accompanied by the extensive release of effluents rich in toxic byproducts (e.g., mercury). Therefore, the abatement of such byproducts has become a crucial prophylactic measure to protect human health, ecosystems, and food resources. Although several conventional techniques are available, it is highly desirable to develop more efficient and economical adsorbents for such application. In this regard, the development of multifunctional, tailorable, and advanced materials with very large surface areas and flexible surface active sites is desirable to expand effective options available for abatement technology. This review explores recent trends and advancements in nanomaterial technology for the mitigation of mercury. Further, the current hindrances and future prospects in related research fields are discussed in depth.
The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in China and rapidly spread worldwide. To prevent SARS-CoV-2 ...dissemination, understanding the in vivo characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 is a high priority. We report a ferret model of SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission that recapitulates aspects of human disease. SARS-CoV-2-infected ferrets exhibit elevated body temperatures and virus replication. Although fatalities were not observed, SARS-CoV-2-infected ferrets shed virus in nasal washes, saliva, urine, and feces up to 8 days post-infection. At 2 days post-contact, SARS-CoV-2 was detected in all naive direct contact ferrets. Furthermore, a few naive indirect contact ferrets were positive for viral RNA, suggesting airborne transmission. Viral antigens were detected in nasal turbinate, trachea, lungs, and intestine with acute bronchiolitis present in infected lungs. Thus, ferrets represent an infection and transmission animal model of COVID-19 that may facilitate development of SARS-CoV-2 therapeutics and vaccines.
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•SARS-CoV-2-infected ferrets exhibit elevated body temperature and virus replication•SARS-CoV-2 is shed in nasal washes, saliva, urine and feces•SARS-CoV-2 is effectively transmitted to naive ferrets by direct contact•SARS-CoV-2 infection leads acute bronchiolitis in infected ferrets
The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) rapidly spreads, leading to a pandemic infection. Kim et al. show that ferrets are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and effectively transmit the virus by direct or indirect contact, recapitulating human infection and transmission.
The continuous need for food resources by humans and animals has led to extensive use of antibiotics as essential medicines. However, we are now facing serious environmental contamination of ...antibiotics and the associated health concerns because of their uncontrolled disposal. In an effort to resolve this problem, nanostructured electrochemical platforms comprising of diverse materials (e.g., carbonaceous nanoparticles, metal nanoparticles, magnetic nanoparticles, metal-organic frameworks, and quantum dots) have been proposed to detect antibiotic residues. Despite the significant progress achieved in such research fields, further efforts are still required to develop advanced electrochemical sensors with the aid of multi-functional nanomaterials and to ensure efficient portability for such sensors with enhaced communicability. Therefore, the present review summarizes an in-depth evaluation of the nanostructured electrochemical sensing system for antibiotics residues in diverse matrices (e.g., human fluids, environmental media, and food/beverages samples). The present review begins with a brief introduction to antibiotics followed by a survey on the existing electroanalytical techniques to highlight the significance of nanomaterial-based electrochemical sensing techniques for antibiotics in diverse matrices. Finally, the review provides an outlook on the future concepts of this research field to help upgrade the sensing techniques for antibiotics.
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•The use of nanomaterials is crucial for electrochemical detection of antibiotics.•Different strategies for electrochemical detection of antibiotics are summarized.•A performance analysis was conducted to assess the best detection options for each target/.•The challenges in this research field are addressed to promote future technical advances.
In materials science, "green" synthesis has gained extensive attention as a reliable, sustainable, and eco-friendly protocol for synthesizing a wide range of materials/nanomaterials including ...metal/metal oxides nanomaterials, hybrid materials, and bioinspired materials. As such, green synthesis is regarded as an important tool to reduce the destructive effects associated with the traditional methods of synthesis for nanoparticles commonly utilized in laboratory and industry. In this review, we summarized the fundamental processes and mechanisms of "green" synthesis approaches, especially for metal and metal oxide e.g., gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper oxide (CuO), and zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles using natural extracts. Importantly, we explored the role of biological components, essential phytochemicals (e.g., flavonoids, alkaloids, terpenoids, amides, and aldehydes) as reducing agents and solvent systems. The stability/toxicity of nanoparticles and the associated surface engineering techniques for achieving biocompatibility are also discussed. Finally, we covered applications of such synthesized products to environmental remediation in terms of antimicrobial activity, catalytic activity, removal of pollutants dyes, and heavy metal ion sensing.
Particulate matter (PM) is a key indicator of air pollution brought into the air by a variety of natural and human activities. As it can be suspended over long time and travel over long distances in ...the atmosphere, it can cause a wide range of diseases that lead to a significant reduction of human life. The size of particles has been directly linked to their potential for causing health problems. Small particles of concern include “inhalable coarse particles” with a diameter of 2.5 to 10μm and “fine particles” smaller than 2.5μm in diameter. As the source–effect relationship of PM remains unclear, it is not easy to define such effects from individual sources such as long-range transport of pollution. Because of the potent role of PM and its associated pollutants, detailed knowledge of their human health impacts is of primary importance. This paper summarizes the basic evidence on the health effects of particulate matter. An in-depth analysis is provided to address the implications for policy-makers so that more stringent strategies can be implemented to reduce air pollution and its health effects.
•Diverse sources of particulate matter deteriorate air quality and exert impact on human health.•An overview of PM is provided by synthesizing information of its impact and regulation efforts.•The management skills of PM from the areas suffering from its worst pollution are also addressed.
Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have emerged as a potential material in the diverse fields of biomedical applications due to their numerous advantageous properties including fluorescence, water ...solubility, biocompatibility, low toxicity, small size and ease of modification, inexpensive scale-up production, and versatile conjugation with other nanoparticles. Thus, CQDs became a preferable choice in various biomedical applications such as nanocarriers for drugs, therapeutic genes, photosensitizers, and antibacterial molecules. Further, their potentials have also been verified in multifunctional diagnostic platforms, cellular and bacterial bio-imaging, development of theranostics nanomedicine, etc. This review provides a concise insight into the progress and evolution in the field of CQD research with respect to methods/materials available in bio-imaging, theranostics, cancer/gene therapy, diagnostics, etc. Further, our discussion is extended to explore the role of CQDs in nanomedicine which is considered to be the future of biomedicine. This study will thus help biomedical researchers in tapping the potential of CQDs to overcome various existing technological challenges.
Multimodal biomedical applications of CQDs. Display omitted
•Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) is a type of carbon-based fluorescent nanomaterial.•CQDs are found as a new class of smallest viable fluorescent biocompatible nanomaterials.•Here, the increased contribution of CQDs in the nanomedicine sector is described in details.•Opportunities and challenges of the CQDs in biomedical applications are also addressed.
•The applicability of MOFs is extensive due to their properties.•Progress of MOF research in sensing application is astonishing.•This review discusses the potential applicability of MOF sensing in ...industry.
A metal organic framework (MOF) represents a new class of hybrid material built from metal ions with well-defined coordination geometry and organic bridging ligands. Over the past few years, MOFs have attracted a great deal of attention due to their intriguing framework architecture, topology, and optical properties. MOFs have provided promising perspectives in various research fields, such as catalysis, energy storage, drug-delivery systems, non-linear optics, and gas storage. Recently, the application of MOFs was further extended to cover new, interesting fields of sensing toward various target components, including small molecules, solvents, pesticides, explosives, and biological markers. In this review, we focus on recent progress achieved in MOF research with respect to general sensing principles and analytical performance. This review also discusses future industrial applications in sensing that are of immense research interest.
•Exposure to high or low levels of Hg has been reported to cause various illness of human.•The adverse health effects of Hg are affected by the speciation of Hg accumulated in the body.•The current ...understanding of mercury exposure, health effects, and risk assessment is reviewed.
Exposure to mercury is a silent threat to the environment and human life. It has the potential to harm almost every organ and body system. Mercury compounds are classified in different chemical types such as elemental, inorganic, and organic forms. The most significant source of ingestion-related mercury exposure in humans and animals is the consumption of fish. Long-term exposure to mercury compounds from different sources (e.g., water, food, soil, and air) can lead to toxic effects on skin, cardiovascular, pulmonary, urinary, gastrointestinal, and neurological systems. Mercury toxicity is found to pose more significant health hazards to certain occupational groups (e.g., goldminers and dental personnel). Because continuous exposure to mercury can be dangerous, it is desirable to re-evaluate the current reference (risk-free) values. This paper reviews the route of Hg exposure to humans, its human health impacts, the associated risk assessment, and treatment based on the recent findings from various studies.
Food security is a high-priority issue for sustainable global development both quantitatively and qualitatively. In recent decades, adverse effects of unexpected contaminants on crop quality have ...threatened both food security and human health. Heavy metals and metalloids (e.g., Hg, As, Pb, Cd, and Cr) can disturb human metabolomics, contributing to morbidity and even mortality. Therefore, this review focuses on and describes heavy metal contamination in soil–food crop subsystems with respect to human health risks. It also explores the possible geographical pathways of heavy metals in such subsystems. In-depth discussion is further offered on physiological/molecular translocation mechanisms involved in the uptake of metallic contaminants inside food crops. Finally, management strategies are proposed to regain sustainability in soil–food subsystems.
•Heavy metal pollution has perturbed the environment to pose serious health hazards.•Therefore, the diverse and emerging issues of food security have become a global concern.•A better understanding on the soil-food crop transfer mechanisms is prerequisite for remediation.•This review provides a general view on the global geographical pattern of heavy metal sources.•The review discusses state-of-the-art remediation approaches to manage soil metal pollution.
A buying firm attempts to seek economic and social benefits through supply chain collaboration. Successful collaboration is predicted not only to strengthen a buying firm performance but also to ...reduce transaction costs. Establishment of an appropriate governance is of a great help in stabilizing a relationship and strengthening performance. Therefore, this study aims to identify underlying factors that constitute collaboration and transaction cost advantage, to explore effects of supply chain collaboration on firm performance and transaction cost advantage, and to examine the moderation effect of governance mechanisms in the proposed relationships. Data were obtained via a web survey of Korean manufacturing firms across different industry sectors. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed to assess the unidimensionality, reliability, and validity of a large-scale survey and hierarchical regression analysis was conducted for the hypotheses testing. The results indicated that supply chain collaboration leads to better firm performance and transaction cost advantage and that performance results in transaction cost advantage. A further analysis of the moderation effect of governance mechanisms indicated that firm performance with contractual governance yields better transaction cost advantage and that supply chain collaboration with contractual governance results in better transaction cost advantage than with relational governance. The findings contribute to the supply literature by providing theoretical and empirical implications. In theory, various collaborative practices in the supply chain and types of transaction cost are identified. Valid and reliable scales are also confirmed through successive stages of measurement analysis. In practice, clear definition of supply chain collaboration offers guidance in designing appropriate and effective collaborative activities which can result in a better performance. Managers are also advised to identify contexts in which either a contractual governance or a relational governance can be best utilized.
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