Today, we have been witnessing a steady tendency in the increase of global demand for maize, wheat, soybeans, and their products due to the steady growth and strengthening of the livestock industry. ...Thus, animal feed safety has gradually become more important, with mycotoxins representing one of the most significant hazards. Mycotoxins comprise different classes of secondary metabolites of molds. With regard to animal feed, aflatoxins, fumonisins, ochratoxins, trichothecenes, and zearalenone are the more prevalent ones. In this review, several constraints posed by these contaminants at economical and commercial levels will be discussed, along with the legislation established in the European Union to restrict mycotoxins levels in animal feed. In addition, the occurrence of legislated mycotoxins in raw materials and their by-products for the feeds of interest, as well as in the feeds, will be reviewed. Finally, an overview of the different sample pretreatment and detection techniques reported for mycotoxin analysis will be presented, the main weaknesses of current methods will be highlighted.
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•Occurrence of 7 bisphenols in fish from NE Atlantic Ocean was investigated.•Levels of bisphenols in internal tissues correlated with higher microplastic intake.•Microplastics (MP) ...may be a source of bisphenols to wild fish.•Exposure assessment of bisphenols through fish consumption was performed.•The consumption of fish contaminated with MP may lead to a higher risk of exposure to bisphenols.
In the present study, the levels of bisphenol A (BPA) and analagous compounds in muscle and liver of fish (Dicentrarchus labrax, Trachurus trachurus, Scomber colias) from the North East Atlantic Ocean were determined and the risk of their consumption by humans was assessed. The potential relationship between bisphenol concentrations and microplastic (MP) contamination of fish was also investigated. Fish from all the species had BPA in the liver and muscle, and bisphenol B (BPB) and bisphenol E (BPE) in the muscle. The highest concentration of BPA in the liver (302 ng/g dry weight - dw) was found in S. colias and the lowest one (5 ng/g dw) in T. trachurus. In the muscle, the bisphenol with the highest concentration was BPE in S. colias (272 ng/g dw). Fish with microplastics had significantly higher concentrations of bisphenols than fish where no microplastics were found, suggesting a relation between MP and bisphenol contamination in fish. In all species, the concentration of bisphenols was correlated with higher MP intake. Regarding human food safety, the estimated daily intake (EDI), target hazard quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI) of bisphenols were higher than those established by the European Food Safety Authority suggesting hazardous risk for human consumers. These findings highlight the need of more research on fish contamination by MP and associated chemicals and inherent human food safety risks.
In many ecosystems, the zooplankton community has been pressured simultaneously by microplastic pollution and alterations resulting from global climate changes. The potential influence of light ...intensity rise (from 10,830 lx to 26,000 lx) and water temperature rise (from 20 °C to 25 °C) on the long term-toxicity of microplastics (MPs) to Daphnia magna were investigated. Three 21-day laboratory bioassays with model MPs (1–5 μm diameter) were carried out at (i) 20 °C/10830 lx, (ii) 20 °C/26000 lx, and (iii) 25 °C/10830 lx. In each bioassay, one control (no MPs) and three MP concentrations (0.04, 0.09, 0.19 mg/L) were tested. In all the bioassays, MPs caused parental and juvenile mortality, and reduced the somatic growth, reproduction and population growth rate. The MP EC50s on living offspring (95% confidence interval within brackets) were 0.146 mg/L (0.142–0.151 mg/L) at 20 °C/10830 lx, 0.102 mg/L (0.099–0.105 mg/L) at 20 °C/26000 lx, and 0.101 mg/L (0.098–0.104 mg/L) at 25 °C/10830 lx. Relatively to the respective control group, 0.19 mg/L of MPs decreased the mean of the population growth rate by 27% at 20 °C/10830 lx, 38% at 20 °C/26000 lx and 59% at 25 °C/10830 lx. Based on the population growth rate and in relation to 20 °C/10830 lx (control, no MPs), the interaction between increased light intensity (26,000 lx) and MPs was synergism (at all the MP concentrations tested). The interaction between water temperature rise (25 °C) and MPs was antagonism at 0.04 mg/L of MPs and synergism at 0.09 and 0.19 mg/L of MPs. In the present scenario of climate changes and global MP pollution such findings raise high concern because zooplankton communities are crucial for aquatic biodiversity conservation, ecosystem functioning and services provided to humans. Further studies on the combined effects of MPs, other common pollutants, and alterations due to climate changes are needed.
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•21-D exposure to microplastics (MP) ≥0.09 mg/L reduced D. magna population fitness.•At 20 °C, MP reduced the population fitness up to 27% (10,830 lx) or 38% (26,000 lx).•At 25 °C/10830 lx, MP decreased the population fitness up to 59%.•MP effects increased with light intensity (1.4 x) and temperature (2.2 x) rise.
The article presents the results of the analysis of electric scooter user kinematics after a crash against a vehicle. The share of electric scooters (e-scooters) in urban traffic has been growing in ...recent years. The number of road accidents involving e-scooters is also increasing. However, the safety situation of electric scooter users is insufficiently researched in terms of kinematics and injury outcomes. The article presents the importance of this problem based on an in-depth literature analysis of e-scooter-related types of accidents, injuries percentages, and helmet use. Subsequently, four accident scenarios were designed and simulated using two numerical codes-LS-DYNA for handling finite element (FE) code (the vehicle and scooter model) and MADYMO for multibody code (dummy model). Scenario one is a side bonnet crash that simulates an accident when the scooter drives into the side-front of the vehicle. The second and the third simulation is a side B-pillar crash, which was divided into two dummy's positions: the squat and up-right. The fourth simulation is a frontal impact. For each scenario, subsequent frames describing the dummy movement are presented. The after-impact kinematics for various scenarios were analyzed and discussed. The plots of the dummy's head linear acceleration and its magnitude for the analyzed scenarios were provided. As the study is devoted to increasing riders safety in this means of transportation, the potential directions for further research were indicated.
The primary outcome was to compare the effects of dopamine or epinephrine in severe sepsis on 28-day mortality; secondary outcomes were the rate of healthcare-associated infection, the need for other ...vasoactive drugs, and the multiple organ dysfunction score.
Double-blind, prospective, randomized controlled trial from February 1, 2009, to July 31, 2013.
PICU, Hospital Universitário da Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil.
Consecutive children who are 1 month to 15 years old and met the clinical criteria for fluid-refractory septic shock. Exclusions were receiving vasoactive drug(s) prior to hospital admission, having known cardiac disease, having already participated in the trial during the same hospital stay, refusing to participate, or having do-not-resuscitate orders.
Patients were randomly assigned to receive either dopamine (5-10 μg/kg/min) or epinephrine (0.1-0.3 μg/kg/min) through a peripheral or intraosseous line. Patients not reaching predefined stabilization criteria after the maximum dose were classified as treatment failure, at which point the attending physician gradually stopped the study drug and started another catecholamine.
Physiologic and laboratory data were recorded. Baseline characteristics were described as proportions and mean (± SD) and compared using appropriate statistical tests. Multiple regression analysis was performed, and statistical significance was defined as a p value of less than 0.05. Baseline characteristics and therapeutic interventions for the 120 children enrolled (63, dopamine; 57, epinephrine) were similar. There were 17 deaths (14.2%): 13 (20.6%) in the dopamine group and four (7%) in the epinephrine group (p=0.033). Dopamine was associated with death (odds ratio, 6.5; 95% CI, 1.1-37.8; p=0.037) and healthcare-associated infection (odds ratio, 67.7; 95% CI, 5.0-910.8; p=0.001). The use of epinephrine was associated with a survival odds ratio of 6.49.
Dopamine was associated with an increased risk of death and healthcare-associated infection. Early administration of peripheral or intraosseous epinephrine was associated with increased survival in this population. Limitations should be observed while interpreting these results.
Early microbial colonization has a profound impact on host physiology during different stages of ontogeny. Although several studies have focused on early bacterial colonization and succession, the ...composition and role of fungal communities are poorly known in fish. Here, we sequenced the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region of fungi to profile the mycobiome associated with the eggs, hatchlings and intestine of Atlantic salmon at various freshwater and marine stages. In most of the stages studied, fungal diversity was lower than bacterial diversity. There were several stage-specific fungal phylotypes belonging to different stages of ontogeny but some groups, such as Candida tropicalis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Alternaria metachromatica, Davidiella tassiana and Humicola nigrescens, persisted during successive stages of ontogeny. We observed significant changes in the intestinal fungal communities during the first feeding. Prior to first feeding, Humicola nigrescens dominated, but Saccharomyces cerevisiae (10 weeks post hatch) and Candida tropicalis (12 weeks post hatch) became dominant subsequently. Seawater transfer resulted in a decrease in alpha diversity and an increase in Candida tropicalis abundance. We also observed notable variations in beta diversity and composition between the different farms. Overall, the present study sheds light on the fungal communities of Atlantic salmon from early ontogeny to adulthood. These novel findings will also be useful in future studies investigating host-microbiota interactions in the context of developing better nutritional and health management strategies for Atlantic salmon farming.
•Breakfast cereals from Portuguese market revealed a high incidence of mycotoxins.•None of the analysed samples presented contents above the maximum legislated limits.•Different mycotoxins (two to ...seven) occurred simultaneously in breakfast cereals.•Twenty-two different combinations of mycotoxins were detected in breakfast cereals.
Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of fungi that cause toxic and carcinogenic effects. Human exposure to multiple mycotoxins constitutes an increasing health concern due to potential mycotoxins combined effects. The presence of mycotoxins mixtures in foodstuffs as cereals has been reported over the last years, but few studies are available concerning its occurrence in cereals primarily marketed for children, a particular vulnerable population group. The present study aims to assess the co-occurrence of twenty-one mycotoxins and metabolites present in breakfast cereals primarily marketed for children in Portugal. Results showed that 96% of the analysed breakfast cereal samples were contaminated with several mycotoxins. Twenty-two combinations were identified including two to seven different mycotoxins. Conclusions pointed out an urgent need to review legislative limits in food matrices consumed by children and to perform a more accurate risk assessment of children’s exposure to mycotoxins mixtures in food.
► Bligh and Dyer method assisted by ultrasound resulted in the highest extraction of oil. ► Addition of powder silica did not improve the extraction of oil. ► Diffusion mechanism was more important ...than cell rupture during extraction. ► Polar solvent systems improve the extraction of microalgae oil.
Microalgae have the ability to grow rapidly, synthesize and accumulate large amounts (approximately 20–50% of dry weight) of lipids. A successful and economically viable algae based oil industry will depend on the selection of appropriate microalgal strains and the selection of the most suitable lipid extraction method. In this paper, five extraction methods were evaluated regarding the extraction of lipids from Chlorella vulgaris: Bligh and Dyer, Chen, Folch, Hara and Radin, and Soxhlet. Furthermore, the addition of silica powder was studied to evaluate the introduction of more shear stress to the system as to increase the disruption of cell walls. Among the studied methods, the Bligh and Dyer method assisted by ultrasound resulted in the highest extraction of oil from C. vulgaris (52.5% w/w). Addition of powder silica did not improve the extraction of oil.
Indoor air quality (IAQ) parameters in 73 primary classrooms in Porto were examined for the purpose of assessing levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), aldehydes, particulate matter, ...ventilation rates and bioaerosols within and between schools, and potential sources. Levels of VOCs, aldehydes, PM2.5, PM10, bacteria and fungi, carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide, temperature and relative humidity were measured indoors and outdoors and a walkthrough survey was performed concurrently. Ventilation rates were derived from CO2 and occupancy data. Concentrations of CO2 exceeding 1000 ppm were often encountered, indicating poor ventilation. Most VOCs had low concentrations (median of individual species <5 μg/m3) and were below the respective WHO guidelines. Concentrations of particulate matter and culturable bacteria were frequently higher than guidelines/reference values. The variability of VOCs, aldehydes, bioaerosol concentrations, and CO2 levels between schools exceeded the variability within schools. These findings indicate that IAQ problems may persist in classrooms where pollutant sources exist and classrooms are poorly ventilated; source control strategies (related to building location, occupant behavior, maintenance/cleaning activities) are deemed to be the most reliable for the prevention of adverse health consequences in children in schools.
A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the simultaneous determination of bisphenol A (BPA) and tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) in different seafood samples was developed ...and validated. Sample preparation was based on a quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS)-based procedure through an extraction of target analytes with acidified acetonitrile (MeCN) added with inorganic salts (MgSO
4
, NaCl) followed by a liquid–liquid extraction (LLE) using hexane-tertbutylmethyl ether/hexane-benzene to eliminate matrix co-extracts. The developed method promotes a better removal of interferences than that achieved with the classic QuEChERS procedure. The method was validated following the guidelines of the European Union (EU) for relevant seafood matrices such as fish, mussel, and seaweed. Accuracy (81 % average of recovery), reproducibility (12 % average relative standard deviation for both intra-day and inter-day repeatability), and sensitivity for the target analytes (method detection limits of 0.07 ng/g wet weight (ww) and 0.06 ng/g ww for BPA and TBBPA, respectively) were evaluated for all the matrices studied.
Graphical Abstract
Simultaneous analysis of TBBPA and BPA in seaweeds, mussels and fish
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