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The COVID-19 pandemic had huge impacts on the global world, with both a negative impact on society and economy but a positive one on nature. But this universal effect resulted in different infection rates from country to country. We analyzed the relationship between the pandemic and ecological, economic, and social conditions. All of these data were collected in 140 countries at six time points. Correlations were studied using univariate and multivariate regression models. The world was interpreted as a single global ecosystem consisting of ecosystem units representing countries. We first studied 140 countries around the world together, and infection rates were related to per capita GDP, Ecological Footprint, median age, urban population, and Biological Capacity, globally. We then ranked the 140 countries according to infection rates. We created four groups with 35 countries each. In the first group of countries, the infection rate was very high and correlated with the Ecological Footprint (consumption) and GDP per capita (production). This group is dominated by developed countries, and their ecological conditions have proved to be particularly significant. In country groups 2, 3, and 4, infection rates were high, medium, and low, respectively, and were mainly related to median age and urban population. In the scientific discussion, we have interpreted why infection rates are very high in developed countries. Sustainable ecosystems are balanced, unlike the ecosystems of developed countries. The resilience and the health of both natural ecosystems and humans are closely linked to the world of microbial communities, the microbiomes of the biosphere. It is clear that both the economy and society need to be in harmony with nature, creating sustainable ecosystems in developed countries as well.

An HPLC method has been developed for determination of RAMEB in soil samples contaminated with hydrocarbons. The extraction efficiency of RAMEB from soils was found to depend on the soil properties. The extraction method elaborated results in a good recovery from sandy and loamy soils, but only a poor recovery was obtained from soils of high clay content.A SPE method was worked out to remove the components disturbing the HPLC analysis, and a one-peak method has been developed for the quantitative analyses. The isomer distribution of RAMEB was characterized by fingerprint chromatograms. The new methods have been applied for determination of RAMEB content in soil samples from field treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]