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Literature reported drug poisoning as a major cause for visiting emergency departments, with various rates of occurrences across countries, regions, socioeconomic status, and cultures. Therefore, this study was conducted in Qassim to describe the sociodemographic patterns of acute drug poisoning as well as the most common drugs involved. A retrospective method of data collection was used employing medical record review for drug poisoning cases that occurred in the Qassim region during the 8 years from January 2008 to December 2015. Data was collected using a standardized, validated data collection sheet. The study failed to reveal any pattern (either decreasing or increasing) in the number of poisoning cases over time. Most cases (56.2%) of drug poisoning were accidental, caused by analgesics (35%), affected children younger than 5 years of age (41.4%), and occurred via ingestion (99.2%). It can be concluded that as most poisoning cases affected children, this highlights the importance of increasing awareness and educating families about the safe handling and storage of drugs out of reach of children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ghana is currently grappling with a formidable electronic waste (e-waste) challenge that poses significant threats to both the ecosystem and human well-being. This study delves into the e-waste management and recycling practices within a crucial sector of the industry, aiming to shed light on the issue and formulate comprehensive strategies for policy implementation and recycling initiatives in the Ho municipality, the regional hub of the Volta region, as well as in Ghana as a whole. Between March and May of 2022, a meticulous sampling process identified 150 electronic service technicians for participation. The data gathered was processed and analyzed using SPSS v16. The analytical techniques employed included one sample T-test, Likert scale assessments, and binary logistic regression. The results unveiled a significant gap in knowledge among repairers regarding government laws and e-waste disposal protocols. Qualifications emerged as a noteworthy factor influencing awareness levels (5.066, 95% CI: 1.098-3.860, p = 0.024, <0.05). While respondents generally acknowledged the environmental impact of e-waste, they exhibited limited awareness concerning the hazardous substances contained within it. Notably, two predominant e-waste management strategies surfaced: storage and eventual sale to scrap dealers. Regarding recycling methodologies, a majority (52%) expressed a preference for a nominal fee-based approach. These gaps highlight the need for stakeholders to publicize appropriate methods to recycle ewaste and the associated legal framework across all members of the Ghana Electronic Service Technicians' Association (GESTA) social media platforms in conjunction with local government assemblies to reshape repairers' perceptions of e-waste and increase environmental awareness, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Acute poisoning in children is an important public health problem. It is a significant paediatric emergency in both developing and developed countries, leading to preventable morbidity and mortality. While there is substantial research literature on acute childhood poisoning from developed countries, there is a lack of data from developing countries like India due to inadequate and poor surveillance of poisoning-related data. Aim: To investigate the clinical and epidemiological profile, as well as the outcome, of acute poisoning in children admitted to the paediatric emergency department of a tertiary care hospital in Northeast India. Materials and Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted in the Paediatrics department of Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dibrugarh, Assam, India, from April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022. All children under the age of 12 years who presented to the paediatric department with a history of exposure to toxic substances were included in the study. The admitted children were assessed in terms of demographic variables, type of poison, route of poisoning, time of presentation, circumstances of poisoning, storage place of poison, clinical presentation, and interventions provided. Data were presented as mean and frequency. Results: A total of 78 children under 12 years of age were enrolled in the study, with a mean age of three years and three months at presentation. The majority of cases (96.2%) involved accidental poisoning, while a small proportion (3.8%) was due to suicidal poisoning. Of the two reported cases of suicidal poisoning, one involved a male child and the other involved a female child. Both children were above six years of age. The most common causes of poisoning were kerosene (34.6%), organophosphorus compounds (10.3%), and liquid mosquito repellents (9.1%). Conclusion: This study revealed both unintentional and intentional poisoning cases, with a high prevalence of accidental poisoning observed in children below three years of age. Kerosene was identified as the most common cause of childhood poisoning.

Construction work sites and the surrounding built environments are notable contributors to atmosphere dust particulate matter (PM) emissions. PM produced in construction processes contain a range of chemically hazardous substances, posing significant health risks (HR) to individuals. As such, the evaluation of occupational HR in construction has become a focal point of interest internationally. Initiated in the early 2000s, there has been a growing demand within the construction research community for the creation of a unified PM database that encapsulates a wide array of construction activities. Previous studies have endeavored to establish a PM database for various construction contexts, yet they have fallen short in thoroughly addressing the diversity of construction materials and the levels of toxic substances (TS) within the PM. This research introduced a comprehensive PM and TS dataset and conducted a case study to measure the HR associated with diverse construction processes. This was accomplished by implementing a semi-automated Building Information Modeling (BIM) version 2020-based plugin, which streamlines the assessment of occupational HR in construction projects. This system provides construction supervisors with a tool to visually assess the HR of daily operations, thereby facilitating the adoption of preemptive measures to protect the health of construction workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Acute poisoning in children is an important public health problem. It is a significant paediatric emergency in both developing and developed countries, leading to preventable morbidity and mortality. While there is substantial research literature on acute childhood poisoning from developed countries, there is a lack of data from developing countries like India due to inadequate and poor surveillance of poisoning-related data. Aim: To investigate the clinical and epidemiological profile, as well as the outcome, of acute poisoning in children admitted to the paediatric emergency department of a tertiary care hospital in Northeast India. Materials and Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted in the Paediatrics department of Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dibrugarh, Assam, India, from April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022. All children under the age of 12 years who presented to the paediatric department with a history of exposure to toxic substances were included in the study. The admitted children were assessed in terms of demographic variables, type of poison, route of poisoning, time of presentation, circumstances of poisoning, storage place of poison, clinical presentation, and interventions provided. Data were presented as mean and frequency. Results: A total of 78 children under 12 years of age were enrolled in the study, with a mean age of three years and three months at presentation. The majority of cases (96.2%) involved accidental poisoning, while a small proportion (3.8%) was due to suicidal poisoning. Of the two reported cases of suicidal poisoning, one involved a male child and the other involved a female child. Both children were above six years of age. The most common causes of poisoning were kerosene (34.6%), organophosphorus compounds (10.3%), and liquid mosquito repellents (9.1%). Conclusion: This study revealed both unintentional and intentional poisoning cases, with a high prevalence of accidental poisoning observed in children below three years of age. Kerosene was identified as the most common cause of childhood poisoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Doxorubicin induces myocardial injury and fibrosis. Still, no effective interventions are available. AP39 is an H2S donor that explicitly targets mitochondria. This study investigated whether AP39 could improve doxorubicin-induced myocardial fibrosis. Doxorubicin induced significant myocardial fibrosis while suppressing mitophagy-related proteins and elevating pyroptosis-related proteins. Conversely, AP39 reverses these effects, enhancing mitophagy and inhibiting pyroptosis. In vitro experiments revealed that AP39 inhibited H9c2 cardiomyocyte pyroptosis, improved doxorubicin-induced impairment of mitophagy, reduced ROS levels, ameliorated the mitochondrial membrane potential, and upregulated AMPK-ULK1-FUNDC1 expression. In contrast, AMPK inhibitor (dorsomorphin) and ULK1 inhibitor (SBI-0206965) reversed AP39 antagonism of doxorubicin-induced FUNDC1-mediated impairment of mitophagy and secondary cardiomyocyte pyroptosis. These results suggest that mitochondria-targeted H2S can antagonize doxorubicin-induced pyroptosis and impaired mitophagy in cardiomyocytes via AMPK-ULK1-FUNDC1 and ameliorated myocardial fibrosis and remodeling.

Formaldehyde (CH₂O) is one of the significant chemicals mixed with different perishable fruits in Bangladesh. The fruits are artificially preserved for extended periods by dishonest vendors using this dangerous chemical. Such substances are complicated to detect in appearance. Hence, a reliable and robust detection technique is required. To overcome this challenge and address the issue, we introduce comprehensive deep learning-based techniques for detecting toxic substances. Four different types of fruits, both in fresh and chemically mixed conditions, are used in this experiment. We have applied diverse data augmentation techniques to enlarge the dataset. The performance of four different pre-trained deep learning models was then assessed, and a brand-new model named “DurbeenNet,” created especially for this task, was presented. The primary objective was to gauge the efficacy of our proposed model compared to well-established deep learning architectures. Our assessment centered on the models' accuracy in detecting toxic substances. According to our research, GoogleNet detected toxic substances with an accuracy rate of 85.53 %, VGG-16 with an accuracy rate of 87.44 %, DenseNet with an impressive accuracy rate of 90.37 %, and ResNet50 with an accuracy rate of 91.66 %. Notably, the proposed model, DurbeenNet, outshone all other models, boasting an impressive accuracy rate of 96.71 % in detecting toxic substances among the sample fruits.

Research characteristics and define toxic substances that remain in emergency clothing after fires in abandoned and demolition buildings. As a basic component of the integrated rescue system, members of the Fire and Rescue Service may be primarily or secondarily exposed to the effects of dangerous substances that penetrate the body as part of intervention activities. Personal protective equipment (PPE) used by firefighters can be characterized as a potential source of hazardous exposure to toxic contaminants commonly found and released during fires. The research task was to detect these contaminants in individual samples based on gas chromatography (GC) and subsequently to determine the decontamination methods of firefighters and PPE after an intervention. Based on a real intervention in an abandoned and demolished building where there was a fire, firefighters from individual fire stations intervened, where, as stated in the research, they intervened in the mentioned protective equipment. The amount of dangerous substances was determined based on gas chromatography in the Control and Chemical Laboratory of the Ministry of the Interior in the village of Jasov. The stated procedure was used to determine the amount of residual hazardous substances on emergency clothing and the procedures for possible elimination of the hazard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This study reviewed the negative impacts of artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM). This paper presents an examination of ASGM’s impact on health, with the scope of discussion covering human diseases and disorders, toxic substances, public and miners’ safety, environmental damage, socioeconomic conditions. This study contributes mitigation recommendations for ASGM in Indonesia. This research subject is important because there has not been an ASGM study that has reviewed these aspects in Indonesia. Discussion: Chronic diseases, acute diseases, infectious diseases, and disabilities can threaten local communities’ health and survival. Toxic heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and lead are difficult to avoid in ASGM, since they have a high level of use. Other pollutants generated by ASGM are noise and silicia dust. ASGM has caused accidents with a total of 36 minor injuries, an estimated 57 serious injuries, and 11 deaths. ASGM also causes water, soil, and air pollution; it is a threat to the geology of world heritage sites. ASGM has been proven to improve the community's economy in several parts of Indonesia. Conclusion: ASGM has proven to have a significant impact on public health, environmental sustainability, and the socioeconomic state of Indonesian society. In general, the lack of ASGM legitimization in Indonesia is an enabling factor for these impacts.

The increasing prevalence of toxic substance-exposure in pets in South Korea endangers the health and safety of numerous companion animals, and has become a cause for concern. Notably, the annual incidence of forensic analysis in pets has increased by more than 150% in South Korea, mainly in populous regions such as Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi. In response to this growing issue, veterinary forensic examinations were conducted on 549 dogs and cats from 2019 to 2022. This study revealed the presence of various toxic substances, including pesticides, insecticides, and drugs such as analgesics, anesthetics, antidepressants, and muscle relaxants, in pets. Among the 38 different toxins identified in pets, coumatetralyl, methomyl, terbufos, and buprofezin were the most frequently detected. In this study, toxic substances for pets were identified based on the “toxic agent list for humans,” developed by the National Forensic Services, because no list of toxic agents for animals currently exists and data regarding potentially toxic substances for dogs and cats is limited. This is one of the limitations of this study, and necessitates the establishment of a toxic agent list for animals. Continued monitoring and research is also recommended to reveal the incidence, causes, and solutions of toxicity in animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Actualités Pharmaceutiques is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: This study reviewed the negative impacts of artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM). This paper presents an examination of ASGM's impact on health, with the scope of discussion covering human diseases and disorders, toxic substances, public and miners' safety, environmental damage, socioeconomic conditions. This study contributes mitigation recommendations for ASGM in Indonesia. This research subject is important because there has not been an ASGM study that has reviewed these aspects in Indonesia. Discussion: Chronic diseases, acute diseases, infectious diseases, and disabilities can threaten local communities' health and survival. Toxic heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and lead are difficult to avoid in ASGM, since they have a high level of use. Other pollutants generated by ASGM are noise and silicia dust. ASGM has caused accidents with a total of 36 minor injuries, an estimated 57 serious injuries, and 11 deaths. ASGM also causes water, soil, and air pollution; it is a threat to the geology of world heritage sites. ASGM has been proven to improve the community's economy in several parts of Indonesia. Conclusion: ASGM has proven to have a significant impact on public health, environmental sustainability, and the socioeconomic state of Indonesian society. In general, the lack of ASGM legitimization in Indonesia is an enabling factor for these impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Construction work sites and the surrounding built environments are notable contributors to atmosphere dust particulate matter (PM) emissions. PM produced in construction processes contain a range of chemically hazardous substances, posing significant health risks (HR) to individuals. As such, the evaluation of occupational HR in construction has become a focal point of interest internationally. Initiated in the early 2000s, there has been a growing demand within the construction research community for the creation of a unified PM database that encapsulates a wide array of construction activities. Previous studies have endeavored to establish a PM database for various construction contexts, yet they have fallen short in thoroughly addressing the diversity of construction materials and the levels of toxic substances (TS) within the PM. This research introduced a comprehensive PM and TS dataset and conducted a case study to measure the HR associated with diverse construction processes. This was accomplished by implementing a semi-automated Building Information Modeling (BIM) version 2020-based plugin, which streamlines the assessment of occupational HR in construction projects. This system provides construction supervisors with a tool to visually assess the HR of daily operations, thereby facilitating the adoption of preemptive measures to protect the health of construction workers.

This study aimed to assess the food frequency and health-related risk behaviors based on gender and major of study (health and non-health majors) in a sample of undergraduate university students. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 708 undergraduate university students (37.4% males; 62.6% females) with a mean age of 20.88(SD = 2.20), ranging from 18 to 37 years from five universities. A self-reported questionnaire was administered in the university classrooms to collect data. Results showed that 47.3% of students reported consuming fruits and vegetables (38.1%), and 54% reported consuming unhealthy foods at least once in the preceding 24 h. About 16% of the students were cigarette smokers, 17% were waterpipe smokers, and slightly more than 4% were alcohol consumers. Significant associations were found between the participants based on their sexes, and study majors (P

Copyright of Baghdad Science Journal is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Marine microplastic pollution and plastic pollution are two different things but they are related. In the past 10 years, several countries and regions have issued a ban on microbeads. We analyze the above countries or regions according to three aspects: whether there is special legislation for marine microplastic pollution, the subject of the regulations, and the prevention and control measures. The common feature of the policy documents of these countries is that they target the ban of only microbeads and no other types of microplastics. Based on a comparative study, we found three dilemmas in the regulation of marine microplastic pollution. We conducted a comparative analysis of the legislation or policy documents of the above-mentioned countries and regions in order to identify how they solve the above difficulties. We summarized three legislative and policy regulation models and analyzed their respective advantages. Based on legal theories and empirical methods, some observations and suggestions are made regarding the regulation of primary and secondary microplastic pollution, especially in China's situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Günlük hayatta tüketilen pek çok gıda, kozmetik ve tekstil ürünü ile yapım ve üretim aşamalarında kullanılan binlerce kimyasal maddeye maruz kalınmaktadır. Bu kimyasal maddelerin çoğunluğu sağlık açısından yeterince araştırılmış ve etkileri ortaya konmuş değildir. Üreticilerin yaklaşımı “zararlı olduğu kanıtlanmadıkça kullanımı uygundur” görüşüdür ki, bu oldukça risk teşkil eden bir yaklaşımdır. İşlem gören bir üründekullanılan kimyasal maddeler, eser miktarlarda bulundukları için toksik etki göstermeyebilir. Ancak paketli ve işlenmiş gıda ürünleri, kozmetikler, giysiler gibi pek çok yoldan bu kimyasal maddelere maruz kalındığındavücuda alınan miktar artmakta ve toksik etki görülebilmektedir. Gıda üretim aşamalarında kullanılan pestisitler, hormonlar ve gübreler, işlenmiş gıdalarda yer alan boyalar, akrilamid, nitrozaminler, fitalatlar ve şeker olarak sunulan aspartam, TiO2, kozmetik ürünlerde ve giysilerin üretiminde de karşımıza çıkmaktadır. Bugün yaygın görülen alerji, otoümmin hastalıklar, kanser gibi pek çok hastalık artık bu kimyasallar ile ilişkilendirilmektedir. Bu çalışma ile gıda, kozmetik ve tekstil ürünlerinde kullanılan zararlı kimyasalların insan sağlığına etkileri değerlendirilmiştir. Bu sayede literatürde tek tek ele alınan zararlı kimyasalların etkileri holistik bir yaklaşımla ele alınmıştır.

Chromium (Cr) pollution may threaten food safety in China. In this study, the concentration, pollution level, distribution, and non-cancer risk of Cr in wheat grains grown in 186 areas across 28 provinces in China were investigated. Results indicated that mean concentration of Cr was 0.28 ± 2.5 mg/kg, dry mass (dm). Of the samples, 7.5 % were found to be polluted with Cr. The mean concentrations were in the following order: Northwest > Northeast > South > East > North > Southwest > Central China. Based on deterministic models, mean hazard quotient (HQ) values for adult males, adult females, and children were 0.11 ± 3.4, 0.11 ± 3.4, and 0.13 ± 3.5, respectively with < 6 % of HQ values ≥ 1. Eleven sites in northern China were identified as hotspots, whereas Gansu Province and Northwestern China were labeled as priority provinces and regions for risk control. The mean HQ values estimated by probabilistic risk assessment were two times greater than those estimated using deterministic models. The risk probabilities for adult males, adult females, and children were 4.81 %, 3.78 %, and 6.55 %, respectively. This study provides valuable information on Cr pollution in wheat grains and its risks at a national scale in China. [Display omitted] • First national-scale investigation of Cr in wheat grains and health risks. • Cr pollution and deterministic and probabilistic health risks were assessed. • Hotspots, priority provinces and regions for risk control were identified. • 7.5 % of wheat grains polluted; 3.78–6.55 % of inhabitants at non-cancer risks. • Children were not undergoing larger risk than adult males/females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, food safety incidents have been frequently reported. Food or raw materials themselves contain substances that may endanger human health and are called toxic and harmful substances in food, which can be divided into endogenous, exogenous toxic, and harmful substances and biological toxins. Therefore, realizing the rapid, efficient, and nondestructive testing of toxic and harmful substances in food is of great significance to ensure food safety and improve the ability of food safety supervision. Among the nondestructive detection methods, infrared spectroscopy technology has become a powerful solution for detecting toxic and harmful substances in food with its high efficiency, speed, easy operation, and low costs, while requiring less sample size and is nondestructive, and has been widely used in many fields. In this review, the concept and principle of IR spectroscopy in food are briefly introduced, including NIR and FTIR. Then, the main progress and contribution of IR spectroscopy are summarized, including the model's establishment, technical application, and spectral optimization in grain, fruits, vegetables, and beverages. Moreover, the limitations and development prospects of detection are discussed. It is anticipated that infrared spectroscopy technology, in combination with other advanced technologies, will be widely used in the whole food safety field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revue Académique des Études Sociales et Humaines is the property of Hassif Benbouali University of Chlef and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: in Mali, there are no data on the prevalence of mental disorders. The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical and epidemiological features of patients hospitalised in the Department of Psychiatry. Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional study in the Department of Psychiatry at the University Hospital of Point G between January 2014 and December 2018. Data were collected from the medical records of 1105 patients hospitalised for psychiatric disorders. Results: the average age of patients was 32.6 ± 11.1 years, ranging from 13 to 82 years. Male patients accounted for 83.8% (926/1105) of enrolled subjects, 53.2% (588/1105) were single, 18.8% (208/1105) were not employed and 28.2% (310/1105) had primary education. Seventy-four percent (818/1105) had a history of psychiatric disorders, 22.7% (251/1105) were born to consanguineous parents. Drug use was reported in 42.9% (474/1105) of cases, including tobacco 32.6% (361/1105), cannabis 26.0% (287/1105) and/or alcohol 15.6% (172/1105). The demand for care came from families in 87.5% (967/1105) of cases. Aggression was the most common reason for consultation (44.5%; 492/1105). In 67.8% (749/1105) of cases, the diagnosis was schizophrenia, schizotypic disorders or delusional disorders. The first use of care was traditional in 58.7% (649/1105) of cases. Conclusion: people hospitalised for psychiatric disorders from 2014 to 2018 were predominantly young and male with a history of psychiatric disorders. They mainly had schizophrenia, schizotypic disorders and delusional disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of State & Society / Państwo i Społeczeństwo is the property of Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski Krakow University, AFM Publishing Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Duzce University Journal of Science & Technology is the property of Duzce University Journal of Science & Technology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Unrealistic steady-state assumptions are often used to estimate toxicant exposure rates from biomarkers. A biomarker may instead be modeled as a weighted sum of historical time-varying exposures. Estimating equations are derived for a zero-inflated gamma distribution for daily exposures with a known exposure frequency. Simulation studies suggest that the estimating equations can provide accurate estimates of exposure magnitude at any reasonable sample size, and reasonable estimates of the exposure variance at larger sample sizes.

The function of odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) in insect chemodetection has been extensively studied. However, the role of OBPs in the defense of insects against exogenous toxic substances remains elusive. The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, a major pest of stored grains, causes serious economic losses for the agricultural grain and food processing industries. Here, biochemical analysis showed that essential oil (EO) from Artemisia vulgaris, a traditional Chinese medicine, has a strong contact killing effect against larvae of the red flour beetle. Furthermore, one OBP gene, TcOBPC11, was significantly induced after exposure to EO. RNA interference (RNAi) against TcOBPC11 led to higher mortality compared with the controls after EO treatment, suggesting that this OBP gene is associated with defense of the beetle against EO and leads to a decrease in sensitivity to the EO. Tissue expression profiling showed that expression of TcOBPC11 was higher in the fat body, Malpighian tubule, and hemolymph than in other larval tissues, and was mainly expressed in epidermis, fat body, and antennae from the early adult. The developmental expression profile revealed that expression of TcOBPC11 was higher in late larval stages and adult stages than in other developmental stages. These data indicate that TcOBPC11 may be involved in sequestration of exogenous toxicants in the larvae of T. castaneum. Our results provide a theoretical basis for the degradation mechanism of exogenous toxicants and identify potential novel targets for controlling the beetle.

In recent years, food safety incidents have been frequently reported. Food or raw materials themselves contain substances that may endanger human health and are called toxic and harmful substances in food, which can be divided into endogenous, exogenous toxic, and harmful substances and biological toxins. Therefore, realizing the rapid, efficient, and nondestructive testing of toxic and harmful substances in food is of great significance to ensure food safety and improve the ability of food safety supervision. Among the nondestructive detection methods, infrared spectroscopy technology has become a powerful solution for detecting toxic and harmful substances in food with its high efficiency, speed, easy operation, and low costs, while requiring less sample size and is nondestructive, and has been widely used in many fields. In this review, the concept and principle of IR spectroscopy in food are briefly introduced, including NIR and FTIR. Then, the main progress and contribution of IR spectroscopy are summarized, including the model’s establishment, technical application, and spectral optimization in grain, fruits, vegetables, and beverages. Moreover, the limitations and development prospects of detection are discussed. It is anticipated that infrared spectroscopy technology, in combination with other advanced technologies, will be widely used in the whole food safety field.

The function of odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) in insect chemodetection has been extensively studied. However, the role of OBPs in the defense of insects against exogenous toxic substances remains elusive. The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum , a major pest of stored grains, causes serious economic losses for the agricultural grain and food processing industries. Here, biochemical analysis showed that essential oil (EO) from Artemisia vulgaris , a traditional Chinese medicine, has a strong contact killing effect against larvae of the red flour beetle. Furthermore, one OBP gene, TcOBPC11 , was significantly induced after exposure to EO. RNA interference (RNAi) against TcOBPC11 led to higher mortality compared with the controls after EO treatment, suggesting that this OBP gene is associated with defense of the beetle against EO and leads to a decrease in sensitivity to the EO. Tissue expression profiling showed that expression of TcOBPC11 was higher in the fat body, Malpighian tubule, and hemolymph than in other larval tissues, and was mainly expressed in epidermis, fat body, and antennae from the early adult. The developmental expression profile revealed that expression of TcOBPC11 was higher in late larval stages and adult stages than in other developmental stages. These data indicate that TcOBPC11 may be involved in sequestration of exogenous toxicants in the larvae of T. castaneum. Our results provide a theoretical basis for the degradation mechanism of exogenous toxicants and identify potential novel targets for controlling the beetle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extinction and persistent property of a two species noautonomous nonlinear competitive system is revisited in this paper. By constructing some suitable Lyapunov type extinction function, several set of new conditions which ensure that one of the components will be driven to extinction are established. By applying the differential inequality theory, two set of sufficient conditions which ensure the permanence of the system are obtained. It seems very amazing that the dynamic behaviors of the system is similar to the system without nonlinear constants, that is, αi, α2 have no influence on the extinct and persistent property of the system. Our results supplement and complement the results of Li and Chen[Extinction in two dimensional nonautonomous Lotka- Volterra systems with the effect of toxic substances, Applied Mathematics and Computation, 182(2006)684-690] and Chen et al. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Medicina Neotloznyh Sostoanij is the property of Zaslavsky O.Yu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Doxorubicin induces myocardial injury and fibrosis. Still, no effective interventions are available. AP39 is an H 2 S donor that explicitly targets mitochondria. This study investigated whether AP39 could improve doxorubicin-induced myocardial fibrosis. Doxorubicin induced significant myocardial fibrosis while suppressing mitophagy-related proteins and elevating pyroptosis-related proteins. Conversely, AP39 reverses these effects, enhancing mitophagy and inhibiting pyroptosis. In vitro experiments revealed that AP39 inhibited H9c2 cardiomyocyte pyroptosis, improved doxorubicin-induced impairment of mitophagy, reduced ROS levels, ameliorated the mitochondrial membrane potential, and upregulated AMPK-ULK1-FUNDC1 expression. In contrast, AMPK inhibitor (dorsomorphin) and ULK1 inhibitor (SBI-0206965) reversed AP39 antagonism of doxorubicin-induced FUNDC1-mediated impairment of mitophagy and secondary cardiomyocyte pyroptosis. These results suggest that mitochondria-targeted H 2 S can antagonize doxorubicin-induced pyroptosis and impaired mitophagy in cardiomyocytes via AMPK-ULK1-FUNDC1 and ameliorated myocardial fibrosis and remodeling., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Formaldehyde (CH₂O) is one of the significant chemicals mixed with different perishable fruits in Bangladesh. The fruits are artificially preserved for extended periods by dishonest vendors using this dangerous chemical. Such substances are complicated to detect in appearance. Hence, a reliable and robust detection technique is required. To overcome this challenge and address the issue, we introduce comprehensive deep learning-based techniques for detecting toxic substances. Four different types of fruits, both in fresh and chemically mixed conditions, are used in this experiment. We have applied diverse data augmentation techniques to enlarge the dataset. The performance of four different pre-trained deep learning models was then assessed, and a brand-new model named "DurbeenNet," created especially for this task, was presented. The primary objective was to gauge the efficacy of our proposed model compared to well-established deep learning architectures. Our assessment centered on the models' accuracy in detecting toxic substances. According to our research, GoogleNet detected toxic substances with an accuracy rate of 85.53 %, VGG-16 with an accuracy rate of 87.44 %, DenseNet with an impressive accuracy rate of 90.37 %, and ResNet50 with an accuracy rate of 91.66 %. Notably, the proposed model, DurbeenNet, outshone all other models, boasting an impressive accuracy rate of 96.71 % in detecting toxic substances among the sample fruits., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests:Abdus Sattar reports administrative support and equipment, drugs, or supplies were provided by Daffodil International University. Abdus Sattar reports a relationship with Daffodil International University that includes: non-financial support. In summary, our research on university teachers’ job satisfaction in Bangladesh was conducted professionally, ethically, and with scientific integrity. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

An evaluation method that can express the local leakage of leachate from joint sections in steel pipe sheet pile (SPSP) cutoff walls is discussed in this study. In particular, the evaluation of environmental feasibility (containment of leachates containing toxic substances) considering a three-dimensional arrangement and hydraulic conductivity distribution of the joint sections in the SPSP cutoff wall is compared with an evaluation that generally uses the equivalent hydraulic conductivity. This equivalent hydraulic conductivity assumes that the joint section and the steel pipe are integrated; therefore, the hydraulic conductivity is substituted with a uniform permeable layer. However, in an evaluation that employs the equivalent hydraulic conductivity, it is difficult to consider the local leakage of leachate containing toxic substances from the joint sections in the SPSP cutoff wall. This paper concluded that evaluations of the environmental feasibilities of the SPSP cutoff walls with joint sections must take into account the local leakage of leachates containing toxic substances from the joint section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information and communication technologies are in connection with security discussed by professional community from many perspectives. The authors perceive information and communication technologies as potential as well as threat to the security environment. The aim of the article is to holistically analyze the basic connection between the information framework and functionality of the critical infrastructure system involved in the activities of the public administration. As a model case is discussed the protection of critical infrastructure against toxic substances. Turbulence of the security environment, conflict transformation into hybrid or asymmetric forms and, as it is proven in the article, a crucial position of informatics in these processes makes this a very actual topic.

In the past two decades, the waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) management has become an important environmental issue internationally because it contained hazardous substances like heavy metals and brominated flame retardants. Moreover, some valuable substances were used in the electrical and electronic products, thus representing a circular industry for recycling of WEEE. Therefore, the Taiwan government formulated a legal WEEE recycling system since 1998 in response to the international trends of sustainable waste management and extended producer responsibility (EPR). This article adopted the national statistics in Taiwan regarding the online reporting amounts of collected WEEE since it has been officially designated as one of the mandatory recyclable wastes. Furthermore, the regulatory measures were addressed to update the status and subsidiary fee rates of WEEE recycling in Taiwan. In addition, this article also put emphasis on the regulations governing the toxic chemical substances contained in the WEEE. It showed that the average annual recycling amounts of home electronic appliances, information technology products and lighting in Taiwan during the 2017–2018 were around 117,000, 18,000 and 4500 metric tons, respectively. It was also indicated that the current WEEE recycling market in Taiwan has become saturated, reflecting the regulatory promulgation and promotional measures successfully. In response to the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and the Minamata Convention on Mercury, the Taiwan government declared some brominated flame retardants and heavy metals (i.e., mercury and cadmium) as a “toxic chemical substance” under the Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substance Control Act (TCCSCA), which shall be prohibited to use in the preparation of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) since 1 January 2016. Through the central governing authority, local governments, and private recyclers in Taiwan, the successful WEEE recycling system not only reduce the pressure on sanitary disposal systems, but also prevent the chemical hazards from solid waste incineration systems. More significantly, the WEEE recycling in Taiwan echoed the United Nations (UN) Agenda 2030 for sustainable development goals.

Copyright of Medicina Neotloznyh Sostoanij is the property of Zaslavsky O.Yu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We investigated the effects of toxic wastewater generated during the production of phenol-acetone on activated sludge and tested pretreatment methods to selectively remove the toxicity. We found that the microbial activity in the activated sludge was inhibited by the wastewater, in which cumene hydroperoxide (CHP) with a medium effective concentration (EC50) of 225 mg L−1 was the main toxic substance. We tested one pretreatment method with ferrous iron to selectively remove the CHP. The CHP decomposition process, which mainly produced acetophenone, was very quick. The CHP was selectively transformed into low-toxicity organics, and a maximum of 92% was removed when 1.08 mmol L−1 of ferrous iron was added, for a reaction time of 10 min, a pH of 5, and a temperature of 25 °C, and the resulting wastewater only slightly inhibited the oxygen uptake rate of activated sludge. The acclimation of activated sludge was accelerated, and a COD removal rate of more than 85% was achieved within a week. Our results confirm that ferrous iron provides a cost-effective method to selectively remove toxins from wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Forensic Science & Technology is the property of Institute of Forensic Science, Ministry of Public Security and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study determined nutrients, chemical contaminants, (insecticide residues and heavy metals), and natural toxic substances (nitrate, nitrite, cyanide, oxalate, phytate, and trypsin inhibitor) in tubers of Jerusalem artichokes—Kaentawan in the Thai language—grown in four major provinces in Thailand. They were purchased, prepared, homogenized, and freeze-dried for further analysis using standard methods. All Kaentawan samples contained considerable amounts of fructans and dietary fiber (15.4±0.2 g and 3.2±0.8 g/100 g fresh weight [FW], respectively), as well as potassium and iron (339±61 and 0.32±0.05 mg/100 g FW, respectively). All samples had very low amounts of insecticide residues (37 compounds), cyanide, and trypsin inhibitor, as well as Pb, Cd, nitrate, and nitrite (0.82±0.09, 0.10±0.02, 1.9–17.5, and 0.01–0.24 mg kg −1 FW, respectively), in addition to oxalate and phytate (14±9 and 0.17±0.02 mg/100 g FW, respectively). This study’s data can be used for food composition databases and for safety consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Groundwater is a critical water source, and was investigated from a coastal plain of southern China to reveal its hydrochemical constrains on water supply from phreatic aquifers of humid regions. Groundwater is dominantly fresh but with a relatively large TDS variation of 59-5,800 mg/L. Groundwater chemical composition is complex and presents variable hydrochemical facies from HCO 3 -Ca to Cl Na type. Nitrogen and trace elements in groundwater exceed the desirable drinking limits and may pose health risks to all populations through oral pathways. Nitrogen and Mn are the dominant health threats. Groundwater has a large variation of integrated water quality with the EWQI in the range of 11–1179, but is predominantly (84.78%) excellent to medium quality and suitable for domestic usages. The piedmonts are the ideal areas for groundwater exploitation as groundwater presenting good to poor quality trend from the piedmont downstream-wards. Groundwater hydrochemistry is naturally governed by rock-water interactions, and sporadically regulated by evaporation. Agricultural practices and sporadic municipal sewages input nitrogen and major chemicals into groundwater and result in salinity and quality deterioration. Groundwater exceeding F, I, Fe and Mn are derived from geogenic sources. Both anthropogenic and geogenic toxic substances should be concerned in long-terms groundwater supply • Groundwater availability is chemically constrained by the exceeding toxic substances in humid regions. • Groundwater quality presents a deterioration trend from the piedmonts to the downstream areas. • Human activities are responsible for the elevated nitrogen and salinity contents of groundwater. • The piedmonts are the ideal areas for groundwater exploitation in humid regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]