Bioaccumulation as a method of removing psychoactive compounds from wastewater using aquatic plants.

Since WWTPs are not able to eliminate all psychoactive pharmaceuticals, these compounds become a part of the aquatic ecosystem. Our results indicate that compounds such as codeine or citalopram are eliminated with low efficiency (<38%), and compounds such as venlafaxine, oxazepam, or tramadol even with almost no efficiency. Lower elimination efficiency may be caused by the accumulation of these compounds in the wastewater treatment process. This study is focused on the possibility to remove problematic psychoactive compounds using aquatic plants. HPLC-MS analysis of the leaf extract obtained from studied plants showed that the amount of accumulated methamphetamine was highest in Pistia stratiotes and lower in the leaves of Limnophila sessiliflora and Cabomba caroliniana. However, tramadol and venlafaxine were accumulated considerably only in Cabomba caroliniana. Our study demonstrates that especially these three compounds - tramadol, venlafaxine, and methamphetamine, are accumulated in aquatic plants and can be removed from the aquatic environment. In our study was also observed that helophytic aquatic plants show a higher ability to remove psychoactive compounds from wastewater. Iris pseudacorus showed the best results in selected pharmaceuticals removal with no bioaccumulation effect in leaves or roots.

RESULTS OF CZECH NATIONAL STUDY OF RADIATION EXPOSURE FROM RADIOTHERAPY OF NON-MALIGNANT DISEASES, IN PARTICULAR OF HEEL SPURS.

About 26 000 patients are treated per year with radiotherapy for non-malignant diseases in the Czech Republic. Approximately 75% of them are treated on X-ray therapy units and most of these patients undergo radiotherapy of heel spurs. The evaluation of radiation exposure of these patients was based on measured organ doses and on data from clinical practice. Collective effective doses for particular diagnoses were calculated in order to compare doses resulting from different diagnoses treated on X-ray therapy units. The collective effective dose from radiotherapy of heel spurs in the Czech Republic in 2013 was evaluated to 77 manSv. It represents 25.6% of the total collective effective dose for all diagnoses of radiotherapy for non-malignant diseases treated on X-ray therapy units.

COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES FOR EVALUATION OF DOSE DISTRIBUTIONS IN RADIOTHERAPY USING RADIOCHROMIC EBT3 FILMS.

In radiotherapy, radiochromic films can be used for verification of delivery of dose distributions calculated by treatment planning systems. The main objective of this work was to compare three different techniques for evaluation of dose distributions for prostate cancer treatment plans using radiochromic EBT3 films. These techniques are: red channel evaluation taking into account only a response of irradiated film (R), red channel evaluation taking into account a response of unirradiated and irradiated film (Rcor) and multichannel evaluation in FilmQA software (RGB). Also comparison between film and MatriXX measurement was performed. Comparison showed that gamma analysis passing rates strongly depend on evaluation technique and on a model of scanner for digitizing films. The highest gamma passing rates were obtained with red channel evaluation taking into account a response of unirradiated and irradiated film using Epson V750 scanner (Rcor) and multichannel evaluation in FilmQA using Epson 11000XL scanner.

Organ and effective doses from verification techniques in image-guided radiotherapy.

The purpose of this work was an evaluation of organ doses and effective doses from three verification techniques in Image-Guided Radiotherapy: from kilovoltage (kV) cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans, from two orthogonal kV images and from two orthogonal megavoltage (MV) images for two different treatment sites: pelvis and head and neck (H&N). For comparison reasons, organ doses and effective doses from prostate and H&N radiotherapy were also evaluated. Measurements of organ doses were performed in a male anthropomorphic Rando phantom by means of thermoluminescent dosemeters. In this investigation, measured organ doses from one CBCT scan, from two MV images and from two kV images of pelvis represent typically 1-6, 1-10 and 0.05-1 %, respectively, of organ doses resulting from one fraction of prostate radiotherapy. The maximum effective doses from CBCT scans, kV images and MV images of pelvis are 5.6, 0.8 and 11.9 mSv, respectively.

Mutations of K-ras oncogene and absence of H-ras mutations in squamous cell carcinomas of the lung.

Mutations of the K-ras gene have been implicated in the pathogenesis of human lung adenocarcinomas. In most studies published so far, squamous cell lung cancers harbored ras mutations only exceptionally or no mutations were detected at all. We have examined 141 lung tumor DNA samples for mutations in codons 12, 13, and 61 of K-ras and H-ras oncogenes. A large panel of 118 squamous cell carcinomas was included in the study. For K-ras codon 12, we used a sensitive two-step PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism method which detects <1% of mutated DNA in the sample. K-ras mutations were found in 17 tumors (12%; 14 in codon 12 and 3 in codon 13). Among 19 adenocarcinomas, mutation was revealed in 7 samples (37%). Of these, one sample harbored two point mutations in codon 12. Nine mutational events were found in squamous cell carcinomas (8%, one adenosquamous carcinoma included, all in codon 12). Of four large cell carcinomas, one contained a mutation. Mutant-enriched PCR products harboring mutations were directly sequenced. Fifteen mutational events were G-->T transversions or G-->A transitions, one was a G-->C transition, and one sample revealed a frameshift deletion of one G from codon 12. Similar mutational spectrum was found in both squamous cell carcinomas and adenocarcinomas, suggesting similar carcinogenic pathways in both histological types of the tumor. The presence of mutations did not correlate with the stage of the disease. Moreover, we analyzed all samples for mutations in codons 12, 13, and 61 of the H-ras gene. We found only one mutation in codon 12. Thus, H-ras mutations apparently play an inferior role in lung carcinogenesis. We conclude that mutations of the K-ras oncogene can play a role in the development of not only lung adenocarcinomas but also of a subset (about 8%) of squamous cell carcinomas.

Hypomethylation of CCGG sites in the 3' region of H-ras protooncogene is frequent and is associated with H-ras allele loss in non-small cell lung cancer.

The methylation of MspI/HpaII sites flanking a variable tandem repeat in the 3' region of the c-Ha-ras protooncogene was analyzed in 74 DNA samples of non-small cell lung carcinomas and control lung tissues. Of 39 informative samples, 7 allelic deletions (18%) were found at the c-Ha-ras locus and of these, five (71%) showed hypomethylation of the nondeleted allele. Heterozygous DNA samples without allele loss revealed hypomethylation in 37% (12 of 32). Among 35 homozygotes, 9 showed hypomethylation (26%). We also analyzed c-Ha-ras mutations at codons 12, 13, and 61 by polymerase chain reaction and designed restriction fragment length polymorphism and found no mutation. Thus, c-Ha-ras mutations are not associated with the development of the detected abnormalities. We conclude that hypomethylation at specific sites in the 3' region is associated with loss of heterozygosity for the c-Ha-ras gene in non-small cell lung cancer. The finding that, in informative samples, hypomethylation occurs 2-3 times more frequently than allelic loss suggests that it might be a change contributing or predisposing to a genetic instability that can ultimately lead to c-Ha-ras allelic deletions found in tumor DNA.

[Comparison of absorbed doses from cobalt irradiation sources]. / Srovnání absorbovaných dávek od kobaltových ozarovacu.

A comparison of absorbed doses from medical cobalt beams was performed by means of thermoluminescent dosimeters at all radiotherapeutic workplaces in Czechoslovakia. At most workplaces (58%) the deviation from the reference primary etalon placed at the Institute of Radiation Dosimetry of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences was below 3%. Neither of the workplaces exhibited deviation higher than 5%, indicating a good level of clinical dosimetry.