Isolation and identification of 1,3,6,8-tetrabromocarbazole - degrading bacteria.

Halogenated carbazoles are a new class of persistent organic pollutants with dioxin-like toxicity, and this study focused on the microbial degradation of 1,3,6,8-tetrabromocarbazole. In this study, a novel 1,3,6,8-tetrabromocarbazole (1,3,6,8-TBCZ) degrading strain TB-1 was isolated from contaminated soil and identified as Achromobacter sp. based on its 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, morphological, physiological, and biochemical characteristics. The soil sample was collected from a pharmaceutical factory in Suzhou, China. The strain was able to effectively degrade 1 mg L-1 1,3,6,8-TBCZ in 7 d at pH 7.0 and 30 °C with 80% degradation rate. During the process, the intermediate metabolites were identified as Tribromocarbazole, dibromocarbazole and bromocarbazole via gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results indicated that strain TB-1 may contribute to the bioremediation of polyhalogenated carbazoles (PHCs) in contaminated environment.

All-Nanofiber-Based Janus Epidermal Electrode with Directional Sweat Permeability for Artifact-Free Biopotential Monitoring.

Epidermal electronics have been developed with gas/sweat permeability for long-term wearable electrophysiological monitoring. However, the state-of-the-art breathable epidermal electronics ignore the sweat accumulation and immersion at the skin/device interface, resulting in serious degradation of the interfacial conformality and adhesion, leading to signal artifacts with unstable and inaccurate biopotential measurements. Here, the authors present an all-nanofiber-based Janus epidermal electrode endowed with directional sweat transport properties for artifact-free biopotential monitoring. The designed Janus multilayered membrane (≈15 µm) of superhydrophilic-hydrolyzed-polyacrylonitrile (HPAN)/polyurethane (PU)/Ag nanowire (AgNW) can quickly (less than 5 s) drive sweat away from the skin/electrode interface while resisting its penetration in the reverse direction. Along with the medical adhesive (MA)-reinforced junction-nodes, the adhesion strength among the heterogeneous interfaces can be greatly enhanced for robust mechanical-electrical stability. Therefore, their measured on-body electromyography (EMG) and electrocardiography (ECG) signals are free of sweat artifacts with negligible degradation and baseline drift compared to commercial Ag/AgCl gel electrodes and hydrophilic textile electrodes. This work paves a way to design novel directional-sweat-permeable epidermal electronics that can be conformally attached under sweaty conditions for long-term biopotential monitoring and shows the potential to apply epidermal electronics to many challenging conditions.

Stable epidermal electronic device with strain isolation induced by in situ Joule heating.

Epidermal electronics play increasingly important roles in human-machine interfaces. However, their efficient fabrication while maintaining device stability and reliability remains an unresolved challenge. Here, a facile in situ Joule heating method is proposed for fabricating stable epidermal electronics on a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) substrate. Benefitting from the precise control of heating locations, the crystallization and enhanced rigidity of PVA are restricted to desired areas, leading to strain isolation of the active regions. As a result, the electronic device can be conformably attached to skin while showing negligible degradation in device performance during deformation. Based on this method, a flexible surface electromyography (sEMG) sensor with outstanding stability and highly comfortable wearability is demonstrated, showing high accuracy (91.83%) for human hand gesture recognition. These results imply that the fabrication method proposed in this research is a facile and reliable approach for the fabrication of epidermal electronics.

Soft Electrochemical Actuators with a Two-Dimensional Conductive Metal-Organic Framework Nanowire Array.

Electrically activated soft actuators capable of large deformation are powerful and broadly applicable in multiple fields. However, designing soft actuators that can withstand a high strain, provide a large actuation displacement, and exhibit stable reversibility are still the main challenges toward their practical application. Here, for the first time, we report a two-dimensional (2D) conductive metal-organic framework (MOF) based electrochemical actuator, which consists of vertically oriented and hierarchical Ni-CAT NWAs/CNF electrodes through the use of a facile one-step in situ hydrothermal growth method. The soft actuator prepared in this study demonstrated improvements in actuation performance and benefits from both the intrinsically ordered porous architecture and efficient transfer pathways for fast ion and electron transport; furthermore, this actuator facilitated a considerably high diffusion rate and low interfacial resistance. In particular, the actuator demonstrated a rapid response (<19 s) at a 3 V DC input, large actuation displacement (12.1 mm), and a correspondingly high strain of 0.36% under a square-wave AC voltage of ±3 V. Specifically, the actuator achieved a broad-band frequency response (0.1-20 Hz) and long-term cyclability in air (10000 cycles) with a negligible degradation in actuation performance. Our work demonstrates new opportunities for bioinspired artificial actuators and overcomes current limitations in electrode materials for soft robotics and bionics.

[Characterization and optimization of a heterotrophic bacterium for sulfide degradation].

The emission of hydrogen sulfide in the waste gas from slaughter plant, fishmeal feed processing and some other food industrial processing could cause serious air pollution to the surrounding environment. The purpose of this study was to screen heterotrophic bacterium strains for the removal of hydrogen sulfide odor. One heterotrophic bacterial mutant ZJNB-B3 was derived from the sulfide degrader Bacillus cereus XJ-2 and its sulfide removal efficiency was 97%. Based on the morphology studies, biochemical tests and 16S rRNA gene analysis, the strain was identified as Bacillus cereus ZJNB-B3. The NCBI GenBank accession number is MF679650. Batch tests showed that the strain tolerated up to 300 mg/L of toxic S²â» concentration. Response surface methodology was applied to optimize the conditions of degradation of sulfide. The optimal parameters were as follows: initial sulfide concentration 211.8 mg/L, initial pH 6.72, inoculum volume 5.04%, and incubation temperature 30 ℃. The accumulated sulfate concentration was 63.8 mg/L and the sulfide removal efficiency was 97.3% after 48 h incubation. No sulfuric acid was generated during sulfide oxidation by the strain. Sulfide could be removed effectively by this strain under mild pH conditions. The results suggested that the strain may have great industrial application potential. This study provides the fundamentals for the removal of hydrogen sulfide gas.

Identification of a yeast strain able to oxidize and remove sulfide high efficiently.

Hydrogen sulfide is a common odor gas of volatile sulfur-containing compound. The emission of hydrogen sulfide in the waste gas from industrial processing and agricultural operations could cause air pollution to the surrounding environment. The aim of this study was screening and isolation of wild yeast strains from the sludge of sewage pool in the fishmeal processing plant to remove hydrogen sulfide odor. A yeast strain ZJY-7 was obtained. Its hydrogen sulfide removal efficiency was 97.1 %. The morphology studies were investigated using microscope and scanning electron microscope. The yeast isolate was then identified by biochemical tests using API 20 C AUX strip and sequencing 26S rDNA genes. Both biochemical tests analysis and the molecular identification indicated that the yeast isolate ZJY-7 was Candida tropicalis ZJY-7. The NCBI GenBank accession number is KX259479. Batch tests showed that the yeast strain tolerated up to 300 mg/l of dissolved S2- concentration. The yeast also tolerated a wide pH range (2.5-9.0). The optimal initial sulfide concentration of C. tropicalis ZJY-7 on sulfide oxidation and sulfate generation was 200 mg/l, and at initial pH value 6. The highest accumulated sulfate was 91.8 mg/l at 48 h. These results broadened the range of sulfide-oxidizing organism and new application of C. tropicalis on the control of hydrogen sulfide odor pollution. The yeast may have potential to be used in bioreactor for removal of hydrogen sulfide gas.

A new online monitoring and management system for accidental pollution events developed for the regional water basin in Ningbo, China.

Due to urgency of the accidental pollution events (APE) on one side and the variability in water quality data on the other side, a new online monitoring and management system (OMMS) was developed for the purpose of sustainable water quality management and human health protection as well. The Biological Early Warning System (BEWS) based on the behavioral responses (behavior strength) of medaka (Oryzias latipes) were built in combination with the physico-chemical factor monitoring system (PFMS) in OMMS. OMMS included a monitoring center and six monitoring stations. Communication between the center and the peripheral stations was conducted by the General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) network transmission complemented by a dial-up connection for use when GPRS was unavailable. OMMS could monitor water quality continuously for at least 30 days. Once APEs occurred, OMMS would promptly notify the administrator to make some follow up decisions based on the Emergency Treatment of APE. Meanwhile, complex behavioral data were analyzed by Self-Organizing Map to properly classify behavior response data before and after contamination. By utilizing BEWS, PFMS and the modern data transmission in combination, OMMS was efficient in monitoring the water quality more realistically.

[Effects of L-arginine on the microcirculation of rat island skin flaps after ischemia- reperfusion].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of L-arginine on the microcirculation and survival of rat island skin flaps after ischemia-reperfusion. METHOD: A right lower abdominal island flap was created in SD rats and the microcirculatory blood flow in these flaps measured with laser Doppler velocimetry following L-arginine injection via the contralateral femoral artery. Both NO and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in the flaps were assayed and the survival of the flaps replanted in situ was evaluated 1 week later. RESULTS: L-arginine treatment caused increase in the microcirculatory blood flow of the flaps and elevation of NO while and decrease of MDA levels. The survival rate of the flaps with L-arginine treatment was significantly higher than the flaps from saline-treated and normal rats. CONCLUSION: L-arginine can improve the survival of island flap through increasing the microcirculatory blood flow and lessening ischemia-reperfusion injury of the flaps.