Tissue-free water tritium and non-exchangeable organically bound tritium concentrations in fish near coastline during and after operation of Japan's first nuclear fuel reprocessing facility.

The risks from radioactive wastewater release from nuclear facilities into the ocean are a global concern. Radioactive contaminants, such as tritium (3H), in both forms of tissue free water tritium (TFWT) and non-exchangeable organically bound tritium (NE-OBT), can be incorporated into marine biota and cause radiation doses to biota and future consumers. However, no studies have been conducted to measure both forms of 3H in marine fish as well as evaluate the residence time in the vicinity of a nuclear fuel reprocessing facility. Here, fish from a brackish lake and from the Pacific Ocean coastline of Japan, which are near such a facility, were collected between 2006 and 2021. The reprocessing facility was operational between 2006 and 2009, during which time about 300 times more tritiated water was discharged per year into the ocean compared to the period when the facility was not operational. During operation the annual release was 30 times higher than the treated water released annually from Fukushima Daiichi. As expected, TFWT and NE-OBT concentrations increased in marine fish during operations and had peak values of 3.59 ± 0.03 and 0.56 ± 0.03 Bq/L, respectively. Total dose rates to the fish were 36,000 times lower than the 10 µGy h-1 benchmark. Concentrations gradually decreased to pre-operational levels as the facility was turned off with NE-OBT taking twice as long. Fish sampled from the brackish lake tended to have more incorporated TFWT and NE-OBT concentrations than ocean fish. This indicates that ocean tides might have contributed to the accumulation of discharged tritiated water in the lake via a narrow water channel, which highlights the importance of examining all marine ecosystems in future operations. In both marine environments, the estimated committed effective dose using the highest observed data through ingestion was well below public limits (91,000 times lower).

A sensitive aptasensor mediated by gold nanoparticles/metal organic framework lattice for detection of Pb2+ ion in marine products.

Herein, an enzyme-free fluorescent aptasensor was introduced for the ultrasensitive quantification of lead (Pb2+) ion as a hazardous pollutant of the environment and foodstuffs. A nanocomposite of zeolitic imidazolate frameworks-8 and gold nanoparticles (ZIF-8@AuNPs) was utilized as an efficient quencher of the fluorescence intensity of carboxyfluorescein (FAM) signal reporter. The establishment of a hybrid structure between attached aptamer on ZIF-8@AuNPs nanocomposite, and its FAM-tagged complementary (CP) strand decreased the fluorescence response. The preferential binding between the aptamer and Pb2+ released CP strands, which retrieved the fluorescence signal. The aptasensor could assess Pb2+ in the linear concentration range of 1 pM-1 nM with a detection limit (LOD) of 0.24 pM. Besides, it could quantify Pb2+ in various samples, including fish, shrimp, tap water, milk, and serum samples. The developed aptasensor with the superiorities of easiness, cost-effectiveness, easy-to-operate, and rapidness is promising for controlling marine foodstuff safety.

Infection status of Anisakis larvae in the major economic marine products in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea from 2016 to 2020 / 中华地方病学杂志

Objective:To learn about the infection status of Anisakis larvae in the major economic marine products in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea, and provide baseline data for systematic monitoring of Anisakis and prevention and control of related diseases. Methods:From April 2016 to September 2020, the samples of marine products collected in the surrounding waters of 9 fishing sites in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea (Bohai Bay, the middle part of the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea junction, the southern part of the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea junction, the northern part of the Yellow Sea and the southern part of the Yellow Sea) in the coastal areas of Yantai City and Weihai City, Shandong Province were dissected and tested for worms. The infection and distribution of Anisakis larvae in different types of samples and different organs in the samples were compared, and the differences of the infection level of Anisakis larvae in marine fish among the surrounding waters of different fishing sites and different sampling sites in China were compared. At the same time, a survey on the awareness of health knowledge of anisakiasis was carried out among the residents near each fishing sites. Results:A total of 708 cases of 5 types of marine products were tested in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea, including 581 cases of marine fish, 22 cases of mollusks, 20 cases of echinodermata, 75 cases of crustaceans and 10 cases of shellfish. Anisakis larvae infection was detected only in marine fish (191 cases), and 4 723 Anisakis larvae were found. The infection rate was 32.87% (191/581) and the infection intensity was 24.73(4 723/191) larvae/case. They were mainly distributed in mesentery and intestinal wall (38.96%, 1 840/4 723), coelom (22.04%, 1 041/4 723) and gastric wall (17.95%, 848/4 723). The infection levels of Anisakis larvae in marine fish among the surrounding waters of different fishing sites were compared, the infection rate in the southern part of the Yellow Sea was the highest, and its infection intensity was significantly higher than that in the middle and southern part of the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea junction ( P < 0.05). The infection levels of Anisakis larvae in marine fish among different sampling sites in China were compared, the infection rates of Zhoushan Port, the fish sold in Jinzhou, Yantai and Shantou were significantly higher than those in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea ( P < 0.05), and the infection rates of the fish sold in Dandong and Qingdao were significantly lower than those in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea ( P < 0.05). A total of 1 805 residents living near the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea were investigated on the health knowledge of anisakiasis. Among them, 20.78% (375/1 805) residents had heard of anisakiasis, 15.73% (284/1 805) residents knew how to get it, 12.30% (222/1 805) residents knew the harm of anisakiasis to human body, and 16.68% (301/1 805) residents knew how to prevent it. Conclusions:The marine fish in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea are infected by the Anisakis larvae, and the level of infection is relatively high. In the future, we should strengthen the popularization of knowledge on prevention and control of anisakiasis.

The Ethyl Acetate Fraction of Marine Sponge Stylissa carteri Induces Breast Cancer Cell Death via Upregulation of Mcl-1S: an In vitro Study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the potency of the fraction of marine sponge Stylissa carteri in inducing cell death, inhibiting spheroid growth, and its impact on pro-apoptotic protein Mcl-1S in breast cancer cells. METHODS: Stylissa carteri were collected from Pramuka Island followed by ethanol extraction and ethyl acetate fractionation. To evaluate the cytotoxic effect of fraction, the HCC-1954, MDA MB 231, and MCF-7 cells were treated with the fraction of Stylissa carteri and MTT assay was then performed. The effect on spheroid growth was evaluated in HCC-1954 cells. The combined effect of the ethyl acetate fraction and paclitaxel were analyzed using combination index (CI) and immunoblotting on the pro-apoptotic protein Mcl-1S. Furthermore, compounds in this fraction were identified using GC-MS. RESULTS: Data showed that both the MDA MB 231 and HCC-1954 cells were interestingly more sensitive to the fraction as compared with MCF-7 cells. The IC50 of the ethyl acetate fraction on HCC-1954, MDA MB 231 and MCF-7 were 4.1 µg/ml, 3.9 µg/ml, and 123.8 µg/ml, respectively. In addition, the fraction triggered spheroid destruction within 10 days. The CI of paclitaxel and ethyl acetate fraction of Stylissa carteri were less than 0.52. Moreover, this combination induced upregulation of the Mcl-1S protein. Furthermore, some fatty acid-based structures were predicted as the major compounds in this fraction. CONCLUSION: The ethyl acetate fraction of Stylissa carteri induces cell death and spheroid destruction in aggressive breast cancer cells. It has a synergistic cytotoxic effect with paclitaxel on MDA MB 231 cell death and upregulates Mcl-1S protein.

Empowering blue economy: From underrated ecosystem to sustainable industry.

With increasing demand for resources to achieve global food-water-energy nexus and rapid decline in land-based sources, oceans represent both solution and boost to sustainable environment and economy. In addition to fundamental part of earth's ecosystem for uncatalogued diversity of life, oceans are undervalued economy powerhouse with gross marine product value. With sustainable management of existing assets including shipping, transportation, manufacturing, fisheries, tourism and exploration of new business like marine biotechnology and renewable energy, the ocean or blue economy has potential to fulfill sustainable development goals (SDG). In spite of recognition of blue economy as a new economic frontier, investments by existing industries and emergence of new ones are limited and less known, hence require more in depth attention and scientific understanding. In the present study, authors present a systematic comparative assessment of blue economy sectors with distinct challenges and strategies to be further explored and implemented for industrial deployment. The conceptualization of integrated routes of bio(economy) by the current study can act as gateway for key stakeholders, i.e. governance, bluepreneurs (scientists and industries) to prioritize technologies for sustainable applications of marine resources.

Natural Extracts That Stimulate Adipocyte Browning and Their Underlying Mechanisms.

Despite progress in understanding the developmental lineage and transcriptional factors regulating brown and beige adipocytes, the role of environmental modifiers, such as food components and natural extracts, remains to be elucidated. Furthermore, the undesirable pleiotropic effects produced by synthetic drugs targeting adipose tissue browning and thermogenesis necessitate research into alternative natural sources to combat obesity and related metabolic disorders. The current review, therefore, focused on the effects of various extracts from foods, plants, and marine products on adipose tissue browning and obesity. In particular, the recent findings of food components and marine products on adipose tissue browning will be discussed here.

Free Marine Natural Products Databases for Biotechnology and Bioengineering.

Marine organisms and micro-organisms are a source of natural compounds with unique chemical features. These chemical properties are useful for the discovery of new functions and applications of marine natural products (MNPs). To extensively exploit the potential implementations of MNPs, they are gathered in chemical databases that allow their study and screening for applications of biotechnological interest. However, the classification of MNPs is currently poor in generic chemical databases. The present availability of free-access-focused MNP databases is scarce and the molecular diversity of these databases is still very low when compared to the paid-access ones. In this review paper, the current scenario of free-access MNP databases is presented as well as the hindrances involved in their development, mainly compound dereplication. Examples and opportunities for using freely accessible MNP databases in several important areas of biotechnology are also assessed. The scope of this paper is, as well, to notify the latent potential of these information sources for the discovery and development of new MNPs in biotechnology, and push future efforts to develop a public domain MNP database freely available for the scientific community.

Awareness and Usage Patterns of Housewives in Busan for Consuming Marine Products

We conducted this study to compare the awareness and attitude of Busan housewives about consuming marine products. The survey was conducted from April 10 to May 31, 2019 by using a questionnaire. The degree of preference of seafood was higher among individuals in their 40s than those in the other age groups. Among the women in their 30s, 40s, 50s and 70s, the reason for liking seafood was ‘taste’, and for those in their 60s it was ‘nutrition’. Overall the most common reason for disliking seafood was the ‘fishy smell (37.4%)’. Conception degree of nutritive value of seafood was higher among individuals in their 30s and 40s than that for those individuals in their 50s, 60s and 70s. As for the price of seafood, the wives over 40s thought seafood was more expensive than did those wives in their 30s. The younger the individuals were, the lower was the perceived degree of safety was 49.8% of the subjects reported that the main concern for purchase was ‘freshness’. The perceived degree of safety for imported seafood was better for the wives in their 60s and 70s than that for those wives in their 30s, 40s and 50s. The confidence level for local Korean seafood was higher for the wives in their 60s than that for the wives in their 50s. The degree of preference for seafood was moderate overall, except for Jellyfish. Age was positively correlated with conception for safety and dietary attitude (P<0.01), whereas age was negatively correlated with monthly food expenditure, nutrition knowledge and intake requirements (P<0.01). Preference for seafood was positively correlated with conception for safety (P<0.05), nutrition knowledge (P<0.05), dietary attitude (P<0.01), awareness for nutritive value (P<0.01) and intake requirements (P<0.01). Laws and regulations should be reinforced in order to promote eating more seafood and periodic research to determine the actual amount of consumed seafood and people's preferences should be conducted.

Determination of Diniconazole in Agricultural Products, Livestock and Marine Products by LC-MS/MS.

An LC-MS/MS method for the determination of diniconazole in agricultural products, livestock and marine products was developed. Diniconazole in agricultural products was extracted with acetone. The extract was concentrated and partitioned with n-hexane and 10% sodium chloride solution. Agricultural products such as grains and beans were defatted using n-hexane-acetonitrile. Livestock and marine products were extracted with a mixture of acetone and n-hexane, and the organic layer was evaporated to dryness. The residue was defatted using n-hexane-acetonitrile. Cleanup was carried out using a Florisil cartridge column and a graphitized carbon cartridge column for these samples. The LC separation was carried out on an Inertsil ODS-3 column with a linear gradient of 0.1% formic acid and acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid. MS was carried out in the positive ion electrospray ionization mode. The calibration curve was linear between 0.00125 to 0.00750 mg/L. Average recoveries (n=5) of diniconazole from 16 kinds of agricultural products, livestock and marine products fortified at the MRLs (0.01 ppm) were 88.3-108%, and the relative standard deviations were 0.5-5.1%. The limits of quantitation were 0.01 mg/kg.

Determination of Trace Lead in Fresh Marine Products by Fluorescence Spectrophotometry / 环境与健康杂志

0.05). Conclusion The method is simple,accurate,reliable,less-reagent used and little inference of other metal ions. It is suitable for rapid determination of lead in the fresh marine products.