A novel syphilis Treponema pallidum lipoprotein peptide antigen diagnostic assay using red cell kodecytes in routine blood centre column agglutination testing platforms.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The detection of treponemal antibodies, which are used to make a diagnosis of syphilis, is important both for diagnostic purposes and as a mandatory blood donor test in most countries. We evaluated the feasibility of using Kode Technology to make syphilis peptide red cell kodecytes for use in column agglutination serologic platforms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Candidate Kode Technology function-spacer-lipid (FSL) constructs were made for the Treponema pallidum lipoprotein (TmpA) of T. pallidum, using the peptide and FSL selection algorithms, and then used to make kodecytes. Developmental kodecytes were evaluated against a large range of syphilis antibody reactive and non-reactive samples in column agglutination platforms and compared against established methodologies. Overall, 150 reactive and 2072 non-reactive Syphicheck assay (a modified T. pallidum particle agglutination) blood donor samples were used to evaluate the agreement rate of the developed kodecyte assay. RESULTS: From three FSL-peptide candidate constructs, one was found to be the most suitable for diagnostics. Of 150 Syphicheck assay reactive samples, 146 were TmpA-kodecyte reactive (97.3% agreement), compared with 58.0% with the rapid plasmin reagin (RPR) assay for the same samples. Against the 2072 expected syphilis non-reactive samples the agreement rate for TmpA-kodecytes was 98.8%. CONCLUSION: TmpA-kodecytes are viable for use as cost-effective serologic reagent red cells for the detection of treponemal antibodies to diagnose syphilis with a high level of specificity in blood centres. This kodecyte methodology also potentially allows for introduction of the reverse-algorithm testing into low-volume laboratories, by utilizing existing transfusion laboratory infrastructure.

Effects of microplastics and arsenic on plants: Interactions, toxicity and environmental implications.

Microplastics are emerging pollutants that are ubiquitously present in environment. Occurrence and dispersion of microplastics in the soil can pose a considerable risk to soil health and biodiversity, including the plants grown in the soil. Uptake and bioaccumulation of microplastics can have detrimental effects on different plant species. Additionally, the co-presence of microplastics and arsenic can cause synergistic, antagonistic, or potentiating toxic impacts on plants. However, limited studies are available on the combined effects of microplastics and arsenic on plants. This paper elucidates both the individual and synergistic effects of microplastics and arsenic on plants. At the outset, the paper highlighted the presence and degradation of microplastics in soil. Subsequently, the interactions between microplastics and plants, accumulation, and influences of microplastics on plant growth and metabolism were explained with underlying mechanisms. Combined effects of microplastics and arsenic on plant growth, metabolism, and toxicity were discussed thereafter. Combined toxic effects of microplastics and arsenic on plants can have detrimental implications on environment, ecosystems and biodiversity. Further investigations on food chain and human health are needed in the context of microplastic-arsenic interactions.

A preliminary study on upstream migration of mangroves in response to changing environment along River Hooghly, India.

Environmental changes and anthropogenic activities can be linked to altered distribution and abundance of species. However, the ecological impacts of change in the microenvironment have not been well documented. Herein, we have identified the distribution of mangroves and associated species and characterized surface sediment and water samples along the banks of River Hooghly. The application of Combined Mangrove Recognition Index (CMRI) and its validation with the available ground data on satellite image of 2015 indicates that some mangrove species have reclaimed the upper course of the river, which was earlier absent before 1995. This study is the first report on the upstream migration of mangrove species such as Sonneratia caseolaris, Sonneratia apetala, Derris trifoliata, Hibiscus tiliaceus, and Thespesia populnea in River Hooghly. The changes in pollution load, varied sedimentation pattern, high chemical oxygen demand, mean sea-level rise, and anthropogenic activity might have played a significant role in the upstream migration of mangroves.

An index for discrimination of mangroves from non-mangroves using LANDSAT 8 OLI imagery.

Over the last few decades several vegetation indices were used to map Mangrove forest using satellite images. Difficulty still persists in discrimination of mangroves from non-mangrove vegetation, especially in areas where mangrove species are mixed with other vegetation types. In the present study we have attempted to develop an improved index, which utilizes the information from the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) of Bhitarkanika mangrove forest of Odisha, India. These indices are negatively correlated (r = -0.988; p < 0.01). Further, the NDWI values were subtracted from the NDVI values at the pixel level. As the outputs are negatively related, subtraction increases the upper and lower range of the overall output, also increasing the distinct values of two classes with near-similar spectral signatures. Same algorithm was applied on mangroves of Sundarbans (r = -0.987) and Andaman (r = -0.989). A comparison between four established indices [NDVI, NDWI, Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI), Simple Ratio (SR)] and the newly developed index namely Combined Mangrove Recognition Index (CMRI) were performed. Accuracy assessment using Kappa statistics, revealing that CMRI produces better accuracy (73.43%) compared to other indices, followed by NDVI (56.29%) and SR (48.79%).

Clinical and laboratory profile of anti-M.

CONCLUSIONS: Anti-M is a frequently detected naturally occurring antibody that has been reported in various clinical settings and also in voluntary donors. We describe here the clinical and laboratory findings of 11 cases with anti-M detected at our center. This report is a retrospective study in which we reviewed our immunohematology laboratory records for cases involving anti-M. Both donor and patient data from a 28-month period (September 2014 to December 2016) were reviewed. During this period, 11 examples of anti-M were detected (8 patients, 1 voluntary whole blood donor, and 1 hematopoietic stem cell donor. Anti-M was also detected in one external quality assessment scheme sample received during this period. In conclusion, anti-M can be detected in various clinical settings. This antibody can be clinically significant; in the laboratory, it can present as a serologic problem such as an ABO group discrepancy or an incompatible crossmatch. After detection, management and course of action is determined by both the antibody characteristics and the clinical setting.

Manganese associated nanoparticles agglomerate of iron(III) oxide: synthesis, characterization and arsenic(III) sorption behavior with mechanism.

Three samples of manganese associated hydrous iron(III) oxide (MNHFO), prepared by incinerating metal hydroxide precipitate at T (± 5)=90, 300 and 600°C, showed increase of crystalline nature in XRD patterns with decreasing As(III) removal percentages. TEM images showed the increase of crystallinity from sample-1 (MNHFO-1) to sample-3 (MNHFO-3). Dimensions (nm) of particles estimated were 5.0, 7.0 and 97.5. Optimization of pH indicated that MNHFO-1 could remove aqueous As(III) efficiently at pH between 3.0 and 7.0. Kinetic and equilibrium data of reactions under the experimental conditions described the pseudo-second order and the Langmuir isotherm equations very well, respectively. The Langmuir capacity (q(m)) estimated was 691.04 mmol kg(-1). The values of enthalpy, Gibb's free energy and entropy changes (ΔH(0)=+23.23 kJ mol(-1), ΔG(0)=-3.43 to -7.20 kJ mol(-1) at T=283-323K, ΔS(0)=+0.094 kJ mol(-1)K(-1)) suggested that the reaction was endothermic, spontaneous and took place with increasing entropy. The As(III) sorbed by MNHFO-1 underwent surface oxidation to As(V), and evidences appeared from the XPS and FTIR investigations. MNHFO-1 packed column (internal diameter: 1.0 cm, height: 3.7 cm) filtered 11.5 dm(3) groundwater (105 µg As dm(-3)) with reducing arsenic concentration to ≤ 10 µg dm(-3).

Arsenic removal using hydrous nanostructure iron(III)-titanium(IV) binary mixed oxide from aqueous solution.

The synthetic bimetal iron(III)-titanium(IV) oxide (NHITO) used was characterized as hydrous and nanostructured mixed oxide, respectively, by the Föurier transform infra red (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern and the transmission electron microscopic (TEM) image analyses. Removal of As(III) and As(V) using the NHITO was studied at pH 7.0 (+/-0.1) with variation of contact time, solute concentration and temperature. The kinetic sorption data, in general, for As(III) described the pseudo-first order while that for As(V) described the pseudo-second order equation. The Langmuir isotherm described the equilibrium data (303 (+/-1.6)K) of fit was well with the Langmuir model. The Langmuir capacity (q(m), mg g(-1)) value of the material is 85.0 (+/-4.0) and 14.0 (+/-0.5), respectively, for the reduced and oxidized species. The sorption reactions on NHITO were found to be endothermic and spontaneous, and took place with increasing entropy. The energy (kJ mol(-1)) of sorption for As(III) and As(V) estimated, respectively, is 9.09 (+/-0.01) and 13.51 (+/-0.04). The sorption percentage reduction of As(V) was significant while that of As(III) was insignificant in presence of phosphate and sulfate. The fixed bed NHITO column (5.1 cm x 1.0 cm) sorption tests gave 3.0, 0.7 and 4.5L treated water (As content < or = 0.01 mg L(-1)) from separate As(III) and As(V) spiked (0.35+/-0.02 mg L(-1)) natural water samples and from high arsenic (0.11+/-0.01 mg L(-1)) ground water, respectively when inflow rate was (0.06 L h(-1)).