Plant growth,antioxidative enzyme,and cadmium tolerance responses to cadmium stress in Canna orchioides

The cadmium tolerance capacity of Canna orchioides was evaluated using glasshouse experiment to lay a theoretical foundation to broad applications of this species in cadmium(Cd)polluted areas.The plant growth,Cd absorption,and antioxidative enzyme activities of canna plants treated with different Cd concentrations(0,100,and 200mg·kg^(-1)per dry soil)for 30 days were investigated.The results indicated that the growth of roots,leaves and stems was restricted following Cd addition.The bio-concentration factor was the highest in the roots,followed by the leaves,rhizomes,and stems.Compared with the control,the translocation factor decreased sharply after 100mg·kg^(-1)or 200mg·kg^(-1)Cd treatment,whereas the tolerance index decreased significantly under 200mg·kg^(-1)Cd exposure.The Cd accumulation rate and total Cd accumulation significantly increased under 200mg·kg^(-1)Cd treatment than the control.Themalondialdehyde content remained unchanged at different Cd concentrations,while the relative electrical conductivity of the root increased significantly following 200mg·kg^(-1)Cd treatment.Cd stress increased significantly the activity of superoxide dismutase(SOD),peroxidase(POD),and ascorbate peroxidase(APX)in the leaves,whereas only SOD was raised in the roots.The catalase(CAT)and POD activity in the roots did not differ significantly at different Cd concentrations.Conversely,APX in the roots decreased significantly under Cd stress,which suggests that the protective mechanisms in the leaves differ from those in the roots.These results indicated that C.orchioides has a high tolerance for Cd.Furthermore,the reactive oxygen species caused by Cd stress could be effectively scavenged by the antioxidative system.The present study proved that C.orchioides constitutes a promising ornamental plant for use in the restoration of areas contaminated with Cd.

Dissolved organic matter accelerates microbial degradation of 17 alpha-ethinylestradiol in the presence of iron mineral

Dissolved organic matter(DOM)and iron minerals widely existing in the natural aquatic environment can mediate the migration and transformation of organic pollutants.However,the mechanism of interaction between DOM and iron minerals in the microbial degradation of pollutants deserves further investigation.In this study,the mechanism of 17 alphaethinylestradiol(EE2)biodegradation mediated by humic acid(HA)and three kinds of iron minerals(goethite,magnetite,and pyrite)was investigated.The results found that HA and iron minerals significantly accelerated the biodegradation process of EE2,and the highest degradation efficiency of EE2(48%)was observed in the HA-mediated microbial system with pyrite under aerobic conditions.Furthermore,it had been demonstrated that hydroxyl radicals(HO·)was the main active substance responsible for the microbial degradation of EE2.HO·is primarily generated through the reaction between hydrogen peroxide secreted by microorganisms and Fe(II),with aerobic conditions being more conducive.The presence of iron minerals and HA could change the microbial communities in the EE2 biodegradation system.These findings provide new information for exploring the migration and transformation of pollutants by microorganisms in iron-rich environments.

Photosensitivity sources of dissolved organic matter from wastewater treatment plants and their mediation effect on 17α-ethinylestradiol photodegradation

Dissolved organic matter(DOM)from each treatment process of wastewater treatment plants(WWTPs)contains abundant photosensitive substances,which could significantly affect the photodegradation of 17α-ethinylestradiol(EE2).Nevertheless,information about EE2 photodegradation behavior mediated by DOM from diverse WWTPs and the photosensitivity sources of such DOM are inadequate.This study explored the photodegradation behavior of EE2 mediated by four typical WWTPs’DOM solutions and investigated the photosensitivity sources of DOM in the anaerobic-anoxic-oxic(A2/O)process.The parallel factor analysis identified three varying fluorescing components of these DOM,tryptophan-like substances or protein-like substances,microbial humuslike substances,and humic-like components.The photodegradation rate constants of EE2 were positively associated with the humification degree of DOM(P<0.05).The triplet state substances were responsible for the degradation of EE2.DOM extracted from the A2/O process,especially in the secondary treatment process had the fastest EE2 photodegradation rate compared to that of the other three processes.Four types of components(water-soluble organic matter(WSOM),extracellular polymeric substance,humic acid,and fulvic acid)were separated from the A2/O process DOM.WSOM had the highest promotion effect on EE2 photodegradation.Fulvic acid-like components and humic acid-like organic compounds in WSOM were speculated to be important photosensitivity substances that can generate triplet state substances.This research explored the physicochemical properties and photosensitive sources of DOM in WWTPs,and explained the fate of estrogens photodegradation in natural waters.

The treatment of black-odorous water using tower bipolar electro-flocculation including the removal of phosphorus,turbidity,sulfion,and oxygen enrichment

The large amount of municipal wastewater discharged into urban rivers sometimes exceeds the rivers’self-purification capacity leading to black-odorous polluted water.Electro-flocculation has emerged as a powerful remediation technology.Electro-flocculation in a bubble column tower with a bipolar electrode(BPE)was tested in an attempt to overcome the high resistance and weak gas-floatation observed with a monopolar electrode(MPE)in treating such water.The BPE reactor tested had a Ti/Ta2O_(5)-IrO_(2)anode and a graphite cathode with an iron or aluminum bipolar electrode suspended between them.It was tested for its ability to reduce turbidity,phosphate and sulphion and to increase the concentration of dissolved oxygen.The inclusion of the bipolar electrode was found to distinctly improved the system’s conductivity.The system’s electro-flocculation and electrical floatation removed turbidity,phosphate and sulphion completely,and the dissolved oxygen level improved from 0.29 to 6.28 mg/L.An aluminum bipolar electrode performed better than an iron one.Changes in the structure of the microbial community confirmed a significant improvement in water quality.

Photodegradation of 17α-ethynylestradiol in dissolved humic substances solution：Kinetics,mechanism and estrogenicity variation

17α-Ethynylestradiol（EE2） in natural waters may cause adverse effects on organisms due to its high estrogenic potency. Laboratory studies were performed to study the effects of a local humic acid（LHA）, fulvic acid（LFA） and Aldrich humic acid（AHA） on the photochemical behavior and estrogenic potency of EE2. Here photolytic experiments demonstrated that pure aqueous EE2 could undergo direct and self-sensitized photodegradation at a global rate of 0.0068 hr^-1.Photodegradation rate of EE2 in 5.0 mg/L dissolved humic substances（DHS） was determined to be 0.0274, 0.0296 and 0.0254 hr^-1 for LHA, LFA and AHA, respectively. Reactive oxygen species（ROS） and triplet dissolved humic substances（^3DHS＊） scavenging experiments indicated that the promotion effect of DHS on EE2 photodegradation was mainly aroused by the reactions of HOU（35%–50%）,~1O2（〈10%） andDHS＊（22%–34%）. However, the photodegradation of EE2 could also be inhibited when DHS exceeded the threshold of 10 mg/L. Three hydroxylation products of EE2 were identified using GC–MS and their formation pathways were also proposed. In vitro estrogenicity tests showed that EE2 was transformed into chemicals without estrogenic potency. These findings could extend our knowledge on the photochemical behaviors of steroid estrogens in sunlit natural waters.