Search Results (1,094)

Wastewater is a complex and dynamic issue, particularly at the human–animal–environment interface, bearing biological and chemical hazards that may serve as a resource for transmission pathways for pathogens, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) determinants, heavy metals, pharmaceutical residues, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and microplastics. Rising global health issues necessitate effective wastewater treatment and advanced research to support risk-informed circular management within a one health framework, incorporating wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE), multi-omics approaches, nanobiotechnology, and green technologies. Inadequate wastewater treatment and uncontrolled discharge result in the generation of more than 380 billion cubic meters of wastewater annually worldwide, contributing to ecological degradation, the spread of AMR, and long-term toxicological risks. Despite significant advances in wastewater treatment, several challenges remain, including complex contaminant mixtures, limited detection and monitoring technologies, variable treatment efficiency, and weak regulatory and governance frameworks. This review highlights key wastewater treatment issues and presents recent advances in WBE and multi-omics approaches, such as metagenomics, resistome profiling, virome analysis, and chemical fingerprinting for contaminant monitoring and public health risk assessment. This review also examines circular reuse strategies focused on water reclamation, nutrient recovery, bioenergy production, and resource recovery, with particular emphasis on nature-based systems, hybrid biological–physicochemical treatment platforms, and green nanobiotechnology as promising approaches to improve treatment performance while minimizing environmental impacts. In conclusion, this review highlights the importance of integrated and sustainable wastewater management approaches within the One Health framework to address emerging challenges and promote environmental resilience, public health protection, and circular resource recovery. Full article

Integrating biochar with plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) is a promising strategy for sustainable soil management; however, the synergistic mechanisms governing rhizosphere microbial assembly remain inadequately understood. In this study, we investigated the combined effects of maize biochar (YM) and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (BA) on tomato performance, soil physicochemical properties, and bacterial community dynamics via a controlled pot experiment. The results demonstrated that the synergistic treatment (YMBA) significantly enhanced tomato yield by 18.3% compared to the control, outperforming individual applications. This promotion was coupled with a comprehensive improvement in soil fertility, characterized by significant increases in soil organic matter (SOM), available nutrients (N, P, and K), and the activities of urease and acid phosphatase. High-throughput sequencing revealed that YMBA treatment significantly restructured the rhizosphere bacterial community, significantly increasing microbial richness and diversity. Notably, the synergistic application promoted the recruitment of beneficial taxa, particularly within the phylum Pseudomonadota. Mantel test analysis further elucidated that SOM and available phosphorus (AP) were the primary environmental drivers shaping the bacterial community turnover. Our findings suggest that biochar acts as a functional niche that facilitates B. amyloliquefaciens colonization and modulates the indigenous microbiota, providing a theoretical framework for utilizing cross-trophic synergies to optimize crop productivity and soil health. Full article

Silicon is increasingly applied in agriculture to improve plant productivity under both abiotic and biotic stress constraints. Nevertheless, its mechanisms of action are often studied separately at the soil, plant, or microbiome levels, limiting a comprehensive understanding of its overall impact on agroecosystem functioning. This review proposes an integrated perspective of the soil–plant–microbiome continuum, linking silicon chemistry in soil solutions with the effects of silicon amendments on soil properties and the processes of uptake, transport, and deposition in the plants. We show that silicon bioavailability depends on maintaining a pool of dissolved silicon dominated by orthosilicic acid, regulated by mineral weathering, adsorption–desorption dynamics, polymerization, pH, iron and aluminum oxides, and organic matter. In soils, silicon inputs can improve structure, modulate acidity and cation exchange balances, influence nutrient availability, and reduce the mobility of certain metals. They may also affect enzymatic activities and microbial community composition. In plants, silicon uptake and transport, mediated by specific transporters, contribute to tissue silicification, the maintenance of leaf architecture, and the regulation of water, ionic, and redox homeostasis. These processes provide a basis for enhanced tolerance to drought, salinity, and metal toxicity, as well as biotic stress caused by pathogens and pests. Finally, we discuss key limitations to the agronomic application of silicon, including the diagnosis of the silicic status of soils, the choice of source and mode of application, and the genotypic variability of acquisition, as well as the need for multi-site tests and more robust mechanistic validations. This synthesis provides a coherent mechanistic framework to better define the conditions under which silicon can serve as a reliable tool for sustainable crop management under climate change. Full article

The aim of this study is to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the water quality of the Sidi Mohammed Ben Taiba (SMBT), one of the largest drinking water reservoirs in northwestern Algeria, by integrating chemical and biological indicators. The assessment combines the Drinking Water Quality Index (DWQI), the Irrigation Water Quality Index (IWQI), the Organic Pollution Index (OPI) and zooplankton-based biological indicators (Zoo-IQ). A total of 23 physicochemical parameters were analyzed and interpreted using multivariate statistical approaches. This study fills an important knowledge gap by evaluating long-term temporal variability (January 2018–May 2025) and recent spatial heterogeneity (June 2023–May 2025), aiming to support sustainable water management. The results indicate that the reservoir water quality is generally suitable for drinking purposes (22.3 < DWQI < 54.0), is deemed excellent for agricultural irrigation (65 < IWQI < 69) and that the reservoir surface waters are slightly polluted to unpolluted (0.3 < OPI < 1.1). However, a deterioration in water quality has been detected in recent years, linked to increasing nutrient concentrations, as confirmed by the TSI–SD index. Despite the early signs of nutrient enrichment, the Zoo-IQ index remained within the moderate to good range, suggesting a certain degree of resilience in the zooplankton community. However, pronounced seasonal fluctuations observed in the Zoo-IQ and species diversity (H′) during periods of environmental stress serve as an early warning signal of emerging problems that may negatively affect water quality indices (WQI, IWQI, OPI). Station S4, located at the confluence of Wadi Belhassen and Wadi Farhat, descending from the Dahra mountain range in Algeria, has been identified as the most sensitive area and a potential hotspot for future pollution. The study provides robust data on the quality of reservoir water, offering a valuable decision-making tool for artificial reservoir managers and contributing to sustainable water management by identifying risk areas and supporting the implementation of preventive measures. Full article

Fermented foods hold a significant position in global culinary traditions, particularly within ethnic and traditional diets. They are widely consumed for their distinctive flavors, textures, and health-promoting attributes. Although extensive research exists on fermentation processes, comprehensive insights into the nutraceutical potential and mechanistic health benefits of these foods remain limited. This review highlights key fermented products traditionally consumed in the north-eastern region of India including Hawaijar, Soibum, Ngari, alongside global counterparts such as Natto, Chongkukjang, Miso, Kefir, Tempeh, Kimchi, Kombucha, and Sauerkraut. These foods are rich in bioactive compounds (phenolics, peptides, organic acids, and exopolysaccharides), probiotic microorganisms, and essential nutrients that collectively contribute to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, and cardioprotective effects. Recent in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrate that regular consumption of such foods may support the prevention and management of chronic conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, gastrointestinal disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases. However, mechanistic studies remain insufficient to fully elucidate the synergistic interactions between microbial metabolites, host metabolism, and gut microbiota modulation. The review therefore emphasizes the biochemical and therapeutic mechanisms underlying ethnic fermented foods, advocating for advanced metabolomic and molecular approaches to validate their health-promoting efficacy. This review provides a timely and integrative perspective by critically evaluating preclinical and clinical evidence, highlighting mechanistic insights, translational gaps, and future research priorities. These insights will support the development of functional food formulations and reinforce the integration of traditional fermented foods into modern dietary strategies for disease prevention and overall well-being. Full article

Sjögren’s disease (SjD) is a chronic autoimmune disorder characterized by progressive dysfunction of the exocrine glands, driven primarily by aberrant T- and B-cell activation. Current therapeutic strategies remain largely symptomatic and are frequently limited by off-target effects and long-term toxicity, underscoring an urgent need for safer, mechanism-based adjunctive approaches. In recent years, nutritional interventions and medicinal herbs have emerged as promising complementary strategies, owing to their capacity to modulate immune–metabolic pathways and restore immune homeostasis. Nutrients such as n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) exert well-documented anti-inflammatory effects and influence immune cell differentiation via immunometabolic reprogramming. Concurrently, bioactive constituents derived from medicinal herbs offer multi-target regulation of inflammatory signaling and lymphocyte function. This review synthesizes current advances in the immunomodulatory roles of dietary components and edible herbs in the context of SjD, focusing on their mechanistic convergence on T-cell subsets, B-cell responses, and the gut–immune axis. By integrating traditional knowledge with contemporary immunological insights, this article aims to provide a conceptual framework for the rational integration of nutritional and herbal strategies into the clinical management of SjD. Full article

Fruit anthocyanins are primary determinants of color, sensory quality, and nutritional value in grapes; however, their endogenous biosynthesis is governed by complex interactions among genetic, environmental, agronomic, and postharvest factors. This review elaborates recent advances in physiology and molecular biology to clarify the biosynthetic mechanisms in grapes, including the coordinated action of structural enzymes, MYB–bHLH–WD40 regulatory complexes, hormone-mediated signaling pathways, and vacuolar transport processes. Key environmental factors, such as temperature fluctuations, light exposure, water availability, and soil properties, regulate these networks, contributing to significant variation in pigmentation profiles across cultivars and growing regions. Strategic agronomic practices, including canopy management, regulated deficit irrigation, balanced nutrient management, and temperature-mitigation techniques, further influence pigmentation by modifying the microclimate of the fruit zone during development. Based on these mechanistic insights, this review evaluates targeted strategies for enhancing anthocyanin accumulation, highlighting recent progress in genetic improvement through CRISPR/Cas genome editing, transgenic approaches, and marker-assisted selection (MAS), which enable precise modulation of biosynthetic and regulatory genes. Complementary postharvest interventions, such as optimized cold storage, modified-atmosphere packaging, hormonal elicitors, and controlled oxidative technologies, provide additional opportunities to maintain or enhance pigment stability after harvest. Collectively, these advances establish a comprehensive framework linking molecular regulation with practical vineyard, breeding, and postharvest strategies, offering an integrated pathway to improve anthocyanin consistency, berry quality, and the phenolic characteristics of grape-derived products. Full article

The estuarine and coastal regions of India and Taiwan are under increasing threat from pollutants such as microplastics (MPs) and heavy metals including cadmium (Cd). These contaminants are known to have adversely affect biodiversity and water quality. In this study, the combined toxic effects of polyethylene microplastics (PE-MPs) and Cd were evaluated using Poecilia sphenops, a euryhaline fish species, selected for its adaptability to varying salinity conditions. P. sphenops were exposed to Cd (20, 40, and 60 μg/L), MPs (8, 16, 24 mg/L), and co-exposure combinations ranging from Cd 5 μg/L + MPs 4 mg/L to Cd 20 μg/L + MPs 16 mg/L Results showed significant (p< 0.05) negative effects on growth parameters including body weight gain, specific growth rate (SGR), and survival rate. Hematological analysis revealed significant (p< 0.05) decreases in hemoglobin (Hb), red blood cells (RBCs), and white blood cells (WBCs), indicating impaired oxygen transport and compromised immune function. Elevated blood glucose levels indicated physiological stress, while reduced total protein levels suggested a compromised nutritional status. Antioxidant enzyme activities, including catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx), were significantly (p < 0.05) decreased in the toxicant-treated groups compared with the control. Digestive enzyme activities (proteases, amylases, and lipases) were also reduced, suggesting impaired digestion and nutrient assimilation. The study also included a comparative assessment of water quality between the exposed and control tanks. Water quality parameters such as turbidity, salinity, hardness, alkalinity, chloride, fluoride, and total suspended solids (TSSs) were elevated in the toxicant-treated media, accompanied by a notable decline in dissolved oxygen (DO) levels. These findings highlight the urgent need for integrated pollution control and water quality monitoring, particularly in coastal regions vulnerable to desalination discharges and plastic contamination. Sustainable management strategies must address these complex interactions between multiple pollutants to protect aquatic ecosystems. Full article

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) caused by Karenia brevis (K. brevis) present a persistent ecological and public health challenge across coastal Florida. Reliable bloom forecasting is critical for protecting public health, supporting coastal economies, and enabling timely management responses. This study develops a regionally integrated machine learning framework to predict weekly K. brevis bloom occurrence using environmental data from both the Peace and Caloosahatchee Rivers, combined with coastal bloom records from Southwest Florida and Tampa Bay to enhance the spatial and temporal continuity of the response record. A Random Forest classifier was trained on a multi-decadal dataset incorporating river discharge, nutrient concentrations (total nitrogen and total phosphorus), wind forcing, sea surface temperature, salinity, and sea surface height anomalies as a proxy for Loop Current variability. The model achieved strong predictive performance on a chronologically withheld test set, with an overall accuracy of ~90%, balanced accuracy of 87.6%, and ROC–AUC of 0.972, indicating strong discrimination between bloom and non-bloom conditions with high precision and recall for bloom events. Bloom timing and persistence were captured with strong agreement during ongoing bloom periods, while non-bloom conditions were identified with low false-positive rates. Feature-response analyses indicated that bloom probability increased most sharply under moderate discharge and nutrient conditions, with diminished sensitivity at higher extremes. Learning curve analysis demonstrated robust training performance and stable generalization, with validation accuracy plateauing near 84%, suggesting a data-limited ceiling on forecast skill. By aggregating nutrient inputs across multiple watersheds and integrating spatially aligned bloom observations, this study demonstrates the utility of multi-source machine learning frameworks for regional-scale HAB prediction. The results support the development of early warning tools and provide a reproducible foundation for evaluating how combined watershed loading and physical forcing are associated with K. brevis bloom occurrence in complex estuary systems with watershed and coastal coupling. Full article

Microplastic (MP) contamination has become a widespread environmental concern in coastal and freshwater wetlands, ecosystems that play a crucial role in hydrological regulation, nutrient cycling, and biodiversity conservation. Despite their ecological importance, research on MPs in wetlands remains fragmented and comparatively underexplored. This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric and visualization analysis of global research on MPs in coastal wetlands. A total of 17,523 publications were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (2002–2025) using predefined search strings and screening criteria. Analytical tools, including VOSviewer version 1.6.20, were employed to examine co-authorship networks, country contributions, and keyword co-occurrence patterns. The results indicate a significant increase in MP-related publications after 2016, with China, the United States, and India emerging as leading contributors. However, wetland-specific studies constitute only a small fraction compared to marine-focused MP research, highlighting a substantial research gap. Key research themes identified include MP sources, transport pathways, sediment–water interactions, and ecotoxicological impacts. Additionally, there is growing attention to remediation approaches, particularly those involving TiO₂, ZnO, Fe₃O₄, and graphene derivatives, employing photocatalytic, magnetic, and adsorptive mechanisms. Overall, the findings underscore the limited focus on wetland ecosystems in MP research and emphasize the urgent need for integrated research efforts and management strategies to address MP contamination in these vulnerable ecosystems. Full article

Treated wastewater (TWW) reuse mitigates water scarcity but may induce soil salinization and trace metal accumulation if improperly managed. This field study evaluated the combined effects of irrigation water quality (TWW vs. well water) and irrigation method (surface vs. subsurface drip irrigation, SDI) on soil chemical properties, okra growth, yield, and nutrient/trace element dynamics under semi-arid Mediterranean conditions. Soil pH remained stable across treatments. Electrical conductivity was not significantly affected by water quality but increased in deeper layers under surface drip irrigation, indicating salt migration. SDI promoted more uniform nutrient distribution and favored Na⁺ displacement toward deeper layers, reducing root-zone exposure. Cations stratified vertically, with Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, and K⁺ concentrated in surface layers and Na⁺ at depth. Water quality exerted a stronger influence than irrigation method. The fertilizing effect of TWW significantly enhanced plant height (53%), leaf dry matter (43%), aboveground biomass (81%), and fruit yield (16.3%). When combined with SDI, TWW improved irrigation water use efficiency by 20%. Although fruit Cd concentrations increased under TWW irrigation, all trace metals remained below international food safety standards. These findings indicate that integrating TWW with SDI enhances productivity and water use efficiency while maintaining short-term food safety, though long-term monitoring remains essential. Full article

Recirculating aquaculture systems (RASs) improve water-use efficiency in fish production but generate nutrient-rich effluents requiring management. Integrating aquatic biomass cultivation into RASs offers a promising approach to nutrient recovery, CO₂ utilization, and biomass production. This study evaluates the technical and economic feasibility of integrating Wolffia globosa cultivation with RASs through process simulation and techno-economic analysis (TEA). A pilot-scale system in Thailand was modeled using SuperPro Designer, comparing static and suspended aeration cultivation. The suspended configuration required only ~10–12 m² for 28.80 m³, whereas static cultivation required 131 m² for 32.80 m³, corresponding to about a 12-fold reduction in land area. The suspended system achieved higher annual biomass production (1056 kg dry weight (DW) yr⁻¹) than the static system (690 kg DW yr⁻¹), corresponding to CO₂ fixation of ~1.50 and ~0.98 t CO₂ yr⁻¹, respectively. The static system achieved higher nutrient removal efficiencies (97% N and 99.66% P), while the suspended system showed lower removal (64% N and 65.30% P) but higher productivity. Economic analysis confirmed feasibility, with the suspended system achieving higher return on investment (17.56% vs. 12.89%) and a shorter payback period (5.70 vs. 7.76 years). These results demonstrate the potential of RAS–Wolffia integration as a circular approach for resource recovery and sustainable aquaculture. Full article

Global climate change is rapid and poses an alarming threat to agricultural production, significantly impacting economies. Modern agriculture has strongly emphasized improving nutrient availability in crops to address rising malnutrition and contribute to global food security. However, abiotic stresses, including warmer temperatures, drought, waterlogging stress, and elevated CO₂, have critical direct and indirect effects on nutrient availability in plants. This systematic review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. The literature survey followed a time period of 2–5 months, during which the conceptualization, analysis, writing, and editing of the article were conducted. In the present era, it is essential to adopt measures to improve the nutritional value [enhance Nutrient Use Efficiency (NUE)] and nutrient management of plant-based foods. Plant-associated microbiomes have co-evolved with their plant counterparts and perform essential functions in nutrient acquisition, including microbial sensing and cross-talk with the plant host, nutrient uptake and sharing, and signaling mechanisms. In natural and agricultural ecosystems, plant microbiomes offer major opportunities and can be harnessed to sustainably supply essential plant nutrients and improve NUE in crops of global importance. Crop-associated microbiomes can be precisely tailored to achieve targeted outcomes, enhancing nutrient acquisition and utilization via microbiome engineering. However, bridging knowledge gaps, understanding microbial colonization, plant–microbiome dynamics, and adopting precise editing approaches are crucial to boost sustainable outcomes and crop productivity. By elucidating plant microbiome crosstalk and microbe–microbe signaling, a better understanding of microbe-mediated nutrient acquisition in plants can be achieved, defining key implications in global food security. Full article

Climate change-induced variability in temperature and precipitation increasingly constrains crop production on sandy-textured soils with low water-holding capacity and limited nutrient retention. Such soils, classified as Brunic Arenosols, are widespread across the temperate climate zone of Central Europe, particularly in post-glacial landscapes, where they constitute a significant proportion of marginal agricultural lands. This study evaluated the relative influence of growing-season weather conditions and selected soil physicochemical properties on the yield of Camelina sativa and Brassica carinata cultivated under low-input management on Brunic Arenosols in northwestern Poland during the 2023 season. Yields varied markedly among sites. Camelina sativa produced yields from 300 to 930 kg ha⁻¹, with the highest yield recorded at the site characterized by higher BS and phosphorus availability. Brassica carinata produced yields from 0 to 370 kg ha⁻¹, including complete yield loss at one location due to severe pathogen infestation. Spearman’s correlation analysis revealed that temperature was a key determinant for both crops (r = 0.77 for C. sativa; r = 0.82 for B. carinata). For Camelina sativa, yield was strongly associated with BS (r = 0.80) and available P (r = 0.69), whereas Brassica carinata was more sensitive to climatic variability, showing a negative relationship with precipitation (r = −0.63). The results indicate species-specific responses to soil fertility and weather conditions under water- and nutrient-limited conditions typical of Central European sandy soils. While Camelina sativa performance was more closely linked to soil chemical status, Brassica carinata appeared predominantly climate-driven. These findings highlight the broader relevance of the study for temperate regions of Central Europe and support the integration of soil fertility management with climate-adaptive strategies when introducing alternative oilseed crops to marginal lands. Full article

Accurate ecological prediction is critical for sustainable environmental management and carbon cycle assessment, yet model development is often constrained by limited datasets and inconsistent preprocessing practices. Reliable litterfall prediction plays a key role in understanding nutrient cycling and supporting sustainable forest ecosystem management. Although gradient boosting models have shown promising performance in ecological applications, structured evaluations integrating preprocessing strategies with synthetic data augmentation remain limited under data-scarce conditions. This study proposes the Hybrid Preprocessing and Augmented Boosting Framework (HPABF), which combines multi-stage preprocessing—including MICE imputation, log transformation, and feature engineering—with synthetic data augmentation to enhance predictive robustness. The framework was evaluated across eight machine learning models using a 968-sample forest ecological dataset. To mitigate data scarcity, 5000 synthetic samples were generated while preserving the statistical distribution and multivariate structure of the original data (91% fidelity). Fractal dimension analysis was further introduced as a geometric validation metric to assess prediction structure and stability beyond conventional performance measures. Within the HPABF, gradient boosting models achieved a 7% improvement over baseline performance (R² = 0.96, MAE = 0.06) under cross-validation strategies designed to reduce overfitting. Training with synthetic data further improved predictive accuracy (R² = 0.98), demonstrating the framework’s effectiveness for data-scarce ecological applications. By improving prediction reliability under limited data conditions, the proposed framework supports more accurate environmental monitoring, informed decision-making, and sustainable management of forest ecosystems. Full article