Soil sampling

This study explores the potential of propolis from Melipona rufiventris species. With its composition encompassing resin, wax, pollen, and soil, propolis holds historical significance in traditional medicine within tropical regions. This research is driven by the scarcity of information surrounding M. rufiventris propolis, prompting an investigation into its chemical constituents, in vivo toxicity, and antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. This exploration could potentially uncover novel applications for this natural product, bolstering both meliponiculture practices and the preservation of native bee populations...

Mulching to conserve moisture has become an important agronomic practice in saline soil cultivation, and the effects of the dual stress of salinity and microplastics on soil microbes are receiving increasing attention. In order to investigate the effect of polyethylene microplastics on the microbial community of salinized soils, this study investigated the effects of different types (chloride and sulphate) and concentrations (weak, medium, and strong) of polyethylene (PE) microplastics (1% and 4% of the dry weight mass of the soil sample) on the soil microbial community by simulating microplastic contamination in salinized soil environments indoors...

Guizhou Province ranks first in terms of Hg reserves and production in the country, and rice is its largest grain crop. In order to study the characteristics and pollution causes of soil-rice Hg content at the provincial level in Guizhou and to carry out safe planting zoning, 1 564 pairs of soil-rice samples, 470 natural soil samples, and 203 individual paddy soil samples were collected to test their Hg content and basic physical and chemical properties of the soil. The results showed that:① Paddy soil was mainly neutral and acidic, the paddy soil ω (Hg) range was 0...

The speciation of heavy metals in soil is an important factor determining their bioavailability and toxicity, and it is crucial for the scientific assessment of ecological risks posed by heavy metals in soils of typical carbonate areas with high geological background in southwest China. In order to investigate the distribution of speciation of heavy metals in soils of carbonate rock with high geological background, we selected a typical carbonate rock distribution area in Guizhou Province and used the second national soil survey plots as sampling units...

Taking a city in Guangdong Province as the research area, the concentration and spatial distribution characteristics of heavy metals in the surface soil were studied to clarify the situation of soil heavy metal pollution and priority control factors, providing basic data for the prevention and control of soil heavy metal pollution in the city. The content characteristics of heavy metals in 221 soil samples in the city were analyzed, and the potential health risk assessment and source analysis were carried out through the Monte Carlo model, the potential health risk assessment (HRA) model, and the PMF receptor model...

In order to study the status and sources of heavy metal pollution in Yinchuan Yellow River floodplain soils, we used inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to determine the presence of eight heavy metals in 92 soil samples from the Yinchuan Yellow River floodplain and used enrichment factors, geological accumulation index, and potential ecological risk index to analyze and evaluate the characteristics of heavy metal pollution in the study area. Combined correlation analysis, absolute factor analysis-multiple linear regression model (APCS-MLR), positive matrix factorization (PMF), and geostatistics were used to analyze the sources of soil heavy metals...

The sediment and soil in the Juma River channel pose a risk of pollution to the downstream ecological environment of Beijing and Xiong'an New Area. To address this issue, sediments and soil samples were collected along the river from the source to the Zhangfang outlet. The samples were further divided into three types:main stream sediment (29 samples), riverbank soil (27 samples), and farmland soil (26 samples). Enrichment factor analysis and the potential ecological risk index were employed to investigate the ecological risk...

In this study, a Meta-analysis was used to investigate the pollution status of eight farmland soil heavy metal elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in China. Meanwhile, their spatiotemporal changes and differences between different types of cultivated land were explored. The research data were chosen from 449 relevant literature data collected by CNKI and Web of Science from 2005 to 2021, and the Meta-analysis used a weighted method based on "sampling numbers", "study area", and "standard deviation"...

The objective of this study was to explore the effects of different amounts of biochar on the migration process and characteristics of NO3 - -N in loessial soil. In this study, six groups of mixed soil samples with biochar and loessial soil mass ratios of 0% (T0), 1% (T1), 2% (T2), 3% (T3), 4% (T4), and 5% (T5) were used as research objects. NO3 - -N was used as the tracer. Through the indoor soil column solute transport simulation tests, the effects of different biochar application amounts on the NO3 - -N transport process in loessial soil were simulated and studied...

Soil organic matter is an important indicator of soil fertility, and it is necessary to improve the accuracy of regional organic matter spatial distribution prediction. In this study, we analyzed the organic matter content of 1 690 soil surface layers (0-20 cm) and collected data on the natural environment and human activities in the Weining Plain of the Yellow River Basin. The SOM spatial distribution prediction model was established with 1 348 points using classical statistics, deterministic interpolation, geostatistical interpolation, and machine learning, respectively, and 342 sample points data were used as the test set to test and analyze the prediction accuracy of different models...

Biofilms attached to submerged macrophytes play an important role in improving the water quality of the water environment supplemented with reclaimed water. In order to explore the effects of reclaimed water quality and submerged macrophyte species on the characteristics of an epiphytic bacterial community, different types of submerged macrophytes were selected as research objects in this study. 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing technology was used on the epiphytic bacteria and the surrounding environmental samples to analyze the bacterial community structure and functional genes...

Riparian soil is a critical area of watersheds. The characteristics of biological contaminants in riparian soil affect the pollution control of the watershed water environment. Thus, the microbial community structure, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in the riparian soil of the Lanzhou section of the Yellow River were investigated by analyzing the characteristics of soil samples collected from farmland, mountains, and industrial land. The results showed that the Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria were the dominant phyla in the riparian soil of Lanzhou section of the Yellow River...

BACKGROUND: Khat ( Catha edulis Forsk ) is a stimulant plant grown in East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Heavy metal pollution has been a global concern due to its acute and chronic health effects and the major route of exposure is the consumption of contaminated foods. In this study, the determination and health risk assessment of heavy metals (Mn, Cu, Zn, Ni, Cr, Cd, and Pb) in khat and its support soil samples was carried out. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Khat and its support soil were analyzed for the levels of 7 toxic heavy metals by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer...

Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections are among the most common infections that affect the poorest and most deprived communities. In most developing countries, children aged 5 to 15 years are at risk for chronic helminth infection and associated morbidity. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of STH infections and associated risk factors among three government elementary schools in Dembecha town, Ethiopia. We conducted a school-based cross-sectional study involving 316 participants between November 2019 and March 2020...

BACKGROUND: This manuscript is the first contribution of the project, "Matela - uma ilha de biodiversidade" ("Matela - an island of biodiversity"), that aims to restore the native vegetation within the Azorean Protected Area of the Terceira Island Nature Park known as the "Protected Area for the Management of Habitats or Species of Matela" (TER08), situated on Terceira Island, the Azores Archipelago, Portugal. This small fragment of native forest, positioned at a low-medium altitude (300-400 m a...

Direct analysis of solid samples is always challenging for ionic sensors due to solidified elemental presence and matrix interference. In this work, a "three-phase transforming" technique was first established to make solid sampling elemental sensors and visual detection possible in the future. For Cd transforming from soil samples, a metal ceramic heater (MCH) electrothermal vaporizer (ETV) coupled with a dielectric barrier discharge quartz trap (DBD-QT) was first utilized to fulfill the solid sampling and preconcentration of Cd in soil; for on-site analysis, a colorimetric sensor based on the trithiocyanuric acid (TMT) functionalized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) was chosen as a chromogenic analysis model...

A Hungarian survey of Tokaj-Mád vineyards was conducted. Shotgun metabarcoding was applied to decipher the microbial-terroir. The results of 60 soil samples showed that there were three dominant fungal phyla, Ascomycota 66.36% ± 15.26%, Basidiomycota 18.78% ± 14.90%, Mucoromycota 11.89% ± 8.99%, representing 97% of operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Mutual interactions between microbiota diversity and soil physicochemical parameters were revealed. Principal component analysis showed descriptive clustering patterns of microbial taxonomy and resistance gene profiles in the case of the four historic vineyards (Szent Tamás, Király, Betsek, Nyúlászó)...

Fusarium wilt, caused by the fungus Fusarium buharicum, is an emerging disease of okra in Japan. The disease was first reported in Japan in 2015, causing significant damage to okra seedlings. Due to the potential threat in okra cultivation, the development of an accurate detection method for F. buharicum is needed for the surveillance and management of the disease. In this study, we designed a primer set and developed conventional and nested PCR assays for the specific detection of F. buharicum in infected okra plants and contaminated soil, respectively...

Kale is a nutrient-dense leafy vegetable associated with wide-ranging health benefits. It is tolerant of drought and temperature fluctuations, and could thus serve an increasingly important role in providing a safe and nutritious food supply during the climate crisis, while kale's ease of cultivation and ability to be grown in a wide range of soils make it a good fit for urban agriculture. In this pilot study we explored potential differences between kale grown at urban versus rural farms. We planted kale seedlings (Darkibor variety) at three urban and four rural farms in and around Baltimore City, Maryland, instructed farmers to cultivate them using their usual growing practices, harvested the kale from fields and points of distribution, and analyzed it for concentrations of carotenoids, vitamins C and K1, ten nutritional elements, and eight non-essential metals...

Pythium-like species cause damping-off symptoms of various hosts, including umbelliferous crops. In April 2023, parsley plantlets ( Petroselinum crispum ), showing stunted growth, yellowing, decayed roots and damping-off, were obtained from a nursery in central Slovenia, where parsley was grown in polystyrene trays in a greenhouse. Nearly 30% of plants were symptomatic. Sampled roots of ten plants contained ornamented oogonia (avg. 33.3 ± 1.4 µm in diam) with conical projections (5.2 ± 0.5 µm long) (Figure S1 A, B) in microscopically analyzed squash mounts...