Although the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emergency status is easing, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect healthcare systems globally. It is crucial to have a reliable and population-wide prediction tool for estimating COVID-19-induced hospital admissions. We evaluated the feasibility of using wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) to predict COVID-19-induced weekly new hospitalizations in 159 counties across 45 states in the United States of America (USA), covering a population of nearly 100 million. Using county-level weekly wastewater surveillance data (over 20 months), WBE-based models were established through the random forest algorithm. WBE-based models accurately predicted the county-level weekly new admissions, allowing a preparation window of 1-4 weeks. In real applications, periodically updated WBE-based models showed good accuracy and transferability, with mean absolute error within 4-6 patients/100k population for upcoming weekly new hospitalization numbers. Our study demonstrated the potential of using WBE as an effective method to provide early warnings for healthcare systems.
Biocatalytic metal–organic framework nanomotors for active removal of heavy metal ions and per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances in aqueous environments.
AbstractIn the quest for the next generation desalination/water reuse membranes, there is an increasing interest in the potential of 3-dimensionally (3D) printed membranes; one promising candidate method being electrospray. This work proposes a new approach based on the electrospray technique to print polyamide thin-film composite membranes in a single scan. Herein, we applied a polydopamine (PDA) coating to tailor the surface properties of the supporting substrate so that a layer of m-phenylenediamine (MPD) aqueous solution can be loaded on top of the coated substrate. We then utilised different electrohydrodynamics (EHDs) of electrospray to deliver the trimesoyl chloride (TMC) organic solution. Two key factors, the PDA coating duration and the EHD conditions of the TMC solution, were systematically studied. The substrate with a 4-h PDA coating was found to be optimal to enable consistent electrospray printing given its enhanced surface wetting property. Using this substrate, 4 selected EHD conditions of the TMC solution at 4 spray distances resulted in different membrane morphologies, surface chemistries, and separation performance. While a focused jet of TMC solution at 1 cm spray distance resulted in interesting polyamide stripe patterns, a cone-jet spray at 2.5 cm spray distance showed the highest NaCl rejection at 98.1%. The membrane formation mechanism, particularly a proposed ‘capping’ effect, can explain the performance trend based on the morphology and chemical characteristics. Overall, the printed polyamide membranes in our approach showed better combinations of water permeance and solute rejection compared to a polyamide membrane prepared by conventional interfacial polymerization. This study offers an innovative method to realize 3D printing of polyamide membranes via the electrospray technique.
The polyfluorinated alkyl substance 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FTS) has been detected in diverse environments impacted by aqueous film-forming foams used for firefighting. In this study, a bacterial strain (J3) using 6:2 FTS as a sulfur source was isolated from landfill leachate previously exposed to polyfluoroalkyl substances in New South Wales, Australia. Strain J3 shares 99.9% similarity with the 16S rRNA gene of Dietzia aurantiaca CCUG 35676T. Genome sequencing yielded a draft genome sequence of 37 contigs with a G + C content of 69.7%. A gene cluster related to organic sulfur utilisation and assimilation was identified, that included an alkanesulfonate monooxygenase component B (ssuD), an alkanesulfonate permease protein (ssuC), an ABC transporter (ssuB), and an alkanesulfonate-binding protein (ssuA). Proteomic analyses comparing strain J3 cultures using sulfate and 6:2 FTS as sulfur source indicated that the ssu gene cluster was involved in 6:2 FTS biodegradation. Upregulated proteins included the SsuD monooxygenase, the SsuB transporter, the ABC transporter permease (SsuC), an alkanesulfonate-binding protein (SsuA), and a nitrilotriacetate monooxygenase component B. 6:2 Fluorotelomer carboxylic acid (6:2 FTCA) and 6:2 fluorotelomer unsaturated acid (6:2 FTUA) were detected as early degradation products in cultures (after 72 h) while 5:3 fluorotelomer acid (5:3 FTCA), perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA) and perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) were detected as later degradation products (after 168 h). This work provides biochemical and metabolic insights into 6:2 FTS biodegradation by the Actinobacterium D. aurantiaca J3, informing the fate of PFAS in the environment.
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