(Press-News.org) Using the same devious mechanism that enables some bacteria to shrug off powerful antibiotics, scientists have developed solar-powered nanofilters that remove antibiotics from the water in lakes and rivers twice as efficiently as the best existing technology. Their report appears in ACS' journal Nano Letters.
David Wendell and Vikram Kapoor explain that antibiotics from toilets and other sources find their way into lakes and rivers, with traces appearing in 80 percent of waterways. Those antibiotics foster emergence of new antibiotic-resistant bacteria, while harming beneficial microbes in ways that can degrade aquatic environments and food chains. Filters containing activated carbon can remove antibiotics from effluent at municipal sewage treatment plants, before its release into waterways. But activated carbon is far from perfect. So the scientists looked for a better technology.
They describe development and successful laboratory testing of capsule-like "vesicles" containing the very mechanism that enables bacteria to survive doses of antibiotics. This system pumps antibiotics out of bacterial cells before any damage can occur. Wendell and Kapoor turned it around, however, so that the system pumps antibiotics into the vesicles. That way, they can be collected and recycled or shipped for disposal. In addition to the pump, the vesicles contain a propulsion system driven by sunlight. The pump system could be adapted to clean hormones, heavy metals and other undesirable materials from water, the scientists state.
###
The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 163,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C. and Columbus, Ohio.
To automatically receive news releases from the American Chemical Society contact newsroom@acs.org.
Follow us: Twitter Facebook END
Solar-powered nanofilters pump in antibiotics to clean contaminated water
2013-05-01
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Baby knows best: Fetuses emit hormone crucial to preventing preeclampsia
2013-05-01
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – In a study using mice, researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that a hormone, adrenomedullin, plays a crucial role in preventing the pregnancy complication preeclampsia. Surprisingly, this hormone protects women from preeclampsia when emitted by the fetus, not the mother, during the most critical times in pregnancy.
"We've identified the fact that the baby is important in protecting the mom from preeclampsia," said the study's senior author, Kathleen M. Caron, Ph.D., Assistant Dean for Research at the UNC School of ...
Study finds survival from cardiac arrest highest in the operating room or post-anesthesia care unit
2013-05-01
CHICAGO and ANN ARBOR, Mich. – A University of Michigan study from the "Online First" edition of Anesthesiology found cardiac arrest was associated with improved survival when it occurred in the operating room (O.R.) or post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) compared to other hospital locations. The findings offer evidence that the presence of anesthesia providers in these locations may improve outcomes for certain patients.
Cardiac arrest is a very uncommon complication during the perioperative period, which includes the time during and immediately after surgery and anesthesia. ...
Progress in introducing cleaner cook stoves for billions of people worldwide
2013-05-01
It may be the 21st century, but nearly half the world's population still cooks and heats with open fires or primitive stoves that burn wood, animal dung, charcoal and other polluting solid fuels. The article in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology describes impressive progress being made to remedy that situation and the obstacles that remain.
Susan C. Anenberg and colleagues describe the health and environmental consequences of those old-fashioned energy sources. They include an estimated 4 million deaths annually from inhalation of soot and other material ...
New evidence on how fluoride fights tooth decay
2013-05-01
In an advance toward solving a 50-year-old mystery, scientists are reporting new evidence on how the fluoride in drinking water, toothpastes, mouth rinses and other oral-care products prevents tooth decay. Their report appears in the ACS journal Langumir.
Karin Jacobs and colleagues explain that despite a half-century of scientific research, controversy still exists over exactly how fluoride compounds reduce the risk of tooth decay. That research established long ago that fluoride helps to harden the enamel coating that protects teeth from the acid produced by decay-causing ...
Reflections on chevaline
2013-05-01
Horse meat as time-honored European cuisine, its detection when mixed into meatballs and other food and the angst over consumption of chevaline in the United States, is food for a thoughtful installment of the popular Newscripts column in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News. C&EN is the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.
Alexander H. Tullo, C&EN senior editor, uses the story to look behind the headlines earlier in 2013 reporting discovery of horse meat in meatballs and other beef burger products ...
New research shows weekend binge drinking could leave lasting liver damage
2013-05-01
Long after a hangover, a night of bad decisions might take a bigger toll on the body than previously understood. Described in the current issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, a study at the University of Missouri has revealed a unique connection between binge drinking and the risk for developing alcoholic liver disease and a variety of other health problems.
"In our research, we found that binge drinking has a profound effect on the liver in various modes of alcohol exposure," said Shivendra Shukla, PhD, Margaret Proctor Mulligan Professor at the University ...
Breast augmentation patients report high satisfaction rates, says study
2013-05-01
Philadelphia, Pa. (May 1, 2013) – Ninety-eight percent of women undergoing breast augmentation surgery say the results met or exceeded their expectations, according to a prospective outcome study published in the May issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
Women also report improvements in self-esteem and quality of life after breast augmentation, according to the study by ASPS Member Surgeon Dr. Eric Swanson, a plastic surgeon in private practice in Leawood, Kan. The study adds high-quality ...
Traditional ranching practices enhance African savanna
2013-05-01
New Haven, Conn.— That human land use destroys natural ecosystems is an oft-cited assumption in conservation, but ecologists have discovered that instead, traditional ranching techniques in the African savanna enhance the local abundance of wild, native animals. These results offer a new perspective on the roles humans play in natural systems, and inform ongoing discussions about land management and biodiversity conservation.
For thousands of years, pastoralists in East African savannas have penned their cattle overnight in brush-walled corrals, called bomas. Bomas remain ...
Half of US plastic surgeons market their practice via social media
2013-05-01
Philadelphia, Pa. (May 1, 2013) – Half of U.S. plastic surgeons are using Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms in their professional practice, according to a survey in the May issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
"Social media platforms represent a dynamic and powerful tool to educate, engage, market to and directly communicate with patients and professional colleagues," writes ASPS Member Surgeon Dr. Reza Jarrahy and colleagues of University of California, Los Angeles. ...
Ferring to present safety analysis for FIRMAGON® (degarelix) at the AUA Annual Meeting
2013-05-01
San Diego, CA, USA, May 1, 2013 – The following data will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Urology Association (AUA) in San Diego, CA:
Androgen deprivation therapy by a gonadotropin releasing hormone antagonist, degarelix, lowers the risk of cardiovascular events or death when compared to luteinising hormone-releasing agonists (Abstract 781)
Date: Monday, May 6, 2013; 8:00-10:00 AM
Session/Type: Prostate Cancer: Advanced (II); Moderated Poster
Location: San Diego Convention Center, Room 7
Authors: Peter Albertsen; Bertrand Tombal; Thomas Wiegel; ...