PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Rutgers researchers spot potential hazard with private well water treatment

Microparticles of arsenic treatment media and water softener resin are detected in drinking water

2024-07-12
(Press-News.org) Systems designed to treat arsenic in private well water may be malfunctioning and endangering the health of people who count on them to keep their water safe, according to Rutgers researchers.

Megan Rockafellow-Baldoni, an assistant professor of environmental and occupational health and justice at the Rutgers School of Public Health, together with co-authors including Rutgers alum Steven Spayd, a retired research scientist formerly with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, tested the water of 62 New Jersey homes with whole-house arsenic-removing water treatment systems. Their study was published in the journal Water Environment Research.

Spayd said "these water treatment systems may be solving one exposure problem by removing dissolved arsenic from the water, but potentially creating a new exposure, the ingestion of arsenic treatment media with high concentrations of arsenic.”

While arsenic is a naturally occurring element, it is a known human carcinogen and dangerous to human health. For this reason, when New Jersey homes with wells are sold, it is required they are tested for arsenic. If the element is found above safe levels for drinking water, an arsenic treatment system can be installed.

In such treatment systems, water from the well flows through a specialized adsorptive filter. When the system functions as intended, the adsorptive media and the filtered arsenic are left behind in the treatment tank while potable water flows into the home.

However, Rockafellow-Baldoni and co-authors of the study found microparticles of arsenic treatment media in the drinking water at 71 percent of the tested homes. This media is intended to remain within the treatment tank and never enter a home’s drinking water as it likely contains high concentrations of adsorbed arsenic.

Arsenic may not be the only contaminant of concern:  When radium, another naturally occurring yet hazardous substance, is detected in well water, it is effectively removed with a water softener.

Through the course of their research, Rockafellow-Baldoni and Spayd detected microparticles of water softener resin in 84 percent of the homes with water softeners, suggesting that in some homes, microparticles with adsorbed radium might also be present. 

They added that further research is needed to determine the reason for malfunction and determine the arsenic and radium concentrations in the escaping media.

Until the problem can be further studied and resolved, the researchers encourage well owners install a 5-micron post-treatment sediment filter to capture escaping media. Information about obtaining and properly installing the filter is available from the New Jersey Geological and Water Survey.

END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

When to trust an AI model

2024-07-12
CAMBRIDGE, MA – Because machine-learning models can give false predictions, researchers often equip them with the ability to tell a user how confident they are about a certain decision. This is especially important in high-stake settings, such as when models are used to help identify disease in medical images or filter job applications. But a model’s uncertainty quantifications are only useful if they are accurate. If a model says it is 49% confident that a medical image shows a pleural effusion, then 49% of the time, the model should be right. MIT ...

Research shows gamified investment sites have risks for novice investors

2024-07-12
TORONTO - What happens when online investment trading platforms start to resemble games that keep people playing for hours, with badges and exploding confetti to reward investors for their engagement? For those who know what they’re doing, it won’t make much of a difference. New research from the University of Toronto engaging nearly 1,000 volunteers in artificial investment scenarios shows that more informational features such as price change notifications might even help savvy investors execute ...

Specially equipped natural killer cells show effectiveness against the most common form of ovarian cancer

2024-07-12
RESEARCH SUMMARY Study Title: CAR memory-like NK cells targeting the membrane proximal domain of mesothelin demonstrate promising activity in ovarian cancer Publication: Science Advances Dana-Farber Cancer Institute authors include: Rizwan Romee, MD, senior author; and Mubin Tarannum, PhD, KhanhLinh Dinh, and Juliana Vergara, MD, MMSc, co-first authors Summary: Natural killer, or NK, cells endowed with memory-like abilities and armed with a novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) have generated encouraging results in experiments in epithelial ovarian cancer ...

Entering the golden age for antibody-drug conjugates in gynecologic cancer

Entering the golden age for antibody-drug conjugates in gynecologic cancer
2024-07-12
“We are optimistic that the incorporation of ADCs into the treatment of aggressive tumors and treatment refractory gynecologic cancers will improve quality of life and survival outcomes in our patients.” BUFFALO, NY- July 12, 2024 – A new editorial paper was published in Oncoscience (Volume 11) on May 20, 2024, entitled, “Entering the golden age for antibody-drug conjugates in gynecologic cancer.” In this new editorial, researchers Michelle Greenman, Blair McNamara, Levent Mutlu, and Alessandro D. Santin from Yale University School of Medicine discuss gynecologic cancers. Biologically aggressive ...

Judge: Texas university must release records on research study that resulted in deaths of dozens of animals

2024-07-12
SAN ANGELO, Texas —Tom Green County District Court Judge Barbara L. Walther ruled Thursday, July 11, 2024, that Angelo State University must release public records relating to an experiment conducted on dozens of mice that resulted in the animals’ unnecessary suffering and death, reportedly to study the impact of the foster care system on human children. The ruling overturns Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Nov. 17, 2022 decision to side with the university in denying the records. On July 13, 2023, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a Washington, D.C. based health advocacy group of more than 17,000 doctor members that encourages higher standards ...

UMass Amherst food scientist rises to the challenge of giving marbled fatty feel and taste to plant-based meat

UMass Amherst food scientist rises to the challenge of giving marbled fatty feel and taste to plant-based meat
2024-07-12
One of the challenges of creating realistic-looking and delectable plant-based meat is mimicking the marbled effect of animal fat that many carnivores expect and enjoy. A University of Massachusetts Amherst food scientist has a plan to tackle this quandary by developing new technology supported by a $250,000 grant from the Good Food Institute. The not-for-profit think tank promotes plant-based alternatives to meat, dairy and eggs, as well as cultivated “clean meat” grown from animal cells in a facility. The technology proposed ...

Complex impact of large wildfires on ozone layer dynamics unveiled by new study

2024-07-12
In a revelation that highlights the fragile balance of our planet's atmosphere, scientists from China, Germany, and the USA have uncovered an unexpected link between massive wildfire events and the chemistry of the ozone layer. Published in Science Advances, this study reveals how wildfires, such as the catastrophic 2019/20 Australian bushfires, impact the stratosphere in previously unseen ways. The ozone layer, a crucial shield protecting life on Earth from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, has been on a path to ...

Brain inflammation triggers muscle weakness after infections

Brain inflammation triggers muscle weakness after infections
2024-07-12
Infections and neurodegenerative diseases cause inflammation in the brain. But for unknown reasons, patients with brain inflammation often develop muscle problems that seem to be independent of the central nervous system. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have revealed how brain inflammation releases a specific protein that travels from the brain to the muscles and causes a loss of muscle function. The study, in fruit flies and mice, also identified ways to block this process, which could have ...

Research alert: All stem cell therapies are not created equal

2024-07-12
Researchers from University of California San Diego have found that two of the most frequently administered stem cell therapies, which are often used interchangeably, actually contain completely different types of cells. The results challenge the current “one-cell-cures-all” paradigm in orthopedic stem cell therapeutics and highlight the need for more informed and rigorous characterization of injectable stem cell therapies before they are marketed for use in patients. The researchers analyzed cell populations of autologous bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) and adipose-derived ...

Complex impact of large wildfires on ozone layer dynamics

2024-07-12
The ozone layer, a crucial shield protecting life on Earth from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, has been on a path to recovery thanks to the Montreal Protocol. This landmark international treaty, adopted in 1987, successfully led to phasing out the production of numerous substances responsible for ozone depletion. Over the past decades, the ozone layer has shown significant signs of healing, a testament to global cooperation and environmental policy. However, the stability of this vital atmospheric layer is now facing a new and unexpected challenge. During the 2019/20 Australian wildfires, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Antiretroviral drugs for treatment and prevention of HIV in adults: 2024 recommendations of the International Antiviral Society–USA Panel

Virginie McNamar appointed President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of SynGAP Research Fund (SRF) dba Cure SYNGAP1

Planetary boundaries: Confronting the global crisis of land degradation; Potsdam institute report opens UNCCD COP 16

VUMC and Philips landmark emissions assessment of a radiology department published in premier industry journal

When devices can read human emotions without a camera

Warming temperatures impact immune performance of wild monkeys, U-M study shows

Fine particulate air pollution may play a role in adverse birth outcomes

Sea anemone study shows how animals stay ‘in shape’

KIER unveils catalyst innovations for sustainable turquoise hydrogen solutions

Bacteria ditch tags to dodge antibiotics

New insights in plant response to high temperatures and drought

Strategies for safe and equitable access to water: a catalyst for global peace and security

CNIO opens up new research pathways against paediatric cancer Ewing sarcoma by discovering mechanisms that make it more aggressive

Disease severity staging system for NOTCH3-associated small vessel disease, including CADASIL

Satellite evidence bolsters case that climate change caused mass elephant die-off

Unique killer whale pod may have acquired special skills to hunt the world’s largest fish

Emory-led Lancet review highlights racial disparities in sudden cardiac arrest and death among athletes

A new approach to predicting malaria drug resistance

Coral adaptation unlikely to keep pace with global warming

Bioinspired droplet-based systems herald a new era in biocompatible devices

A fossil first: Scientists find 1.5-million-year-old footprints of two different species of human ancestors at same spot

The key to “climate smart” agriculture might be through its value chain

These hibernating squirrels could use a drink—but don’t feel the thirst

New footprints offer evidence of co-existing hominid species 1.5 million years ago

Moral outrage helps misinformation spread through social media

U-M, multinational team of scientists reveal structural link for initiation of protein synthesis in bacteria

New paper calls for harnessing agrifood value chains to help farmers be climate-smart

Preschool education: A key to supporting allophone children

CNIC scientists discover a key mechanism in fat cells that protects the body against energetic excess

Chemical replacement of TNT explosive more harmful to plants, study shows

[Press-News.org] Rutgers researchers spot potential hazard with private well water treatment
Microparticles of arsenic treatment media and water softener resin are detected in drinking water