Technical University of Moldova

This study investigated the effect of root application of copper, gold and silver nanoparticles at different concentrations (5, 50, 100 mg/L) on Mentha spicata L. during 28-days field experiment. The plants were watered once with the nanoparticle solutions, which were coated with polyvinylpyrrolidone and had the following sizes: 1–2 nm for silver, 1–4 nm for gold, and 15–70 nm for copper. To determine the patterns of metal nanoparticle accumulation, their content in soil and plant segments was quantified using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry and atomic absorption spectrometry. Silver nanoparticles exhibited the highest bioavailability, while copper and gold nanoparticles showed low mobility in plants. Irrigation with a 50 mg/L solution of copper nanoparticles led to a 25

An experimental cell design for studying the properties of anisotropic materials under the action of a magnetic field during deformation is described. The developed method has been tested by studying the properties of low-dimensional samples of anisotropic materials subjected to deformation. Single glass-coated bismuth wires as more suitable objects characterized by a large elastic strain range were selected for these studies. Dependencies of the resistance of bismuth wires on deformation in a transverse magnetic field have been measured by modifying the design of the bronze console of the insert, in which the wire is fixed. The proposed method has been used to reconstruct the Fermi surface topology in single glass-coated bismuth wires under uniaxial deformation by studying quantum oscillations of the perpendicular magnetoresistance for different orientations of the magnetic field relative to the crystallographic axes.

During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, wastewater-based genomic surveillance (WWGS) emerged as an efficient viral surveillance tool that takes into account asymptomatic cases and can identify known and novel mutations and offers the opportunity to assign known virus lineages based on the detected mutations profiles. WWGS can also hint towards novel or cryptic lineages, but it is difficult to clearly identify and define novel lineages from wastewater (WW) alone. While WWGS has significant advantages in monitoring SARS-CoV-2 viral spread, technical challenges remain, including poor sequencing coverage and quality due to viral RNA degradation. As a result, the viral RNAs in wastewater have low concentrations and are often fragmented, making sequencing difficult. WWGS analysis requires advanced computational tools that are yet to be developed and benchmarked. The existing bioinformatics tools used to analyze wastewater sequencing data are often based on previously developed methods for quantifying the expression of transcripts or viral diversity. Those methods were not developed for wastewater sequencing data specifically, and are not optimized to address unique challenges associated with wastewater. While specialized tools for analysis of wastewater sequencing data have also been developed recently, it remains to be seen how they will perform given the ongoing evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and the decline in testing and patient-based genomic surveillance. Here, we discuss opportunities and challenges associated with WWGS, including sample preparation, sequencing technology, and bioinformatics methods.

The present study aimed to investigate the migration of potentially hazardous compounds from plastic food packaging into edible oils, bottled water and soft drinks available on the market in the Republic of Moldova. GC-MS screening was applied to identify plastic additives and unintentionally added substances (NIAS). The influence of key extraction parameters, including solvent type, extraction time, pH, alcohol content and sugar concentration, was systematically investigated. The optimized procedure demonstrated satisfactory analytical performances, with recoveries ranging from 81 to 96%, repeatability below 5% and detection limits between 0.006 and 0.01 mg/L. To allow a comprehensive assessment of total phthalate contamination, an additional analytical approach based on the hydrolysis of phthalate esters and the determination of o-phthalic acid using capillary electrophoresis with spectrophotometric detection was proposed. The method showed a linearity range of 0.1-5.0 mg/L and a limit of quantification of 0.07 mg/L. The combined chromatographic and hydrolysis-capillary electrophoresis approaches provide a reliable tool for the integrated determination and evaluation of phthalate residues in aqueous-alcoholic systems and beverages, accessible to laboratories performing food quality control.

The release of nano-sized metal particles into the environment, along with the associated risk of their migration through the food web, is linked to the widespread application of nanomaterials in industry and agriculture. In this study Mentha spicata L. plants were exposed to silver nanoparticles (1–2 nm) at concentrations of 1, 5, 10, 50, and 100 mg/L over a 28-day period, employing two distinct application methods: root application and foliar spraying. Silver content in plant tissues, soil samples, and herbal infusions prepared from exposed spearmint leaves was determined via atomic absorption spectrometry. In root-applied treatments, silver predominantly accumulated in the soil; however, translocation to the leaves was also detected, reaching a maximum concentration of 16.9 mg/kg in leaves at the highest exposure level (100 mg/L Ag nanoparticles). Silver nanoparticles significantly reduced the soil basal respiration rate compared to the control on the 7 and 30 days of incubation. When silver nanoparticles were applied to the foliage, accumulation in the leaves (5.04–140.4 mg/kg) was observed, alongside excretion through the root system into the rhizosphere (up to 2.41 mg/kg). Interestingly, silver nanoparticles enhanced photosynthetic efficiency in the plants by increasing β-carotene and chlorophyll content, and they also stimulated higher antioxidant activity compared to untreated plants. During brewing, silver extraction into the infusion was below 1