Danger Dust

Despite its name, pink cocaine doesn’t necessarily contain any cocaine. Instead, it’s often a mixture of various other substances, including MDMA, ketamine and 2C-B. MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, is a stimulant with psychedelic properties while ketamine is a powerful anaesthetic which has sedative and hallucinogenic effects. 2C drugs are classed as psychedelics but they can also produce stimulant effects.

The original psychedelic form of the drug dates to 1974 and was first synthesised by American biochemist, Alexander Shulgin. But the modern variant emerged around 2010 in Colombia and is a knock-off version.

The drug gained popularity on the party scene in Latin America and has now spread to Europe. Common names for pink cocaine vary widely, from “cocaina rosada” and “tuci” to “Venus” and “Eros”.

Russian roulette

Today’s pink cocaine is an unpredictable mix of substances and that is where much of its danger lies. Users often expect a stimulant similar to cocaine, but the inclusion of ketamine can lead to serious health risks. Abuse of ketamine, which is widely available as a club drug, can lead to unconsciousness or dangerously laboured breathing. This in turn increases the potential dangers of pink cocaine.

Its aesthetic look and “designer drug” status have contributed to its appeal, particularly among young people and first-time users. This mirrors the historical allure of drugs like cocaine and MDMA. It highlights a persistent trend where certain substances are glamourised despite their risks.

Experts compare taking pink cocaine to playing Russian Roulette with substance use, underscoring the unpredictable and dangerous nature of pink cocaine.

The drug has spread beyond Ibiza to the UK, and there is evidence that it has gained traction in Scotland, parts of Wales and England. Across the Atlantic, New York City has also seen a surge in its availability.

Ketamine typically takes about 15 minutes to work and induces euphoria, relaxation and a slight sense of detachment. However, with higher doses it can also cause dissociation. This can be confusing and can cause panic attacks and memory loss. It can increase blood pressure and affect breathing and heart function.

Effects can also be fatal.

Some urologists have also expressed concern about an increase in bladder problems (so-called “ketamine bladder”) as a result of prolonged and heavy use of the drug. Although national data about the number of people with ketamine bladder is not available, there are other sources about the use of ketamine.

Ketamine doesn’t induce the same type of hangover that alcohol and other drugs do. This makes it appealing to those who need to be at work the day after using it. Likewise, it is appealing to those on zero-hour contracts who are asked to work at short notice.

However, many people will use other substances alongside ketamine – typically alcohol. Mixing alcohol and ketamine can cause significant harm, ranging from slowed breathing to coma and even fatal overdose.

Paradoxically ketamine is being investigated as a treatment for those who are dependent on alcohol, including those who haven’t responded to more traditional forms of therapy.

It’s not clear whether the UK has reached peak ketamine use. Most drugs fall in and out of fashion. It is clear that originally banning the drug in 2005, and increasing punishments in 2014 has failed to halt its rising popularity. What could have helped was investment into prevention, education and harm reduction services, but this didn’t happen and we are seeing some of the consequences now.

In a world first, veterinary scientists at Université de Montréal have found a way to scan the brains of cats while they're awake, using electrodes concealed under specially knitted wool caps.

Highlights

• Electroencephalography (EEG), using surface electrodes, allowed non-invasive recording of brain activity in conscious cats.

• Event-related potentials following mechanical and olfactory stimulations were identified in awake cats using EEG.

• Visual stimulations correlated with EEG spectral signatures, showed distinct patterns across different light wavelengths.

• This method allows to study brain activity in animals affected by chronic pain and its modulation with sensory stimulation.

Chronic pain associated with radiographic osteoarthritis (OA) affects 25.6 % of the adult feline population and this incidence increases with age .

Electroencephalography recording in awake cats was well-tolerated and enabled the identification of ERPs following RMTS and olfactory stimulations.

Considering the OA neuroplastic changes, and the possibility of recording and analysing EEGs, this makes them a non-invasive diagnostic tool of choice and this method opens new avenues for improving animal welfare. It could be used to objectively measure sensory hypersensitivity in OA cats using ERPs, and to determine pain modulation using spectral analysis.

Currently, there are no cures for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which affects 40,000 people in Ireland. The disease costs an estimated $22,000 per patient, per year with an overall cost to the health system of ~$608 million. Only 1 in 4 patients achieve remission and a significant proportion of patients have suboptimal responses or no response at all to current available therapies.

As it is impossible to predict who will develop severe, erosive disease and who will respond to treatment, a trial-and-error approach prevails, leading to potential irreversible joint damage before the patient has received the correct treatment.

The team performed an in-depth investigation of a specific population of cells: the macrophages that reside in the synovium of RA patients, individuals-at-risk of RA, and healthy controls. Researchers demonstrated, for the first time, the presence of a dominant macrophage subtype (CD40-expressing CD206+CD163+) in the inflamed RA synovium, which importantly was associated with disease-activity and treatment response.

Combined, these findings identify the presence of an early pathogenic macrophage cell/gene signature that shapes the RA joint inflammatory environment and represents a unique opportunity for early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention.

Source:

Loss of synovial tissue macrophage homeostasis precedes rheumatoid arthritis clinical onset

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adj1252

The best-known example of a sinking city is Jakarta. Large sections of the Indonesian city have dropped by three to four meters since the '80s, and continue to do so by up to ten centimeters annually. Some 40% of the city is below sea level, prompting the Indonesian government to move the capital to Kalimantan.

Sinking cities are mainly the result of groundwater extraction, says Minderhoud. Tragically, in the case of Jakarta, this cause has been ignored for many years.

The fact that water extraction delivers clean drinking water and drives economic development, and as such, benefits many may have contributed, although it is technically simple to stop extracting groundwater, doing so is a socioeconomic challenge.

On Sept. 9 and 10, scientists and engineers tested NASA’s LEMS (Lunar Environment Monitoring Station) instrument suite in a “sandbox” of simulated Moon regolith at the Florida Space Institute’s Exolith Lab at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.

Lunar regolith is a dusty, soil-like material that coats the Moon’s surface, and researchers wanted to observe how the material would interact with LEMS’s hardware, which is being developed to fly to the Moon with Artemis III astronauts in late 2026.

Highlights

• Rockburst risk is discussed, including occurrence conditions, bow-tie analysis, and risk assessment.

• Strategic, tactical, and administrative control methods are presented for rockburst risk management.

• A multiple-line defense system is advocated for rockburst risk management.

• Emerging technologies and challenges are explored, offering insights for advancement.

Mining at depth presents unique challenges, and among the foremost concerns is the occurrence of rockbursts. Rockbursts, characterized by sudden and violent releases of accumulated strain energy within the rock mass, pose significant threats to the safety of personnel and the integrity of underground infrastructure .

As mining activities migrate to deeper ground to extract valuable minerals, the complexities of geology and high mining-induced stresses amplify the risk of rockbursts, requiring a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon and effective control measures......

As emerging technologies, such as advanced seismic monitoring, smart ground support systems, automatous mining equipment, and artificial intelligence, continue to mature, the potential to transform rockburst risk management becomes increasingly apparent. However, the integration of these innovations into existing mining practices requires thoughtful consideration of technical, logistical, and economic factors.

In conclusion, the future of rockburst risk control and mitigation in deep mining lies in a holistic and collaborative approach. A combination of refined mine design considerations, strategic mine planning, ongoing monitoring, rockburst-resistant ground support, and the integration of emerging technologies will contribute to safer and more sustainable underground operations. By collectively addressing challenges and pursuing future research endeavors, mining engineers can shape the future of rockburst management, ensuring the continued advancement of safety and efficiency in deep mining operations.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/20167658

OP : @[email protected]

The oil and gas industry has been using the basin as a free disposal site for decades.

Working at that time for the environmental group Greenpeace, Marco Kaltofen was racing after a stunning realisation: that in many offshore oil and gas settings, oilfield waste is simply being dumped right into the ocean.

Fast-forward almost four decades, and an analysis by DeSmog shows that companies have been legally dumping toxic and radioactive oilfield waste into the North Sea — Europe’s arm of the North Atlantic — for decades, with largely unknown consequences for a sensitive and beloved marine environment. 

Modern oil and gas development involves the use of many toxic and potentially toxic chemicals: biocides and scale inhibitors, meant to kill bacteria and other lifeforms that can clog a well; corrosion inhibitors, which keep oilfield pipes from corroding; and a class of chemicals known as emulsion breakers or demulsifiers, whose purpose is often to break apart mineral material and lubricate fluids to keep product flowing through the piping of an oil or gas well.

Drilling also creates a particular type of toxic waste: produced water,  a naturally salty fluid laden with carcinogens, heavy metals, and naturally occurring radioactive elements, that surges to the surface during drilling. (Many wells generate more produced water than they do oil or gas).

A Stunning Amount of Waste

In 2022, the last year for which reporting is complete, oil and gas companies operating in the territorial waters of Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, and the UK have dumped 244.4 million cubic metres of produced water into the North Sea —  discharged from just over 200 of the region’s 614 oil and gas installations. That’s enough to fill the Roman Colosseum 185 times over with oilfield waste, or flood the entire city of Amsterdam waist-high each year.

The approval of three new coal mines in the Hunter Valley, during a rapidly escalating climate crisis, is shocking given the federal government’s stated commitment to climate action, the Australia Institute has said....

“These are some of the dirtiest, most polluting coal projects seeking approval in Australia right now.

“Fossil fuel projects like these are driving climate change. The government should level with the people of Australia and declare when their final fossil fuel project approval will be given.

“The fact that these new coal mines can be approved, despite the government’s Safeguard Mechanism being in place, shows just how inadequate the policy is.

“To approve huge new coal mines while bidding to host the world’s major climate conference, COP31, is a slap in the face to our Pacific neighbours who have clearly and repeatedly requested that Australia stop expanding fossil fuel production.”

Tuberculosis is the biggest bacterial killer worldwide. 1.5 million people die from TB each year due, in part, to a rise in antibiotic resistant strains, some of which are untreatable with antibiotics.

Using a human tuberculosis skin test model that caused a localized immune response with collaborators in UCL, it was found that one member of the Tribbles protein family—Tribbles1—was regulated by infection challenge. Using zebrafish larval models of tuberculosis, they found that if Tribbles 1 levels were increased during infection, it protected the host against tuberculosis.

This suggests that regulating the Tribbles 1 protein could favorably influence the immune response and have a significant effect on the treatment of tuberculosis.

While Tribbles proteins have been linked to immunity for some time, their roles in bacterial infections such as tuberculosis have not previously been demonstrated. Our study uncovers an important role for Tribbles 1 in our immune defense against pathogens, opening the door for further studies investigating targeting these proteins with drugs as a new way of treating antibiotic resistant infections.

The researchers found that macrophages with an immunoregulatory phenotype and Tregs are the immune cells actively recruited to the lens surface during inflammation. These immunoregulatory cells help restore balance and reduce inflammation. They also found that these immune cells remain on the lens surface until the inflammation is resolved.

The study highlights the importance of understanding the eye's natural defenses, which could eventually lead to more effective treatment strategies for autoimmune uveitis.

With strong bactericidal properties, graphene has the potential to become a game changer in the fight against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. So far there have been no efficient ways to control these properties—and thus no way to make use of graphene's potential in health care.

Now researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, in Sweden, have solved the problem by using the same technology found in an ordinary fridge magnet. The result of which, is an ultra-thin acupuncture-like surface that can act as a coating on catheters and implants—killing 99.99% of all bacteria on a surface.

Unpreceded efficiency by controlling magnetic fields

By arranging earth magnets in a circular pattern making the magnetic field inside the array arrange in a straight direction, the researchers were able to induce a uniform orientation of the graphene and reach a very high bactericidal effect on surfaces of any shape.

Source:

Achieving Long-Range Arbitrary Uniform Alignment of Nanostructures in Magnetic Fields

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adfm.202406875

Highlights

• Plastic abundance prediction in the oceans using probability distribution model.

• Global and regional plastic abundances can be predicted from plastic emissions.

• 32 % of plastic emission should be reduced for zero additional pollution.

• Our model assesses various emission scenarios.

Among all the concerns, plastic waste management should be prioritized. Reducing the emissions of macroplastic waste from rivers into the ocean is the most important solution that humans can manage. We must note that ocean plastics have inertia, so microplastics will continue to increase even if we suddenly stop increasing land-based plastic emissions because of the legacy plastics accumulated on land.

Medical science has long been on the hunt for a deeper understanding of the devastating scarring of the body's organs known as fibrosis, which leads to irrevocable loss of function.

Fibrosis refers to aberrant connective tissue that accumulates in organs impairing their ability to function properly, a process triggered by chronic inflammatory activity. These inflammatory processes can be induced by persistent infection, chemical insults or severe tissue injury. For some patients, the underlying cause of their fibrotic disease remains stubbornly elusive. Fibrotic scarring not only robs patients of healthy organ function, in some instances it steals their lives.

Scar tissue can damage any of the body's major organs, emerging in the lungs as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or in the liver as fatty liver disease. Kidney and cardiac fibrosis are conditions that can be marked by severe organ impairment. Explained another way, a heart attack can cause scar tissue build up—myocardial fibrosis—but the fibrotic region lacks the contractile activity of healthy heart tissue. Worse, there aren't many therapies that can durably treat or reverse organ fibrosis, making the search for potential therapies a top research priority.

Workers in solid waste management and remediation face a variety of dangers—excessive noise, poor ergonomics, pollution and extreme weather, among others—in addition to regular exposure to a broad range of biohazards and chemicals. As a result, they experience higher rates of injuries and illnesses compared to workers across all private industries.

Until now, little was known about how the half a million waste workers in the United States view their jobs and the numerous work-related factors that affect their physical and mental well-being.

Source:

A pilot study on psychosocial factors and perceptions of organizational health among a sample of U.S. waste workers

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-59912-9

Highlights

• Ten PhACs detected in Red Sea corals, indicating pharmaceutical contamination.

• The antibiotic sulfamethoxazole prevalent in 93% of samples.

• Elevated PhAC concentrations in shallow sites underscore human impact.

• Urgent need for conservation measures to mitigate PhAC pollution in coral reefs.

Conclusions

Our study provides novel insights into the presence of pharmaceutically-active compounds (PhACs) in reef-building stony corals from the Red Sea. The detection of ten different PhACs in coral tissues, with elevated concentrations in shallow sites and areas with heavy human activity, underscores the urgent need for conservation efforts to mitigate anthropogenic contamination in coral reef ecosystems. These findings highlight the vulnerability of coral reefs to pharmaceutical pollution

While most cancers are not transmissible, there are rare cases where cancer cells can spread between individuals and even across species, leading to epidemics. Despite their significance, the origins of such cancers remain elusive due to late detection in host populations. Using Hydra oligactis, which exhibits spontaneous tumour development that in some strains became vertically transmitted, this study presents the first experimental observation of the evolution of a transmissible tumour.....

The resulting tumours are characterized by overproliferation of large interstitial stem cells and are not associated with a specific bacteriome. Furthermore, despite only five generations of transmission, these tumours induced notable alterations in host life-history traits, hinting at a compensatory response.

This work, therefore, makes the first contribution to understanding the conditions of transmissible cancer emergence and their short-term consequences for the host.

Cholera is a deadly diarrheal disease that continues to threaten millions worldwide, with up to 4 million cases and as many as 143,000 deaths each year. In Bangladesh alone, where cholera is a persistent danger, 66 million people are at risk, with more than 100,000 cases and 4,500 deaths annually.

Vibrio cholerae, is evolving in ways that make the disease more severe and harder to control, but until now, scientists have struggled to pinpoint the exact genetic factors driving these changes.

There is even less knowledge about the genomic traits responsible for the severity of cholera resulting from these lineages. About 1 in 5 people with cholera will experience a severe condition owing to a combination of symptoms (primarily diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration).

Intelligent microrobots could one day be used in medicine

Do you take any inspiration from bacteria for your microrobots?

Absolutely. The way they navigate through their environment is incredible. They use this brilliant strategy I never would have thought of — at first, they kind of just randomly move around, but when they start sensing something good, like an amino acid or other nutrient, they will swim a little bit longer, which tends to move them gradually in that direction. It’s what we call a “biased random walk.” As an engineer, you start thinking, “Oh, that’s good.” They’re basically following a chemical gradient.

In short, microplastics are widespread, accumulating in the remotest parts of our planet. There is evidence of their toxic effects at every level of biological organisation, from tiny insects at the bottom of the food chain to apex predators.

Microplastics are pervasive in food and drink and have been detected throughout the human body. Evidence of their harmful effects is emerging.

The scientific evidence is now more than sufficient: collective global action is urgently needed to tackle microplastics – and the problem has never been more pressing.

Swarms of spherical nanobots barely larger than a virus could one day save hundreds of thousands of lives globally each year by staunching deadly bleeds in the brain.

An international team of researchers, led by clinicians from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the University of Edinburgh, developed the magnetically-controlled devices to deliver precise doses of clotting agents through a body's blood vessels to prevent blow-outs.

In a demonstration of their potential effectiveness, billions of the drug-carrying microscopic structures were guided through a test animal's body to safely defuse a model aneurism in its carotid.

Antifungal drug development is hampered because of the close similarities between fungal and human cells compared with bacterial and human cells; the search for compounds that selectively inhibit fungi with minimal toxicity to the patient is laborious and requires substantial financial resources.

Despite this complication, several promising new agents, including entirely new classes of molecules, have entered clinical trials in the past decade. But even before they reach the market after years of development and clinical trials, fungicides with similar modes of action are developed by the agrochemical industry resulting in cross-resistance for critical priority pathogens such as A fumigatus. 

We are back where we started in terms of the future sustainability of treating azole-resistant A fumigatus with currently available antifungals. As large proportions of essential crops are affected by fungi, antifungal protection is required for food security. The question is, how do we balance food security with the ability to treat current and future resistant fungal pathogens?

Organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs), electronic components based on flexible organic materials that can amplify biological signals, have proven promising for developing wearable technologies that monitor subtler health related signals. For instance, these flexible transistors could pick up information about glucose, lactate, cortisol and pH levels, as well as neurotransmitters and metabolites, which could be highly beneficial for diagnosing or monitoring specific medical conditions.

Despite the advantages of OECTs, the data they collect must then also be transmitted to external devices, which entails the use of wireless communication circuits. These circuits are typically based on inorganic and rigid materials, which can increase the size and thickness of devices, while reducing their mechanical flexibility.

Researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) recently developed a new wireless device that can monitor various biomarkers, including glucose, lactate and pH levels. This device, presented in a paper in Nature Electronics, effectively integrates components based on organic and inorganic materials, resulting in good performance and excellent mechanical stability, with an overall thickness of 4 μm.

Better than blood tests? Nanoparticle potential found for assessing kidneys

In a study published July 29 in Advanced Materials, University of Texas at Dallas researchers found that X-rays of the kidneys using gold nanoparticles as a contrast agent might be more accurate in detecting kidney disease than standard laboratory blood tests. Based on their study in mice, they also found that caution may be warranted in employing renal-clearable nanomedicines to patients with compromised kidneys.

While our findings emphasize the need for caution when using these advanced treatments in patients with compromised kidneys, they also highlight the potential of gold nanoparticles as a noninvasive way to assess kidney injuries using X-ray imaging or other techniques that correlate with gold accumulation in the kidneys

Instead of drawing from the region's lakes, one of the world's largest freshwater reserves, officials decided to draw from a polluted, acidic river, exposing its 100,000-strong population to severely lead-contaminated water for more than a year.

The health scandal had international repercussions, and—among other issues—caused learning disabilities in many children.

It saw a spike in cases of Legionnaires' disease, leading to the death of a dozen people and widespread mistrust of public officials.

Those same authorities have said that the vast majority of lead pipes have since been replaced and that the water is now safe to drink.