One of the significant problems in the modern world is the detection of improvised explosives made of materials synthesized at home. Such compounds include triacetone triperoxide (TATP) and hexamethylene triperoxide diamine (HMTD). An attempt was made to construct an instrument allowing for the simultaneous detection of both compounds despite the large difference of vapor pressure: very high for TATP and very low for HMTD. The developed system uses differential ion mobility spectrometry (DMS) in combination with a specially designed gas sample injection system. The created system of detectors allowed for the detection of a high concentration of TATP and a very low concentration of HMTD. TATP detection was possible despite the presence of impurities—acetone remaining from the technological process and formed as a coproduct of diacetone diperoxide (DADP) synthesis. Ammonia added to the carrier gas improved the possibility of detecting the abovementioned explosives, reducing the intensity of the acetone signal. The obtained results were then compared with the detection capabilities of drift tube ion mobility spectrometer (DT-IMS), which has not made possible such detection as DMS.

It is known that Senna obtusifolia has been used in medicine since ancient times due to the content of many valuable compounds with a pro-health effect. One of them is betulinic acid, which is a pentacyclic triterpene with antimalarial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties. In this work, a continuation of our previous research, an attempt was made to increase the level of betulinic acid accumulation by the cultivation of transgenic hairy roots that overexpress the squalene synthase gene in a 10 L sprinkle bioreactor with methyl jasmonate elicitation. We present that the applied strategy allowed us to increase the content of betulinic acid in hairy root cultures to the level of 48 mg/g dry weight. The obtained plant extracts showed a stronger cytotoxic effect on the U87MG glioblastoma cell line than the roots grown without elicitors. Additionally, the induction of apoptosis, reduction of mitochondrial membrane potential, chromosomal DNA fragmentation and activation of caspase cascades are demonstrated. Moreover, the tested extract showed inhibition of topoisomerase I activity.

Every day, firefighters put their health and life at risk by saving people and their property not only during fires, but by being always ready during all kinds of unfortunate events. Therefore, they need special personal protective equipment, including protective clothing. The purpose of the study was to compare thermal properties of new (PROTON and SYRIUSZ) and old (US-03) personal protective clothing for firefighters. Measurements of thermal insulation (total, effective and local) were carried out using a full body shape thermal manikin Newton consisting of 34 segments, in which temperature and heat flux were controlled independently. Results of the total thermal insulation of the entire clothing reveal differences between all three models. The lowest values were noticed for the model PROTON with light and shorter jacket and the highest values of thermal insulation for the new model SYRIUSZ, indicating that this model protect the user against heat most effectively. New models of personal protective clothing for firefighters should be recommended for use in everyday work, because they are characterized by better parameters than the previous type of protective clothing, both in terms of thermal protection and mobility.

2. DETECTION OF CHEMICAL CONTAMINANTS 2.1. Chemical Warfare Agents (CWA) 2.1.1. The History of Chemical Warfare (CW) Chemical warfare can be defined in various ways for the purposes of historical review, but primarily as the use of the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. In western literature the first mention of CW is in Greek mythology, in which Hercules was said to have poisoned his arrows with the venom of a Hydra. In The Iliad, Homer claimed that in the Trojan War, both sides used poisoned arrows. There are also many other documented uses of early CW from ancient times. The timeline below shows not only recorded uses of chemical warfare, but also the attempts to ban it. 600 BC-The Athenian military taints the water supply of the besieged city of Kirrha with poisonous hellebore plants. 479 BC-Peloponnesian forces use sulphur fumes against the town of Plataea. 1845-During the French conquest of Algeria, French troops force more than 1,000 members of a Berber tribe into a cave and then use smoke to kill them. 1914, August-During the first month of World War I the French deploy tear-gas grenades, first developed in 1912 for police use. 1914, October-German forces fire 3,000 shells containing dianisidine chlorosulfate, a lung irritant, at the British army at Neuve-Chapelle. The British are unaware that they have been subjected to a chemical attack because the chemical is incinerated by the explosive charge. 1915, January-The Germans fire 18,000 shells filled with the irritant xylyl bromide at Russian troops at Bolinow. The Russians are unharmed because the extreme cold keeps the liquid from vaporizing. 1915, April 22-The German military launches the first large-scale use of chemical weapons in war at Ypres, Belgium. Nearly 170 metric tons of chlorine