As global water resources decline, reuse of domestic greywater for the irrigation of home gardens is quickly becoming widespread in many parts of the world. However, the sanitary implications of reusing greywater to water edible crops remain uncertain.This study examined the benefits and risks associated with domestic greywater reuse for the purposes of vegetable garden irrigation. Untreated (settled only) and treated (settling and slow sand filtration) greywater collected from a family home was analyzed for basic water quality parameters, over a period of eight weeks. During that time, both greywaters were used to irrigate individually potted plots of lettuce, carrots and peppers in a greenhouse. Tap water was used as control. Upon maturity, plants were harvested and the edible portions tested for fecal coliforms and fecal streptococci, common indicators for the presence of pathogenic microorganisms. Heavy metals were not detected in the greywater, but both fecal coliforms and fecal streptococci were present in high levels, averaging 4 x 10 5 /100mL and 2 x 10 3 /100mL of greywater, respectively. Despite these high counts, no significant difference in contamination levels was observed between crops irrigated with tap water, untreated and treated greywaters. Fecal coliform levels were highest in carrots and fecal streptococcus levels highest on lettuce leaves. However, contamination levels for all crops were low and do not represent a significant health risk.Plant growth and productivity were unaffected by the water quality, owing to the low N, P and K levels of the greywater. These results reinforce the potential of domestic greywater as an alternative irrigation source.
Outer membranes of Haemophilus influenzae type b were fractionated to yield Triton X-100-insoluble material and lipopolysaccharide and phospholipids. Liposomes reconstituted from lipopolysaccharide and phospholipids were impermeable to sucrose (Mr, 342) and to a high-molecular-weight dextran (average Mr, 6,600). When the Triton X-100-insoluble material was introduced into the reconstituted liposomes, the vesicles became permeable to sucrose, raffinose (Mr, 504), and stachyose (Mr, 666) and fully retained dextrans of Mr greater than 1,500. Inulin (average Mr, 1,400) was tested for its efflux from the reconstituted outer membrane vesicles; 62% of the added inulin was trapped. The molecular weight exclusion limit for the outer membrane of H. influenzae type b was therefore estimated at approximately 1,400. A protein responsible for the transmembrane diffusion of solutes was purified from H. influenzae type b by extraction of whole cells with
Small millets, a group of highly nutritious food, have taken a back seat in the Indian agriculture landscape in recent years, due to government policies and failings in the value chain. In this commentary, the unusual decline of small millets in comparison to its substitutes, and the repercussions thereof, were first presented as context. Thereafter, based on analysis of data from literature, survey, and stakeholder contributions, a cluster map for the Indian small millets value chain was designed, and its competitive state presented. This information was used to conceptualize an open innovation driven business model, and an ecosystem for the proposed model was discussed. This commentary provides the first cluster map analysis of small millets value chain in India, and a business model-based approach to stimulating its agribusinesses growth through a synthesis of stakeholders' contributions and market data.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.