How to identify biofouling species in marine and freshwater

The identification and management of biofouling remain pressing challenges in marine and freshwater ecosystems, with significant implications for environmental sustainability and industrial operations. This comprehensive review synthesizes the current state-of-the-art in biofouling identification technologies, examining eight prominent methodologies: Microscopy Examination, Molecular Biology, Remote Sensing, Community Involvement, Ecological Methods, Artificial Intelligence, Chemical Analysis, and Macro Photography. Each method is evaluated for its respective advantages and disadvantages, considering factors such as precision, scalability, cost, and data quality. Furthermore, the review identifies current obstacles that inhibit the optimal utilization of these technologies, ranging from technical limitations and high operational costs to issues of data inconsistency and subjectivity. Finally, the review posits a future outlook, advocating for the development of integrated, standardized systems that amalgamate the strengths of individual approaches. Such advancement will pave the way for more effective and sustainable strategies for biofouling identification and management.

Ecological status of Lake Nasser Khors, Egypt, before operating the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

Lake Nasser is an artificial reservoir that represents the national freshwater reserve of Egypt and has a number of khors (side extensions) along its eastern and western banks. These khors covered approximately 79% of the lake’s total surface area and have an important effect on water quality and fish production in the lake. This study aimed to monitor and assess the water quality, distribution, and structure of the biotic community, including phytoplankton, zooplankton, macrophytes, epiphytes, and macrobenthos in two main khors (Tushka West and Dahmeit) during postflood and preflood periods. There was urgency associated with the study, as it was the last opportunity before the storing of the water behind the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which had begun to fill in July 2020. Although the study confirmed that the water quality of Lake Nasser was good, it is classified as a eutrophic lake (depending on the levels of Chlorophyll-a and nutrients). This study found that pH, NO2, SiO4, NH4, PO4, and temperature were the factors with the greatest effect on the biota community, especially in Dahmeit Khor. In contrast to the phytoplankton and macrobenthos, the highest total density of zooplankton and epiphytic microalgae were detected during the postflood period. This study could be useful in monitoring possible changes in the Lake Nasser environment after the complete filling of the GERD reservoir.

New insights into engineered plant-microbe interactions for pesticide removal

Over the past decades, rapid industrialization along with the overutilization of organic pollutants/pesticides has altered the environmental circumstances. Moreover, various anthropogenic, xenobiotics and natural activities also affected plants, soil, and human health, in both direct and indirect ways. To counter this, several conventional methods are currently practiced, but are uneconomical, noxious, and is yet inefficient for large-scale application. Plant-microbe interactions are mediated naturally in an ecosystem and are practiced in several areas. Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) possess certain attributes affecting plant and soil consequently performing decontamination activity via a direct and indirect mechanism. PGPR also harbors indispensable genes stimulating the mineralization of several organic and inorganic compounds. This makes microbes potential candidates for contributing to sustainably remediating the harmful pesticide contaminants. There is a limited piece of information about the plant-microbe interaction pertaining predict and understand the overall interaction concerning a sustainable environment. Therefore, this review focuses on the plant-microbe interaction in the rhizosphere and inside the plant's tissues, along with the utilization augmenting the crop productivity, reduction in plant stress along with decontamination of pesticides/organic pollutants in soil for sustainable environmental management.