Florica Marinescu

Institutul Naţional de Cercetare-Dezvoltare pentru Protecţia Mediului · Evaluarea Calității Mediului

Injuries and diseases of the skin require accurate treatment using nontoxic and noninvasive biomaterials, which aim to mimic the natural structures of the body. There is a strong need to develop biodevices capable of accommodating nutrients and bioactive molecules and generating the process of vascularization. Electrospinning is a robust technique,...

The presence of antibiotics in the aquatic environment can result in the emergence of antibiotic-resistant pathogens. In this paper, our aim was to identify, quantify and distribute macrolide antibiotics in the aquatic environment in the river basins of Arges-Vedea, Buzau-Ialomita and Dobrogea-Litoral and of the Danube River. In the Arges-Vedea riv...

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is one of the most common multidrug resistant opportunistic pathogens. This Gram-negative bacterial species uses intricate molecular signaling paths to regulate its resistance and virulence, namely quorum sensing (QS) mechanism. Since the discovery of QS inhibitors (QSI), targeting virulence genes to suppress bacterial pathog...

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a non-fermentative Gram-negative opportunistic pathogen, frequently encountered in difficult-to-treat hospital-acquired infections and also wastewaters. The natural resistance of this pathogen, together with the frequent occurrence of multidrug-resistant strains, make current antibiotic therapy inefficient in treating P. a...

Water pollution by emerging contaminants such as antibiotics is a major and current problem in the field of environmental protection. The presence of these micropollutants in surface waters, even in low concentrations, disturbs the ecological balance and leads to the selection and increase of the antibiotic resistant bacteria incidence, so that the...

Background The present study aims the characterization of antibiotic resistance phenotypes and encoding genes in bacterial strains isolated from some Romanian aquatic fishery lowland salted lakes. Material/Methods This study was conducted on 44 bacterial strains, mainly belonging to species used as microbiological indicators of fecal pollution iso...

Pharmaceuticals are a major group of emerging pollutants frequently identified in surface waters. The occurrence of pharmaceuticals as environmental pollutants is a problem involving multiple aspects and continue to cause new and serious challenges to ecosystems and human health. For example, antibiotics exert a selective pressure on bacterial comm...

The limited availability and quality of water resources are key issues of water management, and the protection and preservation of water resources are a requirement in the context of accelerated economic growth and principles of sustainable development. The experimental research presented in this paper is based on the need to identify alternative w...

The limited availability and quality of water resources are key issues of water management, and the protection and preservation of water resources are a requirement in the context of accelerated economic growth and principles of sustainable development. The experimental research presented in this paper is based on the need to identify alternative w...

Treated wastewater is characterized by its content of physico-chemical and microbiological contaminants and its reuse in irrigation purposes depends on the compatibility between water quality and specific requirements for different soil types/crops. This paper refers to the possibility of applying some chemical treatment processes to wastewater res...

Aquatic ecosystems provide many services for society including water for drinking, irrigation, and recreational activities. Emergent contaminants such as antibiotics that are present mainly in urban wastewater have a substantial impact on environment and human health, such as: potential genotoxic effects, disruption of aquatic ecosystems and develo...

Twenty-two groundwater sources mainly used for drinking purpose in Bucharest peri-urban area were investigated for assessment of physico-chemical and microbiological quality with a view to determining its potential risk to public health. Results of chemical analysis revealed that nitrites, sulphates and chlorides were below the permissible levels,...

One of the main concerns of the developing world is the mitigation of pollution of environmental components together with the recovery and reuse of valuable substances from waste resulting during diverse anthropic activities. Wastewater generated by agro-zootechnic activities is a source of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus compounds) and traditio...

Anthropogenic activities can lead to the contamination of freshwaters with heavy metals, which are some of the most persistent pollutants in waterbodies, due to their difficulty to degrade. These pollutants can be accumulated in sediments, aquatic macrophytes and other aquatic organisms, leading to ecological disturbances and potential human health...

The Romanian wetland protection represents a priority confirmed by the Ramsar Convention signed in 1971, which came into effect from 1975. In order to develop the monitoring capacity, assessment and capitalization of natural resources offered by Romanian wetlands a pilot model was developed and implemented in the Danube Delta region. An important c...

Water is an essential but scarce resource and its preservation is one of the issues that have gained an increased interest in the last decades. The reuse of treated wastewater has become a practice employed more frequently in the recent years, particularly in irrigation purposes. However, the public perception on this aspect should be taken into co...

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Considering that the wetlands represent valuable water resources, functioning as authentic natural filters for water decontamination; and improve local air quality; it can also constitute important reserves of vegetable biomass, fish, timber, firewood, etc., being thus essential the protection of the wetlands of international importance. Another va...

The sewage network acts like a physical, chemical and biological reactor where microbial transformations occur, being a complex and extremely dynamic system. The mass transfer occurs between all the sewage subsystems: wastewater, sewage atmosphere, biofilm and sewage sediment. Using the sewage network as a 'pre-treatment step' contributes to improv...

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) provide appropriate conditions for the selection of antibiotic resistance (AR), as well as for the exchange of AR genes between pathogenic and environmental bacteria, and further dissemination among members of the endogenous microbial community, due to the presence of antibiotics, high organic content, as well as...

This paper depicts the research conducted at a micro-pilot scale on autochthonous cultures in order to develop adequate technological solutions for the treatment of wastewater resulting from shrimp cultures (Palaemonidae) that would ensure the protection of the Black Sea ecosystem and constitute an applicable tool for the development of aquaculture...

The issue of hazardous industrial waste has always represented a challenge for both waste generators and researchers. The need to decrease the amount of industrial waste, impose a clear and firm strategy of re-use, to the detriment of disposal, under hazardous conditions for the environment and human health, most of the times. The galvanic sludge r...

Our objectives were to investigate the extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) and carbapenemases (CR) genetic determinants and to assess the association between ESBL production and quinolone resistance in bacterial strains isolated from renal transplant recipients with urinary tract infections. Material and methods: A number of 30 isolates were...

This paper addresses the assessment of the Danube River water monitoring data obtained for the nutrients in the period 2013-2014 in order to achieve and/or maintain the environmental of the river for January-December period of each year in line with the provision of the Government elements of quality: N-NH 4 + , N-NO 2-, N-NO 3-, P-PO 4 3-, P t. Si...

This paper addresses the assessment of the Danube River water monitoring data obtained for the nutrient in the period 2013-2014 in order to achieve and/or maintain the environmental objectives of the Water Framework Directive (60/2000/CE). It has established the ecological status of the river for January-December period of each year in line with th...

Small artificial lakes are discussed in this paper in terms of seven quality indicators: pH, total phosphorus (Ptot), biochemical oxygen demand (CBO5), ammonia nitrogen (N-NH4+), nitrate nitrogen (N-NO3-), nitrite nitrogen (N-NO2-) and sulfates (SO42+). In the 2013-2015 period, randomly were taken eleven samples from four small artificial lakes loc...

As part of the integrated monitoring system, monitoring of the air quality it is essential in areas where operating a cement factory, the atmosphere being the most common way of spreading pollutants derived from such industrial activity. To highlight the impact on the air of the activities that take place in the cement factory from Eastern Romania...

The main objective of this paper is the assessment of surface water quality polluted with various heavy metals (HM) using the quality indices and the information submitted may be useful for the competent authorities and the public. Cadmium (Cd), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn) and zinc (Zn) were determined from water samples of Socea Valley using the Ato...

Surface sediment samples were collected monthly from ten sites along the Danube River between Km 347 and Km 182, during May 2012 – August 2014, in order to assess heavy metal pollution status and adverse biological effects. Concentrations of six elements (Cu, Cr, Ni, Zn, Pb and Cd) were determined using AAS technique. Statistical analyses were perf...

This paper presents the toxic effects of some pollutants such as heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Cr, Ni, Cd, Pb, and Fe) and cyanides on the biochemical process of oxygen consumption for the determination of organic load of wastewater quantified as BOD5. The results show absolute values of BOD5 significantly influenced by the existence of tested substances i...

There are many emerging contaminants with disrupting properties on the endocrine system, including some pesticides, pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) that can get into water bodies through leaking due to pesticides use in farming, leaching from landfills or discharge of wastewater into water sources. In Romania, there is a lack of...

Heavy metals are considered dangerous contaminants due to the possibility of bioaccumulation and toxic effects on environment and human health. Six metals exhibiting a greater relevance to the aquatic ecosystem in terms of toxic effects (Cd, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ni and Pb) were analyzed from water samples collected monthly from ten sites, during May 2012-Ap...

Industrialisation and the continuous urban development are an important cause of release of heavy metals and antibiotic products into aquatic environments, affecting both water quality and human health. In this study, antibiotic and heavy metals resistance exhibited by strains isolated from different types of wastewater and freshwater receiving sys...

As part of the integrated monitoring system, monitoring of the air quality is essential in areas where operating a cement factory, the atmosphere being the most common way of spreading pollutants derived from such industrial activity. To highlight the impact on air of the activities developed by the cement plant situated in the eastern part of Roma...

The topic of this paper is part of the current concerns to reduce the impact of pollutants on the aquatic environment by chemical treatment of wastewater in the context of sustainable development for improving quality of life. Suspended solids can lead to deposition of sludge and the occurrence of anaerobic fermentation with negative effects on the...

Distribution and variability of chlorophyll-a were investigated in this study, in relation to nutrient concentrations (total nitrogen-TN, total phosphorus-TP) and hydro-meteorological conditions. The ratio and sum between TN and TP were also studied. Water samples were collected monthly, during September 2012 - August 2014, from left and right bank...

Abstract Flow cytometry represents an important tool in environmental biology, and especially in cellular biology, through its ability to distinguish among different physiological states (viable, latent and non-viable). Flow cytometry combined with fluorescent markers, such as propidium iodide and ethidium bromide allows to perform rapid measuremen...

Abstract The wastewater treatment plants are considered to be hotspots for antibiotic resistance selection, transfer and dissemination. Wastewater offers favorable conditions for the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria because it contains high amounts of organic matter, favoring the rapid multiplication of microbial cells and the developme...

Heavy metal pollution of sediments may have significant effects on environment and human health. Evaluation of heavy metal contamination (Zn, Cu, Ni, Pb, Cd, Cr) of 758 samples of surface sediments collected from the Danube River between Km 347 and Km 182 during May 2012 - April 2015 has been studied to represent the spatial distribution of heavy m...

The Danube River is a transboundary water body traversing many populated areas along its course and therefore is highly vulnerable to heavy metal pollution due to urbanization and industrialization. In this study, sixteen sites were sampled along the Danube River between Km 347 and Km 182 during September 2012-August 2014 for assessment of heavy me...

Adsorption is a fundamental process in physico-chemical treatment of municipal wastewater. Activated carbon is the most efficient adsorbent for this application. Physico-chemical systems using active carbon absorption, produce consistently high levels of treatment and have a high degree of stability and reliability. Advantages of this treatment com...

This study investigated the resistance profiles of Gram-negative strains isolated from different types of wastewater and the receiving river. Significantly higher resistance rates were observed in strains from river receiving wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent as compared with strains from upstream river. High multidrug resistance rates wer...

The Danube river, the most important European river serves as a resource for various water uses and, therefore, environmental quality of the Danube river basin is under great pressure from a diverse range of human activities. Although water is usually employed as a pollution indicator by trace metals, sediments are also considered to be important i...

The aim of the study was to investigate the presence of several virulence genes and factors associated with virulence in E. coli strains isolated from different categories of wastewater. The majority of the aquatic strains isolated from wastewater exhibited high capacity of adherence to the cellular substratum (72.41%) demonstrating the potential t...