Pigments (chloropigments-a and carotenoids) in sediments and macroalgae samples, collected in Hornsund, in July 2015 and July 2016, were analysed (HPLC) in this work. In spite of the aerobic conditions and the periodic intensive solar irradiation in the Arctic environment, neither of which favour pigment preservation in water column and surface sediments, our results indicate that these compounds can provide information about phytoplankton composition, primary production and environmental conditions in this region. The sum of chloropigments-a, a marker of primary production, in the Hornsund sediments varied from 0.40 to 14.97 nmol/g d.w., while the sum of carotenoids ranged from 0.58 to 8.08 nmol/g d.w. Pheophorbides-a and pyropheophorbides-a made up the highest percentage in the sum of chloropigments-a in these sediments, supplying evidence for intensive zooplankton and/or zoobenthos grazing. Among the carotenoids, fucoxanthin and its derivatives (19'-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin and 19'-hexanoyloxy-4-ketofucoxanthin) contributed the highest percentage, which points to the occurrence mainly of diatoms and/or haptophytes in the water. The pigment markers show that the input of macroalgae to the total biomass could be considerable only in the intertidal zone.

The work presents a two-step method of iron red synthesis based on waste iron(II) sulfate. The synthesis was carried out using purified waste iron sulfate from titanium dioxide production. The study investigated the influence of factors such as temperature, pressure, concentration of solutions and synthesis time on the physicochemical properties of pigments. Obtained pigments were tested by instrumental analytical methods, e.g. X-ray Diffraction or BET surface area analysis. The pigments were analyzed for color, praticles size as well as for oil number. The results of the research showed a change in the physicochemical properties of the obtained pigments depending on the conditions of synthesis. It was shown that increasing the synthesis time in most cases increased the degree of crystallization of hematite in the pigments. High specific surface area, low agglomeration of pigments or low oil absorption are directly related to the crystallinity of the pigments obtained. Laboratory pigments have been found to be different from commercial pigments. The difference in properties speaks in favor of synthesized materials.

The reaction of ilmenite raw materials with sulfuric acid has been investigated to find out the influence of diffusion processes on the course of this reaction. Three different laboratory methods were used to initiate the reaction: mixing ilmenite with 83–85% sulfuric acid at a temperature of 80 °C, mixing ilmenite with 90% sulfuric acid at temperatures of 20–40 °C and adding water, and mixing ilmenite with water and adding 95% sulfuric acid. Changes of thermal power during the process (thermokinetics) were studied with the use of calorimetry. It was found that diffusion processes play an important role when the reaction is initiated by mixing ilmenite with water followed by the addition of sulfuric acid and are less important when the reaction is initiated by mixing ilmenite with concentrated sulfuric acid followed by the addition of water. To explain the influence of diffusion processes on the reaction, the model calculations based on mass and heat balance equations were involved. Model calculations showed that the diffusion and mass transport processes are so fast that the reaction kinetics is mainly influenced by the reaction on the surface of ilmenite particles. The adopted model of calculations showed a very good agreement with experimental results.

It has been shown that the precipitation of bismuth orthovanadate from a fly ash leachate is a promising method of vanadium recovery. BiVO4 obtained after appropriate heat treatment can be sold as a pigment. The yield of recovery of solubilised vanadium is equal to 68% and the precipitate is free from nickel impurity. The precipitate is insoluble in the solutions with pH ≥ 3. In more acidic media the solubility of precipitate increases with the decreasing pH. The solubility of the precipitate increases also with the increasing concentration of chloride ions.

The perspective direction in the biological regulation of insect pest populations is the combined use of different products of organic origin including fungal biological control agents. Therefore, the present study was aimed to evaluate the efficacy of products of natural origin (Aminogreen 24, Nitrogreen, Foliamin and Naturalis − strain ATCC 74040 of entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana) and one synthetic insecticide − standard (deltamethrin + thiacloprid), applied alone and in a mixture in the control of Acyrthosiphon pisum in forage pea. The study was conducted in a field experiment during the period 2017 − 2020. Infestation by leaf aphids was estimated by calculating the cumulative insect- -days ( CID). It was found that the combination of Aminogreen 24 + Naturalis had the most pronounced decrease in CID among products over the years from 2017 to 2020 and the average for the period. The greatest, significant reduction in the number of aphids occurred on day 5 (F8.5 = 15.244; p < 0.033) and day 7 (F8.5 = 33.087; p < 0.037) after treatment. On the 14th day, the decrease in CID (57.4% decrease) statistically exceeded the Proteus 110 OD standard (55.3% decrease) (F8.5 = 49.841; p < 0.049). Good protection against A. pisum was also found with Naturalis and Nitrogreen + Naturalis. There was an additive effect between Naturalis and Aminogreen 24 throughout the entire study period. The ratio of chlorophyll a (Chl a) to chlorophyll b (Chl b) and the ratio of green pigments (Chl a + + Chl b) to carotenoids determined that plants treated with Aminogreen 24 + Naturalis and Naturalis had the best physiological state. The combination of Aminogreen 24 and Naturalis gave the largest, significant, increase in stem height, followed by Nitrogreen + Naturalis. The use of Naturalis, alone and in a combination with Aminogreen 24 and Nitrogreen can be a successful alternative to conventional chemical control.

Anthropogenic pollution leads to increased concentrations of metals in the freshwater and macrophyte. Aquatic plants substantially contribute to the structure, function as well as and service provision of aquatic ecosystems. Our microcosm experiments were to test the possibility of the physiological response of Hydrocharis morsus-ranae to metal (Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe at three level of concentration) contaminated waters. Biomass was analysed at the beginning and at the end of the experiment. At the same time contents of photosynthetic pigments in leaves were estimated spectrophotometrically. We found that this macrophyte had the ability to grow in contaminated waters, but the effects of high concentration of isolated metals in water will indicate changes consisting in the disappearance of a significant part of biological populations were which manifested in alteration of the content of photosynthetic pigments as well as this plant’s growth. We show that generally stress of Zn and Cu influenced the drop of dry biomass which was connected with a positive correlation between the amount of dry biomass and the content of chlorophyll a and carotenoids, or only carotenoids, respectively. The highest stress of Pb and Fe (third concentrations of these metals) also influenced the drop of biomass. We concluded that none of Cd concentrations were toxic to this plant, but the effect of Mn stress was not unequivocal. Moreover, plant growth was stimulated by low Fe concentrations (first concentration) demonstrating the hormesis effect. When plants were exposed to this metal, there was no evidence of damage to the photosynthetic processes.

The aim of the study was the determination the effect of foliar application of growth regulator containing Ti (Tytanit®), on Lolium multiflorum morphometry, photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll content and chemical composition of dry matter. A pot experiment was carried out in a plant breeding room of Siedlce University, Poland, in 2019. The experimental units were as follows: I) control – plants sprayed with distilled water; II) plants sprayed with 0.02% Tytanit concentration; III) plants sprayed with 0.04% Tytanit concentration; IV) plants sprayed with 0.06% Tytanit concentration. The following parameters were determined: the shoots number, the number and the length of leaf blades, the length of roots, the dry weight of roots, the dry weight of plants per pot and the content of chlorophyll a and b in leaf blades. In addition, maximum and actual efficiency of the leaf photosystem, photochemical and non- photochemical quenching coefficients and the content of total protein, crude fibre, monosaccharides, crude fat, crude ash, Ca, Mg, P, K and the ratio of K/(Ca + Mg), and Ca/P in the dry matter of plants were determined. Used in controlled conditions, the regulator contributed to the growth of most morphological characteristics, improved photosynthetic activity, increased the concentration of chlorophyll a and b, and

The aim of this study was to examine the possibility of use of synchronous culture of Chlorella vulgaris algae as a biotest in water quality control. In the experiment the samples of water collected from seven sampling points in Goczałkowice Reservoir were used. The criterion of changes was the concentration of photosynthetic pigments, from 24'" hour of the cell life cycle, separated by HPLC technique. On the basis of changes taking place in the cells of the algae cultures it was possible to establish the timing of the flood period and autumnal changes in a water quality. It was also proved that the water quality in the main water current that fall into the western part of reservoir carried by the Wisła River after the flood period significantly differed from the water quality in the other parts of the reservoir, particularly in its eastern section.

Tenosynovial Giant Cell Tumor (TGCT) is a group of typically benign lesions arising from the synovium of joints, bursae and tendon sheaths. Depending on their growth pattern and clinical course, they are divided into localized and diffuse types. It is predominantly caused by a mutation in the stromal cells of the synovial membrane leading to overexpression of the colony stimulating factor 1 that recruits CSF1R-expressing cells of the mononuclear phagocyte lineage into the tumor mass. The lesions contain mainly histiocyte-like and synovial cells accompanied by varying numbers of multinucleated giant cells, mononuclear cells, foam cells, inflammatory cells and hemosiderin deposits. The gold standard for detect-ing and monitoring the disease is MRI, where the characteristic hemosiderin accumulation can be best appreciated, but it is a histological examination that is most conclusive. The main treatment is surgical resection of all pathological tissue, but radio- and chemotherapy are also viable options for certain groups of patients.