Northwestern researchers developed sponges to address water pollution and identified potential health risks of a juice-based diet. The Daily compiled a recap of their latest research developments.
A reusable and cheaper solution to water pollution
NU researchers developed a specialized sponge, an economical and reusable way to collect water pollutants — such as zinc and copper — responsible for algae blooms. The sponge can release the collected minerals for reuse when exposed to different pH levels.
Existing methods to remove pollutants are often single-use and costly. In contrast, the sponge is more cost-efficient and works just as well after five cycles of collecting and removing minerals. Principal investigator and McCormick Prof. Vinayak Dravid called it the “Swiss Army knife” of sponges for its versatility and reusability.
With an adjustable nanoparticle coating and porous structure that provides ample surface area, the sponge can collect different types of trace pollutants as a universal sorbent or be tailored to absorb contaminants specific to Chicago waters.
Beyond capturing pollutants, the sponge releases resources when in environments of different pH levels. Lowering the pH flushes out metals like copper and zinc, while phosphate detaches at a higher pH. These retrieved minerals, while harmful in water, could be repurposed for beneficial use.
“We can’t just keep flushing these minerals down the toilet,” Kelly Matuszewski, a materials science Ph.D. student involved in the sponge research, said in a news release. “We need to understand how they interact and find ways to actually utilize them.”
Study questions common beliefs about juicing
NU researchers found that the popular juice-based diet may do more harm than good, causing inflammation and cognitive decline.
The study involved three groups of healthy adults: the first consumed only juice, the second had juice with whole foods and the third ate only whole plant-based foods. Both juice-consuming groups showed bacterial shifts associated with inflammation and gut permeability, with the juice-only group experiencing the most significant increase in these bacteria.
Researchers attributed the increase in harmful bacteria to juice’s high sugar content and lack of fruit and vegetable fiber. The findings highlight the need for more research on how juice and other diets affect the microbiome, especially in children who consume juice as a fruit substitute.
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