Description: Coastal countries have traditionally relied on the existing marine resources (e.g., fishing, food, transport, recreation, and tourism) as well as tried to support new economic endeavors (ocean energy, desalination for water supply, and seabed mining). Modern societies and lifestyle resulted in an increased demand for dietary diversity, better health and well-being, new biomedicines, natural cosmeceuticals, environmental conservation, and sustainable energy sources. These societal needs stimulated the interest of researchers on the diverse and underexplored marine environments as promising and sustainable sources of biomolecules and biomass, and they are addressed by the emerging field of marine (blue) biotechnology. Blue biotechnology provides opportunities for a wide range of initiatives of commercial interest for the pharmaceutical, biomedical, cosmetic, nutraceutical, food, feed, agricultural, and related industries. This article synthesizes the essence, opportunities, responsibilities, and challenges encountered in marine biotechnology and outlines the attainment and valorization of directly derived or bio-inspired products from marine organisms. First, the concept of bioeconomy is introduced. Then, the diversity of marine bioresources including an overview of the most prominent marine organisms and their potential for biotechnological uses are described. This is followed by introducing methodologies for exploration of these resources and the main use case scenarios in energy, food and feed, agronomy, bioremediation and climate change, cosmeceuticals, bio-inspired materials, healthcare, and well-being sectors. The key aspects in the fields of legislation and funding are provided, with the emphasis on the importance of communication and stakeholder engagement at all levels of biotechnology development. Finally, vital overarching concepts, such as the quadruple helix and Responsible Research and Innovation principle are highlighted as important to follow within the marine biotechnology field. The authors of this review are collaborating under the European Commission-funded Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) Action Ocean4Biotech – European transdisciplinary networking platform for marine biotechnology and focus the study on the European state of affairs.

Description: The purpose of this report is to examine the current situation, risks and responses to the recreational use of nitrous oxide in Europe. To support this, the report also provides a state-of-the-art review of the chemistry, pharmacology and toxicology of the gas. It is intended for policymakers and practitioners.

Description: Marine organisms produce a vast diversity of metabolites with biological activities useful for humans, e.g., cytotoxic, antioxidant, anti-microbial, insecticidal, herbicidal, anticancer, pro-osteogenic and pro-regenerative, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anticoagulant, cholesterol-lowering, nutritional, photoprotective, horticultural or other beneficial properties. These metabolites could help satisfy the increasing demand for alternative sources of nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, cosmeceuticals, food, feed, and novel bio-based products. In addition, marine biomass itself can serve as the source material for the production of various bulk commodities (e.g., biofuels, bioplastics, biomaterials). The sustainable exploitation of marine bio-resources and the development of biomolecules and polymers are also known as the growing field of marine biotechnology. Up to now, over 35,000 natural products have been characterized from marine organisms, but many more are yet to be uncovered, as the vast diversity of biota in the marine systems remains largely unexplored. Since marine biotechnology is still in its infancy, there is a need to create effective, operational, inclusive, sustainable, transnational and transdisciplinary networks with a serious and ambitious commitment for knowledge transfer, training provision, dissemination of best practices and identification of the emerging technological trends through science communication activities. A collaborative (net)work is today compelling to provide innovative solutions and products that can be commercialized to contribute to the circular bioeconomy. This perspective article highlights the importance of establishing such collaborative frameworks using the example of Ocean4Biotech, an Action within the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) that connects all and any stakeholders with an interest in marine biotechnology in Europe and beyond.

Description: "We have to make sure that as we grow the blue economy, it accelerates in a regenerative way. Moving to a sustainable blue economy would benefit food security, human health, underdeveloped communities - and of course, the environment." Alexandra Cousteau, President and Co-Founder Oceans 2050

Description: The seventh edition of the »World Ocean Review« focuses on the effects of climate change on the physics of the ocean and on its biotic communities; the consequences of fishing, shipping, resource extraction, energy production, and marine pollution; and the questions of how active substances from the ocean can be used and how the ocean can be managed in the future in such a way that both its protection and the participation of as many people as possible in its services and goods are ensured.

Description: This is the fourth collection of reports of EFSA’s EU-FORA Fellowship Programme. EU-FORA started in 2016 as part of EFSA’s efforts to support the development of next generations of Europe’s food risk assessors. Five years later, it continues to empower food safety professionals, ensuring an interconnected community of experts, while stimulating the involvement of Member States in risk assessment work and building a common EU risk assessment culture.

Description: The contamination of the environment with whole plastics or pieces thereof (microand nanoplastics) is the subject of extensive discussion nowadays in academia and the media. In addition to environmental matrices, micro- and nanoplastics have been detected in fishery products and other important food commodities, with concerns over their impact on human health. Food consumption is considered one of most significant routes of human exposure to these small plastic particles. Such concerns may arise not only from the exposure to reactive monomers in the otherwise biologically inert polymer structure, but also from their associated contaminants. Many studies have reported neurotoxicity, oxidative stress and immunotoxicity among the main consequences of exposure to micro- and nanoplastics. This document outlines the existing literature on the occurrence of microplastics and their associated contaminants in foods. It estimates the dietary exposure of consumers to these materials, highlights some knowledge gaps with respect to their relevance to public health, and offers some recommendations for future work on microplastic particles to support food safety governance.

Description: Information is a critical resource for personal, economic and social development. Libraries and archives are the primary access point to information for individuals and communities with much of the information protected by copyright or licence terms. In this complex legal environment, librarians and information professionals operate at the fulcrum of copyright’s balance, ensuring understanding of and compliance with copyright legislation and enabling access to knowledge in the pursuit of research, education and innovation. This book, produced on behalf of the IFLA Copyright and other Legal Matters (CLM) Advisory Committee, provides basic and advanced information about copyright, outlines limitations and exceptions, discusses communicating with users and highlights emerging copyright issues. The chapters note the significance of the topic; describe salient points of the law and legal concepts; present selected comparisons of approaches around the world; highlight opportunities for reform and advocacy; and help libraries and librarians find their way through the copyright maze.