Azerbaijan National Academy of Science

This study presents the first integrated assessment of plastic pollution at the Kura River delta, where the river enters the hydrologically enclosed Caspian Sea. We applied a modular toolbox comprising four complementary components: high-resolution hydrodynamic modeling to predict debris convergence zones, UAV-based mapping to survey shoreline conditions, automated object-based image analysis for debris detection and classification, and standardized field monitoring by trained community participants for ground-truthing and source identification. Using this framework, we identified debris accumulation hotspots and developed a replicable approach for assessing plastic pollution in semi-enclosed systems. Surveys along a 1.2km shoreline recorded over 600 items, dominated by beverage containers by count and marine-sourced plastics by weight. Transboundary inputs were confirmed through labeled debris from five countries. The initiative also expanded institutional collaboration, trained over 150 participants, and established a local monitoring network. These findings highlight the value of integrating technical diagnostics with community engagement to enable scalable, site-adapted responses to plastic pollution.

Hypospadias is a congenital malformation of the penis affecting 1 in every 250 male births. Measurement of androgen receptor (AR) levels in the foreskin has been used to elucidate the role of this receptor in the hypospadias aetiology. This review evaluates the extent of immunohistochemical AR expression in the foreskin of boys with hypospadias, compared to their unaffected counterparts. Several databases (MEDLINE, Embase, and The Cochrane library) were searched to find studies relevant to our research question. From 657 studies, 24 underwent full-text review, and 8 were included in a narrative synthesis analysis of the findings reported by the literature. Four studies reported significantly increased quantified AR expression in hypospadias (p < 0.05), while three described significantly decreased expression (p < 0.013), and one reported no significant difference between groups. Furthermore, AR expression was found to be higher in the stroma of the foreskin than the epithelium. No clear consensus has been established regarding the relationship between AR expression and hypospadias in the literature. This may be due to variability in the age of participants included in the study, or additional factors such as genetic conditions, highlighting the need for a standard approach to investigation. Registration: This systematic review was registered under PROSPERO identification number CRD420251000803.