PM1

Particulate matter with diameter less than 1 μm (PM1 ) has been found to be closely associated with air quality, climate changes, and even adverse human health. However, a large gap in our knowledge concerning the large-scale distribution and variability of PM1 remains, which is expected to be bridged with advanced remote-sensing techniques. In this study, a hybrid model called principal component analysis-general regression neural network (PCA-GRNN) is developed to estimate hourly PM1 concentrations from Himawari-8 aerosol optical depth in combination with coincident ground-based PM1 measurements in China...

Talaromyces marneffei is the most important thermal dimorphic fungus causing systemic mycosis in Southeast Asia. We report the discovery of a novel partitivirus, Talaromyces marneffei partitivirus -1 (TmPV1). TmPV1 was detected in 7 (12.7%) of 55 clinical T. marneffei isolates. Complete genome sequencing of the seven TmPV1 isolates revealed two double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) segments encoding RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) and capsid protein, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis showed that TmPV1 occupied a distinct clade among the members of the genus Gammapartitivirus Transmission electron microscopy confirmed the presence of isometric, nonenveloped viral particles of 30 to 45 nm in diameter, compatible with partitiviruses, in TmPV1-infected T...

Fourteen nitro-PAHs and five oxy-PAHs associated with PM2.5 and PM1.0 were analyzed by GC-MS/MS at Mount Tai, China. 85% of the nitro-PAHs and 65% of oxy-PAHs were found in PM1.0 . The combined concentration of nitro-PAHs in PM2.5 was highest in air masses associated with biomass burning (270.50pg/m3 ) compared with measurements from heavily polluted days (93.21pg/m3 ) and clean days (81.22pg/m3 ). A similar trend was also reflected in measurements of PM1.0 . 9-FO, 9,10-ANQ, and 1-NALD were the most abundant oxy-PAHs in both PM2...

Present study reports the characterization results of settled dust particles in different indoor micro-environments of an academic institution in India. Field emission scanning electron microscope analysis of indoor dust revealed the presence of mineral particles, fly ash, and soot particles of different morphologies. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis of indoor dust indicated that crystal particles are comprised of elements such as C, O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, S, Cl, K, Ca, Fe, and Ti. These elements accounted for more than 99% of the samples...

This study presents the air pollution findings of the submicron (PM1) and fine (PM2.5) particulate matter. The submicron particles are entirely absorbed by the human body and they cause the greatest health risk. For the PM2.5 concentration, there are yearly and/or daily limit values regulations by the European Union (EU) and World Health Organization (WHO). There are no such regulations for PM1 but for health risk reason the knowledge of its concentration is important. This paper presents the seasonal concentration contribution of PM1 and PM2...

Many studies have shown that pet shops have a high concentration of bioaerosols. Thus, effective disinfection protocols are essential to protect the pet shop staff and visitors to the store. The present study examines the effectiveness of gaseous chlorine dioxide (ClO2 ) fogging in minimizing the residual bacteria and fungi levels in a typical pet shop in Taiwan consisting of a commodity area, a lodging area, and a grooming area. This investigation uses three disinfection modes (DMs) according to different disinfection periods, namely once every hour (1DM), once every 2 h (2DM), and once every 3 h (3DM)...

BACKGROUND: China is experiencing severe ambient air pollution. However, few studies anywhere have examined the health effects of PM1 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <1 μm), which are a major part of PM2·5 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <2·5 μm) and even potentially more harmful than PM2·5 . We aimed to estimate the effects of ambient daily PM1 and PM2·5 concentrations on emergency hospital visits in China. METHODS: In this epidemiological study, we collected daily counts of emergency hospital visits from the 28 largest hospitals in 26 Chinese cities from Sept 9, 2013, to Dec 31, 2014...

Size-fractioned aerosol samples were collected by an eight-stage Anderson sampler for four seasons from November 2014 to August 2015 at a coastal and suburban site in Ningbo, China, with a total of 270 samples were obtained. The seasonal variations and size distributions of water-soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs), carbonaceous aerosols (OC and EC), which consist of four organic carbon (OC1-OC4), pyrolyzed carbon (OP) and three elemental carbon fraction (EC1-EC3), were investigated. For the sampling periods, the average total concentration of WSIIs, OC and EC in PM1...

Although ambient air pollution has been linked to reduced lung function in healthy students, longitudinal studies that compare the response of asthmatic and healthy adolescents are lacking. To evaluate lung function responses to short-term ambient air particulate matter (PM10 , PM2.5 , and PM1 ) levels, we conducted a study on high school students aged 15-18 years. The aim of this study was to assess effects of acute exposure to ambient air particulate matter (PM) on lung function in healthy and asthmatic late adolescents...

A forensic method for the retrospective determination of preparation methods used for illicit ricin toxin production was developed. The method was based on a complex set of biomarkers, including carbohydrates, fatty acids, seed storage proteins, in combination with data on ricin and Ricinus communis agglutinin. The analyses were performed on samples prepared from four castor bean plant (R. communis) cultivars by four different sample preparation methods (PM1-PM4) ranging from simple disintegration of the castor beans to multi-step preparation methods including different protein precipitation methods...

Parallel measurements of PM1 and PM2.5 aerosols were conducted in the urbanized coastal zone of the southern Baltic Sea. The main aim of the research was to assess and determine annual, seasonal (heating and non-heating), and daily concentration variability of benzo(a)pyrene in aerosols, these being the most dangerous constituents to human health. The average annual concentration of benzo(a)pyrene (B(a)P) was equal to 2.6 ng·m-3 in PM1 and 4.6 ng·m-3 in PM2.5 , and both values were several times higher than the level of 1 ng·m-3 which was set out in the CAFE Directive...

Traffic-generated particulate matter (PM) is a significant fraction of urban PM pollution and little is known about the use of living walls as a short-term strategy to reduce this pollution. The present study evaluated the potential of twenty living wall plants to reduce traffic-based PM using a living wall system located along a busy road in Stoke-on-Trent, UK. An Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM) and ImageJ software were employed to quantify PM accumulation on leaves (PM1 , PM2.5 and PM10 ) and their elemental composition was determined using Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX)...

Limited evidence exists concerning the impact of particulate pollution on acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We examined the effects of particulate pollution on emergency ambulance dispatches (EAD) for ARDS in Guangzhou, China. Daily air pollution concentrations for PM10 , PM2.5 , and PM1 , as well as PM2.5 chemical compositions, were available from a central air monitoring station. The association between incident ARDS and air pollution on the concurrent and previous 5 days was estimated by an over-dispersed Poisson generalized additive model controlling for meteorological factors, temporal trends, public holidays and day of the week...

Environmental and health risk concerns relating to airborne particles from mining operations have focused primarily on smelting activities. However, there are only three active copper smelters and less than a dozen smelters for other metals compared to an estimated 500000 abandoned and unreclaimed hard rock mine tailings in the US that have the potential to generate dust. The problem can also extend to modern tailings impoundments, which may take decades to build and remain barren for the duration before subsequent reclamation...

Occupational health can be strongly influenced by the indoor environment as people spend 90% of their time indoors. Although indoor air quality (IAQ) is not typically monitored, IAQ parameters could be in many instances very different from those defined as healthy values. Particulate matter (PM), a complex mixture of solid and liquid particles of organic and inorganic substances suspended in the air, is considered the pollutant that affects more people. The most health-damaging particles are the &le;PM10 (diameter of 10 microns or less), which can penetrate and lodge deep inside the lungs, contributing to the risk of developing cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, as well as of lung cancer...

Exposure to particulate matter (PM) leads to kinds of cardiopulmonary diseases, such as asthma, COPD, arrhythmias, lung cancer, etc., which are related to PM-induced inflammation. We have found that PM2.5 (aerodynamics diameter <2.5 µm) exposure induces inflammatory response both in vivo and in vitro. Since the toxicity of PM is tightly associated with its size and components, PM1 (aerodynamics diameter <1.0 µm) is supposed to be more toxic than PM2.5 . However, the mechanism of PM1 -induced inflammation is not clear...

Background: Dolutegravir (DTG) is an integrase strand-transfer inhibitor (INSTI) used for treatment of HIV-infected individuals. Due to its high genetic barrier to resistance, DTG has been clinically investigated as maintenance monotherapy to maintain viral suppression and to reduce complication and healthcare costs. Our study aims to explain the underlying mechanism related to the emergence of a S230R substitution in patients who experienced virological failure while using DTG monotherapy...

BACKGROUND: Health effects of air pollution on diabetes have been scarcely studied in developing countries. We aimed to explore the associations of long-term exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) and gaseous pollutants with diabetes prevalence and glucose-homoeostasis markers in China. METHODS: Between April 1 and Dec 31, 2009, we recruited a total of 15 477 participants aged 18-74 years using a random number generator and a four-staged, stratified and cluster sampling strategy from a large cross-sectional study (the 33 Communities Chinese Health Study) from three cities in Liaoning province, northeastern China...

Public exposure to significantly elevated levels of particulate matter (PM) as a result of major fires at industrial sites is a worldwide problem. Our paper describes how the United Kingdom developed its Air Quality in Major Incidents (AQinMI) service to provide fire emission plume concentration data for use by managers at the time of the incident and to allow an informed public health response. It is one of the first civilian services of its type anywhere in the world. Based on the involvement of several of the authors in the AQinMI service, we describe the service's function, detail the nature of fires covered by the service, and report for the first time on the concentration ranges of PM to which populations may be exposed in major incident fires...

BACKGROUND: With the rising prevalence of allergic rhinitis, the utility of indoor environmental management deserves increasing scrutiny. This research aims at evaluating the ability of air purifiers to be a therapy of allergic rhinitis. METHODS: 32 subjects (25±13.5 years old) diagnosed with allergic rhinitis were selected and HEPA air purifiers placed in their bedrooms for 4 months. Before the intervention and each month, dust samples were collected with a vacuum cleaner and the dust collector assessed for allergen content...