Meprin α is a zinc metalloproteinase (metzincin) that has been implicated in multiple diseases, including fibrosis and cancers. It has proven difficult to find small molecules that are capable of selectively inhibiting meprin α, or its close relative meprin β, over numerous other metzincins which, if inhibited, would elicit unwanted effects. We recently identified possible molecular starting points for meprin α-specific inhibition through an HTS effort (see part I, preceding paper). In part II we report the optimization of a potent and selective hydroxamic acid meprin α inhibitor probe which may help define the therapeutic potential for small molecule meprin α inhibition and spur further drug discovery efforts in the area of zinc metalloproteinase inhibition.

Objective: To describe outcomes of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the outpatient setting after early treatment with zinc, low dose hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin (the triple therapy) dependent on risk stratification. Design: Retrospective case series study. Setting: General practice. Participants: 141 COVID-19 patients with laboratory confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections in the year 2020. Main Outcome Measures: Risk-stratified treatment decision, rate of hospitalization and all-cause death. Results: Of 335 positively PCR-tested COVID-19 patients, 127 were treated with the triple therapy. 104 of 127 met the defined risk stratification criteria and were included in the analysis. In addition, 37 treated and eligible patients who were confirmed by IgG tests were included in the treatment group (total N=141). 208 of the 335 patients did not meet the risk stratification criteria and were not treated. After 4 days (median, IQR 3-6, available for N=66/141) of onset of symptoms, 141 patients (median age 58 years, IQR 40-67; 73% male) got a prescription for the triple therapy for 5 days. Independent public reference data from 377 confirmed COVID-19 patients of the same community were used as untreated control. 4 of 141 treated patients (2.8%) were hospitalized, which was significantly less (p<0.001) compared with 58 of 377 untreated patients (15.4%) (odds ratio 0.16, 95% CI 0.06-0.5). Therefore, the odds of hospitalization of treated patients were 84% less than in the untreated group. One patient (0.7%) died in the treatment group versus 13 patients (3.5%) in the untreated group (odds ratio 0.2, 95% CI 0.03-1.5; p=0.16). There were no cardiac side effects. Conclusions: Risk stratification-based treatment of COVID-19 outpatients as early as possible after symptom onset with the used triple therapy, including the combination of zinc with low dose hydroxychloroquine, was associated with significantly less hospitalizations and 5 times less all-cause deaths.

Milling and mining metal ores are major sources of heavy metal contamination. The Spring River and its tributaries in southeast Kansas are contaminated with Pb, Zn, and Cd as a result of 120 years of mining activities. Trace metal transformations and cycling in mine waste materials greatly influence their mobility and toxicity and affect plant productivity and human health. It has been hypothesized that under reduced conditions in sulfate-rich environments, these metals can be transformed into their sulfide forms, thus limiting mobility and toxicity. We studied biogeochemical transformations of Pb, Zn and Cd in flooded subsurface mine waste materials, natural or treated with organic carbon (OC) and/or sulfur (S), by combining advanced microbiological and X-ray spectroscopic techniques to determine the effects of treatments on the microbial community structure and identify the dominant functional genes involved in the biogeochemical transformations, especially metal sulfide formation over time. Samples collected from medium-, and long-term submerged columns were used for microarray analysis via functional gene array (GeoChip 4.2). The total number of detected gene abundance decreased under long-term submergence, but major functional genes abundance was enhanced with OC plus S treatment. The microbial community exhibited a substantial change in structure in response to OC and S addition. Sulfur-reducing bacteria genes dsrA/B were identified as key players in metal sulfide formation via dissimilatory sulfate reduction. Uniqueness of this study is that microbial analyses presented here in details are in agreements with molecular-scale synchrotron-based X-ray data supporting that OC-plus-S treatment would be a promising strategy for reducing metal toxicity in mine waste materials.

Biocompatible and biodegradable poly(butylene succinate-co-adipate) (PBSA)/hexadecylamine-modified PPZn (m-PPZn) nanocomposites were prepared using a melt mixing process. Experimental results of wide-angle X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the stacking layers of the m-PPZn were partially intercalated and partially exfoliated into the PBSA polymer matrix. The isothermal crystallization kinetics of PBSA/m-PPZn nanocomposites were studied at the temperature range of 62−70 °C and the half-time for crystallization of 3 wt % PBSA/m-PPZn nanocomposite was reduced by 27−35% compared with that of pure PBSA. This finding suggests that the incorporation of m-PPZn might cause the heterogeneous nucleation and the subsequent crystallization growth, which enhances the isothermal crystallization rate of PBSA/m-PPZn nanocomposite. The biodegradation rates of PBSA using Lipase from Pseudomonas sp. increase as the contents of m-PPZn increase. The degradation behavior of the neat PBSA investigated using the change of weight-average molecular weight belongs to exo-type hydrolysis activity. It is necessary to point out that the change of degree of crystallinity and degradation rate are almost linearly proportional to the loading of hexadecylamine-modified PPZn. This finding would provide an important information for the manufacturing biodegradable PBSA nanocomposites.

Immobilized metal ion affinity adsorbents have been widely used in separation technique to purify proteins. Due to the leakage of metal ion from the adsorbents, there is no metal ion affinity adsorbent for hemoperfusion has been applied to clinical trial. In this study, in order to prevent the leakage of Zn²⁺ loaded from cellulose beads based adsorbent, improve its stability and adsorption capacity for testosterone, Freeze-drying method was used to enhance the porosity of cellulose beads, improve the surface area of the cellulose beads and adsorption capacity for testosterone. Chitosan was used to coat the adsorbents for preventing the leakage of Zn²⁺ loaded and improve the adsorbent’s stability. Moreover, the factors affecting adsorption ability and some components in plasma were also investigated. The results indicate the adsorption ability of the adsorbent can be significantly improved by freeze-drying. After the adsorbent was coated with 0.02% chitosan solution, the highest adsorption percentage reached 48%. During adsorption, the Zn²⁺ concentration in plasma did not rise. In addition, the adsorption percentage for total proteins was below 15%. The results may be caused by the pore size and surface area of the adsorbent enlarged via freeze-drying, and the chitosan solution went into the pores and coated the outer and inner surface of the adsorbent. The adsorbent has a potential clinical application to remove testosterone in patients with recurrent and metastatic prostate cancer.

In the pursuit of energy efficiency and reduced environmental impact, adequate ventilation in enclosed spaces is essential. This study presents a hybrid neural network model designed for real-time monitoring and prediction of environmental variables. The system comprises two phases: An IoT hardware-software platform for data acquisition and decision-making, and a hybrid model combining short-term memory and convolutional recurrent structures. The results are promising and hold potential for integration into parallel processing AI architectures.

Human factors are the things that go wrong in the interactions between a team of people and a system of technology. This is part of a broader transdisciplinary field called engineering psychology, which as the name suggests, draws from both engineering and psychology. Many, if not most, catastrophic accidents involve a socio-technical interaction, i.e. are not solely due to technology failure. Hence, there is a need to consider human factors in the development or deployment of any technical system. This article is about the human factors involved in an aviation accident in New Zealand between a Yak and a cherry picker. The types of human error are identified, and the barrier bowtie method is used to represent them. The analysis gives different insights into the accident compared to the formal accident report, and better represents the human error characteristics.

(1) Background: Environmental and public health research has given considerable attention to the impact of air quality on brain health, with systematic reviews widespread. No literature review has been done for cognitive frailty – a multidimensional syndrome combining physical frailty and cognitive impairment and their apparent co-dependence, linked to increased vulnerability and adverse health outcomes, including dementia. Instead, cognitive decline and frailty is implicitly explored through research on air quality and comorbid cognitive and physical decline in elderly populations. (2) Methods: A scoping review was conducted to explore the need for a systematic review. Combining Arksey and O’Malley [1] and PRISMA-ScR checklist [2], a scoping review of SCOPUS using ‘cogniti*’ + ‘resilience’ + ‘air quality’ or ‘cogniti*’ + ‘ageing’ + ‘air quality’ resulted in N=2503 articles, screened and reduced using inclusion and exclusion criteria, to N=16 articles. (3) Results: Air quality appears to be a critical risk factor for cognitive decline, even at air quality levels below WHO targets. Moderate long-term ambient air pollution appears linked to increased risk of cognitive frailty, suggesting earlier and more active interventions to protect older people. There are varied effects on cognition across the life course, with both emotional and functional impacts. Effects may be more detrimental to elderly people with existing conditions, including economic and health inequalities. Generalisation of results is limited due to the absence of a dose-response, variations in methods, controlling for comorbid effects, and variance across studies. (4) Conclusions: The findings support the need for more research and a more extensive summary of the literature.

It is essential to mitigate gaseous emissions that result from poultry and livestock production to increase industry sustainability. Odorous volatile organic compounds (VOCs), ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and greenhouse gases (GHGs) have detrimental effects on the quality of life in rural communities, the environment, and climate. This study's objective was to evaluate the photocatalytic UV treatment of gaseous emissions of odor, odorous VOCs, NH3, and other gases (GHGs, O3 – sometimes considered as by-products of UV treatment) from stored swine manure on a pilot-scale. The manure emissions were treated in fast-moving air using a mobile lab equipped with UV-A and UV-C lights and TiO2-based photocatalyst. Treated gas airflow (0.25 to 0.76 m3/s) simulates output from a small ventilation fan in a barn. Through controlling the light intensity and airflow, UV dose was tested for techno-economic analyses. The treatment effectiveness depended on the UV dose and wavelength. Under UV-A (367 nm) photocatalysis, the percent reduction of targeted gases was up to i) 63% of odor, ii) 51%, 51%, 53%, 67%, and 32% of acetic acid, propanoic acid, butanoic acid, p-cresol, and indole, respectively, iii) 14% of nitrous oxide (N2O), iv) 100% of O3, and 26% generation of CO2. Under UV-C (185+254 nm) photocatalysis, the percent reductions of target gases were up to i) 54% and 47% for p-cresol and indole, respectively, ii) 25% of N2O, iii) 71% of CH4, and 46% & 139% generation of CO2 & O3, respectively. The results proved that the UV technology was sufficiently effective in treating odorous gases, and the mobile lab was ready for farm-scale trials. The UV technology can be considered for the scaled-up treatment of emissions and air quality improvement inside livestock barns.

A large amount of data is produced every day by stakeholders of the Air Traffic Management (ATM) system, in particular airline operators, airports, and air navigation service provider (ANSP). Most data is kept private for many reasons, including commercial and security concerns. More than data, shared information is precious, as it leverages intelligent decision-making support tools designed to smooth daily operations. We present a framework to detect, identify and characterise anomalies in past aircraft trajectory data. It is based on an open source of ADS-B based aircraft trajectories, and extracted information can benefit a wide range of stakeholders: Air Traffic Control (ATC) training centres could play more realistic simulations; ANSP may improve capacity indicators; academics improve safety models and risk estimations; and commercial stakeholders, like airlines and airports, may use such information to improve short-term predictions and optimise their operations. The technique is based on autoencoding artificial neural networks applied on flows of trajectories, which provide a useful reading grid associating cluster analysis with quantified level of abnormality. In particular, we find that the highest anomaly scores correspond to poor weather conditions, whereas anomalies with a lower score relate to ATC tactical actions.

Determination of time-weighted average (TWA) concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in air using solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is advantageous over other sampling techniques, but is often characterized by insufficient accuracies, particularly at longer sampling times. Experimental investigation of this issue and disclosing the origin of the problem is problematic and often not practically feasible due to high uncertainties. This research is aimed at developing the model of TWA extraction process and optimization of TWA air sampling by SPME using finite element analysis software (COMSOL Multiphysics). It was established that sampling by porous SPME coatings with high affinity to analytes is affected by slow diffusion of analytes inside the coating, an increase of analytes concentrations in the air near the fiber tip due to equilibration, and eventual lower sampling rate. The increase of a fiber retraction depth (Z) resulted in better recoveries. Sampling of studied VOCs using 23-ga Car/PDMS assembly at maximum possible Z (40 mm) was proven to provide more accurate results. Alternative sampling configuration based on 78.5 x 0.75 mm i.d. SPME liner was proven to provide similar accuracy at improved detection limits. Its modification with the decreased internal diameter from the sampling side should provide even better recoveries. The developed model offers new insight into optimization of air and gas sampling using SPME.

This paper describes a case study of ventilation as well as measured and perceived indoor air quality (IAQ) in a Finnish comprehensive school with a hybrid ventilation system and reported IAQ problems. An operational error was found when investigating the ventilation system that prevented air from coming into classrooms, except for short periods of high carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentrations. However, results indicated that hybrid ventilation system was able to provide adequate ventilation and sufficient IAQ once properly designed and maintained. After ventilation operation was improved, occupants reported less unpleasant odors and stuffy air. The amount of total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) and some single volatile organic compounds (VOCs) decreased. Indoor mycobiota was observed in settled dust in the classrooms, from which ventilation improvement eliminated the dominant, opportunistic human pathogen species Trichoderma citrinoviride found before improvement.

Low-cost personal exposure monitors (PEMs) to measure personal exposure to air pollution are potentially promising tools for health research. However, their adoption requires robust validation. This study evaluated the performance of twenty-one Plume Lab Flow2 (PLF) by comparing its air pollutant measurements, particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5), 10 μm or less (PM10), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), against several high-quality air pollution monitors under field conditions (at indoor, outdoor, and roadside locations). Correlation and regression analysis were used to evaluate measurements obtained by different PLFs against reference instrumentation. For all measured pollutants, the overall correlation coefficient between the PLFs and the reference instruments was often weak (r<0.4). Moderate correlation was observed for one PLF unit at indoor location and two units at roadside location, when measuring PM2.5, but not for PM10 and NO2 concentration. During periods of particularly higher pollution, 11 PLF tools showed stronger regression results (R2 values > 0.5) with one-hour and 9 PLF units with one-minute time interval. Results show that the PLF cannot be used robustly to determine high and low exposure to poor air. Therefore, the use of PLFs in research studies should be approached with caution if data quality is important to the research outputs.

Aero submarines (aerosubs) are vehicles that can both fly both in air and travel under water. The concept of dual aerial and aquatic vehicles emerged in 1939 when Russian engineer Boris Ushakov proposed the “flying submarine”[1], and this was followed by further developments including RFS1 [2], convair project in 1964[3] , etc. however, to date, limited attempt has been diverted towards the advanced development of such aircraft. This is heavily influenced by challenges associated with the design and operation of the same. Based on the review of literature the authors aim to introduce a theoretical design for an aerosub (QFS-20) with a view to address the design and operation issues including power, entry to and exit from water.

This research has developed a process for producing ZnO thin film from DEZn deposited onto a PET substrate with low-pressure, high-frequency Ar + O2 plasma using a chemical vapor deposition technique. The aim is to study the film production conditions that affect electrical properties, optical properties, and thin film surfaces. This work highlights the use of plasma energy produced from a mixture of gases between Ar + O2. Plasma production is stimulated with an RF power supply to deliver high chemical energy and push ZnO atoms from the cathode inside the reactor onto the substrate through surface chemical reactions. The results showed that increasing the RF power in plasma production affected the chemical reactions on the substrate surface of film formation. The film preparation at RF power 300 W will give the thickest films. The film has a continuous columnar formation, and the surface has a granular structure. This results in the lowest electrical resistivity of 1.8 x 10-4 Ω-cm. In addition, when fabricated into a DSSC device, the device tested the PCE value and showed the highest value at 5.68%. This is due to the very rough surface nature of the ZnO film, which increases the scattering and storage of sunlight, making cells more efficient. Therefore, the benefit of this research is that it will be a highly efficient prototype of thin film production technology using a chemical process that reduces production costs and can be used in the industrial development of solar cells.

To protect skin from harmful ultraviolet (UV), zinc oxide (ZnO) with tannin from gallnuts was treated on cotton and polyester fabrics in this study. Before the treatments, the fabrics were dyed with shikonin and xanthophyll from Gromwell and Cape Jasmine. First, this study found that xanthophyll was more effective at preventing light fade or discoloration than shikonin. Despite the highest K/S, the untreated cotton in violet faded the most intensely when exposed to UV. The color variation of untreated polyester was narrow, with little change in L, a*, and K/S. Due to the non-photochemical xanthophyll, the yellow-dyed samples treated with ZnO/polyphenol did not vary yellowness (b*: 28.838) significantly, while the violet fabrics displayed a significant decrease in K/S and an increase in b*. The combination of ZnO and polyphenol treatment improved UV absorption at 350 to 250 nm. Cu-mordanting after ZnO/polyphenols treatment caused the violet cotton to turn reddish from blueish (negative to positive b*), with a hue change of 316° to 59° and the highest ΔE (25.90±4.34) after UV exposure. In this study, the combination of ZnO/polyphenol with Cu-mordants contributed the xanthophyll-dyed polyester to achieve a minimum ΔE and keep chroma and hue after UV exposure.

Fingerprints are essential for human identification and are valuable tools in criminal investigations. The pursuit of new materials for digital printing is expanding, with increasing interest in natural compounds such as bixin, sourced from annatto seeds. Despite its traditional use as a natural dye with medicinal properties, the potential of bixin in papilloscopy remains largely untapped. In this study, we meticulously extracted bixin from annatto seeds and meticulously developed composites incorporating zinc carbonate (bixin/ZnCO3) and kaolinite (bixin/kaolinite). UV-visible spectroscopy was used for characterization, and the extracted bixin showed absorption peaks at 429, 453, and 481 nm, which were very similar to standard peaks at 429, 457, and 487 nm. The two samples also had the same retention times (7.07 min) according to further liquid chromatography analysis. Sweat pores were easier to detect thanks to the effectiveness of the bixin/ZnCO3 and bixin/kaolinite composites in creating high contrast sebaceous and natural latent fingerprints. These results highlight the composites’ potential as novel and fascinating instruments for papilloscopy applications, which might also improve forensic investigations.

Using density functional theory (DFT), the density of states of NH4V3O8 (NVO) was analyzed pre and post-oxygen defects (Od) formation. The findings revealed a reduced bandgap in NVO after Od introduction, emphasizing the role of Od in enhancing conductivity of the material, thus improving its electrochemical attributes. Through the water bath method, both NVO and its oxygen-deficient counterpart, (NH4)2V10O25⸱8H2O (NVOd), were synthesized as potential cathode materials for aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs). Experimental outcomes resonated with DFT predictions, highlighting the beneficial role of oxygen defects in boosting electrical conductivity. Notably, the refined material displayed a remarkable capacity of 479.3 mAh g-1 at 0.1 A g-1, underscoring its promise for advanced energy storage solutions.

Formaldehyde, sulfuric acid and salicylic acid were combined to create 3,3’-methylenebis[2-hydroxybenzoic acid] (MHB) ligand, which was subsequently permitted to bind with zinc ions. The ligand and its zinc (II) complex (Zn-MHB) have been described by a combination of elemental analyses, spectral (UV-Vis, IR, MS, NMR), XRD, TEM as well as TGA measurement. The ligand has been suggested to coordinate to the zinc center in tetradentate manner forming binuclear tetrahedral complex. An X-ray analysis indicated a considerable difference between MHB (crystalline) and Zn-MHB (amorphous). UV-Vis spectra were used to determine the optical properties such as bandgap, refractive index, optical conductivity and penetration depth. Possibility of employing the samples for optoelectronic applications was indicated from the band gap values which underlie the range of semiconductors. TEM revealed spherical shapes and mutation of ligand particles into nano-scale by complexation. The antimicrobial potential of the MHB towards gram-positive and negative bacterial growths has been investigated. The results suggested that it would be possible to employ MHB to stop bacterial development, particularly salmonella typhimurium. Cytotoxicity of the MHB was assessed against two types of mammalian cells: VERO (the kidney of an African green monkey) and HFB4 (human skin melanocytes). Lower sensitivity was observed in VERO cells.

Density functional theory (DFT) and coupled cluster theory (CCSD(T)) calculations are performed to investigate the geometric, electronic structures and chemical bonding of a series of Cu-doped zinc oxide clusters, CunZn3O3 (n = 1-4). The structural evolution of CunZn3O3 (n = 1-4) clusters are elaborated in our work. The planar seven-membered ring of CuZn3O3 cluster plays an important role in the structural evolution, that is, the Cu atom, Cu dimer (Cu2) and Cu trimer (Cu3) anchor on the CuZn3O3 cluster. The aggregate behavior of Cu atoms on Zn3O3 may offer insight into the study of Cu/ZnO-based catalysts. Additionally, it is found that the CunZn3O3 clusters become more stable as the Cu content (n) increases. Bader charge analysis points out that as the Cu atoms doping, the reducibility of Cu aggregation (Cun-1) on the CuZn3O3 cluster increases. Combined with the d-band centers and the surface electrostatic potential (ESP), the reactivity and the possible reaction sites of CunZn3O3 (n = 1-4) clusters are also illustrated.

Synaptic zinc ions (Zn2+) play an important role in the development of vascular dementia (VD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). In this article, based on our study and many others, we review the mo-lecular pathways by which Zn2+ causes neurotoxicity. Zn2+ influences calcium homeostasis, energy production pathway, production of reactive oxygen species, endoplasmic reticulum stress pathway, and activated protein kinase/c-Jun amino terminal kinase (SAPK/JNK) pathway and consequently exerts neurotoxicity. Furthermore, we searched various crops for substances that protect neurones from neurotoxicity caused by Zn2+ and clarified that carnosine (β-alanylhistidine) may be a therapeutic drug for VD and PD. Here, we also review the molecular mechanisms underlying the role of carnosine as an endogenous protector and its protective effect against Zn2+-induced cyto-toxicity and discuss prospects for future neurodegenerative diseases therapeutic applications of this dipeptide.

The spike protein (S) of SARS-CoV-2 has been shown to bind to the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor with much higher affinity compared to other coronaviruses. The binding interface between the ACE2 receptor plays a critical role in the entry mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 virus. There are specific amino acids involved in the interaction between S protein and ACE2 receptor. This specificity is critical for the virus to establish a systemic infection and cause COVID-19 disease. In the ACE2 receptor, the largest number of amino acids that play a crucial role in the mechanism of interaction and recognition with the S protein are located in the C-terminal part which represents the main binding region between ACE2 and S. This fragment is abundant in coordination residues such as aspartates, glutamates and histidine that could be targeted by metal ions. Zn²⁺ ion binds to the ACE2 receptor in its catalytic site and modulates its activity, but it could also contribute to the structural stability of the entire protein. The ability of the human ACE2 receptor to coordinate metal ions, such Zn²⁺, in the same region where it binds to the S protein could have a crucial impact in the mechanism of recognition and interaction of ACE2-S with consequences on their binding affinity that deserve to be investigated. To test this possibility, this study aims to characterize the coordination ability of Zn²⁺, and also Cu²⁺ for comparison, with selected peptide models of the ACE2 binding interface using spectroscopic and potentiometric techniques.

Insulin signaling plays a crucial role in cellular uptake of glucose and different metabolic pathways. Impairment in cellular insulin sensitivity due to various molecular pathways leads to Insulin resistance (IR) as well as fatty liver. In this review, mechanisms by which zinc involved in decreasing IR are described, focusing on oxidative stress, inflammation, immune system, gut flora and hepatic lipophagy. This study reviews the cause of IR and highlights the role of zinc in mechanisms diminishing IR and fatty liver.

All living organisms require some metal ions for their energy production as well as metabolic and biosynthetic processes. Within cells, metal ions are involved in the formation of adducts interact with metabolites and macromolecules (proteins and nucleic acids). The proteins that require binding to one or more metal ions to be able to carry out their physiological function are called metalloproteins. About one third of all protein structures in the Protein Data Bank involve metalloproteins. Over the past few years there has been a tremendous progress in the number of computational tools and techniques making use of 3D structural information to support the investigation of metalloproteins. This trend has been boosted also by the successful applications of neural networks and deep learning approaches in molecular and structural biology at large. In this review, we discuss recent advances in the development and availability of resources dealing with metalloproteins from a structure-based perspective. We start by addressing tools for the prediction of metal-binding sites (MBSs) using structural information on apo-proteins. Then, we provide an overview of methods for and lessons learned from the structural comparison of MBSs in a fold-independent manner. We then move to describing databases of metalloprotein/MBS structures. Finally, we summarize recent DL applications enhancing the functional interpretation of metalloprotein structures.

This study describes an eco-friendly synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles using aqueous oat extract. The advanced electrochemical and optical features of green synthesized ZnONPs displayed excellent antibacterial activity, and exhibited an important role in pharmaceutical determinations. The formation of nanoscale ZnO was confirmed using various spectroscopic and microscopic investigations. The formed nanoparticles were found to be around 100 nm. The as-prepared ZnONPs were monitored for their antibacterial potential against different bacterial strains. The inhibition zones for ZnONPs were found as E. coli (16 mm), P. aeruginosa (17 mm), S. aureus (12 mm) and B. subtilis (11 mm) using 30 µg mL-1 sample concentration. Also, ZnONPs exhibited significant antioxidant effects 58 to 67 % with an average IC50 value of 0.88 ± 0.03 scavenging activity and 53 to 71 % (IC50 value 0.73 ± 0.05) against the DPPH and ABTS scavenging free radicals, respectively. The photocatalytic potential of ZnONPs for Rhodamine B dye degradation dye under UV irradiation was performed. The photodegradation process was carried out as a function of time-dependent and the complete degradation (nearly 98 %) with color removal after 120 min. Conclusively, the synthesized ZnONPs using oat biomass might provide a great promise in the future for biomedical applications.

Immunoglobulin G (IgG), a type of antibody, represents approximately 75% of serum antibodies in humans, and is the most common type of antibody found in blood circulation Consequently, the development of simple, fast and reliable systems for IgG detection are of considerable interest which can be achieved using electrochemical sandwich-type immunosensors. In this study we have developed an immunosensor sub-strate using an inexpensive and very simple fabrication method based on ZnO nanorods obtained through the electrodeposition of ZnO. The ZnO nanorods were treated by electrodepositing a layer of reduced gra-phene oxide to ensure an easy immobilization of the antibodies. On this substrate, the sandwich configura-tion of the immunosensor was built through different incubation steps, that were all optimized. The im-munosensor is electrochemically active thanks to the presence of gold nanoparticles tagging the secondary antibody, therefore it has been used to measure the current density of the hydrogen development reaction which is indirectly linked to the concentration of H-IgG antigens. In this way the calibration curve was constructed obtaining a linear range of 1-100 ng / ml with a detection limit of few ng / mL and good sensi-tivity.

The genus Flavivirus contains pathogenic vertebrate-infecting flaviviruses (VIFs) and in-sect-specific flaviviruses (ISF). ISF transmission to vertebrates is inhibited at multiple stages of the cellular infection cycle, via yet to be elucidated specific antiviral responses. The Zinc-finger an-tiviral protein (ZAP) in vertebrate cells can bind CpG dinucleotides in viral RNA, limiting virus replication. Interestingly, the genomes of ISFs contain more CpG dinucleotides compared to VIFs. In this study, we investigated whether ZAP prevents two recently discovered lineage II ISFs, Binjari (BinJV) and Hidden Valley viruses (HVV) from replicating in vertebrate cells. BinJV protein and dsRNA replication intermediates were readily observed in human ZAP knockout cells when cultured at 34 ˚C. In ZAP expressing cells, inhibition of the interferon response via interferon response factors 3/7 did not improve BinJV protein expression, whereas treatment with kinase inhibitor C16, known to reduce ZAP’s antiviral function, did. Importantly, at 34 ˚C both BinJV and HVV successfully completed the infection cycle in human ZAP knockout cells evident from infectious progeny virus in the cell culture supernatant. Therefore, we identify vertebrate ZAP as an important barrier that protects vertebrate cells from ISF infection This provides new insights into flavivirus evolution and the mechanisms associated with host switching.

Zinc deficiency, a common malnutrition in children and women is a global public health problem.Burden of zinc deficiencyis more in countries with low meat and high cereal food consumption like Nepal. Nationally representative data on zinc status in Nepal is lacking at present. This study analysed the data from the recent Nepal National Micronutrient status survey 2016(NNMSS-2016) to determinethe prevalence of zinc deficiency and associated risk factors among children aged 6-59 months (n=1462) and non-pregnant women aged 15-49 years(n=1923) from three ecological zones, Hill, Terai, and Mountainof the country. Venous blood was collected from the participants to measure micronutrients such as zinc, markers of anaemia, vitamin A, and markers of inflammation. Stool was collected to assessthe soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) and Helicobacterpylori infection. Socio-demographic, household and other relevant information were collected by a structured questionnaire. Logistic regression was used to examine the predictors of zinc deficiency among the participants.The overall zinc deficiency in children was found to be 22.9% while it was higher in non-pregnant women (24.7%). Predictors associated with zinc deficiency among enrolled children in the study were,living in rural areas (AOR=2.25, 95% CI, [1.13, 4.49]),occurrence of diarrhoea during the two weeks preceding the survey (AOR=1.57, 95% CI, [1.07, 2.30]), household wealth quintile (AOR= 0.48, 95% CI,[0.25, 0.92]) and vitamin A status (AOR=0.49, 95% CI,[0.28, 0.85]. Risk factors associated with zinc deficiency among the non-pregnant women were being underweight (AOR=1.60, 95% CI,[1.15, 2.23]), fever occurrence during two weeks preceding the survey (AOR=1.45, 95% CI,[ 1.06, 1.99]), H. pylori in the stool (AOR=1.32, 95% CI, [1.03, 1.70]), being rich (AOR=0.64, 95% CI,[0.42, 0.98]) and being in the risk of folate deficiency (AOR=0.60, 95% CI,[0.37, 0.96]). We conclude that community focused intervention programs including health and nutrition counselling and livelihood opportunities focusing groups at high-risk may improve the zinc status in Nepal.

Zinc finger proteins (ZFP) play important roles in cellular processes. The DNA binding region of ZFP consists of 3 zinc finger DNA binding domains connected by amino acid linkers, the sequence TGQKP connects ZF1 and ZF2, and TGEKP connects ZF2 with ZF3. Linkers act to tune the zinc finger protein in the right position to bind its DNA target, the type of amino acid residues and length of linkers reflect on ZF1-ZF2-ZF3 interactions and contribute to the search and recognition process of ZF protein to its DNA target. Linker mutations and the affinity of the resulting mutants to specific and nonspecific DNA targets were studied by MD simulations and MM_GB(PB)SA. The affinity of mutants to DNA varied with type and position of amino acid residue. Mutation of K in TGQKP resulted in loss in affinity due to the loss of positive K interaction with phosphates, mutation of G showed loss in affinity to DNA, WT protein and all linker mutants showed loss in affinity to a nonspecific DNA target, this finding confirms previous reports which interpreted this loss in affinity as due to ZF1 having an anchoring role, and ZF3 playing an explorer role in the binding mechanism. The change in ZFP-DNA affinity with linker mutations is discussed in view of protein structure and role of linker residues in binding.

The outbreak of COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, continues to affect millions of people around the world. The absence of a globally distributed effective treatment makes the exploration of new mechanisms of action a key step to address this situation. Stabilization of non-native Protein-Protein Interactions (PPIs) of the nucleocapsid protein of MERS-CoV has been reported as a valid strategy to inhibit viral replication. In this study, the applicability of this unexplored mechanism of action against SARS-CoV-2 is analyzed. During our research, we were able to find three inducible interfaces of SARS-CoV-2 N protein NTD, compare them to the previously reported MERS-CoV stabilized dimers, and identify those residues that are responsible for their formation. A drug discovery protocol implemented consisting of docking, molecular dynamics and MM-GBSA enabled us to find several compounds that might be able to exploit this mechanism of action. In addition, a common catechin skeleton was found among many of these molecules, which might be useful for further drug design. We consider that our findings could motivate future research in the fields of drug discovery and design towards the exploitation of this previously unexplored mechanism of action against COVID-19.

The convective hot air drying technology can cause physicochemical, nutritional, and organoleptic losses in mango (Mangifera indica). Therefore, mango dehydration technologies were compared through a Systematic Literature Review to identify the effects on mango’s physicochemical, nutritional, and organoleptic properties. The bibliographic and theoretical results were analyzed. Of the 76 resulting articles, it was found that the countries with authors who participated most in the scientific production were those related to mango production or importation. Furthermore, the freeze-drying technology allows operating at lower temperatures than convective hot air drying, contributing to the preservation of ascorbic acid, among other compounds. The refractance window has the shortest operation time to obtain moisture values between 10 and 20%. The dehydrated samples using the refractance window are smooth, homogeneous, non-porous, and comparable to the color obtained with freeze-drying, which is acceptable for industrial applications.

A study is made of the progressive ‘decoherence’ of cosmic ray extensive air shower particle detector signals in small air showers through measurements of coincidence rates for pairs of detectors versus the detector separation. Measurements are made both when only the two separated detectors themselves trigger in coincidence, and when that coincidence trigger also requires the detection of a local air shower by a small external air shower array. The addition of the explicit air shower trigger ensures that the latter data correspond to showers of a larger particle size, and triggering by very localised shower cores is then unlikely. When including a shower trigger, the decoherence results appear substantially different in form. The coincidence rate between two detectors only can be approximated by a power law variation with separation distance. When triggering involves an air shower array, the variation becomes close to an exponential form with characteristic exponent distances varying systematically with increasing detector and air shower size thresholds. A result is that one can see that small air showers will exhibit clear non-Poissonian density fluctuations near their cores out to distances of ~5m, or at shower energies below ~0.05 PeV. These ideas can be helpful in understanding the statistical properties of signals when using large detectors in air shower arrays.

Fungi are ubiquitous and metabolically versatile. Their dispersion has important scientific, environmental, health, and economic implications. They can be dispersed through the air by the aerosolization of near surfaces or transported from distant sources. Here, we tested the contribution of local (scale of meters) versus regional (kilometers) sources by analyzing airborne fungal community by ITS sequencing around a copper mine in the North of Chile. The mine was the regional source, whereas soil and vegetal detritus were the local sources at each point. The airborne community was highly homogeneous in ca. 2,000 km2, impeding the detection of regional or local contributions. Ascomycota was the dominant phylum in the three communities. Soil and vegetal detritus communities had lower alpha-diversity, but some taxa had abundance patterns related to the distance to the mine and altitude. On the contrary, the air was compositionally even and unrelated to environmental or spatial factors, except for altitude. The presence of plant pathogens in the air suggests that other distant sources contribute to this region's airborne fungal community and reinforces the complexity of tracking the sources of air microbial communities in a real world where several natural and human activities coexist.

Fractal analysis of time series aims to extract the hidden or complex structures issued from the associated real data, such as scaling laws, non-stationary, dynamics, and so on. In the present work, the air quality index and its components are considered as time series owing fractal structures. To understand their underlying dynamics, wavelet multifractal approach is applied starting with a wavelet multifractal spectrum test to confirm the multifractality of the underlying data. Next, a new model is introduced improving the classical minmax one, provided with a statistical measure for the adequacy of the new model. The theoretical findings are applied to the north west Tabuk region of Saudi Arabia for environmental and climate data related to pollutants and factors involved in the estimation of the air quality index.

A single paragraph of about 200 words maximum. For research articles, abstracts should give a pertinent overview of the work. We strongly encourage authors to use the following style of structured abstracts, but without headings: (1) Background: place the question addressed in a broad context and highlight the purpose of the study; (2) Methods: describe briefly the main methods or treatments applied; (3) Results: summarize the article’s main findings; (4) Conclusions: indicate the main conclusions or interpretations. The abstract should be an objective representation of the article, it must not contain results which are not presented and substantiated in the main text and should not exaggerate the main conclusions.

The unquenchable demand for rock materials has attracted many companies within the building and construction sector to invest in stone quarrying. However, this has brought about the environmental impacts with health threats to people. There is a paucity of information about the magnitude of pollution on air and water and how it varies with quarry sites. This study therefore investigated the physical impacts of quarrying on air and water and explored the in-situ mitigations to undesirable effects due to stone quarrying. Four active quarry sites were identified. Field measurements of dust (particulate matter) was conducted within the four quarry sites and in the nearby community. Water samples were collected from quarry pits and nearby shallow wells for laboratory analysis of water quality. Statistical Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to test for differences in pollution across the four studied sites. Results revealed that, amidst use of wet crushing and water sprinkling on bare surfaces, dust emission was higher than the recommended permissible standards levels with a significant variation across the quarry sites with ANOVA (P-value=0.003) for PM2.5 and (P-value=0.04366) for PM10. Water pollution was mainly contributed by the non-permissive levels of nitrates, chromium, and pH. Polluted air and water are associated with sparking off health threats to the users in the community. In conclusion, quarry companies should strengthen the already existing mitigation of dust suppression. The study recommends additional measures such as treating quarry pit water before discharging to the open environment

Social distancing policies put in place during COVID-19 epidemic in addition to helping to limit the spread of the disease also contributed to improving urban air quality. Here we show a decrease in air pollutant concentration as a consequence of mobility reduction in São Paulo during the containment measure which began on 22^nd March 2020. When comparing to foregoing weeks to equivalent periods of 2019, the concentration of most air pollutants sharply decreased in the first days of mobility restriction, to then increase again after government officials downplayed the threat of the disease. This trend is also followed by a decrease in hospital admissions by SARS-influenza. Therefore, despite the great economic and social unrest caused by the pandemic, this unique situation shows that large-scale mobility reduction policy had a significant impact on air quality, benefiting, directly and indirectly, the public health system.

Several methods have been tried to estimate air temperature using satellite imagery. In this paper, the results of two machine learning algorithms, Support Vector Machine and Random Forest, are compared with Multivariate Linear Regression, TVX and Ordinary kriging. Several geographic, remote sensing and time variables are used as predictors. The validation is carried out using four different statistics on a daily basis allowing the use of ANOVA to compare the results. The main conclusion is that Random Forest with residual kriging produces the best results (R$^2$=0.612 $\pm$ 0.019, NSE=0.578 $\pm$ 0.025, RMSE=1.068 $\pm$ 0.027, PBIAS=-0.172 $\pm$ 0.046), whereas TVX produces the least accurate results. The environmental conditions in the study area are not really suited to TVX, moreover this method only takes into account satellite data. On the other hand, regression methods (Support Vector Machine, Random Forest and Multivariate Linear Regression) use several parameters that are easily calculated from a Digital Elevation Model, adding very little difficulty to the use of satellite data alone. The most important variables in the Random Forest Model were satellite temperature, potential irradiation and cdayt, a cosine transformation of the julian day.

The present work aimed to validate a low-cost passive monitoring procedure. For its validation, the monitoring of atmospheric organic pollutants - polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) was carried out in a capital of the central-western region of Brazil. The sensors were fixed on poles intended for electrification during the dry season. After 15 days, samples were extracted by solvent extraction and analysed by High-Resolution Gas Chromatography with Flame Ionization Detector (HRGC-FID). For the validation of the procedure, PAHs monitored and standardised by the American Environmental Agency (EPA), a benchmark for environmental monitoring of air quality by several countries, were analysed. The results demonstrated that the low-cost passive monitoring method was effective in the quantification of PAH in the environment-air, capable of being used by countries that do not have many resources for monitoring air quality.

The air quality monitoring network in Alaska is currently limited to ground-based observations in urban areas and national parks leaving a large proportion of the state unmonitored. The use of MODIS aerosol optical depth (AOD) to estimate ground-level particulate pollution concentrations has been successfully demonstrated around the world, and could potentially be used in Alaska. In this work, MODIS AOD measurements at 550 nm were validated against AOD derived from AERONET ground-based sunphotometers in Barrow and Bonanza Creek to determine if MODIS AOD from the Terra and Aqua satellites could be used to estimate ground-level particulate pollution concentrations. The MODIS AOD was obtained from MODIS collection 6 using the dark target Land and Ocean algorithms from 2000 to 2014. MODIS data could only be obtained between the months of April and October; therefore, it could only be validated for those months. Individual and combined Terra and Aqua MODIS data were considered. The results showed that MODIS collection 6 products at 10 km resolution for Terra and Aqua combined are not valid over land but are valid over the ocean. On the other hand, the individual Terra and Aqua MODIS collection 6 AOD products at 10 km resolution are valid over land individually but not when combined. Results also suggest the MODIS collection 6 AOD products at 3 km resolution are valid over land and ocean and perform better over land than the 10-km product. These findings indicate that MODIS collection 6 AOD products can be used quantitatively in air quality applications in Alaska during the summer months.

Local air quality is a major concern for the population regularly exposed to high levels of air pollution. The airport, mainly due to its aircraft engines activities during taxiing and take off, is often submitted to heterogeneous but important concentrations of NOx and PM. The study suggests an innovative approach to determine the air traffic impact on air quality at the scale of the airport, its runways and terminals, in order to be able to locate the persistent high concentrations spots. The pollutants concentrations at 10 m resolution and 1 s time step are calculated in order to identify the most affected areas of an airport platform. A real day of air traffic on a regional airport is simulated, using real data as aircraft trajectories (from radar streams). In order to estimate the aircraft emissions, the Air Transport Systems Evaluation Infrastructure (IESTA) is used. Regarding local air quality, IESTA relies on the non-hydrostatic meso-scale atmospheric model Meso-NH using grid-nesting capabilities with 3 domains, for this study. The detailed cartography of the airport distinguishes between grassland, parking and terminals, allowing to compute exchanges of heat, water and momentum between the different types of surfaces and the atmosphere as well as the interactions with the building using a drag force. The dynamic parameters like wind, temperature, turbulent kinetic energy and pollutants concentration are computed at 10 m resolution over the 2 × 4 km airport domain. The pollutants are considered in this preliminary study as passive tracers, without chemical reactions. This preliminary study aims at proving the feasibility of high scale modelling over an airport with state of the art physical models.

When it comes to air pollution complaints, odours are often the most significant contributor. Sources of odour emissions range from natural to anthropogenic. Mitigation of odour can be challenging, multifaceted, site-specific, and is often confounded by its complexity—defined by existing (or non-existing) environmental laws, public ordinances, and socio-economic considerations. The objective of this paper is to review and summarize odour legislation in selected European countries (France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, United Kingdom, Spain, The Netherlands, Italy, Belgium), North America (USA and Canada), South America (Chile and Colombia), as well as Oceania (Australia and New Zealand) and Asia (Japan, China). Many countries have incorporated odour controls into their legislation. However, odour-related assessment criteria tend to be highly variable between countries, individual states, provinces and even counties and towns. Legislation ranges from (1) no specific mention in environmental legislation that regulates pollutants which are known to have an odour impact to (2) extensive details about odour source testing, odour dispersion modeling, ambient odour monitoring, (3) setback distances, (4) process operations, and (5) odour control technologies and procedures. Agricultural operations are one specific source of odour emissions in rural and suburban areas and a model example of such complexities. Management of agricultural odour emissions is important because of the dense consolidation of animal feeding operations and the advance of housing development into rural areas. Overall, there is a need for continued survey, review, development, and adjustment of odour legislation that considers sustainable development, environmental stewardship, and socio-economic realities, all of which are amenable to a just, site-specific, and sector-specific application.

Zinc nanoparticles (ZnNPs) open new opportunities for biomedical applications as a strategy against microbes and dye removal in an efficient way. The composite ZnNPs using Rhododendron arboreum (R. arboreum) stem bark were synthesized and characterized for UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The synthesized nanoparticles showed zones of inhibition of 23±0.09, 18±0.1 and 16±0.05 mm, against the Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli strains. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values against K. pneumoniae, S. aureus, and E. coli were found to be 34±0.21 and 72.71±0.47, 47±0.11 and 94.86±0.84 and 94±0.18 and 185.43±0.16 µg/mL, respectively. The biosynthesized ZnNPs resulted in significant eradication of the outer and inner membranes of the bacterial cells. Likewise, the synthesized ZnNPs showed time-dependent photocatalytic degradation activity and revealed 65% methyl orange dye degradation with an irradiation period of 6 hours. The findings of this study suggest the suitability of the novel R. arboreum stem bark-based ZnNPs as an effective ameliorant against bactericidal activities and photocatalysts for the removal of hazardous water contaminants.

Buckypaper (BP), a flexible and porous material, exhibits photovoltaic properties when exposed to light. In this study, we have employed Radio Frequency (RF) Sputtering of Zinc Oxide (ZnO) followed by rapid thermal annealing to enhance the photovoltaic response of BP. We investigated the impact of various sputtering parameters, such as the gas flow ratio of argon to oxygen and deposition time, on the morphology, composition, resistivity, and photovoltaic characteristics of ZnO-modified BP. Additionally, the photovoltaic performance of the samples under different illumination modes and wavelengths was compared. It was found that optimal sputtering conditions—argon to oxygen flow ratio of 1:2, deposition time of 20 minutes, and power of 100 watts—resulted in a ZnO film thickness of approximately 45 nanometers. After annealing at 400°C for 10 minutes, the ZnO-modified BP demonstrated a significant increase in photocurrent and photovoltage, along with a reduction in resistivity, compared to unmodified BP. Moreover, under gradient illumination, the ZnO-modified BP exhibited a photovoltage enhancement of 14.70 times and a photocurrent increase of 13.86 times, compared to uniform illumination. Under blue light, it showed a higher photovoltaic response than under other colors. The enhancement in photovoltaic response is attributed to the formation of a Schottky junction between ZnO and BP, an increased carrier concentration gradient, and an expanded light absorption spectrum. Our results validate that ZnO sputtering followed by annealing is an effective method for modifying BP for photovoltaic applications such as solar cells and photodetectors.

Cadmium (Cd) is an environmental toxicant of worldwide public health significance. Diet is the main non-workplace Cd exposure source other than smoking. The intestinal absorption of Cd involves the transporters for iron, zinc, copper, and calcium. These metal transporters essentially determine the body burden of Cd because only 0.001-0.005% of Cd accumulated in the body can be excreted in urine each day. The International Agency for Research on Cancer listed Cd as a human lung carcinogen. Current evidence, however, suggests that environmental Cd may increase the prevalence of many types of cancer, notably lung, liver, breast, pancreas, and kidney. A two-year bioassay that mimics a lifelong exposure demonstrates Cd caused neoplasms in multiple tissues of mice. Also, several non-tumorigenic human cell lines underwent malignant cell transformation, when they were exposed to a sublethal dose of Cd for a prolonged time. Cd does not directly damage DNA, but it can profoundly affect gene expression through its interactions with various proteins, and Cd can thus be viewed as a transcription modulator. The present review highlights epidemiological studies that connected an enhanced risk of various neoplastic diseases to chronic exposure to environmental Cd. Special emphasis is on the impact of body iron stores on the absorption rate of Cd, and its implications for breast cancer prevention in highly susceptible subpopulation groups of women. Resistance to cell death and other cancer phenotypes acquired during Cd-induced cancer-cell transformation, under in vitro conditions, are briefly discussed. The potential role for ZnT1 efflux transporter in cellular acquisition of tolerance to Cd cytotoxicity are highlighted.

Wood plastic composite usage and demands have increased due to chemical, and mechanical properties when compared to plastic materials. However, because of the possibility of structural and mechanical changes of the material when exposed to external environment more research needs to be done. In the present study yellow birch/HDPE composites materials made by injection molding were treated by zinc oxide and exposed to fungal rots. Mechanical properties of the composites were assessed by Tensile and Izod impact test. The impact energies of the samples loaded with 30 % ZnO-treated fibers and exposed to G. trabeum and T. versicolor decreased, compared to when samples were not treated with ZnO. The mechanical properties of all samples treated with ZnO and exposed to rot decreased which were reported as a decreased Young's modulus and impact energies. ZnO prevented mycelium proliferation which was nonexistent on samples. It has been noted that the decrease in mechanical properties of treated samples was due to NaOH used to dissolve the ZnO powder.

Plastics are highly beneficial for the day-to-day activities of human beings; however, their decomposition is limited due to their strong covalent bonding. The concept of degradation of these big molecules into smaller ones or monomers was attempted by several researchers in the preceding decades with limited success. Pyrolysis is one of the ideas used to convert plastics into fuel, rather than small molecules, compared to the crowded structure of polymers. Among these plastics, low-density polyethylene (LDPE) is largely used as carry bags throughout the world, and, herein, the results of catalytic pyrolysis of the conversion of LDPE into fuel are reported. Different dosages of zinc oxide (ZnO) were used as a catalyst to do the pyrolysis at a specific temperature in a batch reactor specially designed at our laboratory. 0.6 g of ZnO was found to be the optimal dosage for a 50 g waste LDPE batch to get the maximum oil yield. The yielded oil was analyzed chemically through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Reformulyzer M4 Hydrocarbon Group Type Analyzer. Evaluation of physical and chemical exergy along with exergetic efficiency of the process was done.

In response to long-lasting high levels of Metallic Trace Elements (MTEs) in urban soils, we expect soil invertebrates inhabiting urban environments to have evolved detection and avoidance and/or tolerance mechanisms to MTE pollution. In this study, I used artificial soils with concentrations of lead, zinc, copper, chromium and nickel that reflect pollution levels in soils of Parisian parks. Using choice experiments, I compared habitat preference (i.e. the occurrence of individuals in the polluted vs. unpolluted soil) and health status (i.e. body mass maintenance, mobility, mortality) between three species of endogeic earthworms – Apporectodea caliginosa, Apporectodea icterica and Allolobophora chlorotica – originating either from urban or rural grasslands. This study highlights a clear avoidance of MTE polluted soils in all three species, as well as MTE-induced health impairments, especially in A. chlorotica. Interestingly, earthworm response to MTE exposure only slightly differed between earthworms from urban and rural origin, suggesting the absence of widespread acclimatization or adaptation mechanisms to MTE pollution in cities. As a consequence, MTE pollution is expected to significantly shape earthworm spatial distribution in both urban and rural environments and, as a consequence, affect ecosystem functioning.

As common industrial by-products, airborne engineered nanomaterials are considered important environmental toxicants to monitor due to their potential health risks to humans and animals. The main uptake routes of airborne nanoparticles are nasal and/or oral inhalation, which are known to enable the transfer of nanomaterials into the blood stream resulting in rapid distribution in the body. Consequently, mucosal barriers present in nose, buccal and lung have been identified and intensively studied as the key tissue barrier to nanoparticle translocation. Despite decades of research, surprisingly little is known about the differences among various mucosa tissue types to tolerate nanoparticle exposures. One limitation in comparing nanotoxicological data sets can be linked to a lack of harmonization and standardization of cell-based assays, where a) different cultivation conditions such as air-liquid interface or submerged cultures, b) varying barrier maturity and c) diverse media substitutes have been used. The current comparative nanotoxicological study therefore aims at analyzing the toxic effects of nanomaterials on four human mucosa barrier models including nasal (RPMI2650), buccal (TR146), alveolar (A549), and bronchial (Calu-3) mucosal cell lines to better understand the modulating effects of tissue maturity, cultivation conditions and tissue type using standard Transwell cultivations at liquid-liquid and air-liquid interfaces. Overall, cell size, confluency, tight junction localization, and cell viability as well as barrier formation using 50% and 100% confluency was monitored using trans-epithelial-electrical resistance (TEER) measurements and Presto Blue assays of immature (e.g. 5 days) and mature (e.g. 22 days) cultures in the presence and absence of corticosteroids such as hydrocortisone. Results of our study show that cellular responses to increasing nanoparticle exposures are highly cell type specific, where bronchial mucosal cell barriers models cultivated under ALI conditions showed less tolerance to acute ZnO nanoparticle exposures. Additionally, stronger toxicities are found using early mucosa barriers compared to later barrier models being maturated under air-liquid cultivation conditions.

Aquatic animals have unique physiological mechanisms to absorb and retain minerals from their diets and water. Research and development in the area of mineral nutrition of farmed fish and crustaceans have been relatively slow and major gaps exist in the knowledge of trace element requirements, physiological functions and bioavailability from feed ingredients. Quantitative dietary requirements have been reported for three macroelements (calcium, phosphorus and magnesium) and six trace minerals (zinc, iron, copper, manganese, iodine and selenium) for selected fish species. Mineral deficiency signs in fish include reduced bone mineralization, anorexia, lens cataracts (zinc), skeletal deformities (phosphorus, magnesium, zinc), fin erosion (copper, zinc), nephrocalcinosis (magnesium deficiency, selenium toxicity), thyroid hyperplasia (iodine), muscular dystrophy (selenium) and hypochromic microcytic anaemia (iron). An excessive intake of minerals from either diet or gill uptake causes toxicity and therefore a fine balance between mineral deficiency and toxicity is vital for aquatic organisms to maintain their homeostasis either through increased absorption or excretion. Release of minerals from uneaten or undigested feed and from urinary excretion can cause eutrophication of natural waters, which requires additional consideration in feed formulation. The current knowledge in mineral nutrition of fish is briefly reviewed.

A biomimetic, ion-imprinted polymer (IIP) was prepared by electropolymerization of pyrrole at the surface of gold electrodes decorated with vertically grown ZnO nanorods. The vertical growth of the nanorods was achieved via an ultrathin aryl monolayer grafted by reduction of diazonium salt precursor. Pyrrole was polymerized in the presence of L-cysteine as chelatant agent and Hg(II) (template). Hg(II)-imprinted polypyrrole (PPy) was also prepared on bare gold electrode in order to compare the two methods of sensor design (Au-ZnO-IIP vs Au-IIP). Non-imprinted PPy was prepared in the same conditions, however in the absence of any Hg2+ template. The strategy combining diazonium salt modification and ZnO nanorod decoration of gold electrodes permitted to increase considerably the specific surface and thus to improve the sensor performances. The limit of detection (LOD) of the designed sensor was ~1 pM, the lowest value ever reported in literature. The dissociation constants between PPy and Hg2+ were estimated at [Kd1 = (7.89 ± 3.63) mM and Kd2 = (38.10 ± 9.22) pM]. The sensitivity of the designed sensor was found to be 0.692 ± 0.034 μA/pM. The Au-ZnO-IIP was found to be highly selective towards Hg(II) compared to cadmium, lead and copper ions. This sensor design strategy could open up new horizons in monitoring toxic heavy metal ions in water and therefore contribute to enhance environmental quality.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) constitute the first cause of death among the population of developing and developed countries. Atherosclerosis, which is a disorder with multifactorial etiopathogenesis, underlies most CVDs. The available literature includes ample research studies on the influence of classic cardiovascular (CV) risk factors. However, environmental exposure to heavy metals, among other substances, is still an unappreciated risk factor of CVDs. This study aimed to assess the concentration of some heavy metals (copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), cobalt (Co), and iron (Fe)) in the blood serum of postmyocardial infarction (post-MI) patients and patients free from myocardial infarction (MI) as well as estimate the relationship between the occurrence of MI and increased concentration of heavy metals. The concentration of heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Mn, Co, and Fe) was assessed using the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry technique in a group of 146 respondents divided into two groups: post-MI group (study group (SG), n = 74) and group without cardiovascular event (CVE) having a low CV risk (control group (CG), n = 72). The concentration of the analyzed heavy metals was higher in SG. All the heavy metals showed a significant diagnostic value (p < 0.001). The highest value of area under the curve (AUC) was observed for manganese (Mn) (0.955; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.922–0.988), while the lowest value was found for zinc (Zn) (0.691; 95% CI = 0.599–0.782). In one-dimensional models, high concentrations of each of the analyzed heavy metals significantly increased the chances of having MI from 7-fold (Cu) to 128-fold (Mn). All the models containing a particular metal showed a significant and high discrimination value for MI occurrence (AUC 0.72–0.92). Higher concentrations of Cu, Zn, Mn, Co, and Fe were found to considerably increase the chances of having MI. Considering the increasingly higher environmental exposure to heavy metals in recent times, their concentrations can be distinguished as a potential risk factor of CVDs.

The growth of demand for metallic minerals has faced with the need for new techniques and improving technologies for all mine life cycle operations. Nowadays, the exploitation of old tailings and mine wastes facilities could represent a solution to this demand, with economic and environmental advantages. W-Sn Panasqueira Mine has been operating for more than 100 years. Its first processing plant “Rio” was located near Zêrere river being the mineral processing residues deposited on the top hillside on the margin of this river in Cabeço do Pião tailings dam. The lack of maintenance and monitoring of this enormous structure in the last twenty years represents high risks to the environment and population of the surrounding region. The re-mining of the tailings by hydrometallurgical methods was considered, in order to satisfy these two enounced conditions - metals demand and environmental risk, aiming for the sale of the metal to pay the environmental intervention. Field samples campaign allowed collecting data and results from laboratory tests driving to use regression optimization. The re-mining solution was studied, taking into account the technical, economic, social, and environmental aspects.

Iron and zinc are essential micronutrients required for growth and health. Deficiencies of these nutrients are highly prevalent among populations, but can be alleviated by supplementation. Cross-sectional studies in humans showed positive association of serum zinc levels with hemoglobin and markers of iron status. Dietary restriction of zinc or intestinal specific conditional knock out of ZIP4 (SLC39A4), an intestinal zinc transporter, in experimental animals demonstrated iron deficiency anemia and tissue iron accumulation. Similarly increased iron accumulation has been observed in cultured cells exposed to zinc deficient media. These results together suggest a potential role of zinc in modulating whole body iron metabolism. Studies in intestinal cell culture models demonstrate that zinc induces iron uptake and transcellular transport via induction of divalent metal iron transporter-1 (DMT1) and ferroportin (FPN) expression, respectively. It is interesting to note that intestinal cells are exposed to very high levels of zinc through pancreatic secretions, which is a major route of zinc excretion from the body. Therefore, zinc appears to be modulating the iron metabolism possibly via regulating the DMT1 and FPN1 levels. Herein we critically reviewed the available evidence to hypothesize novel mechanism of Zinc-DMT1/FPN axis in regulating intestinal iron absorption and tissue iron accumulation to facilitate future research aimed at understanding the yet elusive mechanisms of iron and zinc interactions.

Matrix Metaloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) is an extracellular Zn²⁺ protease specific to type I and IV collagens. Its expression is associated with several inflammatory, degenerative, and malignant diseases. Conformational properties, domain movements, and interactions between MMP-2 and its associated metal ions were characterized using a 1.0 µs molecular dynamics simulation. Dihedral principle component analysis revealed 10 families of conformations with the greatest degree of variability occurring in the link region connecting the catalytic and hemopexin domains. Dynamics cross correlation analysis indicated domain movements corresponding to opening and closing of the hemopexin domain in relation to the fibronectin and catalytic domains facilitated by the link region. Interaction energies were calculated using the MMPBSA-interaction entropy analysis method and revealed strong binding energies for the catalytic Zn²⁺ ion 1, Ca²⁺ ion 1, and Ca²⁺ ion 3 with significant conformational stability at the binding sites of Zn²⁺ ion 1 and Ca²⁺ ion 1. Ca²⁺ ion 2 diffuses freely away from its crystallographically defined binding site. Zn²⁺ ion 2 plays a minor role in conformational stability of the catalytic domain while Ca²⁺ ion 3 is strongly attracted to the highly electronegative sidechains of the Asp residues around the central β-sheet core of the hemopexin domain.

Advanced air treatment systems have the potential to reduce airborne infection risk, improve indoor air quality (IAQ) and reduce energy consumption, but few studies reported practical implementation and performance. PlasmaShield®, an advanced multi-modal HVAC-integrated system was directly compared with a standard MERV-13 system in a post-surgical pediatric healthcare setting. The evaluation entailed monitoring of multi-size airborne particles, bioaerosols and key IAQ parameters. Measurements were made of outside air, recovery room supply air and air in the occupied space for 3 days prior to, and after, installation of the PlasmaShield system. Compared with the existing arrangement, very significant reductions in particle number concentrations were observed in the occupied space, especially with virus-like submicron particles. Significant reductions in airborne culturable bacteria and fungi were observed in the supply air, with more modest reductions in the occupied space. In the case of virus-like particles, there was an 8-fold improvement in equivalent clean air, suggesting a 5-fold infection risk reduction for long range exposure. The data suggest multiple benefits of airborne particle and biaerosol reduction, with applications beyond healthcare. Long term studies are recommended to confirm the combined IAQ, health and energy benefits.

Every day around 93% of children under the age of 15 (1.8 billion children) breathe outdoor air that is so polluted it puts their health and development at serious risk. Due to the pandemic, however, ventilation of buildings using outdoor air has become an important safety technique to prevent the spread of COVID-19. With the mounting ev-idence suggesting that air pollution is impactful to human health and educational out-comes, this contradictory guidance may be problematic in schools with higher air pol-lution levels, but keeping kids COVID-19 free and in school to receive their education is now more pressing than ever. To understand if all schools in an urban area are ex-posed to similar outdoor air quality and if school infrastructure protects children equally indoors, we installed research grade sensors to observe PM2.5 concentrations in indoor and outdoor settings to understand how unequal exposure to indoor and out-door air pollution impacts indoor air quality among high- and low-income schools in Salt Lake City, Utah. Based on this approach, we found that during atmospheric inver-sions and dust events, there was a lag ranging between 35 to 73 minutes for the out-door PM2.5 concentrations to follow a similar temporal pattern as the indoor PM2.5. This lag has policy and health implications and may help to explain the rising concerns re-garding reduced educational outcomes related to air pollution in urban areas. These data and resulting analysis show that poor air quality may impact school settings, and the potential implications with respect to environmental inequality.

The provision requirement of 10% openings of the total floor area stated in the Uniform Building by Law 1984 Malaysia has been practiced by designers for building plan submission approval. However, the effectiveness of thermal performance in landed residential buildings, despite the imposition by the by-law, has never been empirically measured and proven. Although terraced houses in Malaysia have dominated 40.9% of the total property transaction in 2019, such mass production with typical designs hardly provides its occupants with thermal comfort due to the static outdoor air condition and lack of external windows, where the conventional ventilation technique does not work well, even for houses with an air well system. Consequently, the occupants need to rely on mechanical cooling, which is a high energy-consuming component contributing to outdoor heat dissipation and therefore urban heat island effect. Thus, encouraging more effective natural ventilation to eliminate excessive heat from the indoor environment is critical. Since most of the research focuses on simulation modelling lacking sufficient empirical validation, this paper drawing on field measurement investigates natural ventilation performance in terraced housing with an air well system. More importantly, the key concern as to what extent the current air well system serving as a ventilator is effective to provide better thermal performance in the single storey terraced house is to be addressed. By adopting an existing single storey air welled terrace house, the existing indoor environmental conditions and thermal performance were monitored and measured using scientific equipment, namely HOBO U12 air temperature and air humidity, the HOBO U12 anemometer and the Delta Ohm HD32.3 Wet Bulb Globe Temperature meter for a six-month duration. The findings show that the air temperature of the air well ranged from 27.48°C to 30.92°C, while the mean relative humidity were from 72.67% to 79.25%. The mean air temperature for a test room (single sided ventilation room) ranged from 28.04°C to 30.92°C with a relative humidity of 70.16% to 76%. These empirical findings are of importance, offering novel policy insights and suggestions to potentially revising the existing building code standard and by laws; since the minimum provision of 10% openings has been revealed to be less effective to provide a desired thermal performance and comfort, mandatory compliance with, and the necessity for, the bylaw requirement should be revisited and further studied.

The aim of this work is to provide a full description of how air temperature and solar radiation induce changes in the land cover over an Antarctic site. We use shortwave broadband albedo (albedo integrated in the range 300-3000 nm) from a spaceborne sensor and from field surveys to calculate the monthly relative abundance of landscape units. Field albedo data were collected using a portable albedometer over seven landscape units: clean fresh snow; clean old snow; rugged landscape composed of dirty snow with disperse pyroclasts and rocky outcrops; dirty snow; stripes of bare soil and snow; shallow snow with small bare soil patches; bare soil. MODIS MCD43A3 daily albedo product was downloaded using the Google Earth Engine API from the 2000-2001 season to the 2020-2021 season. Each landscape unit was characterized by an albedo normal distribution. The monthly relative abundance of the landscape units were calculated by fitting a linear combination of the normal distributions to the histogram of the MODIS monthly mean albedo. The monthly relative abundance of the landscape unit consisting of rugged landscape composed of dirty snow, with dispersed clasts and small rocky outcrops exhibits a high linear positive correlation with the monthly mean albedo (R2=0.87) and a high linear negative correlation with the monthly mean air temperature (R2= 0.69). The increase of the solar radiation energy flux from September to December coincides with the decrease of the relative abundance of the landscape unit composed of dirty snow with dispersed clasts and small rocky outcrops. We propose a mechanism to describe the evolution of the landscape: uncovered pyroclasts act as melting centres favouring the melting of surrounding snow. Ash does not play a decisive role in the melting of the snow. The results also explain the observed decreasing of the thaw depth of the permafrost on the island in the period 2006-2014, resulting from an increase in the snow cover over the whole island.

Different coffee drying technologies face complex task in ensuring an acceptable final seed moisture content. Drying technology of agricultural commodities aims to maintain and improve the quality of the agricultural products themselves. In addition to maintaining quality, especially from other bacterial attacks, it can last for a long time before further processing. Coffee commodities are promising for the welfare of coffee farmers. Drying technology plays a major role in determining the quality of coffee. Various drying models are applied including the traditional model that until now is still applied, direct drying under solar radiation. However, this drying process is less hygienic and requires a large area. Thus, one of the drying technologies that can accelerate drying time is to vary the air flow in the drying chamber so that the coffee can be determined to reduce the water content with a certain temperature. In this study, it was found that the moisture content of coffee beans dried using a dryer on air flow with variations of velocity in solar collector 1 (DB1) air velocity of 1.0m/s obtained the final mass = 732.249 gr, solar collector 2 (DB2) with air velocity 1.5 m/s obtained the final mass = 774.70 gr, solar collector 3 (DB3) with air velocity 2.0 m/s obtained the final mass = 855.10 gr, solar collector 4 (DB4) with air velocity 2.5 m/s obtained the final mass = 745.79 gr, and solar collector 5 (DB5) with air velocity 3.0 m/s obtained the final mass = 786.40 gr. Water Content DB1=12.0%, DB2=13.6%, DB3=18.5%, DB4=12.9% and DB5=15.2%. The time required for 25 hours with a maximum radiation of 586.9 w/m2, total heat utilized from solar radiation in 3 days =16.663128 MJ/m2. from the initial weight of 1500gr coffee bean samples and dried in five solar collectors with parallel simultaneously. The evaporated water content DB1=51.18%, DB2=48.35%, DB3=42.96%, DB4=50.28% and DB5=47.57%. Based on this research, it was found that the most optimum quality of coffee was by using solar collector 2 (DB2), namely with air flow of 1.5 m/s with average temperature in the drying box DB2=43.68°C, with the quality content of the coffee, Protein content=12.2%, Carbohydrate=22.8% and Free Fatty Acid (ALB) content=0.05%.

TiO2-based building materials have air purification, auto-cleaning and sterilization functions, and these innovative green building materials have great potential for energy-saving and emission reduction applications in the future. However, there are still great challenges in improving photocatalytic efficiency and stability from laboratory to practical applications. In recent years, researchers have done a lot of work to improve the efficiency and stability of TiO2-based building materials. This paper briefly discussed the air purification principle by photocatalytic building, and the preparation techniques of TiO2-based building materials and the strategies to improve the efficiency of TiO2. Moreover, this paper has outlined the key factors that affect the photocatalytic building performance in practical applications, and analyzed the limitations and future development trends. Finally, we proposed some suggestions for further research on photocatalytic buildings and its application in practice, aiming to provide an efficient reference for developing highly efficient and stable photocatalytic building materials. The aim of this paper is to provide effective guidance for the application of TiO2-based photo-catalysts in the field of green buildings, helping to develop more efficient and stable low-carbon buildings for the development of sustainable cities.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns about potential environmental factors that could influence the spread and severity of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Atmospheric pollution, particularly particulate matter (PM), has been suggested as a contributing factor to viral infections and respiratory complications. This two-year observational study aimed to investigate the relation between air pollution and the spread of COVID-19, focusing on PM2.5. Unlike previous studies limited to specific cities or countries, inevitable to use temporal data. Our research analyzed data from various states across the United States, considering both spatial and temporal correlation. The analysis considered the number and geographic distribution of COVID-19 cases along with daily PM2.5 exposure levels, accounting for monthly average PM2.5 exposure, from March 2020 to December 2021. The observed conflicting results of the temporal and spatial correlation present challenges for researchers in understanding the true nature of the relationship between PM2.5 air pollution and COVID-19 cases. The correlation between various factors, such as population density, PM2.5, temperature, and wind speed, and COVID-19 refers to an association or statistical relationship, not causation. Moreover, the intricate interplay of these variables makes it difficult to establish a clear cause-and-effect relationship.

The research considers creating a network of moss-based biotechnological purification filters in the Smart City concept. The extent of absorption of heavy metals and gases by Sphagnopsida moss under different conditions was investigated. The efficiency of air purification with biotechnological filters was also investigated using the example of the city of Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan, where an excess of the permissible concentration of harmful substances in the air, according to the WHO air quality guidelines, is recorded throughout the year. Data on the level of pollution recorded by sensors located in the biggest Kazakhstani cities from 06/21/2020 to 06/04/2023 were selected as the basis for calculating the efficiency. In total, there are two hundred twenty sensors in 73 settlements of the Republic of Kazakhstan, with 80 such sensors located in the city of Almaty. Since creating a single biotechnological filter is expensive, the task was to calculate the air purification effect in the case of increasing the number of filters placed in polluted areas. As a result, it is shown that ten filters provide an air purification efficiency of 0.77%, 100 filters 5.72%, and 500 filters 23.11%. A biotechnological filter for air purification based on moss was designed at Astana IT University, considering the climatic features, distribution, and types of pollution in the Republic of Kazakhstan. The obtained results are essential for ensuring compliance with the ISO 37120:2018 standard for environmental comfort in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Additionally, the research findings and the experience of implementing a moss-based biotechnological filter can be applied to designing similar air purification systems in other cities. This is of great importance for the advancement of the field of urban science.

Air pollution is a man-made environmental-related problem and has importance globally among all environmental issues. It is described as an atmospheric situation in which several components appear at high attention above their ambient level and generate a quantifiable effect on vegetation, animals, and people. Air pollution and its control are a universal problem and have become an issue of great trouble for us in current years. However, monitoring and measurement of the concentration of air pollutants are most difficult in assessment to monitoring other components in the environment. Air pollutants are transported to polar regions by different mechanisms such as long-range atmospheric transport or grasshopper effects and via anthropogenic activities. After reaching the polar regions, they settle down and remain as such for a long-time due to their persistent nature. They can distress the environment and wildlife of the polar regions. Generally, dangerous chemicals may cause a risk of well-being effects, whereas lethal pollutants focus on one physiological reaction. We reviewed the available information on air pollution (occurrence, sources, and harmful effects) in the polar regions.

Rationale: The possible effect of Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5 of diameter 10 and 2.5 µm respectively) levels on Covid-19 mortality is now well established. However, time-evolution of Covid-19 mortality according to PM2.5 levels has been scarcely investigated. Aim: To understand this relationship at the European level for the period 2020 (beginning) - 2022 (end). Methods: 16 representative locations in Europe (81 million people) with heterogeneous levels of PM2.5 (µg.m-3), from low to high. PM2.5 levels were assessed by various methods, and Covid-19 mortality was reported by Johns Hopkins University. Results: The trend of Covid-19 mortality vs. PM2.5 levels varied among locations. Overall, the estimated mean value was of a 40±20% mortality increase per 1 µg.m-3 PM2.5 increase. The stronger the positive gradient of the PM peak, the stronger the positive gradient of the Covid-19 mortality. Exposure to several PM peaks during about a 2-month period was the main contributor to Covid-19 mortality increases. Conclusion: Our data confirm a temporal relation between PM2.5 exposure and Covid-19 mortality, considering a 2-month integration-time for pollution events. Number-concentrations of PM should be used in the future rather than the PM2.5 mass-concentrations (µg.m-3) with the consideration of PM composition to better explain this finding.

Exposure to air pollution have detrimental effects on the elderly, women, people with pre-existing medical conditions, people living in poverty and children. The aim of the study was to investigate the extent of community awareness and knowledge on the health risks associated with exposure to air pollution. A cross-sectional study design was used for the study, using self-administered questionnaires. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 376 respondents. Systematic sampling method was applied to select the households. SPSS version 26 was used to analyze data. Of 376 respondents, 221 were males and 154 females. 113 were aged between 23-47years and 353 were aware that if they don’t protect themselves against polluted air, they may get sick, with age and educational status associated with their awareness (p &lt; 0.05). About 361 knew what air pollution is and 188 think the air they breathe in Annadale is moderate. A total number of 278 said they feel sick/uncomfortable when the quality of air is bad. About 293 knew that people are exposed to air pollution by breathing contaminated air and 237 identified sewage smell as the main cause of air pollution. Respondents who identified internet and television as the main source of information were 199 and 177 respectively. Those who were not aware of actions implemented to reduce air pollution were 180. Based on the results of the study, respondents are aware of the dangers of exposure to polluted air, and it is necessary that air pollution risk communication strategies be implemented to empower residents.

The representation of aerosols in climate-chemistry models is important for air quality and climate change research, but it can require significant computational resources. To overcome this, simpler modules such as modal aerosol modules with three lognormal modes (MAM3) can be used. In this study, the coupling of the Carbon Bond Mechanism, version Z (CBMZ), and MAM3 chemistry modules in WRF-CAM5 was improved by adding biomass-burning emissions to both gas- and particle-phase chemistry and incorporating a conversion mechanism between volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and secondary organic carbons (SOCs). The study conducted six simulations over the western U.S. and northeastern Pacific region and compared the model’s performance with observational benchmarks such as reanalysis, ground-based, and satellite data. The results showed that the model with enhanced chemistry capabilities had a 31% and 58% reduction in root-mean-square errors (RMSE) for black carbon (BC) and organic carbon (OC) surface concentrations, respectively. The earlier release of the WRF-CAM5 version had two deficiencies that were addressed in this study. This research highlights the importance of accurate aerosol representation in climate-chemistry models for improving accuracy and reducing errors in simulations.

Hot air frying is a new method of frying food, where the use of a small amount of oil is optional but recommended. The objective of this review was to know the state of the art of hot air frying technology, focusing on trends, and thus obtain new ideas for future work in this area of food. In conclusion, the availability of advanced devices will increase the demand for hot air fryers as demonstrated by the trend generating a great economic and social impact. This new technology not only provides health benefits, but also has environmental advantages. In addition, work focusing on food (i.e. tortilla chips, plantain chips, eggs and meats) is recommended, since there are not enough studies on the subject. Currently, research is being conducted on home fryers, so the use of fryers and their impact at the industrial level is a developing area that will require further research.

This document serves as supplemental information to Shapero et al. (2023), which is itself a comment on Nowell et al. (2022). Environmental Health Perspective’s publishing standards for article comments have strict word counts and do not allow the addition of new primary data analyses; therefore, this document provides an additional level of detail and supporting analyses that serve as an important backup to and expansion of Shapero et al. (2023) and that also respond to some comments within the author’s reply to our comments (Holmes and Nowell, 2023). Nowell et al. (2022) evaluated potential PM_2.5 community impacts from sugarcane harvesting. However, their analysis is flawed by erroneous assumptions and misapplied technical approaches, as discussed in Shapero et al. (2023) and as detailed in this supplemental information document. Additionally, the authors ended their analysis with 2018 data, but later data shows no marginal increase in PM_2.5 during sugarcane harvest following 2019 even using the authors’ approach (Holmes and Nowell, 2023). Therefore, the authors’ evaluations have no relevance to current conditions. Nonetheless, even their evaluation and conclusions regarding PM_2.5 concentrations purportedly attributable to sugarcane harvesting prior to 2019 are unsupported and technically unsound as detailed below.

The climate change impacts on some regions of the planet faster and stronger. These areas are known as the hot spots for climate change and Cyprus (Nicosia) in the Mediterranean is one of these spots. This paper aims to analyze the significant changes of atmospheric aerosol characteristics in 2019 and during the extreme event of 25 April 2019. We study the aerosol optical thickness (AOT), Ångström exponent, single scattering albedo, refractive index (imaginary and real parts), size, and vertical distribution of aerosol particles during the event of a high atmospheric aerosol contamination over Nicosia in details. For this purpose, we used the ground-based lidar, observations of the sun-photometer AERONET Nicosia station, satellite products from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), and back trajectories of air movements calculated using the Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory Model (HYSPLIT). On 23–25 April, according to lidar and sun-photometer observations, strong aerosol pollution over Nicosia was detected. On April 25, 2019, the AOT value exceeds 1.0 at λ = 440 nm. Analysis of the optical and microphysical characteristics supported that the pollution consists of mainly Saharan dust and partly urban aerosols. This assumption was confirmed by HYSPLIT backward trajectories and MODIS images where air masses containing dust particles came from North Africa and from the Eastern part of Europe.

Air pollution is a serious global issue, responsible for approximately one in every nine deaths each year, ranking it among the greatest environmental hazards to human health. It is of particular concern in urban areas, where elevated pollutant concentrations and potential sufferers converge. Over one half of the world’s population presently lives in urban areas, and the urban population ratio is expected to reach 68% by 2050. Common air pollutants include particulate matter (PM), sulphur dioxide (SO2), ground-level ozone (O3), nitrogen oxide (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO). While elevated rates of air pollution pose serious health risks for humans, outdoor plants can help reduce the harmful effects of air pollution by filtering and purifying the air around us.In this project Common Ivy, Aster and Miniature Andromeda plants were evaluated for air pollutant mitigation. In this study we developed a vegetation barrier model with the plant located in the middle of the greenhouse box, and air pollutant was sprayed on one side of the plant. Dispersion patterns of sprayed pollutants were tested with and without vegetation barrier. Measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2), Formaldehyde (HCHO), Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC), and Particulate Matter (PM2.5/PM10) were taken before spraying, then at 0 and 30 minutes after spraying, using both monitors.The results show mitigation rates (in 177 ft3 of air after 30 min): for TVOC the minimum reduction is 5 mg/m3; for HCHO, 1 mg/m3; for CO2, 2000 ppm; for PM2.5, 2000 ug/m3; and for PM10 it was 1000 ug/m3.

The mass composition of Particulate Matter (PM) with an aerodynamic diameter of 2.5 microns (PM2.5) in San Joaquin Valley (SJV) is dominated by ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) which is a secondary pollutant. The goal of this research was the investigation of the relationship between emissions, meteorology and PM2.5 concentrations in Fresno for the winter season. It was found that the location of sites near emission sources such as freeways compared with residential sites strongly affected measured PM2.5 concentrations. It was found that although long-term trends showed declines in both emissions and PM2.5 concentrations there was substantial variability between the years in the PM2.5/emissions relationship. Much of the yearly variation in the relationship between emissions and PM2.5 concentrations can be attributed to yearly variations in weather, such as atmospheric stability, precipitation frequency and average wind speed. There are moderate correlations between PM2.5 concentrations and temperature differences between nearby surface stations at varying elevations which explains some of the daily and seasonal variation in PM2.5. Occurrence of precipitation was related to low PM¬2.5 although the higher wind speeds and lower atmospheric stability associated with precipitation likely explain some of the low PM2.5 as well as washout of PM.

International literature data report that the increase of infectious risk may be due to heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems contaminated by airborne pathogens. Moreover, the presence of complex rotating dehumidification wheels (RDWs) may complicate the cleaning and disinfection procedures of the HVAC systems. We evaluated the efficacy of a disinfection strategy applied to the RDW of two hospitals HVAC systems. Hospitals have 4 RDW systems related to the surgical areas (SA1 and SA2) and to the intensive and sub-intensive cares (IC and sIC). Microbiological air and surfaces analysis were performed in HVAC systems, before and after the disinfection treatment. Hydrogen peroxide (12%) with silver ions (10 mg/L) was aerosolized in all the air sampling points, located close to the RDW device. After the air disinfection procedure, reductions of total microbial counts at 22°C and fungi were achieved in SA2 and IC HVAC systems. An Aspergillus fumigatus contamination (6 CFU/500L), detected in one air sample collected in the IC HVAC system, was eradicated after the disinfection. Surface samples proved a good microbiological quality. Results suggest the need of a disinfection procedure aimed to improve the microbiological quality of the complex HVAC systems, mostly in surgical and intensive care areas.

The Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory (CREDO) is a project dedicated to global studies of extremely extended cosmic-ray phenomena, the cosmic-ray ensembles (CRE), beyond the capabilities of existing detectors and observatories. Up to date cosmic-ray research has been focused on detecting single air showers, while the search for ensembles of cosmic-rays, which may overspread a significant fraction of the Earth, is a scientific terra incognita. Instead of developing and commissioning a completely new global detector infrastructure, CREDO proposes approaching the global cosmic-ray analysis objectives with all types of available detectors, from professional to pocket size, merged into a worldwide network. With such a network it is possible to search for evidences of correlated cosmic-ray ensembles. One of the observables that can be investigated in CREDO is a number of spatially isolated events collected in a small time window which could shed light on fundamental physics issues. The CREDO mission and strategy requires active engagement of a large number of participants, also non-experts, who will contribute to the project by using common electronic devices (e.g. smartphones). In this note the status and perspectives of the project is presented.

Livestock farming is a major source of greenhouse gas and ammonia emissions. In this study, we estimate methane, nitrous oxide and ammonia emission from livestock sector in the Red River Delta region from 2000 to 2015 and projection to 2030 using IPCC 2006 methodologies with the integration of local emission factors and provincial statistic livestock database. Methane, nitrous oxide and ammonia emissions in 2030 are estimated at 132 kt, 8.3 kt and 34.2 kt, respectively. Total global warming potential is 9.7 MtCO_2eq in 2030, accounts for 33% greenhouse gas emissions from livestock in Vietnam. Pig farming is responsible for half of both greenhouse gases and ammonia emissions in the studied region. Other major livestock for greenhouse gas emission is cattle and for ammonia emission is poultry. Hanoi contributes for the largest emissions in the region in 2015 but will be caught up and surpassed by other provinces in 2030.

Air pollution has become a growing invisible killer in recent years and is major cause of morbidity and mortality globally. India stands 10th among the highly polluted countries with an average PM10 level of 134μg/m3 per year. It is also reported that 99% of India's population comes across air pollution level that exceed the World Health Organization Air Quality Guideline (AQG), PM2.5 permissible levels of 10 μg/m3. Maternal exposure to air pollution has a serious health outcome to the offspring because it can affect embryonic phases of development during the gestation period. Fetus is more prone to air pollution effect during embryonic developmental phases due to oxidative stress as antioxidant mechanisms are lacking at that stage. Any injury during this vulnerable period (embryonic phase) will have long-term impact on offspring health both in early and later in life. Epidemiological studies have revealed that maternal exposure to air pollution increases the risk of developing airways disease in offspring due to impaired lung development in utero. In this review, we discuss cellular mechanisms involved in maternal exposure to air pollution and how it can impact development of airways disease in offspring. Better understanding of these mechanisms in context of maternal exposure to air pollution can offer newer avenue to prevent development of airways disease in offspring.

Abstract: Air-polishing with low abrasiveness powders is fats arising as a valid and mini-invasive instrument for the management of biofilm colonizing dental implants. The reported advantage is the efficient removal of plaque with respect of the titanium integrity. In the present study, we evaluated the in-situ plaque-removal and continual the post-treatment anti-bacterial efficacy of an innovative erythritol/chlorhexidine air-polishing powder and compared it with sodium bicarbonate. Two peri-implantitis-linked biofilm formers strains Staphylococcus aureus and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans were selected and used to infect titanium disks before and after the air-polishing treatment. Cells number and viability were assayed by colonies forming units (CFUs) count and metabolic-colorimetric (2,3-Bis-(2-Methoxy-4-Nitro-5-Sulfophenyl)-2H-Tetrazolium-5-Carboxanilide) (XTT) assay. Air-polishing performed with either sodium bicarbonate or erythritol/chlorhexidine was effective in reducing bacteria biofilm viability and number onto pre-infected specimens, while erythritol/ chlorhexidine showed a higher post-treatment biofilm re-growth inhibition. Surface analysis via mechanical profilometry failed to show an increase in titanium roughness, regardless of the powder selected.

The ambient air quality data for particulate matter as well as criteria of gaseous pollutants were assembled during December 2013 to December 2015 from the Continuous Air Quality Monitoring Station (CAMS) located at Agrabad, Chittagong. The observation showed that during April- October, 24 hour average concentration of PM10 and PM2.5 were within the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) level but it increased occasionally by more than two and a half times during the whole non-monsoon period (November-March). The highest values found of PM2.5 were 321.1 µg/m³ in January, 2013 and 220.34 µg/m³ in December 2015. Whether, the highest alarming concentration of PM10 was reported as 474 µg/m3 in January 2007. The other gaseous pollutants such as SO₂, NO₂, O₃, CO and Hydrocarbons remain well within the permissible limit except dry non-monsoon period. The yearly average increase of Air Quality Index (AQI) value indicates the growth rate of air pollution in Chittagong city. The main responsible pollutant for air pollution is found PM_2.5.

Estimating the infection risks in indoor environments comprises the assessment of the behavior of virus-laden aerosols, i.e. spreading, mixing, removal by air purifiers etc. A promising experimental approach is based on using non-hazardous surrogate aerosols of similar size, e.g. salt particles, to mimic the virus aerosol behavior. This manuscript addresses the issue how a successful transfer of such experiments can be accomplished. Corresponding experiments in two very different environments, a large community hall and a seminar room, with optional use of air purifiers in various constellations were conducted. While high particle concentrations are advantageous in terms of avoiding influence of background aerosol concentrations, it is shown that appropriate consideration of aggregation and settling are vital to theoretically describe the experimentally determined course of particle concentrations. A corresponding model equation for a well-mixed situation is derived and the required parameters are thoroughly determined in separate experiments independently. It is demonstrated that clean air delivery rates (CADR) of air purifiers determined with this approach may differ substantially from common approaches not explicitly taking into account aggregation.

RAMOSA1 (RA1) is a Cys2-His2-type (C2H2) zinc finger transcription factor that controls plant meristem fate and identity and has played an important role in maize domestication. Despite its importance, the origin of RA1 is unknown and the evolution in plants is partially understood. In this paper, we present a well resolved phylogeny based on 73 amino acid sequences from 48 embryophyte species. The recovered tree topology indicates that, during grass evolution, RA1 arose from two consecutive SUPERMAN duplications resulting in three distinct grass sequence lineages: RA1-like A, RA1-like B, and RA1; however, most of these copies have unknown functions. Our findings indicate that RA1 and RA1-like play roles in the nucleus despite lacking a traditional nuclear localization signal. Here we report that copies diversified their coding region and, with it, their protein structure, suggesting different patterns of DNA binding and protein-protein interaction. In addition, each of the retained copies diversified regulatory elements along their promoter regions, indicating differences in their upstream regulation. Taken together, we propose that the RA1 and RA1-like gene families in grasses may have undergone subfunctionalization and neofunctionalization enabled by gene duplication.

In recent years, antibacterial coatings have become a significant approach in the global fight against bacterial pathogens. Developments in materials science, chemistry and biochemistry have led to a plethora of materials and chemical compounds that have potential for creating antibacterial coatings. Nonetheless, there has been insufficient consideration given to the analysis of the techniques and technologies used to apply these coatings. Among the various inorganic coating techniques, Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) is noteworthy. It enables the successful synthesis of high-purity inorganic nanocoatings on surfaces of complex shape and topography, while also providing precise control over their thickness and composition. ALD has various industrial applications, but its practical application in medicine is still limited. In recent years, a substantial number of papers have been published on the suggested implementation of thin films and coatings produced through ALD in medicine, notably those with antibacterial properties. The aim of this paper is to carefully evaluate and analyse the relevant literature on this subject. Simple oxide coatings, including TiO2, ZnO, Fe2O3, MgO, and ZrO2, were examined, as well as coatings containing metal nanoparticles such as Ag, Cu, Pt, and Au, and mixed systems such as TiO2-ZnO, TiO2-ZrO2, ZnO-Al2O3, TiO2-Ag, and ZnO-Ag. Through comparative analysis, we have been able to draw conclusions on the effectiveness of various antibacterial coatings of different compositions, including key characteristics such as thickness, morphology, and crystal structure. ALD has been analysed in its use for developing antibacterial coatings for various applications. Furthermore, assumptions regarding the most promising development areas have been presented.

Background: Micronutrient deficiencies are common at the time of cancer diagnosis and are associated with worse prognosis. Little is known about them in cancer rehabilitation. Methods: Data from routine health related quality of life (HRQOL) were analyzed at an inpatient cancer rehabilitation center. Rehabilitation patients completed the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire before and after multidisciplinary rehabilitation treatment, and three month after discharge. Selenium and zinc status was measured in whole blood at these three time points. In case of selenium deficiency up to 600 µg selenium per day as sodium selenite was supplemented. Results: A total of 271 patients (breast, colon, and pancreatic cancer) were included in the analysis. There was clinically meaningful improvement in many domains of the EORTC QLQ-C30 during rehabilitation. However, effect often waned in the three months after. Prevalence for selenium deficiency varied between 34 to 90 percent depending on cancer type (breast &lt; colon &lt; pancreas). In contrast, zinc deficiency was rare. Daily selenium supplementation of 600 µg was more efficient to correct selenium deficiency compared to 300 µg selenium per day. Rehabilitation and increasing selenium status after rehabilitation were associated with improved global quality of life, physical and emotional functioning, and fatigue. In cancer patients with decreasing selenium status, values of global quality of life, physical and emotional functioning, and fatigue were back to the values at the beginning of rehabilitation. Conclusions: Selenium deficiency is common in cancer patients admitted to a cancer rehabilitation clinic. Selenium supplementation during rehabilitation effectively corrected selenium deficiency in most cases. The positive effects of rehabilitation persisted longer, when selenium status did not decrease after rehabilitation.

Cathodic protection is widely used to protect metal structures from corrosion and is commonly applied on marine structures in seaports using sacrificial galvanic anodes. These anodes, either in Zinc, or preferen-tially nowadays in Al-Zn-In alloys, are expected to corrode instead of the metal to be protected. This leads to the release of specific dissolved species, Zn2+, Al3+, In3+ and solid phases like Al(OH)3. Few studies were conducted on the effects of anodes on marine organisms and concluded that further detailed investiga-tions are needed in controlled environments. We therefore propose an experimental approach to evaluate the effects of Zn and Al-Zn-In anodes on oysters stabulated in tanks, under conditions approaching those used in the ports. We chose a non-targeted metabolomic approach, using UHPLC coupled to HRMS, to study the effects on the entire metabolome, without any a priori. A modelling study of the chemical species, corresponding to the deg-radation products of the anodes, likely to be present near the exposed oysters, was also included. We identified 16 and 2 metabolites modulated by Zn- and Al-Zn-In-anodes respectively, involved in bi-ological functions, such as energy metabolism, osmoregulation, oxidative stress, lipid, nucleotide nucle-oside and amino acid metabolisms, defense and signaling pathways.

In this paper, we present the investigation results of radiation-induced effects in metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) doped with moderate amounts of Zinc Oxide (ZnO) as a potential candidate for space-borne application. The samples were fabricated via the sputtering method at a working pressure of 3mTorr and a deposition temperature of 300oC. The ZnO samples were exposed to 1.25-MeV gamma-ray utilizing Co60 source, and their electronic response was measured at ionizing doses ranging from 10 kGy to 300 kGy. A comparative work was performed through finite element method to simulate the electronic response of the PN junction diode due to ionizing radiation. The results indicate that the ideality factor of the MOS diode increases as the ionizing dose increases, rendering it unsuitable for use as a diode. The degradation of the electrical parameters was also simulated, showing the increase in hole concentration. These findings suggest that the ejection of electrons occurred, which agrees with the gamma radiation effects trend. Furthermore, as the intensity of radiation increases, the spatial charge that arises from the separation of hole-electron pairs results in a substantial reduction of the electric field in the central portion of the n-type region. These findings provide insights into the degradation of electrical parameters in MOS devices under gamma radiation and have implications for their use in space-borne applications.

If a lubricant contains structures capable of conducting energy, reactions involving zinc dialkyldithiophosphate (ZDDP) may take place both very close to and away from the solid surfaces, with this indicating that ZDDP can be a highly effective anti-wear (AW) additive. The central thesis of this article is that the tribocatalytic effect is observed only when the energy emitted by the solids is transmitted by ordered molecular structures present in the lubricant, e.g., graphene. The friction tests were carried out for 100Cr6 steel balls in a sliding contact with uncoated or a:C-H-coated HS6-5-2C steel discs in the presence of polyalphaolefin 8 (PAO 8) as the lubricant, which was enhanced with graphene and/or ZDDP. There is sufficient evidence of the interactions occurring between ZDDP and graphene and their effects on the tribological performance of the system. It was also found that the higher the concentration of zinc in the wear area, the lower the wear. This was probably due to the energy transfer resulting from the catalytic decomposition of ZDDP molecules. Graphene, playing the role of the catalyst, contributed to that energy transfer.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a complex, multisystem, and profoundly debilitating condition, probably of multifactorial etiology. No effective approved drugs are currently available for its treatment. Several studies have proposed symptomatic treatment with melatonin and zinc supplementation in chronic illnesses; however, little is known about the synergistic effect of this treatment on fatigue-related symptoms in ME/CFS. The primary endpoint of the study was to assess the effect of oral melatonin plus zinc supplementation on fatigue in ME/CFS. Secondary measures included participants’ sleep disturbances, anxiety/depression, and health-related quality of life. A proof-of-concept, 16-week, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial was conducted in 50 ME/CFS patients assigned to receive either oral melatonin (1 mg) plus zinc (10 mg) supplementation (n = 24) or matching placebo (n = 26) once daily. Endpoint outcomes were evaluated at baseline and then reassessed at 8 and 16 weeks of treatment and 4 weeks after treatment cessation, using self-reported outcome measures. Treatment was safe and well-tolerated. The most relevant results were the significant reduction in the perception of physical fatigue in the active group at the final follow-up versus placebo (p < 0.05), and the significant improvement in the physical component summary at all follow-up visits in the experimental group. Our findings suggest that oral melatonin plus zinc supplementation for 16 weeks is safe and potentially effective in reducing fatigue and improving the quality of life in ME/CFS. This clinical study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03000777).

Observing air quality from sensors onboard light rail cars in Salt Lake County, Utah began as a pilot study in 2014 and has now evolved into a five-year state-funded program. This metropolitan region suffers from both elevated ozone levels during summer and high PM2.5 events during winter. Pollution episodes result predominantly from local anthropogenic emissions but are also impacted by regional transport of dust, chemical precursors to ozone, and wildfire smoke as well as being exacerbated by the topographical features surrounding the city. Two electric light-rail train cars from the Utah Transit Authority light-rail Transit Express (“TRAX”) system were outfitted with PM2.5 and ozone sensors to measure air quality at high spatial and temporal resolution in this region. Pollutant concentration data underwent quality control procedures to determine whether the train motion affected the readings and how the sensors compared against regulatory sensors. Quality assurance results from data obtained over the past year show that TRAX Observation Project sensors are reliable, which corroborates earlier preliminary validation work. Two case studies from summer 2019 are presented to illustrate the strength of the finely-resolved air quality observations: 1) an elevated ozone event and 2) elevated particulate pollution resulting from 4th of July fireworks. The mobile observations were able to capture spatial gradients as well as pollutant hotspots during both of these episodes. Sensors have been recently added to a third light rail train car, which travels on a north-south oriented rail line along which we were unable to monitor air quality previously. The TRAX Observation Project is currently being used to provide reliable pollutant data for health studies and inform urban planning efforts. Links to real-time data displays and updated information on the quality-controlled data from this study are available at https://atmos.utah.edu/air_quality/trax/.

This study presents a fit-for-purpose evaluation of commercially available portable sensor systems, measuring PM, NO2 and/or BC, through extensive lab- and field benchmarking. The main aim of the study is to identify sensor systems that can be used for mobile monitoring by citizens to assess dynamic exposure in ambient air. After an initial literature study and market search resulting in 39 sensor systems, 10 sensor systems were ultimately purchased and benchmarked in laboratory and real-word conditions. We evaluated comparability to reference analyzers, sensor precision and sensitivity to temperature, humidity and O3. Moreover, we evaluated if accuracy can be improved by the lab and field calibration. Because the targeted application of the sensor systems under evaluation is mobile monitoring, we conducted a mobile field test in an urban environment to evaluate the GPS accuracy and potential impacts from vibrations on the resulting sensor signals. Results of the considered sensor systems indicate that out-of-the-box performance is relatively good for PM and BC, but maturity of the tested NO2 sensors is still low and additional efforts are needed in terms of signal noise and calibration. The horizontal accuracy of the build-in GPS was generally good achieving a &lt;10m horizontal accuracy for all sensor systems. More accurate and dynamic exposure assessments in contemporary urban environments are crucial to study real-world exposure of individuals and exposome impacts on potential health endpoints. A greater availability of mobile monitoring systems capable of quantifying urban pollutant gradients will further boost this line of research.

This study examines the potential of UiO-66 and g-C3N4-based composite catalysts for environmental purification and pesticide degradation. By integrating zirconium-based metal-organic framework UiO-66 with graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4), a composite with a Z-type heterojunction structure is created, enhancing photocatalytic pesticide degradation and phosphorus recovery. The optimal composite, UiO-66/g-C3N4(UG6:4), shows high efficiency in degrading organophosphorus pesticides like DDVP under visible light. This catalyst's high surface area and porous nature efficiently adsorb and break down persistent soil pollutants, including DDT and DDVP. Featuring robust stability and effective photocatalytic activity, the UiO-66/g-C3N4 composite holds promise for soil remediation and dealing with organic pollutants. Future research will aim to further refine this material’s structure and properties, ensuring its practical application in environmental cleanup.

Retiring coal power plants can reduce air pollution and health damages. However, the spatial distribution of those impacts remains unclear due to complex power system adjustments and pollution chemistry and transport. Focusing on coal retirements in Pennsylvania (PA), we analyze six counterfactual scenarios for 2019 that differ in retirement targets (e.g., reducing 50% of coal-based installed capacity vs. generation) and priorities (e.g., closing plants with higher cost, closer to Environmental Justice Areas, or with higher CO₂ emissions). Using a power system model of the PJM Interconnection, we find that coal retirements in PA shift power generation across PA and the Rest of PJM region leading to scenario-varying changes in the plant-level release of several air pollutants. Due to air pollution chemistry and transport and socio-demographics, these changes in turn give rise to a reduction of 10 to 182 PM_2.5-attributable deaths in PJM across the six scenarios, with most reductions occurring in PA. Scenarios that reduce more coal power generation yield greater aggregate health benefits due to air quality improvements in PA and adjacent downwind regions. In addition, vulnerable populations—in both PA and Rest of PJM—benefit most in scenarios that prioritize plant closures in PA near Environmental Justice Areas. These results demonstrate the importance of considering cross-regional linkages and socio-demographics in designing equitable retirement strategies.

It is concerning that Cameroon's urban centers are experiencing an alarming rise in air pollution as a result of urbanization, population growth, industrial activity, and transportation emissions. We examined the causes, health impacts, research methodology, case studies, and government measures to address the urgent issue of air pollution in Cameroon's urban regions. We have emphasized how Cameroon's air pollution levels have significantly increased as a result of causes like population expansion, urbanization, industrial emissions, and automobile exhaust A thorough discussion of the negative health impacts of extended exposure to air pollution is included, with special attention to the sensitivity of the old and young. These effects include respiratory disorders, cardiovascular ailments, and early mortality. We emphasized the pressing need for all-encompassing strategies to address air pollution, such as increased public awareness campaigns, stronger emissions regulations, the development of renewable energy sources, and better waste management. The techniques employed in studies on air pollution, like as epidemiological research and air quality monitoring, are also explained to provide light on the unique health dangers that Cameroonian urban dwellers must contend with. We emphasized in our conclusion the significance of joint efforts by legislators, medical professionals, and the general people to reduce air pollution and protect public health in Cameroon in order to create a cleaner and healthier future. In order to protect public health in the future, it is imperative that Cameroon's air pollution be addressed.

The primary sources of particulate matter are linked to human activity. Certain particulate emissions, particularly those of a finer nature, can significantly impact human health, making them one of the most concerning pollutants. Ultrafine particles (UFP), which have a diameter of less than 100 nm, are of particular concern due to their impact on human health and the difficulty in controlling them. The concentration of ultrafine particles (UFP) in the workplace is a growing concern and is classified as an emerging risk. Workers may be exposed to UFP through inhalation, skin absorption, ingestion, or a combination of these routes. This study aims to determine the levels of UFP exposure among workers in environments with varying direct particle emission patterns. Measurements were conducted to compare the results with the levels recommended by the WHO. The study monitored industrial workplaces with direct particulate matter emissions, such as a carpentry and a bakery, as well as social sector sites without or almost without direct particle emissions, such as a school and a health clinic. One conclusion drawn from this study is that all tasks and occupations are susceptible to high levels of UFP, exceeding WHO recommended values in virtually all monitored environments. Therefore, monitoring and controlling UFP is crucial. Further in-depth studies on this subject are also necessary..

Abstract: Recent years demonstrate the increased attention to radon from two scientific directions. After neglecting radon as earthquake precursors in 1990-th it becomes again the subject of earthquake-forecast papers discussions due to growing networks of the radon monitoring in different countries, especially, the technologies of real-time radon measurements where the gamma-spectrometers become the leader of interest as the sources of 222Rn identification. The second fast developing direction is including the radon in the Lithosphere-Atmosphere-Ionosphere Coupling (LAIC) models as a source of the boundary layer ionization. And here we encounter with second direction which is not connected with the earthquake forecast problems. It is the role of air ionization by radon as a source of the Global Electric Circuit (GEC) modification. In this publication we try to unite all these problems to present more complex view on radon as important element of our environment.

DNA extraction for downstream molecular diagnostic applications can be an expensive, time-consuming process. We devised a method to quickly extract genomic DNA from environmental samples based on sodium hydroxide lysis of cells with or without capture by magnetic beads, for subsequent PCR or quantitative PCR. The final DNA extraction method using NaOH is extremely low-cost and can be completed in 10 minutes at room temperature. NaOH extraction was effective for Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria in samples from air, soil, sewage, food, laboratory surfaces, and chicken cloacal swabs. The NaOH extraction method was comparable to commercial kits for extraction of DNA from pig fecal samples for 16S amplicon sequencing analyses. We demonstrate that an impinger and portable pump can efficiently capture bacteria in poultry facilities for rapid DNA extraction for quantification of total bacteria and for detection of specific species using qPCR. The air sampling and NaOH extraction procedures are well-suited for routine, high throughput screening, and for metagenomic analyses for specific pathogens, even in resource-limited situations.

The air is a fundamental element for the life on Earth. Rapid urbanization and industrialization release large amounts of pollutants (harmful gases, microorganisms, and particulate matter, among others) into the atmosphere, leading to health hazards. Air filtration is still the most used and promising technique for protecting air against pollutants. The quality and efficiency of filtering process are dependent of material used for the filter and other filter’s properties. Several methods can be used for manufacturing filters, one of them uses fibrous membranes obtained through electrospinning from polymeric solutions. Electrospinning is a technique that combines the application of an electrostatic field to a moving fluid which results in the fibers formation. Electrospun membranes are constituted by fibers that the sizes spread on submicro and or nanometric scales. This review focuses on fiber membranes obtained by electrospinning for filtration of particulate matter. It is addressed the effect of solution, processing and ambient parameters on the morphology and dimensional characteristics of fiber membranes. The basic principles of air filtration and test and characterization of filter performance are presented. The research progress on electrospun nanofibers as air filters in recent years is summarized and examined. Finally, conclusion and future perspectives in electrospun fibers for air filtration are provided and discussed.

This research investigates the compatibility of conventional air conditioning with the principles of green building, highlighting the need for systems that enhance indoor comfort while aligning with environmental sustainability. Conventional cooling systems, though proficient in regulating indoor temperatures, encounter several issues when incorporated into green buildings. These include energy waste, high running costs, and a misalignment with eco-friendly practices, which may also lead to detrimental environmental effects and potentially reduce occupant comfort, particularly in retrofit situations. Given the emphasis on sustainability and energy conservation in green buildings, there is a pressing demand for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) solutions that support these goals. This study emphasizes the critical need to reconsider traditional HVAC strategies in the face of green building advances. It advocates for the adoption of innovative HVAC technologies designed for eco-efficiency and enhanced comfort. These technologies should integrate seamlessly with sustainable construction, use greener refrigerants, and uphold environmental integrity, driving progress towards a sustainable and occupant-friendly built environment.

A study was conducted on the power system of a forklift equipped with PEM fuel cells. A fuel cell assembly relies on several components for proper functioning, and among these, the air compressor holds paramount importance due to its significant energy consumption when compared to other Balance of Plant components. The air supply system, in turn, plays a critical role in ensuring the stable and efficient operation of the entire fuel cell system. To enhance system efficiency, we delved into the impact of varying the stoichiometric ratio of air and air pressure on the validated and optimized power module model. This investigation was carried out under real loading conditions, replicating the conditions experienced by the power module when fuel cells are in use within a forklift. The air compressor, being a pivotal component of a PEM fuel cell system, can be oper-ated at different excess air and pressure ratios, which in turn influence both the fuel cell's performance and the overall efficiency of the power module system. Our research focused on assessing the performance of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells under different load cycles, adhering to the VDI60 requirements for forklift applications. This comprehensive examination encompassed the system's minimum and maximum load scenarios, with the primary goal of optimizing excess air and pressure ratio parameters, especially under dynamic load conditions. The results revealed that higher air pressures and lower excess air ratios were con-ducive to increasing system efficiency, shedding light on potential avenues for enhancing the performance of PEM fuel cell systems in forklift applications.

In Bangkok, the capital city of Thailand, air pollution is a significant problem, and efforts are needed to define organisms that may be used as bioindicators of air pollution. Epiphytic subaerial algae, which grow on the surface of trees, may have a potential as bioindicators of urban air quality. Algae were collected from randomly selected tree trunks in five parks in Bangkok, and the air pollutants CO, NO2, O3, SO2, PM2.5, and PM10 were measured. Analysis of the subaerial algal communities was performed by metagenomics. Diversity indexes were determined for the algal taxa detected, which were separated into groups corresponding to different collection sites by cluster analysis. Relationships between taxa and air pollutants were analyzed by PCA and the Pearson correlation coefficient (r). The results showed a high diversity of epiphytic subaerial al-gae. We recorded 101 taxa belonging to the Cyanophyta (70 taxa), Chlorophyta (21 taxa), Char-ophyta (5 taxa), Bacillariophyta (3 taxa), and Eustigmatophyta (2 taxa). The most abundant taxon was Chroococcidiopsis sp. 1, for which up to 13,254 individuals/cm2 were recorded. The Shan-non–Weaver index ranged between 1.37 and 2.51, the Margalef index between 3.84 and 4.75, and the Pielou index between 0.30 and 0.54. The similarity index was between 8.00% and 64.82% ac-cording to the cluster analysis results for three groups. The PCA indicated that all air pollutants affected the diversity and abundance of the epiphytic subaerial algae. Cyanothece sp. 2 is consid-ered a potential bioindicator of air pollution. It was negatively related to O3 and positively related to NO2 and CO

Numerical simulations and experiments on evaporative condensers in air conditioning systems using R744 were performed. Two configurations were given to study the feasibility of operating the subcritical R744 cycle. It indicated the capable of evaporative cooling condensing R744 to liquify by analyzing the outlet temperature at the end of the condenser reached from 28.7oC to 30.3oC with the operating pressure from 72.6 bar to 68.5 bar. The mass flow rate in the study increases from 14.34 kg/h to 46.08 kg/h, the pressure drop also increases from 0.23 bar to 0.47 bar for the simulation and 0.4 bar to 0.5 bar for the experiment, respectively. This study indicates that a 5-layers of copper tubes configuration causes a higher pressure drop and lower COP when compared to an 8-layers of copper tubes that split into 2 sets for smaller pressure drop. In this study, the evaporative condensers using mini tubes that are flooded in the cooling water tank are suitable for the subcritical R744 air conditioning system. The results obtained from the experimental data are in good agreement with those obtained from the numerical results, with the deviation less than 5%.

During the second half of August 2022, a dust intrusion event occurred, when dust that originated from the dry regions of Kalmyk steppe and the Precaspian plain was transported over the eastern region of Romania. The dry soil in these regions was the result of the severe drought over a long period of time, accentuated by early heat waves in May and June 2022. The dust event was captured by MODIS images. Smoke trains originating from fires in the north of the Azov were also detected, but these did not reach Romania. Optical parametres from AERONET was used to confirm the dust event. To determine the trajectory of the particles, the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model was used in this paper. The Ensemble median model was used to highlight the presence and concentration of dust in eastern part of Romania. Aerosols were detected between 0 and 4 km, according to radar and ceilometer data of the REXDAN cloud remote sensing facility in Galați, Romania. This dust intrusion event was the result of the dominant easterly cir-culation caused by the extension of East European High to the northeast of the continent, which transported the dust towards eastern part of Romania for more than 2 days. Moreover, the tor-rential rains between August 22nd and 24th did not clear the atmosphere of dust, since the intense easterly circulation kept carrying the dust into the Moldavian area.