In this study, the measurement of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was conducted at Beijing Capital International Airport (ZBAA) and a background reference site in four seasons of 2015. Total concentrations of VOCs were 72.6 ± 9.7, 65.5 ± 8.7, 95.8 ± 11.0, and 79.2 ± 10.8 μg/m3 in winter, spring, summer, and autumn, respectively. The most abundant specie was toluene (10.1%–17.4%), followed by benzene, ethane, isopentane, ethane, acetylene, and n-butane. Seasonal variations of VOCs were analyzed, and it was found that the highest concentration occurring in summer, while the lowest in spring. For the diurnal variation, the concentration of VOCs in the daytime (9:00–15:00) was less than that at night (15:00–21:00) obviously. Ozone Formation Potential (OFP) was calculated by using Maximum Incremental Reactivity (MIR) method. The greatest contribution to OFP from alkenes and aromatics, which accounted for 27.3%–51.2% and 36.6%–58.6% of the total OFP. The WRF-CMAQ model was used to simulate the impact of airport emissions on the surrounding area. The results indicated that the maximum impact of VOCs emissions and all sources emissions at the airport on O3 was 0.035 and −23.8 μg/m3, respectively. Meanwhile, within 1 km from the airport, the concentration of O3 around the airport was greatly affected by airport emitted.

Osteoporosis or enhanced bone loss is one of the most commonly occurring bone conditions in the world, responsible for higher incidence of fractures leading to increased morbidity and mortality in adults. Bone loss is affected by various environmental factors including diet, age, drugs, toxins etc. Microcystins are toxins produced by cyanobacteria with microcystin-LR being the most abundantly found around the world effecting both human and animal health. The present study demonstrates that MC-LR treatment induces bone loss and impairs both trabecular and cortical bone microarchitecture along with decreasing the mineral density and heterogeneity of bones in mice. This effect of MC-LR was found due to its immunomodulatory effects on the host immune system, wherein MC-LR skews both T cell (CD4+ and CD8+ T cells) and B cell populations in various lymphoid tissues. MC-LR further was found to significantly enhance the levels of osteoclastogenic cytokines (IL-6, IL-17 and TNF-α) along with simultaneously decreasing the levels of anti-osteoclastogenic cytokines (IL-10 and IFN-γ). Taken together, our study for the first time establishes a direct link between MC-LR intake and enhanced bone loss thereby giving a strong impetus to the naïve field of “osteo-toxicology”, to delineate the effects of various toxins (including cyanotoxins) on bone health.

Hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs) are the subject of recent interest and potential risk assessment particularly in China due to its ubiquitous existence in a variety of environmental media. This paper reviews the recent studies conducted on HBCDs in different environmental media (air, soil, water, river sediment, sewage sludge, biota and daily food) in China. At the same time, human health risks via food and occupational exposure of HBCDs in production plants, expanded polystyrene (EPS) and extruded polystyrene (XPS) plants were assessed. The review reveals that HBCDs levels of air, soil, sediment, sewage sludge, biota and food presented a geographical variation in the eastern coastal regions of China. There were many factors resulting in the variation, such as sampling sites, climate and analytical method. In terms of diastereoisomer, α-HBCD and γ-HBCD were the predominant diastereoisomers in air, soil, sediment, and sewage sludge. In the water, α-HBCD and γ-HBCD shared the major proportion to the total HBCDs. However, only α-HBCD was the predominant diastereoisomer in biota. With regard to human exposure pathway to HBCDs, food was the major route for human exposure to HBCDs, especially meat. In addition, soil and road dust were also important exposure pathways. Furthermore, workers and residents, especially infants in and around waste dumping sites and industrial areas are exposed to the highest HBCDs levels among all the populations studied thus far. HBCDs posed a potential threat to the environment and human health. Therefore, risk assessment and management have an important role to play in preventing and mitigating HBCDs risks.

Samples of plastic collected from two beaches in southwest England (n = 185) have been analysed by XRF spectrometry for elements that are hazardous or restricted in synthetic polymers (namely, As, Ba, Br, Cd, Cr, Hg, Pb, Sb and Se). Overall, one or more restricted element was detected in 151 samples, with 15 cases exhibiting non-compliance with respect to the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive. Twelve plastics that were RoHS-non-compliant were subsequently processed into microplastic-sized fragments and subjected to an avian physiologically-based extraction test (PBET) that simulates the chemical conditions in the gizzard-proventriculus of the northern fulmar. Kinetic profiles of metal and metalloid mobilisation in the PBET were fitted using a pseudo-first-order diffusion model with rate constants ranging from ∼0.02 to 0.5 h−1, while profiles for Br were better fitted with a parabolic diffusion model and rate constants of 7.4–9.5 (μg L−1)−1h−1/2. Bioaccessibilities, based on maximum or equilibrium concentrations mobilised relative to total (XRF) concentrations, ranged from <1% for Cd and Se in polyethylene and polypropylene to over 10% for Br in a sample of expanded polystyrene and Pb in a sample of PVC. Calculations suggest that ingested plastic could contribute about 6% and 30% of a seabird's exposure to and accumulation of Pb and brominated compounds, respectively.

Although hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD) has been listed as a persistent organic pollutant (POP) under Annexes A and C of the Stockholm Convention, information about its unintentional production and emission is still very limited. We estimated the historical unintentional production and emission of HCBD during 1992–2016 in China based on aggregated activity data and emission functions. The unintentional production of HCBD increased from 60.8 (95% confidence interval, 38.2–88.5) MT/yr to 2871.5 (2234.2–3530.0) MT/yr during 1992–2016, representing an average annual growth rate of 17.4%. The main unintentional source of HCBD changed from carbon tetrachloride to trichloroethylene production during this period. We estimated that China's cumulative emissions of HCBD were 8211.3 (6131.5–10,579.5) MT during the same period. HCBD consumption and the chlorinated hydrocarbon production sector were the major contributors to total HCBD emissions. Owing to the long-range transport capability of HCBD (8784 km), such high emissions in China may cause adverse effects in other regions.

Homosalate is an organic ultraviolet filter used in most sunscreens but has been reported to be toxic to marine organisms. The estrogenic activity of homosalate has also been reported, but its endocrine-disrupting effect remains unclear. Although homosalate has been detected in human placental tissues, its effect on the survival of human trophoblast cells needs to be investigated. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated if HTR8/SVneo, a human trophoblast cell line, treated with homosalate showed decreasing proliferative activity in a dose-dependent manner. Homosalate promoted the death of HTR8/SVneo cells with elevated lipid peroxidation and intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration. It also induced endoplasmic reticulum stress and mitochondrial morphological disturbances associated with the differentiation of human trophoblast cells. However, when the intracellular Ca²⁺ or reactive oxygen species were removed using BAPTA-AM or N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), the cell proliferation suppressed by homosalate was restored. Homosalate also significantly inhibited the invasion of HTR8/SVneo cells. Furthermore, it modulated phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways, which were involved in the cross-talk between both signaling pathways in HTR8/SVneo cells. Thus, homosalate adversely affects the survival, proliferation, and invasiveness of human trophoblast cells and therefore pregnant women should practice caution while using personal care products containing homosalate.

The long-term associations between multiple metals and incident diabetes are uncertain. We aimed to examine the relationship between plasma concentrations of 23 metals and the incidence of type 2 diabetes among Chinese senior adults. We quantified fasting plasma concentrations of 23 metals by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry among 1039 incident diabetes cases and 1039 controls (age and sex matched) nested in a prospective study, the Dongfeng-Tongji cohort. Both cases and controls were free of diabetes at baseline (2008–2010), incident diabetes were identified using the following criteria: fasting glucose ≥ 7.0 mmoL/l; or hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) ≥ 6.5%; or self-reported physician diagnosis of diabetes or use of anti-diabetic medication during the follow-up visits in 2013. In the conditional logistic regression models, the multivariable adjusted ORs (95% CIs) of diabetes across quartiles (Q1–Q4) of metal concentrations were as follows: titanium, 1.00, 0.92, 1.31, 1.38 (1.00–1.91, Ptrend = 0.011); selenium, 1.00, 1.08, 1.45, 1.27 (0.93–1.74, Ptrend = 0.05); and antimony, 1.00, 0.79, 0.77, 0.60 (0.44–0.83, Ptrend = 0.002). Arsenic was significantly associated with diabetes in the crude model (ORs comparing extreme quartiles 1.30; 1.02–1.65; Ptrend = 0.006), but was not significant after adjustment for socio-demographic factors. No significant associations were found for other metals. In conclusion, titanium and selenium were positively while antimony was negatively associated with incident diabetes.

Ultrafine particle number concentrations and size distributions were measured on the platform of a metro station in Athens, Greece, and compared with those recorded at an urban background station. The volatility of the sampled particles was measured in parallel, providing further insights on the mixing state and composition of the sampled particles. Particle concentration exhibited a mean value of 1.2 × 10⁴ # cm⁻³ and showed a weak correlation with train passage frequency, but exhibited a strong correlation with urban background particle concentrations. The size distribution appears to be strongly influenced by outdoor conditions, such as the morning traffic rush hour and new particle formation events observed at noon. The aerosol in the metro was externally mixed throughout the day, with particle populations being identified (1) as fully refractory particles being more dominant during the morning traffic rush hours, (2) as core-shell structure particles having a non-volatile core coated with volatile material, and (3) fully volatile particles. The evolution of particle volatility and size throughout the day provide additional support that most nanoparticles in the metro station originate from outdoor urban air.

To explore the effect of elevated CO₂ concentrations ([CO₂]) on phosphine formation in paddy fields, the matrix-bound phosphine (MBP) content, different phosphorus fractions and various carbon forms in soil samples from rice cultivation under varying CO₂ concentrations of 400 ppm, 550 ppm and 700 ppm by indoor simulation experiment were determined. This study showed that MBP concentration did not increase significantly with elevated [CO₂] over four-week cultivation periods of rice seedlings, regardless of soil layers. MBP had a significant positive correlation with total phosphorus (TP) and inorganic phosphorus (IP), and multiple stepwise linear regression analysis further indicated that MBP preservation in neutral paddy soils with depths of 0–20 cm may have been due to conversion from FeP and CaP. Based on redundancy analysis and forward selection analysis, speculated that the formation of MBP in the neutral paddy soils as the response to atmospheric elevated [CO₂] was due to two processes: (i) FeP transformation affected by the changes of soil respiration (SCO₂) and TOC was the main precursor for the production of MBP; and (ii) CaP transformation resulting from variation in HCO₃⁻ was the secondary MBP source. The complex combination of these two processes is simultaneously controlled by SCO₂. In a word, the soil environment in the condition of elevated [CO₂] was in favor of MBP storage in neutral paddy soils. The results of our study imply that atmospheric CO₂ participates in and has a certain impact on the global biogeochemical cycle of phosphorus.