In recent years, some pigments and chemical products have been reported to contain polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners as unintentional byproducts, and these have also been detected in residential environments from indoor air and house dust. In this study, using in vitro reporter gene assays, we characterized the agonistic and antagonistic activities of a total of 25 PCB congeners contained in pigments (PCB-1 to -16, -20, -35, -40, -52, -56, -77, -101, -126, and -153) against five nuclear hormone receptors, (estrogen receptor (ER) α/β, glucocorticoid receptor (GR), androgen receptor (AR), thyroid hormone receptor (TR) α1) and aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). In the ERα/β assays, 19 and 13 of the 25 PCBs tested showed ERα/β agonistic and/or antagonistic activities, respectively. Relatively potent agonistic activities against ERα/β were found in PCB congeners possessing chlorides at positions 2 and 3. In the GR and AR assays, five and all of the 25 PCB congeners showed antagonistic activity, respectively. Among the anti-androgenic PCB congeners, the activities were more potent in PCB congeners possessing more than three chlorides including consecutive ortho- and meta- or meta- and para-chlorides. In the AhR assay using a sensitive DR-EcoScreen cell line, five of the 25 PCB congeners showed agonistic activity. We newly found that PCB-1, -35 and -56 can act as AhR agonists. Despite these activities among the PCBs, the effects of PCB-11, mainly detected in pigments and chemical products, against these receptors were found to be weaker than those of other tested PCBs. These results suggest that unintentional PCBs in pigments and chemical products might act as agonists and/or antagonists against ERα/β, AR, GR, and AhR, and some of the PCBs might disrupt endocrine functions via multiple receptors and/or simultaneously induce dioxin-like activity via AhR.

To investigate particulate matter (PM2.5)-induced damage to human corneal epithelial cells (HCECs) and to determine the underlying mechanisms.HCECs were exposed to PM2.5 at a series of concentrations for various periods. Cell viability was measured by using a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Cell proliferation was evaluated via 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine (EdU) analysis, while autophagy was determined by immunofluorescence and Western blot.PM2.5-induced cell damage of HCECs occurred in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Decreased cell viability and proliferation as well as increased apoptosis were observed in HCECs after PM2.5 exposure for 24 h. Autophagy in HCECs was slightly inhibited in the early stage (before 4 h) of exposure but significantly activated in the late stage (after 24 h), as evidenced by a decrease in the former and increase in the latter of the expression of the autophagy-associated markers LC3B, ATG5, and BECN1. Interestingly, rapamycin, an autophagy activator, attenuated early-stage but aggravated late-stage PM2.5-induced cell damage, suggesting that the role of autophagy in HCECs may change over time during PM2.5 exposure. In addition, in the early stage, the expression of LC3B and ATG5 increased in cells co-treated with rapamycin and PM2.5 compared to rapamycin-only or PM2.5-only treated cells, suggesting that autophagy may benefit cell viability after PM2.5 exposure.The results indicate the potential role of autophagy in the treatment of PM2.5-induced ocular corneal diseases and provide direct evidence for the cytotoxicity, possibly involving an autophagic process, of PM2.5 in HCECs.

Although several studies have estimated the effects of temperature on mortality and morbidity, little is known regarding the burden of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) attributable to solar radiation.We obtained data for all cases of OHCA and meteorological data reported between 2011 and 2014 in 3 Japanese prefectures: Hokkaido, Ibaraki, and Fukuoka. We first examined the relationship between daily solar radiation and OHCA risk for each prefecture using time-varying distributed lag non-linear models and then pooled the results in a multivariate random-effects meta-analysis. The attributable fractions of OHCA were calculated for low and high solar radiation, defined as solar radiation below and above the minimum morbidity solar radiation, respectively. The minimum morbidity solar radiation was defined as the specific solar radiation associated with the lowest morbidity risk.A total of 49,892 cases of OHCA occurred during the study period. The minimum morbidity solar radiation for each prefecture was the 100th percentile (72.5 MJ/m2) in Hokkaido, the 83rd percentile (59.7 MJ/m2) in Ibaraki, and the 70th percentile (53.8 MJ/m2) in Fukuoka. Overall, 20.00% (95% empirical confidence interval [eCI]: 10.97–27.04) of the OHCA cases were attributable to daily solar radiation. The attributable fraction for low solar radiation was 19.50% (95% eCI: 10.00–26.92), whereas that for high solar radiation was 0.50% (95% eCI: −0.07–1.01).Low solar radiation was associated with a substantial attributable risk for OHCA. Our findings suggest that public health efforts to reduce OHCA burden should consider the solar radiation level. Large prospective studies with longitudinal collection of individual data is required to more conclusively assess the impact of solar radiation on OHCA.

Continuous measurements of PM2.5, PM10 and CO were conducted at an urban site of Udaipur in India from April 2011 to March 2012. The annual mean concentrations of PM2.5, PM10 and CO were 42 ± 17 μg m−3, 114 ± 31 μg m−3 and 343 ± 136 ppbv, respectively. Concentrations of both particulate and CO showed high values during winter/pre-monsoon (dry) period and lowest in the monsoon season (wet). Local anthropogenic emission and long-range transport from open biomass burning sources along with favourable synoptic meteorology led to elevated levels of pollutants in the dry season. However, higher values of PM10/PM2.5 ratio during pre-monsoon season were caused by the episodes of dust storm. In the monsoon season, flow of cleaner air, rainfall and negligible emissions from biomass burning resulted in the lowest levels of pollutants. The concentrations of PM2.5, PM10 and CO showed highest values during morning and evening rush hours, while lowest in the afternoon hours. In winter season, reductions of PM2.5, CO and PM10 during weekends were highest of 15%, 13% and 9%, respectively. In each season, the highest PM2.5/PM10 ratio coincided with the highest concentrations of pollutants (CO and NOX) indicating predominant emissions from anthropogenic sources. Exceptionally high concentrations of PM10 during the episode of dust storm were due to transport from the Arabian Peninsula and Thar Desert. Up to ∼32% enhancements of PM10 were observed during strong dust storms. Relatively low levels of O3 and NOx during the storm periods indicate the role of heterogeneous removal.

Anaerobic ammonium oxidation coupled to iron(III) reduction (termed Feammox) is a recently discovered pathway of nitrogen cycling. However, little is known about the pathways of N transformation via Feammox process in riparian zones. In this study, evidence for Feammox in riparian zones with or without vegetation cover was demonstrated using isotope tracing technique and high-throughput sequencing technology. The results showed that Feammox could occur in riparian zones, and demonstrated that N2 directly from Feammox was dominant Feammox pathway. The Feammox rates in vegetated soil samples was 0.32–0.37 mg N kg⁻¹ d⁻¹, which is higher than that in un-vegetated soil samples (0.20 mg N kg⁻¹ d⁻¹). Moreover, the growth of vegetation led to a 4.99–6.41% increase in the abundance of iron reducing bacteria (Anaeromyxobacter, Pseudomonas and Geobacter) and iron reducing bacteria play an essential role in Feammox process. An estimated loss of 23.7–43.9 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ was associated with Feammox in the examined riparian zone. Overall, the co-occurrence of ammonium oxidation and iron reduction suggest that Feammox can play an essential role in the pathway of nitrogen removal in riparian zones.

To evaluate BPA's potential risk to health, it is important to know human daily intake. This study describes a simple but effective method to estimate the levels of human BPA intake among four different populations based on urinary concentration data. Nationally, of the 30 countries examined, the top ten countries for adult intake were Italy, Sweden, Denmark, France, Cyprus, Australia, Israel, Ghana, Jamaica, and Belgium. When the urinary excretion sample size was large enough and over 1000, it was found that the national estimated BPA daily intakes in the child group among countries, showed a good linear relationship with those of their corresponding adult group. Except the infant group with limited data, the global estimated BPA daily intakes for children and pregnant women were 2 and 1.4 times that of the adult group. Although the national and global estimated BPA daily intakes were generally below the temporary tolerable daily intake (tTDI) recommended by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), but some normal individuals' daily intakes exceeded the tTDI.

The arrival and discharge of seven antibiotics were monitored at two trickling filter sewage treatment plants of 6000 and 11,000 population equivalents (PE) and two activated sludge plants of 33,000 and 162,000 PE in Southern England. The investigation consisted of 24 h composite samples taken on two separate days every summer from 2012 to 2015 and in the winter of 2015 (January) from influent and effluent. The average influent concentrations generally matched predictions based on England-wide prescription data for trimethoprim, sulfamethoxazole, azithromycin, oxytetracycline and levofloxacin (within 3-fold), but were 3–10 times less for clarithromycin, whilst tetracycline influent concentrations were 5–17 times greater than expected. Over the four years, effluent concentrations at a single sewage plant varied by up to 16-fold for clarithromycin, 10-fold for levofloxacin and sulfamethoxazole, 7-fold for oxytetracycline, 6-fold for tetracycline, 4-fold for azithromycin and 3-fold for trimethoprim. The study attempted to identify the principal reasons for this variation in effluent concentration. By measuring carbamazepine and using it as a conservative indicator of transport through the treatment process, it was found that flow and hence concentration could alter by up to 5-fold. Measuring influent and effluent concentrations allowed assessments to be made of removal efficiency. In the two activated sludge plants, antibiotic removal rates were similar for the tested antibiotics but could vary by several-fold at the trickling filter plants. However, for clarithromycin and levofloxacin the variations in effluent concentration were above that which could be explained by either flow and/or removal alone so here year on year changes in consumption are likely to have played a role.

The extent of metal contamination in Sydney residential garden soils was evaluated using data collected during a three-year Macquarie University community science program called VegeSafe. Despite knowledge of industrial and urban contamination amongst scientists, the general public remains under-informed about the potential risks of exposure from legacy contaminants in their home garden environment. The community was offered free soil metal screening, allowing access to soil samples for research purposes. Participants followed specific soil sampling instructions and posted samples to the University for analysis with a field portable X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF) spectrometer. Over the three-year study period, >5200 soil samples, primarily from vegetable gardens, were collected from >1200 Australian homes.As anticipated, the primary soil metal of concern was lead; mean concentrations were 413 mg/kg (front yard), 707 mg/kg (drip line), 226 mg/kg (back yard) and 301 mg/kg (vegetable garden). The Australian soil lead guideline of 300 mg/kg for residential gardens was exceeded at 40% of Sydney homes, while concentrations >1000 mg/kg were identified at 15% of homes. The incidence of highest soil lead contamination was greatest in the inner city area with concentrations declining towards background values of 20–30 mg/kg at 30–40 km distance from the city. Community engagement with VegeSafe participants has resulted in useful outcomes: dissemination of knowledge related to contamination legacies and health risks; owners building raised beds containing uncontaminated soil and in numerous cases, owners replacing all of their contaminated soil.

An ecological impact assessment of four herbicides (atrazine, diuron, paraquat and simazine) was assessed using the aquatic floating vascular plants, Lemna gibba, Lemna minor and Lemna paucicostata as test organisms. The sensitivity of several ecologically relevant parameters (increase in frond area, root length after regrowth, maximum and effective quantum yield of PSII and maximum electron transport rate (ETRmax), were compared after a 72 h exposure to herbicides. The present test methods require relatively small sample volume (3 mL), shorter exposure times (72 h), simple and quick analytical procedures as compared with standard Lemna assays. Sensitivity ranking of endpoints, based on EC50 values, differed depending on the herbicide. The most toxic herbicides were diuron and paraquat and the most sensitive endpoints were root length (6.0–12.3 μg L−1) and ETRmax (4.7–10.3 μg L−1) for paraquat and effective quantum yield (6.8–10.4 μg L−1) for diuron. Growth and chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters in all three Lemna species were sensitive enough to detect toxic levels of diuron and paraquat in water samples in excess of allowable concentrations set by international standards. CV values of all EC50s obtained from the Lemna tests were in the range of 2.8–24.33%, indicating a high level of repeatability comparable to the desirable level of <30% for adoption of toxicity test methods as international standards. Our new Lemna methods may provide useful information for the assessment of toxicity risk of residual herbicides in aquatic ecosystems.

The susceptibility for photon-induced degradation of over 800 pharmaceutical compounds present in the LOPAC1280 library, was analyzed by UV/Vis spectroscopy in the absence or presence of TiO2 P25 in water. In general, few compounds were effectively degraded in the absence of the TiO2 photocatalyst (3% of all compounds tested), while in the presence of TiO2, the majority of compounds was converted, often to a large degree. Differences in degree of degradation are evaluated on the basis of molecular weight, as well as the chemical nature of the drug compounds (functional groups and pharmacological classes). In general, if the molecular weight increases, the degradation efficacy decreases. Relatively high degrees of conversion can be achieved for (relatively small) molecules with functional groups such as aldehydes, alcohols, ketones and nitriles. A low degree of conversion was observed for compounds composed of conjugated aromatic systems. Trends in degradation efficacy on the basis of pharmacological class, e.g. comparing hormones and opioids, are not obvious.