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BackgroundMosaic loss of chromosome Y (mLOY) can occur in a fraction of cells as men age, which is potentially linked to increased mortality risk. Smoking is related to mLOY; however, the contribution of air pollution is unclear.ObjectiveWe investigated whether exposure to outdoor air pollution, age, and smoking were associated with mLOY.MethodsWe analyzed baseline (1989-1993) blood samples from 933 men ≥65 years of age from the prospective Cardiovascular Health Study. Particulate matter ≤10 μm (PM10), carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and ozone data were obtained from the U.S. EPA Aerometric Information Retrieval System for the year prior to baseline. Inverse-distance weighted air monitor data were used to estimate each participants' monthly residential exposure. mLOY was detected with standard methods using signal intensity (median log-R ratio (mLRR)) of the male-specific chromosome Y regions from Illumina array data. Linear regression models were used to evaluate relations between mean exposure in the prior year, age, smoking and continuous mLRR.ResultsIncreased PM10 was associated with mLOY, namely decreased mLRR (p-trend = 0.03). Compared with the lowest tertile (≤28.5 μg/m3), the middle (28.5-31.0 μg/m3; β = -0.0044, p = 0.09) and highest (≥31 μg/m3; β = -0.0054, p = 0.04) tertiles had decreased mLRR, adjusted for age, clinic, race/cohort, smoking status and pack-years. Additionally, increasing age (β = -0.00035, p = 0.06) and smoking pack-years (β = -0.00011, p = 1.4E-3) were associated with decreased mLRR, adjusted for each other and race/cohort. No significant associations were found for other pollutants.ConclusionsPM10 may increase leukocyte mLOY, a marker of genomic instability. The sample size was modest and replication is warranted.

Indoor environmental quality is of utmost importance since urban populations spend a large proportion of their life in confined spaces. Supermarkets offer a wide range of products and services that are prone to emitting several air pollutants. This study aimed to perform a comprehensive characterisation of the indoor and outdoor air quality in a multinational supermarket, encompassing not only criteria parameters but also unregulated pollutants of concern. Monitoring included measurements of comfort parameters, CO 2 , multiple gaseous pollutants, particulate matter (PM 10 ) and bioburden. PM 10 , volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbonyls were subject to chemical speciation. Globally, the supermarket presented CO 2 , VOCs, and PM 10 values below the limits imposed by international regulations. The PM 10 concentration in the supermarket was 33.5 ± 23.2 μg/m 3 , and the indoor-to-outdoor PM 10 ratio was 1.76. Carbonaceous constituents represented PM 10 mass fractions of 21.6% indoors and 15.3% outdoors. Due to the use of stainless-steel utensils, flour and fermentation processes, the bakery proved to be a pollution hotspot, presenting the highest concentrations of PM 10 (73.1 ± 9.16 μg/m 3 ), PM 10 -bound elements (S, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, and Cr) and acetaldehyde (42.7 μg/m 3 ). The maximum tetrachloroethylene level (130 μg/m 3 ) was obtained in the cleaning products section. The highest values of colony-forming units of bacteria and fungi were recorded in the bakery, and fruit and vegetable section. The most prevalent fungal species was Penicillium sp., corresponding to 56.9% of the total colonies. In addition, other fungal species/sections with toxicological or pathogenic potential were detected (Aspergillus sections Aspergilli, Circumdati, Flavi, Mucor and Fusarium sp.)., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Atmospheric PM 10 and benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) concentrations in Manlleu (NE Spain) have remained high from 2008 to 2023, frequently exceeding EU limit/target values, and reaching BaP levels up to six times higher than urban averages in Spain. Furthermore, PM speciation campaigns were carried out in 2013, 2014-2015, 2016-2017 and 2021-2022. Chemical mass closure for autumn-winter showed a consistent PM 10 composition for the different PM speciation campaigns, comprising 46-53% organic matter (OM), 18-26% secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA), 13-23% mineral matter (MM), and 5-9% elemental carbon (EC). Trend analysis revealed very light decrease and constant concentrations for PM 10 and BaP, respectively over the study period, emphasizing the need for compliance with current and forthcoming EU air quality directives, the last aiming to halve PM 10 limit values. Source apportionment of samples of the sporadic campaigns identified biomass burning (BB, 17.5 μg m -3 , 48%) and MM and industry (16.3 μg m -3 , 44%) as the main autumn-winter PM 10 contributors, with high SIA concentrations attributed to several factors, including high ammonia (NH 3 ) emissions. Local topography and meteorological conditions contribute to aggravate PM 10 pollution. While metal concentrations have decreased since 2013, suggesting reduced industrial emissions, persistently high OM and EC concentrations indicate ongoing issues with BB emissions from domestic, commercial, and agricultural sources. Online analysis of black carbon (BC) and non-refractory PM 1 components during winter 2016-2017 confirmed domestic and commercial BB as the primary sources of the BB contributions. These findings highlight the need of the implementation of more effective measures in reducing BB and agricultural/farming NH 3 emissions. This study highlights the relevance of these issues for similar towns, the probable unremitting problem over the last decade, and the necessity of enhanced monitoring in small cities and policy actions to meet air quality standards under the new EU directive., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Exposure to airborne particulate <10 μm (PM 10 ) adversely affects the ocular surface. This study tested PM 10 on epithelial barrier integrity in immortalized human corneal epithelial cells (HCE-2) and mouse cornea, and whether antioxidant SKQ1 is restorative. HCE-2 were exposed to 100 μg/ml PM 10  ± SKQ1 for 24 h. An Electric Cell-Substrate Impedance Sensing (ECIS) system monitored the impact of PM 10 . RT-PCR, western blotting and immunofluorescence measured levels of barrier and associated proteins, stanniocalcin 2 (STC2), and a kit measured total calcium. In vivo, female C57BL/6 mice were exposed to either control air or PM 10 (±SKQ1) in a whole-body exposure chamber, and barrier associated proteins tested. Tight junction and mucins proteins in the cornea were tested. In HCE-2, PM 0 vs control significantly reduced mRNA and protein levels of tight junction and adherence proteins, and mucins. ECIS data demonstrated that PM 10 vs control cells exhibited a significant decrease in epithelial barrier strength at 4000 Hz indicated by reduced impedance and resistance. PM 10 also upregulated STC2 protein and total calcium levels. In vivo, PM 10 vs control reduced zonula occludens 1 and mucins. SKQ1 pre-treatment reversed PM 10 effects both in vitro and in vivo. In conclusion, PM 10 exposure reduced tight junction and mucin proteins, and compromised the seal between cells in the corneal epithelium leading to decreased epithelial barrier strength. This effect was reversed by SKQ1. Since the corneal epithelium forms the first line of defense against air pollutants, including PM 10 , preserving its integrity using antioxidants such as SKQ1 is crucial in reducing the occurrence of ocular surface disorders., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Linda D. Hazlett reports financial support was provided by National Institutes of Health. Linda D Hazlett reports a relationship with National Institutes of Health that includes: funding grants. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Accumulating observational studies have linked particulate air pollutants to neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). However, the causal links and the direction of their associations remain unclear. Therefore, we adopted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) design using the GWAS-based genetic instruments of particulate air pollutants (PM 2.5 and PM 10 ) from the UK Biobank to explore their causal influence on four common neurodegenerative diseases. Estimates of causative relationships were generated by the Inverse variance weighted (IVW) method with multiple sensitive analyses. The heterogeneity and pleiotropy tests were additionally performed to verify whether our findings were robust. Genetically predicted PM 2.5 and PM 10 could elevate the occurrence of AD (odds ratio [OR] = 2.22, 95 % confidence interval [CI] 1.53-3.22, P IVW = 2.85×10 -5 , P False discovery rate [FDR] = 2.85×10 -4 and OR = 2.41, 95 % CI: 1.26-4.60, P IVW = 0.008, P FDR =0.039, respectively). The results were robust in sensitive analysis. However, no evidence of causality was found for other NDDs. Our present study suggests that PM 2.5 and PM 10 have a detrimental effect on AD, which indicates that improving air quality to prevent AD may have pivotal public health implications., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

A few studies have suggested an association between maternal exposure to ambient air pollution from vehicular traffic and risk of congenital anomalies in the offspring, but epidemiologic evidence is neither strong nor entirely consistent. In a population-based case-control study in a Northern Italy community encompassing 228 cases of birth defects and 228 referent newborns, we investigated if maternal exposure to PM10 and benzene from vehicular traffic during early pregnancy, as estimated through a dispersion model, was associated with excess teratogenic risk. In conditional logistic regression analysis, and with adjustment for the other pollutant, we found that higher exposure to PM10 but not benzene was associated with increased risk of birth defects overall. Anomaly categories showing the strongest dose-response relation with PM10 exposure were musculoskeletal and chromosomal abnormalities but not cardiovascular defects, with Down syndrome being among the specific abnormalities showing the strongest association, though risk estimates particularly for the less frequent defects were statistically very unstable. Further adjustment in the regression model for potential confounders did not considerably alter the results. All the associations were stronger for average levels of PM10 than for their maximal level. Findings of this study give some support for an excess teratogenic risk following maternal exposure during pregnancy to PM10, but not benzene. Such association appears to be limited to some birth defect categories.

Exposure to particulate matter (PM 10 ) can induce respiratory diseases that are closely related to bronchial hyperresponsiveness. However, the involved mechanism remains to be fully elucidated. This study aimed to demonstrate the effects of PM 10 on the acetylcholine muscarinic 3 receptor (CHRM3) expression and the role of the ERK1/2 pathway in rat bronchial smooth muscle. A whole-body PM 10 exposure system was used to stimulate bronchial hyperresponsiveness in rats for 2 and 4 months, accompanied by MEK1/2 inhibitor U0126 injection. The whole-body plethysmography system and myography were used to detect the pulmonary and bronchoconstrictor function, respectively. The mRNA and protein levels were determined by Western blotting, qPCR, and immunofluorescence. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect the inflammatory cytokines. Compared with the filtered air group, 4 months of PM 10 exposure significantly increased CHRM3-mediated pulmonary function and bronchial constriction, elevated CHRM3 mRNA and protein expression levels on bronchial smooth muscle, then induced bronchial hyperreactivity. Additionally, 4 months of PM 10 exposure caused an increase in ERK1/2 phosphorylation and increased the secretion of inflammatory factors in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Treatment with the MEK1/2 inhibitor, U0126 inhibited the PM 10 exposure-induced phosphorylation of the ERK1/2 pathway, thereby reducing the PM 10 exposure-induced upregulation of CHRM3 in bronchial smooth muscle and CHRM3-mediated bronchoconstriction. U0126 could rescue PM 10 exposure-induced pathological changes in the bronchus. In conclusion, PM 10 exposure can induce bronchial hyperresponsiveness in rats by upregulating CHRM3, and the ERK1/2 pathway may be involved in this process. These findings could reveal a potential therapeutic target for air pollution induced respiratory diseases., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Mosaic loss of chromosome Y (mLOY) is the most common somatic alteration as men aging and may reflect genome instability. PM exposure is a major health concern worldwide, but its effects with genetic factors on mLOY has never been investigated. Here we explored the associations of PM 2.5 and PM 10 exposure with mLOY of 10,158 males measured via signal intensity of 2186 probes in male-specific chromosome-Y region from Illumina array data. The interactive and joint effects of PM 2.5 and PM 10 with genetic factors and smoking on mLOY were further evaluated. Compared with the lowest tertiles of PM 2.5 levels in each exposure window, the highest tertiles in the same day, 7-, 14-, 21-, and 28-day showed a 0.005, 0.006, 0.007, 0.007, and 0.006 decrease in mLRR-Y, respectively (all P < 0.05), with adjustment for age, BMI, smoking pack-years, alcohol drinking status, physical activity, education levels, season of blood draw, and experimental batch. Such adverse effects were also observed in PM 10 -mLOY associations. Moreover, the unweighted and weighted PRS presented significant negative associations with mLRR-Y (both P < 0.001). Participants with high PRS and high PM 2.5 or PM 10 exposure in the 28-day separately showed a 0.018 or 0.019 lower mLRR-Y level [β (95 %CI) = -0.018 (-0.023, -0.012) and - 0.019 (-0.025, -0.014), respectively, both P < 0.001], when compared to those with low PRS and low PM 2.5 or PM 10 exposure. We also observed joint effects of PM with smoking on exacerbated mLOY. This large study is the first to elucidate the impacts of PM 2.5 exposure on mLOY, and provides key evidence regarding the interactive and joint effects of PM with genetic factors on mLOY, which may promote understanding of mLOY development, further modifying and increasing healthy aging in males., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare no competing financial interest. Environmental implication Generally, males had higher incidence and mortality in non-sex-specific diseases than females, while mosaic loss of Y chromosome (mLOY) is the most frequently detected structural mosaic event. It is critical to illustrate the effects of environment and genes on mLOY. Since PM2.5 and PM10 exposure have become a pervasive global health threat, we estimated the combined effects of individual PM levels and genetic variants on mLOY. Our findings shed light on the risk factors of mLOY, which may be delivering interventions to modify the susceptibility to diverse diseases among males., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Air pollution is a worldwide environmental problem with an impact on human health. Particulate matter of ten micrometers or less aerodynamic diameter (PM 10 ) as well as its fine fraction (PM 2.5 ) is related to multiple pulmonary diseases. The impact of air pollution in Mexico City, and importantly, particulate matter has been studied and considered as a risk factor for two decades ago. Previous studies have reported the composition of Mexico City particulate matter, as well as the biological effects induced by this material. However, material collected and used in previous studies is a limited resource, and sampling and particle recovery techniques have been improved. In this study, we describe the methods used in our laboratory for Mexico City airborne particulate matter PM 10 and PM 2.5 sampling, considering the years 2017, 2018 and 2019. We also analyzed the PM 10 and PM 2.5 samples obtained to determine their composition. Finally, we exposed lung cell line cultures to PM 10 and PM 2.5 to evaluate the biological effect of the material in terms of cell viability, cell death, inflammatory response, and cytogenetic alterations. Our results showed that PM 10 composition includes inorganic, organic and biological compounds, while PM 2.5 is a mixture of more enriched organic compounds. PM 10 and PM 2.5 treatment in lung cells does not significantly impact cell viability/cell death. However, PM 10 and PM 2.5 increase the secretion levels of IL-6. Moreover, PM 10 as well as PM 2.5 induce cytogenetic alterations, such as micronuclei, anaphase bridges, trinucleated cells and apoptotic cells in lung cells. Our results update the evidence of the composition and biological effects of Mexico City particulate matter and provide us a reliable basis for future approaches., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Air pollution is increasingly linked to impaired kidney function in adults. However, little is known about how early-life exposure to air pollutants affects kidney function in adolescents., Study Design: Cohort study., Methods: We leveraged data from the 'Children of 1997' Hong Kong population-representative birth cohort (N = 8327). Residential exposure to average ambient levels of four air pollutants, including inhalable particle (PM 10 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), and nitrogen monoxide (NO), during in utero, infancy, and childhood periods was estimated using the inverse distance weighting. Kidney function was assessed using estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) calculated from age-adjusted equations for adolescents. Generalized linear regression was used to examine the association of air pollutant exposure in each period with kidney function at 17.6 years. Two-pollutant models tested the robustness of the association., Results: Of the 3350 participants included, 51.4% were boys. Exposure to PM 10 was associated with poorer kidney function. Each interquartile range increment in PM 10 was inversely associated with eGFR (β: -2.933, 95% confidence interval -4.677 to -1.189) in utero, -2.362 (-3.992 to -0.732) infancy, -2.708 (-4.370 to -1.047) childhood, and -2.828 (-4.409 to -1.247) overall. Exposure to PM 10 and SO 2 in utero had a stronger inverse association with kidney function in males. The associations were robust to PM 10 exposure in two-pollutant models., Conclusions: Our findings suggest that early-life exposure to ambient PM 10 and SO 2 is associated with reduced kidney function in adolescents, especially exposure in utero., (Copyright © 2024 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Long-term exposure to ambient air pollution is associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Little is known about the impact of early-life exposure to air pollutants on CVD risk factors in late adolescence, which may track into adulthood. To clarify, we examined this question in a unique setting with high air pollution and a high level of economic development., Methods: This study leveraged the "Children of 1997" Hong Kong birth cohort (N = 8327), including here 3350 participants. We estimated ambient air pollutant exposure including inhalable particulate matter (PM 10 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) and nitrogen monoxide (NO) by growth phase (in utero, infancy, childhood) and overall based on residential address. Generalized linear regression was used to assess the associations of air pollutants exposure by growth phase and sex with CVD risk factors (fasting blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, lipid profile, blood pressure, and body mass index) at 17.6 years. We also assessed whether associations varied by sex., Results: Early life exposed had little association with glucose metabolism, blood pressure or body mass index, but after considering multiple comparisons early exposure to PM 10 was associated with low density lipoprotein (LDL) in boys, with β and 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CI) of 0.184 (0.069 to 0.298) mmol/l, 0.151 (0.056 to 0.248) mmol/l, and 0.157 (0.063 to 0.252) mmol/l by per interquartile range (IQR) increment of PM 10 for in utero, infancy, and overall, respectively. No such associations were evident for girls, differences by sex were evident., Conclusions: Our study suggested sex-specific associations of early-life PM 10 exposure with elevated LDL in adolescence, especially exposure in utero and infancy., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

As one of the most environmental concerns, inhaled particulate matter (PM 10 ) causes numerous health problems. However, the associations between anxiety behavior and toxicity caused by PM 10 have rarely been reported so far. To investigate the changes of behavior after PM 10 exposure and to identify the potential mechanisms of toxicity, PM 10 samples (with doses of 15 mg/kg and 30 mg/kg) were intratracheally instilled into rats to simulate inhalation of polluted air by the lungs. After instillation for eight weeks, anxiety-like behavior was evaluated, levels of oxidative stress and morphological changes of hippocampus were measured. The behavioral results indicated that PM 10 exposure induced obvious anxiety-like behavior in the open field and elevated plus maze tests. Both PM 10 concentrations tested could increase whole blood viscosity and trigger hippocampal neuronal damage and oxidative stress by increasing superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities and malondialdehyde levels, and decreasing the expressions of antioxidant-related proteins (e.g., nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), SOD1 and heme oxygenase 1). Furthermore, through collecting and analyzing questionnaires, the data showed that the participants experienced obvious anxiety-related emotions and negative somatic responses under heavily polluted environments, especially PM 10 being the main pollutant. These results show that PM 10 exposure induces anxiety-like behavior, which may be related to suppressing the Nrf2/Keap1-SOD1 pathway., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

To investigate the acidity and the water-soluble oxidative potential of PM 10 , during the continental biomass-burning plume transport, a three-year (2018-2020) winter-time campaign was conducted over a pristine island (21.35°N, 88.32°E) of Sundarban mangrove ecosystem situated at the shore of Bay of Bengal. The average PM 10 concentration over Sundarban was found to be 98.3 ± 22.2 μg m -3 for the entire study period with a high fraction of non-sea-salt- SO 4 2- and water-soluble organic carbons (WSOC) that originated from the regional solid fuel burning. The thermodynamic E-AIM(IV) model had estimated that the winter-time aerosols over Sundarban were acidic (pH:2.4 ± 0.6) and mainly governed by non-sea-salt-SO 4 2- . The volume and mass normalized oxidative potential of PM 10 was found to be 1.81 ± 0.40 nmol DTT min -1 m -3 and 18.4 ± 6.1 pmol DTT min -1 μg -1 respectively which are surprisingly higher than several urban atmospheres across the world including IGP. The acid-digested water-soluble transition metals (Cu, Mn) show higher influences in the oxidative potential (under high aerosol acidity) compared to the WSOC. The study revealed that the advection of regional solid fuel burning plume and associated non-sea-salt-SO 4 2- is enhancing aerosol acidity and oxidative stress that in turn alters the intrinsic properties of aerosols over such marine ecosystems rich in ecology and bio-geochemistry., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest I, the corresponding author of the study entitled “Acidity and oxidative potential of atmospheric aerosols over a pristine mangrove ecosystem during the advection of biomass burning plume” hereby declare on behalf of all the co-authors that the authors have no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

One of the largest petrochemical complexes of southern Europe is located in Tarragona County (Catalonia, Spain). Despite environmental monitoring is routinely conducted in the area, the long-term occurrence of airborne trace elements has been poorly investigated. In the present study, the concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb) and vanadium (V) were analysed in air samples collected in El Morell, a town potentially impacted by the petrochemical. Air samples were simultaneously collected in the town of Cambrils, as a background site. Meteorological data and retro trajectories analysis were used to evaluate the impact of the petrochemical industry on the levels of trace elements in air. Subsequently, human health risks due to inhalation exposure to the trace elements were also assessed. Except for V, air concentrations were significantly higher near the oil refinery than the background levels. Human health risks were also estimated to be higher in the vicinity of the petrochemical complex. In turn, air inhalation of Pb and V was higher than their dietary intakes. The present data should be considered only as preliminary, since the sampling was taken during only three weeks, which is an insufficient period to extract reliable conclusions. Further long-term studies should be focused on assessing the influence of temporary variables, such as meteorological conditions and fugitive or sporadic emissions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Studies related to air pollutants and spontaneous abortion in urban northwestern China are scarce, and the main exposure windows of pollutants acting on pregnant women are unclear., Study Design: Case-control study., Methods: Data were collected from pregnant women in Tongchuan City from 2018 to 2019. A total of 289 cases of spontaneous abortion and 1156 cases of full-term labor were included and analyzed using a case-control study. Logistic regression models were developed to explore the relationship between air pollutants and spontaneous abortion after Chi square analysis and Air pollutant description., Results: O 3 (odds ratio [OR] = 1.028) is a risk factor for spontaneous abortion throughout pregnancy. PM 2.5 (OR = 1.015), PM 10 (OR = 1.010), SO 2 (OR = 1.026), and NO 2 (OR = 1.028) are risk factors for spontaneous abortion in the 30 days before the last menstrual period. PM 2.5 (OR = 1.015), PM 10 (OR = 1.013), SO 2 (OR = 1.036), and NO 2 (OR = 1.033) are risk factors for spontaneous abortion in the 30-60 days before the last menstrual period. PM 2.5 (OR = 1.028), PM 10 (OR = 1.013), SO 2 (OR = 1.035), and NO 2 (OR = 1.059) are risk factors for spontaneous abortion in the 60-90 days before the last menstrual period., Conclusion: Exposure to high levels of air pollutants may be a cause of increased risk of spontaneous abortion, especially in the first trimester of the last menstrual period., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Atmospheric nitrate and sulfate are major inorganic particulate matter components that impact human and ecosystem health and air quality. Over the last several decades, emissions of the precursor gases, nitrogen oxides (NO x  = NO + NO 2 ) and sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), have dramatically decreased in the US in response to federal regulations. However, the response in concentrations of particulate nitrate (pNO 3 ) and sulfate (pSO 4 ) have not followed predictions due to complex non-linear chemistry feedbacks that may differ amongst environments (i.e., urban vs. rural). In this study, we explored the long-term response of particle chemistry for urban and rural environments in southern New England, a region historically impacted by NO x and SO 2 emissions. Particulate matter (PM 10 ) samples collected via the same method from 2005 to 2015 at urban and rural locations in Rhode Island were analyzed for their major inorganic components, and air mass trajectories and statistical analysis were used to identify source regions over time. Our results indicated a significant urban-rural aerosol chemical composition gradient for sampling locations within 40 km. Over time, as anthropogenic influences have decreased, the relative contribution of marine and crustal sources has increased greatly, impacting fine and coarse particle chemistry in recent years. Total mass concentrations of chemical species, particularly anthropogenic pSO 4 and particulate ammonium (pNH 4 ), have shown dramatic decreases over the ten years at both the urban and rural sites; however, pNO 3 concentration increased by 95 % and 57 % in the urban and rural sites, respectively, despite significant NO x emission reductions. Our results demonstrate that changes in chemical mechanisms due to the decrease in SO 2 emissions contributed to decreases in pNH 4 , along with enhanced pNO 3 concentration. Furthermore, the change in SO 2 emissions has significantly impacted the atmospheric lifetime and transport distance of pNH 4 , favoring more localized contributions in recent years., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Mining is an economic activity that entails the production and displacement of significant amounts of atmospheric particulate matter (PM) during operations involving intense earthcrushing or earthmoving. As high concentrations of PM may have adverse effects on human health, it is necessary to monitor and control the fugitive emissions of this pollutant. This paper presents an innovative methodology for the online monitoring of PM 10 concentrations in air using a low-cost sensor (LCS, <300 USD) onboard an unmanned aerial vehicle. After comprehensive calibration, the LCS was horizontally flown over seven different areas of the large Riotinto copper mine (Huelva, Spain) at different heights to study the PM 10 distribution at different longitudes and altitudes. The flights covered areas of zero activity, intense mining, drilling, ore loading, waste discharge, open stockpiling, and mineral processing. In the zero-activity area, the resuspension of PM 10 was very low, with a weak wind speed (3.6 m/s). In the intense-mining area, unhealthy concentrations of PM 10 (>51 μgPM 10 /m 3 ) could be released, and the PM 10 can reach surrounding populations through long-distance transport driven by several processes being performed simultaneously. Strong dilution was also observed at high altitudes (> 50 m). Mean concentrations were found to be 22-89 μgPM 10 /m 3 , with peaks ranging from 86 to 284 μgPM 10 /m 3 . This study demonstrates the potential applicability of airborne LCSs in the high-resolution online monitoring of PM in mining, thus supporting environmental managers during decision-making against fugitive emissions in a cost-effective manner., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this study., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Air pollution is one of the major concerns for the population and the environment due to its hazardous effects. PM 10 has affected significant scientific and regulatory interest because of its strong correlation with chronic health such as respiratory illnesses, lung cancer, and asthma. Forcasting air quality and assessing the health impacts of the air pollutants like particulate matter is crucial for protecting public health.This study incorporated weather, traffic, green space information, and time parameters, to forcst the AQI and PM 10 . Traffic data plays a critical role in predicting air pollution, as it significantly influences them. Therefore, including traffic data in the ANN model is necessary and valuable. Green spaces also affect air quality, and their inclusion in neural network models can improve predictive accuracy. The key factors influencing the AQI are the two-day lag time, the proximity of a park to the AQI monitoring station, the average distance between each park and AQI monitoring stations, and the air temperature. In addition, the average distance between each park, the number of parks, seasonal variations, and the total number of vehicles are the primary determinants affecting PM 10 .The straightforward effective Multilayer Perceptron Artificial Neural Network (MLP-ANN) demonstrated correlation coefficients (R) of 0.82 and 0.93 when forcasting AQI and PM 10 , respectively. This study also used the forcasted PM 10 values from the ANN model to assess the health effects of elevated air pollution. The results indicate that elevated levels of PM 10 can increase the likelihood of respiratory symptoms. Among children, there is a higher prevalence of bronchitis, while among adults, the incidence of chronic bronchitis is higher. It was estimated that the attributable proportions for children and adults were 6.87% and 9.72%, respectively. These results underscore the importance of monitoring air quality and taking action to reduce pollution to safeguard public health., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

With vehicle fleets transitioning from internal combustion engines (ICE) to electric powertrains, we have used friction brake power simulations, for different vehicle classes and driving styles, to predict the impact of regenerative braking systems (RBS) on brake wear particulate matter emissions (PM 10 and PM 2.5 ). Under the same powertrain, subcompact (SC) vehicles were predicted to require between 38 and 68% less friction brake power than heavier sports utility vehicles (L-SUV). However, despite electric and hybrid vehicles being heavier than ICE vehicles, the results show that RBS would reduce brake wear by between 64 and 95%. The study highlights the effect of aggressive braking on the amount of friction brake power required, with electric powertrains more likely to require friction braking to perform short, but aggressive braking compared with longer, slower braking events. Brake wear reductions varied under different driving conditions, as the level of mitigation depends on the complex interaction of several variables, including: vehicle speed, deceleration rate, regenerative braking technology and vehicle mass. Urban brake wear emission factors for electric powertrains ranged from 3.9 to 5.5 mg PM 10 /km and 1.5-2.1 mg PM 2.5 /km, providing an average reduction in PM emission factors of 68%. Rural and motorway driving conditions had lower brake wear emission factors, with plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) and battery electric vehicles (BEV) emitting negligible PM 10 and PM 2.5 brake wear. Although electric powertrain uptake, vehicle mileage driven and driving styles are dependent upon national policies and strategies, by 2035, we project that total UK brake wear PM emissions would reduce by up to 39% compared with 2020 levels. This analysis supports the transition towards electric and hybrid vehicle fleets to reduce brake wear emissions, however increases in tyre wear, road wear, and resuspension due to increased vehicle mass may offset these benefits., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Municipal solid waste treatment (MSWT) system emits a cocktail of microorganisms that jeopardize environmental and public health. However, the dynamics and risks of airborne microbiota associated with MSWT are poorly understood. Here, we analyzed the bacterial community of inhalable air particulates (PM 10 , n = 71) and the potentially exposed on-site workers' throat swabs (n = 30) along with waste treatment chain in Shanghai, the largest city of China. Overall, the airborne bacteria varied largely in composition and abundance during the treatment (P < 0.05), especially in winter. Compared to the air conditions, MSWT-sources that contributed to 15 ∼ 70% of airborne bacteria more heavily influenced the PM 10 -laden bacterial communities (PLS-SEM, β = 0.40, P < 0.05). Moreover, our year-span analysis found PM 10 as an important media spreading pathogens (10 4 ∼ 10 8 copies/day) into on-site workers. The machine-learning identified Lactobacillus and Streptococcus as pharynx-niched featured biomarker in summer and Rhodococcus and Capnocytophaga in winter (RandomForest, ntree = 500, mtry = 10, cross = 10, OOB = 0%), which closely related to their airborne counterparts (Procrustes test, P < 0.05), suggesting that MSWT a dynamic hotspot of airborne bacteria with the pronounced inhalable risks to the neighboring communities., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) enriched with lead (Pb) has severe irreversible effects on human health. Therefore, identifying the contribution of Pb emission sources is essential for protecting the health of residents. Using the Pb isotopic tracer method, this study explored the seasonal characteristics and primary anthropogenic Pb sources for atmospheric PM in Tianjin in 2019. We calculated the contribution of Pb sources using the end-member and MixSIAR models. The results showed that Pb loaded in PM 10 was more abundant in January than in July, and was strongly influenced by meteorological conditions and anthropogenic emissions. The primary Pb sources of the aerosol samples originated from coal combustion and vehicle and steel plant emissions, mainly originating from local Pb emission sources in Tianjin. The PM 10 -bond Pb in January was influenced by regional transportation and local sources. The MixSIAS model calculated the contribution of coal combustion as approximately 50 %. Compared with that in January, the contribution of coal combustion decreased by 9.6 % in July. Our results indicate that some of the benefits of phased-out leaded gasoline have been short-lived, whereas other industrial activities releasing Pb have increased. Furthermore, the results emphasise the practicability of the Pb isotope tracer source approach for identifying and distinguishing between different anthropogenic Pb inputs. Based on this study, scientific and effective air pollution prevention and control programs can be formulated to provide decision support for the guidance and control of air pollutant emissions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare that we have no conflicts of interest to this work. We declare that we do not have any commercial or associative interest that represents a conflict of interest in connection with the work submitted. The manuscript entitled, “Identification and contribution of potential sources to atmospheric lead pollution in a typical megacity: Insights from isotope analysis and the Bayesian mixing model” by Wen-Jing Dai, Yu-Cong Fu, Xiao-Dong Li, Shi-Yuan Ding, Qin-Kai Li, Zhi-Qi Zhao., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

While the link between exposure to high levels of ambient particulate matter (PM) and increased incidences of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases is widely recognized, recent epidemiological studies have shown that low PM concentrations are equally associated with adverse health effects. As DNA methylation is one of the main mechanisms by which cells regulate and stabilize gene expression, changes in the methylome could constitute early indicators of dysregulated signaling pathways. So far, little is known about PM-associated DNA methylation changes in the upper airways, the first point of contact between airborne pollutants and the human body. Here, we focused on cells of the upper respiratory tract and assessed their genome-wide DNA methylation pattern to explore exposure-associated early regulatory changes. Using a mobile epidemiological laboratory, nasal lavage samples were collected from a cohort of 60 adults that lived in districts with records of low (Simmerath) or moderate (Stuttgart) PM 10 levels in Germany. PM 10 concentrations were verified by particle measurements on the days of the sample collection and genome-wide DNA methylation was determined by enzymatic methyl sequencing at single-base resolution. We identified 231 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) between moderately and lowly PM 10 exposed individuals. A high proportion of DMRs overlapped with regulatory elements, and DMR target genes were involved in pathways regulating cellular redox homeostasis and immune response. In addition, we found distinct changes in DNA methylation of the HOXA gene cluster whose methylation levels have previously been linked to air pollution exposure but also to carcinogenesis in several instances. The findings of this study suggest that regulatory changes in upper airway cells occur at PM 10 levels below current European thresholds, some of which may be involved in the development of air pollution-related diseases., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper, (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Low concentrations of pollutants may already be associated with significant health effects. An accurate assessment of individual exposure to pollutants therefore requires measuring pollutant concentrations at the finest possible spatial and temporal scales. Low-cost sensors (LCS) of particulate matter (PM) meet this need so well that their use is constantly growing worldwide. However, everyone agrees that LCS must be calibrated before use. Several calibration studies have already been published, but there is not yet a standardized and well-established methodology for PM sensors. In this work, we develop a method combining an adaptation of an approach developed for gas-phase pollutants with a dust event preprocessing to calibrate PM LCS (PMS7003) commonly used in urban environments. From the selection of outliers to model tuning and error estimation, the developed protocol allows to analyze, process and calibrate LCS data using multilinear (MLR) and random forest (RFR) regressions for comparison with a reference instrument. We demonstrate that the calibration performance was very good for PM 1 and PM 2.5 but turns out less good for PM 10 (R 2  = 0.94, RMSE = 0.55 μg/m 3 , NRMSE = 12 % for PM 1 with MLR, R 2  = 0.92, RMSE = 0.70 μg/m 3 , NRMSE = 12 % for PM 2.5 with RFR and R 2  = 0.54, RMSE = 2.98 μg/m 3 , NRMSE = 27 % for PM 10 with RFR). Dust events removal significantly improved LCS accuracy for PM 2.5 (11 % increase of R 2 and 49 % decrease of RMSE) but no significant changes for PM 1 . Best calibration models included internal relative humidity and temperature for PM 2.5 and only internal relative humidity for PM 1 . It turns out that PM 10 cannot be properly measured and calibrated because of technical limitations of the PMS7003 sensor. This work therefore provides guidelines for PM LCS calibration. This represents a first step toward standardizing calibration protocols and facilitating collaborative research., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Air pollution is a complex mixture of gases and particulate matter (PM) with local and non-local emission sources, resulting in spatiotemporal variability in concentrations and composition, and thus associated health risks. To study this in the greater Stockholm area, a yearlong monitoring campaign with in situ measurements of PM 10 , PM 1 , black carbon, NO x , O 3 , and PM 10 -sampling was performed. The locations included an Urban and a Rural background site and a Highway site. Chemical analysis of PM 10 was performed to quantify monthly levels of polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs), which together with other air pollution data were used for source apportionment and health risk assessment. Organic extracts from PM 10 were tested for oxidative potential in human bronchial epithelial cells. Strong seasonal patterns were found for most air pollutants including PACs, with higher levels during the winter months than summer e.g., highest levels of PM 10 were detected in March at the Highway site (33.2 μg/m 3 ) and lowest in May at the Rural site (3.6 μg/m 3 ). In general, air pollutant levels at the sites were in the order Highway > Urban > Rural. Multivariate analysis identified several polar PACs, including 6H-Benzo[cd]pyren-6-one, as possible discriminatory markers for these sites. The main sources of particulate pollution for all sites were vehicle exhaust and biomass burning emissions, although diesel exhaust was an important source at the Highway site. In vitro results agreed with air pollutant levels, with higher oxidative potential from the winter samples. Estimated lung cancer cases were in the order PM 10  > NO 2  > PACs for all sites, and with less evident seasonal differences than in vitro results. In conclusion, our study presents novel seasonal data for many PACs together with air pollutants more traditionally included in air quality monitoring. Moreover, seasonal differences in air pollutant levels correlated with differences in toxicity in vitro., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

It is distinguished that deficient outdoor air quality is responsible for substantial health and climate issues. The aim of our study was to investigate the air quality in the city of Zaragoza (Spain) by characterizing atmospheric particulate matter (PM 10 ) during two seasons (winter and spring). PM 10 samples were collected in 2022 in quartz filters through a low-volume sampler and chemically analysed by complementary analytical techniques: Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), Raman Spectroscopy (RS) and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (FESEM-EDS). Results have revealed, together with a temperature inversion phenomenon in winter, the presence of both natural (Al, Ca, Mg, Ti, Sr, Fe, etc.) and anthropogenic particles. The latter mainly formed by black carbon with an origin on fossil fuel combustion emissions. Additionally, chemical analyses of PM 10 filters showed the presence of three types of microplastics suspended in the air of the city: polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyamides (PA) and polystyrene (PS). The results obtained from this research are of special interest to take into account for future air quality policies, particularly those with the aim of reducing air pollution in cities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is common and increases the risk of stroke and mortality. Previous studies have suggested that air pollution is an important risk factor for new-onset AF. Herein, we review the evidence regarding: 1) the association between exposure to particulate matter (PM) and new-onset AF, and 2) the risk of worse clinical outcomes in patients with pre-existent AF and their relation to PM exposure., Methods: A selection of studies between 2000 and 2023 linking PM exposure and AF was performed through searches in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar., Results: 17 studies from different geographical areas demonstrated that exposure to PM was associated with an increased risk of new-onset AF, although the results were heterogeneous regarding the temporal pattern (short- or long-term) ultimately related to AF. Most of the studies concluded that the risk of new-onset AF increased between 2 %-18 % per 10 μg/m 3 increment in PM 2.5 or PM 10 concentrations, whereas the incidence (percentage of change of incidence) increased between 0.29 %-2.95 % per 10 μg/m 3 increment in PM 2.5 or PM 10 . Evidence about the association between PM and adverse events in patients with pre-existent AF was scarce but 4 studies showed a higher risk of mortality and stroke (between 8 %-64 % in terms of hazard ratio) in patients with pre-existent AF when PM exposure was higher., Conclusions: Exposure to PM (both PM 2.5 and PM 10 ) is a risk factor for AF, and a risk factor for mortality and stroke in patients who already suffer from AF. Since the relationship between PM and AF is independent of the region of the world, PM should be considered as a global risk factor for both AF and worse clinical outcomes in AF patients. Specific measures to prevent air pollution exposure need to be adopted., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest GYHL: Consultant and speaker for BMS/Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Anthos and Daiichi-Sankyo. No fees are received personally. JMRC: Consultant for Idorsia Pharmaceuticals LTD. There is nothing to disclose for other authors., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The quality of city air is influenced by many factors, including the density of buildings, the roughness of the terrain, the presence of street canyons, the heat sources in buildings, the types of industry, the topography, and meteorological conditions. Official air quality monitoring systems measure a very limited number of points, making local analysis impossible without the use of mathematical modeling programs. Here, we present an analysis of local air quality in an urban agglomeration. Data were collected over three years (2019, 2020, 2021), using commercial sensors located throughout the area of investigation. Dense downtown buildings equipped with individual heat sources were not found to have any impact on local air quality. The local municipal combined heat and power (CHP) plants contributed <1 ‰ of the measured concentration of particulate matter. Land height and the density of single-family housing were found to significantly affect air quality. We also took into account the influence of weather conditions, wind speed, and wind direction on the concentrations of particulate matter. High concentrations of particulate matter occurred only during heating periods when wind speeds were moderate. Wind direction did not have a direct impact on air quality, despite the expected benefits of ventilation through air corridors., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In order to establish a regional database on natural radioactivity, a series of measurements of 713 atmospheric aerosol samples collected on filters over a two-year period (2018-2019) in center of Beijing, northeastern China have been performed to analyze 7 Be and 210 Pb activity concentrations. The mean activity concentrations of 7 Be and 210 Pb were found to be 7.10 ± 2.44 mBq m -3 and 2.93 ± 1.52 mBq m -3 , respectively. Both the radionuclides exhibited strong seasonal variations, with maximum concentration of 7 Be occurring in the spring and that of 210 Pb in the winter. The concentration of both the radionuclides was minimum in the rainy summer. Higher 7 Be concentration in the spring was mainly caused by the stratosphere to troposphere exchange. Higher 210 Pb concentration during winter was maybe attributed to the combustion processes in heating systems and the ingression of continental air masses resulted from winds originating from northwest. The dependence of the activity concentrations of 7 Be and 210 Pb with meteorological parameters such as rainfall, temperature, and humidity was studied through linear correlation analysis. Statistically significant negative correlations were observed between 7 Be and 210 Pb activity concentrations with rainfall, respectively, which suggested that the removal mechanisms of these two radionuclides were similar. Lead-210 showed statistically significant correlations with temperature, humidity and PM 10 . A comparison of the data obtained in the present study for Beijing with the northern hemisphere literature values of 7 Be and 210 Pb in the atmospheric aerosols showed that the values were smaller than the ones observed in the present study. Overall, the study provides an improved understanding of the temporal variability and correlation of 7 Be and 210 Pb concentrations in the atmosphere in center of Beijing, northeastern China., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Bai Bin reports financial support was provided by Beijing Municipal Science & Technology Commission, Administrative Commission of Zhongguancun Science Park. Ma Yongzhong reports financial support was provided by Beijing Municipal Health Commission., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The occurrence, long-range atmospheric transport and deposition of micro and nano plastics (MNPLs) remains un-quantified for the oceanic atmosphereopen ocean. Here we show the characterisation of MNPLs and the aerosol composition (PM 10 ) in a north-south Atlantic transect from Vigo (Spain) to Punta Arenas (Chile). The analytical procedure to assess the composition of MNPLs consisted of a double suspect screening approach of the polymers and additives, the two constituents of plastics. Polymers were analysed by size exclusion chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry using an atmospheric pressure photoionization source operated in positive and negative conditions (HPLC(SEC)-APPI(+/-)-HRMS). Plastic additives were screened with high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry using an electrospray ionisation source (HPLC-ESI(+/-)-HRMS). The most common polymers were polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyisoprene (PI), and polystyrene (PS), with the highest polymer concentration being 51.7 ng·m -3 of PI. The air mass back trajectories showed the variable influence of oceanic and terrestrial air masses. These differences were reflected in the aerosol composition with different contributions of Saharan dust, sea spray aerosol, organic/elemental carbon, and MNPLs. Results showed that samples largely influenced by sea-spray and air masses originating from coastal South America and the north Atlantic subtropical gyre were more contaminated by MNPLs. Moreover, this information was complemented by the characterisation of the largest particles using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and µ-Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (µ-FTIR). This work provides the first field evidence of the long-range transport of MNPLs in most of the Atlantic Ocean, as the result of dynamic coupling between the lower atmosphere and the surface ocean. Sea-spray formation arises as a key driver for the aerosolisation of MNPLs, and atmospheric transport followed by dry deposition may modulate the occurrence of MNPLs in large oceanic regions, issues that will require future research efforts., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: A growing body of evidence suggests that air pollution exposure is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases. Data regarding the impact of long-term air pollution exposure on ischemic stroke mortality are sparse., Methods: The German nationwide inpatient sample was used to analyse all cases of hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke in Germany 2015-2019, which were stratified according to their residency. Data of the German Federal Environmental Agency regarding average values of air pollutants were assessed from 2015 to 2019 at district-level. Data were combined and the impact of different air pollution parameters on in-hospital case-fatality was analyzed., Results: Overall, 1,505,496 hospitalizations of patients with ischemic stroke (47.7% females; 67.4 % ≥70 years old) were counted in Germany 2015-2019, of whom 8.2 % died during hospitalization. When comparing patients with residency in federal districts with high vs. low long-term air pollution, enhanced levels of benzene (OR 1.082 [95%CI 1.034-1.132],P = 0.001), ozone (O 3, OR 1.123 [95%CI 1.070-1.178],P < 0.001), nitric oxide (NO, OR 1.076 [95%CI 1.027-1.127],P = 0.002) and PM 2.5 fine particulate matter concentrations (OR 1.126 [95%CI 1.074-1.180],P < 0.001) were significantly associated with increased case-fatality independent from age, sex, cardiovascular risk-factors, comorbidities, and revascularization treatments. Conversely, enhanced carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, PM 10, and sulphur dioxide (SO 2 ) concentrations were not significantly associated with stroke mortality. However, SO 2 - concentrations were significantly associated with stroke-case-fatality rate of >8 % independent of residence area-type and area use (OR 1.518 [95%CI 1.012-2.278],P = 0.044)., Conclusion: Elevated long-term air pollution levels in residential areas in Germany, notably of benzene, O 3 , NO, SO 2, and PM 2.5 , were associated with increased stroke mortality of patients., Research in Context: Evidence before this study: Besides typical, established risk factors, increasing evidence suggests that air pollution is an important and growing risk factor for stroke events, estimated to be responsible for approximately 14 % of all stroke-associated deaths. However, real-world data regarding the impact of long-term exposure to air pollution on stroke mortality are sparse. Added value of this study: The present study demonstrates that the long-term exposure to the air pollutants benzene, O 3 , NO, SO 2 and PM 2.5 are independently associated with increased case-fatality of hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke in Germany. Implications of all the available evidence: The results of our study support the urgent need to reduce the exposure to air pollution by tightening emission controls to reduce the stroke burden and stroke mortality., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest KK, SHRH, OH, ISc, SC and JL report no conflict of interests. TM is PI of the DZHK (German Center for Cardiovascular Research), Partner Site Rhine-Main, Mainz, Germany. LH received lecture/consultant fees from MSD and Actelion, outside the submitted work., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) is one of the major risks for global health. The exact mechanisms of toxicity are still not completely understood leading to contrasting results when different toxicity metrics are compared. In this work, PM 10 was collected at three sites for the determination of acellular oxidative potential (OP), intracellular oxidative stress (OSGC), cytotoxicity (MTT assay), and genotoxicity (Comet assay). The in vitro tests were done on the A549 cell line. The objective was to investigate the correlations among acellular and intracellular toxicity indicators, the variability among the sites, and how these correlations were influenced by the main sources by using PMF receptor model coupled with MLR. The OP DTT V , OSGC V , and cytotoxicity were strongly influenced by combustion sources. Advection of African dust led to lower-than-average intrinsic toxicity indicators. OP DTT V and OSGC V showed site-dependent correlations suggesting that acellular OP may not be fully representative of the intracellular oxidative stress at all sites and conditions. Cytotoxicity correlated with both OP DTT V and OSGC V at two sites out of three and the strength of the correlation was larger with OSGC V . Genotoxicity was correlated with cytotoxicity at all sites and correlated with both, OP DTT V and OSGC V , at two sites out of three. Results suggest that several toxicity indicators are useful to gain a global picture of the potential health effects of PM., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified air pollution as one of the greatest environmental risks to public health. High levels of ambient air pollution are known to have adverse health effects, but the relationship between exposure to air pollutants and migraine attack has not been established., Objectives: This study aims to systematically review the effects of short-term exposure to fine and coarse particulate matter (PM), ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide on migraine attack., Methods: The systematic review and meta-analysis will follow the WHO handbook for guideline development. Our protocol will comply with the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and meta-Analysis Protocols., Eligibility Criteria: Original peer-reviewed studies conducted in the general population regardless of age and sex to investigate the association between short-term exposure to ambient air pollutants and migraine will be eligible for inclusion. Only time-series, case-crossover, and panel studies will be included., Information Sources: We will search the electronic databases MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Global Health, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature in accordance with the pre-established search strategy. We will also check the reference list of included papers and previous reviews for supplementary search., Data Synthesis Method: We will perform data extraction in accordance with the predesigned table. Using random-effects meta-analysis, we will present summary statistics (RRs and corresponding 95% CIs) associated with standardized increases in each pollutant level. Heterogeneity between studies will be assessed using 80% prediction intervals (PI). Subgroup analyzes will be performed to explore sources of heterogeneity, if any. The main findings will be presented in summary of finding table, visual display and narrative synthesis. We will review the impact of each air pollutant exposure separately., Evidence Appraisal: We will employ the adaption of Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations tool to assess the confidence in the body of evidence., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Air pollution is one of the most important problems the world is facing nowadays, adversely affecting public health and causing millions of deaths every year. Particulate matter is a criteria pollutant that has been linked to increased morbidity, as well as all-cause and cause-specific mortality. However, this association remains under-investigated in smaller-size cities in the Eastern Mediterranean, which are also frequently affected by heat waves and dust storms. This study explores the impact of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 10 μm (PM 10 ) and ≤ 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ) on mortality (all-cause, cardiovascular, respiratory) in two coastal cities in the Eastern Mediterranean; Thessaloniki, Greece and Limassol, Cyprus. Generalized additive Poisson models were used to explore overall and gender-specific associations, controlling for long- and short-term patterns, day of week and the effect of weather variables. Moreover, the effect of different lags, season, co-pollutants and dust storms on primary associations was investigated. A 10 μg/m 3 increase in PM 2.5 resulted in 1.10 % (95 % CI: -0.13, 2.34) increase in cardiovascular mortality in Thessaloniki, and in 3.07 % (95 % CI: -0.90, 7.20) increase in all-cause mortality in Limassol on the same day. Additionally, significant positive associations were observed between PM 2.5 as well as PM 10 and mortality at different lags up to seven days. Interestingly, an association with dust storms was observed only in Thessaloniki, having a protective effect, while the gender-specific analysis revealed significant associations only for the males in both cities. The outcome of this study highlights the need of city- or county-specific public health interventions to address the impact of climate, population lifestyle behaviour and other socioeconomic factors that affect the exposure to air pollution and other synergistic effects that alter the effect of PM on population health., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Ambient particulate matter (PM) is a major contributor to air pollution, leading to adverse health effects on the human population. It has been suggested that the oxidative potential (OP, as a tracer of oxidative stress) of PM is a possible determinant of its health impact. In this study, samples of PM 10 , PM 2.5 , and PM 1 were collected roughly every four days from January 2018 until March 2019 at a Barcelona urban background site and Montseny rural background site in northeastern Spain. We determined the chemical composition of samples, allowing us to perform source apportionment using positive matrix factorization. The OP of PM was determined by measuring reactive oxygen species using dithiothreitol and ascorbic acid assays. Finally, to link the sources with the measured OP, both a Pearson's correlation and a multiple linear regression model were applied to the dataset. The results showed that in Barcelona, the OP of PM 10 was much higher than those of PM 2.5 and PM 1 , whereas in Montseny results for all PM sizes were in the same range, but significantly lower than in Barcelona. In Barcelona, several anthropogenic sources were the main drivers of OP in PM 10 (Combustion + Road Dust + Heavy Oil + OC-rich) and PM 2.5 (Road Dust + Combustion). In contrast, PM 1 -associated OP was driven by Industry, with a much lower contribution to PM 10 and PM 2.5 mass. Meanwhile, Montseny exhibited no clear drivers for OP evolution, likely explaining the lack of a significant difference in OP between PM 10 , PM 2.5 , and PM 1 . Overall, this study indicates that size fraction matters for OP, as a function of the environment typology. In an urban context, OP is driven by the PM 10 and PM 1 size fractions, whereas only the PM 1 fraction is involved in rural environments., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Microplastics have appeared as emerging pollutants due to the diverse applications of plastics in today's world. Growing evidence points to the negative impacts that airborne microplastics have on human health, as they can enter the human body through respiration. Our aim was to quantify polystyrene airborne microplastics in smaller fractions, thoracic (PM 10 ) and alveolar (PM 2.5 ), as they have scarcely been studied. In this work, we proposed a methodology based on thermogravimetric analysis coupled with mass spectrometry that requires minimal sample preparation and does not limit particle size. We applied this methodology to quantify the airborne polystyrene in PM 10 and PM 2.5 fractions in mass units of microplastics per m 3 of air in an urban and agricultural region during the summer of 2021. The mean concentrations of polystyrene found in the PM 10 and PM 2.5 fractions were 2.09 and 1.81 ng m -3 , respectively. Therefore, the majority of airborne polystyrene microplastics are found in the alveolar fraction which, is associated with severe cardiopulmonary and respiratory diseases. According to air mass backward trajectories, it was noted that the main sources of these emerging pollutants could be related to local agricultural practices., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. The manuscript was approved for publication by all the authors., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Ambient air particulate exposure not only capable of elevating the risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes, but also has profound implications for human health, but the results are discrepant. This meta-analysis aimed to provide higher grade evidence on the impacts of air particulate on specific pregnancy outcomes. A total of 81 eligible cohort studies were included in this meta-analysis, of which the outcomes included preterm birth (PTB), moderate PTB, very PTB, extreme PTB, term low birth weight (TLBW), term birth weight (TBW), stillbirth (SB) and small for gestational age (SGA). The results showed that every 10 μg/m 3 increase of PM 2.5 exposure associated with 2.7%-9.3% increase of PTB risk in entire pregnancy, 2nd and 3rd trimesters; 10.5%-19.3% increase of very PTB risk in entire pregnancy, 1st and 2nd trimesters; 8.3% and 10.1% increase of TLBW and SGA risk in entire pregnancy; 25.6% and 10.1% increase of SB in entire pregnancy and 3rd trimester; and -13.274 g and -4.916 g reduce of TBW during entire pregnancy and 2nd trimester, respectively. Every 10 μg/m 3 increase of PM 10 exposure associated with 12.1% and 2.6% increase of PTB risk in entire pregnancy and 3rd trimester; 48.9% and 5.0% increase of moderate PTB risk in entire pregnancy and 2nd trimester; 14.4% and 10.3% increase of very PTB risk in 1st and 3rd trimesters; 2.9% increase of extremely PTB risk in 2nd trimester; 1.5%-3.8% and 2.9%-3.7% increase of TLBW and SGA risk in entire pregnancy, 1st and 2nd trimesters; 7.0% increase of SB risk in 3rd trimesters; and -4.537 g and -5.263 g reduce of TBW in 1st and 2nd trimesters, respectively. High mean annual PM concentrations were associated with more extreme adverse pregnancy outcomes (PTBs, SGA and SB), while low mean annual PM concentrations were associated with decreased TBW and increased risk of TLBW., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Ambient air quality is affected due to the emission of pollutants on a large scale after the bursting of firecrackers. Traditionally in all firecrackers, barium (Ba) compounds are used as oxidizers and also to impart green colour flame. Combustion products of barium compounds are water soluble and readily absorbed by the body affecting human health. Thus, the inherent risk of Ba pollution due to the bursting of firecrackers has consequent health effects. To reduce the ambient air pollution caused due to burning of conventional firecrackers, CSIR NEERI has developed reduced emission firecrackers (green crackers). This is achieved by reducing the amount of chemicals, barium nitrate, shell size and addition of additives such as zeolite and iron oxide. This study aims to specifically investigate the influence of additives on the level of barium in reduced emission firecrackers. Four types of conventional and reduced emission firecrackers were selected and tested inside a firecracker emission testing facility to check the levels of barium in PM 10 and PM 2.5 . The measured mean concentrations of all types of reduced emission crackers (green crackers) provided by fireworks manufacturers show significantly reduced barium concentration by 30-60% compared to conventional crackers depending on the type of firecrackers, shell size and amount of chemicals used. The possible reason for reduced Ba level is attributed to i) reduced usage of Ba(NO 3 ) 2 and ii) formation of heavy density compounds, leading to soil fallout., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

It is a well - established fact that road traffic is one of the main contributors to ambient levels of airborne particulate matter (APM). This study was carried out at a traffic site in which the PM 10 levels are monitored all year round. A trend analysis of these levels revealed that over a decade there was no discernible trend, with the PM 10 concentrations normally hovering around the EU limit values. In 2018, one of these limit values was exceeded. The contribution of traffic at the site was therefore investigated through a chemical speciation of 209 PM 10 samples collected throughout this year. The speciation data were used in a source apportionment exercise in which the output of the PMF model was further refined using the lesser-known, constraint weighted non - negative matrix factorization (CW - NMF) model. This technique enabled the isolation of two factors clearly related to traffic, which were labelled as "exhaust contribution" (responsible for 3.4% of the PM 10 ), "tire/brake wear contribution" (contributing 17% of the PM 10 ). Additionally, a factor including both traffic resuspended dust and crustal material was also isolated and labelled "road dust/crustal" factor. The two contributors to the factor jointly contribute 18% to the PM 10 and the contribution of the traffic resuspended dust was estimated at 7.3%. The traffic resuspended component of this factor together with the "tire/brake wear contribution" jointly make up the non-exhaust contribution of traffic - derived dust. Consonant with what has been known for quite some time, the exhaust fraction is the minor component of traffic PM 10 . It is therefore, clear that policies aimed at controlling traffic derived PM 10 pollution at the receptor will have a minimal effect unless the non - exhaust emissions are adequately controlled., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In this study, the results of PM 10 -bound PAH measurements were subjected to positive matrix factorization (PMF) approach and diagnostic ratios to investigate their levels, seasonal variability, impact of primary anthropogenic sources, and human health risk via the inhalation route. Daily ground-based observations were carried out at a representative coastal site in Gdynia (northern Poland), from April to December 2019. The concentrations of Σ 13 PAHs in PM 10 varied between 0.45 ng m -3 and 54.02 ng m -3 , with a mean of 5.22 ± 8.67 ng m -3 . A clear seasonality and distribution profiles of PM 10 -bound PAHs were observed as a result of local/remote sources and meteorological conditions. The highest Σ 13 PAH concentration was found in December (18.56 ± 16.45 ng m -3 ) and the lowest values were observed between June and September (3.89 ± 0.52 ng m -3 ). The PMF-based analysis revealed five factors, suggesting the importance of primary anthropogenic sources of PAHs, i.e. coal combustion, biomass burning, gasoline/diesel vehicles, industrial and shipping activities as well as natural gas combustion. In summer, PAH levels were mostly controlled by local shipping emissions as well as traffic-related and non-combustion sources such as photochemical decomposition. The winter PAH maxima were attributed to a strong increase in residential coal combustion. A Spearman's rank correlation and multilinear regression analysis showed that ambient temperature and NO × had a significant impact on intra-annual variability in PM 10 -bound PAH transformation in this region. PAH congeners in coarse-size fraction were positively correlated with SO 2 , indicating their shared anthropogenic sources. The annual mean of epidemiologically based ILCR value was 6.6 × 10 -5 . This work indicates a potential carcinogenic risk for the local population and a significant difference in BaP eq levels between the individual seasons in this region., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The long retention of dust air masses in polluted areas, especially in winter, may efficiently change the physicochemical properties of aerosols, causing additional health and ecological effects. A large-scale haze-to-dust weather event occurred in the North China Plain (NCP) region during the autumn-to-winter transition period in 2018, affecting the coastal city Qingdao several times between Nov. 27th and Dec. 1st. To study the evolution of the pollution process, we analyzed the chemical characteristics of PM 2.5 and PM 10 - 2.5 and source apportionments of PM 2.5 and PM 10, The dust stagnated around NCP and moved out and back to the site, noted as dust swing process, promoting SO 4 2- formation in PM 2.5 and NO 3 - formation in PM 10 - 2.5 . Source apportionments were analyzed using the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) receptor model and weighted potential source contribution function (WPSCF). Before the dust invasion, Qingdao was influenced by severe haze; waste incineration and coal burning were the major contributors (~80 %) to PM 2.5 , and the source region was in the southwest of Shandong Province. During the initial dust event, mineral dust and the mixed factor of dust and sea salt were the major contributors (46.0 % of PM 2.5 and 86.5 % of PM 10 ). During the polluted dust period, the contributions of regional transported biomass burning (22.3 %), vehicle emissions (20.8 %), and secondary aerosols (33.8 %) to PM 2.5 from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region significantly increased. The secondary aerosols source was more regional than that of vehicle emissions and biomass burning and contributed considerably to PM 10 (30.8 %) during the dust swing process. Our findings demonstrate that environmental managers should consider the possible adverse effects of winter dust on regional and local pollution., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Chemical speciation data for PM 10 , collected for annual trend analyses of health-relevant species, at three receptor sites in a highly industrialized area (IJmond) in the Netherlands were used in a multi-time resolution receptor model (ME-2) to identify the PM 10 sources in this area. Despite the available data not being optimized for receptor modelling, five-factor solutions were obtained for all sites based on independent PMF analysis on PM 10 data from the three sites (IJM, WAZ and BEV). Four factors were common to all three sites: nitrate-sulphate (average percentage contributions to PM 10 : IJM: 35.3 %, WAZ: 37.7 %, and BEV: 36.3 %); sea salt (20.2 %, 23.7 %, 15.2 %); industrial (8.1 %, 11.0 %, 18.1 %) and brake wear/traffic (31.4 %, 21.2 %, 20.6 %). At WAZ, a local/site-specific factor containing most of the PAH measurements was found (6.4 %) while a crustal matter factor was resolved at IJM (7.6 %) and BEV (9.8 %). Additionally, sludge-drying was a potential source of the marker species in the industrial factor at WAZ. Bootstrapping (BS) and factor displacement (DISP) were applied to the factor profiles in this work for error estimation. In general, the factor profiles at all three sites had very small intervals from both BS and DISP methods. To our knowledge, this is the first time DISP was applied in a complex model such as the multi-time resolution model. Most of the measured metal and PAH concentrations found in the IJmond area during the 2017-2019 period had local sources, with significant contributions from several processes related to the steel industry. This study shows that available detailed PM 10 chemical speciation data, although primarily collected for annual trend analyses of health-relevant species, could also be used in receptor modelling by applying a multi-time framework. We propose general recommendations for the optimization of the measurement strategy for source apportionment of PM in areas with similar urban-industrial land use., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Due to rapid urbanization and fast economic development, aerosol pollution is a serious environmental issue, especially in Bangladesh. Based on bioaccessibility and respiratory deposition doses (RDD), health risks of PM 2.5 and PM 10 bound 15 (fifteen) metals were investigated at fourteen urban sites (roadside, marketplace, industrial, and commercial areas). Sampling campaigns were conducted over four seasons (winter, summer, rainy, and autumn) from December 2020 to November 2021. A beta attenuation mass analyzer measured particulate matter concentrations in ambient air. The metals in PM fractions were analyzed by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The airborne trace metals (Cd, As, Zn, Pb, Cr, Cu, Ni) with high enrichment factors indicate anthropogenic sources. The positive matrix factorization (PMF) categorized these elements as originating from automobile exhaust, industrial emissions, and solid waste/coal combustion, whereas the geologic elements came from earth crust/soil dust. During the winter, most of the air mass trajectories arrived from India across the land (82%) and Indo Gangetic Plain (IGP) region to the sampling sites, which may have aided in the transport of pollutants. The deposition flux of metals illustrated that compared to PM 2.5 , PM 10 deposited a higher amount of metals in the upper airways (81.96%). In comparison, PM 2.5 accumulates more elevated amounts of metals in alveolar regions (11.77%), due to the ability of fine particles to penetrate deeper into the lower pulmonary region. Among age groups, an adult inhales a higher amount of metals than a child, on average 0.103 mg and 0.08 mg of metals per day via PM 2.5 , respectively. Acute health impacts are caused by the deposited cancer-causing metals in alveolar tissue, which circulates through the bloodstream and affects several organs. Prolonged exposure to these carcinogenic metals poses significant health risks., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Southeast Asia has become a hotspot of anthropogenic particulate matter (PM) emissions due to increased coal combustion, high-temperature industrial operations, vehicular traffic, and agricultural biomass burning. Lead (Pb), a criteria pollutant, bound to such PM can be hazardous when inhaled, even at extremely low concentrations. Precise and accurate source apportionment of atmospheric Pb is thus, critical in order to minimize its exposure. This study investigates the sources of atmospheric Pb in Singapore aerosol samples (PM 10 ) using Pb isotopes and elemental composition as tracers of contamination sources. PM 10 aerosol sampling was conducted over a period of 1 year from June 2017 to May 2018 to capture the seasonal variations in sources of atmospheric Pb. Elemental concentrations reveal particularly high enrichment factors for Pb, Cu, V, Ni and Zn, especially when under the influence of southwest (SW) and inter monsoon (IM) winds. Pb isotopic ratios across the three seasons ( 206/207 Pb = 1.147-1.150 and 208/207 Pb = 2.420-2.428) are not significantly different. The Pb isotopic signatures and V/Ni ratios for all three seasons overlap with those of gasoline, diesel and ship emissions. Moreover, V/Pb values of more than unity for SW and IM winds suggest influence of transboundary coal combustion emissions particularly from Indonesia. Consequently, using Pb isotopic fingerprints and elemental ratios, we find that the primary sources of atmospheric Pb are vehicular & ship emissions, heavy oil combustion, transboundary coal combustion emissions, waste incineration and recirculation of historic leaded gasoline., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: The new World Health Organization guidelines recommend studies with simultaneous exposure to multiple air pollutants. The main objective has been to analyze the strength of the association between different concentrations of PM 10 and NO 2 and the exacerbation of chronic respiratory diseases (ECRD), specifically asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease., Material and Methods: Retrospective cross-sectional study. The population analyzed were adults treated in an urgent and primary health care center on certain lag+1 days in 2019. Three indices have been developed (1: high levels of PM 10 and NO 2 ; 2: high level of PM 10 and low level of NO 2 , and 3: low levels of PM 10 and NO 2 ) and a logistic regression model for each of them, with ECRD as the outcome variable, and the progressive addition of adjustment variables (sex, age, tobacco, Charlson index, season, precipitation, wind and temperature)., Results: Four hundred and sixty-one people were analyzed, 17 with ECRD. Models 1 and 2 presented very similar values in the adjusted OR (4.28 [95% CI 1.05-17]), R 2 (0.88) and the area under the ROC curve (>0.72). In both of them the significance was maintained after including the adjustment variables, while model 3 only allowed the addition of precipitation. The inclusion of the Charlson index and the tobacco consumption in the 3 models implied the loss of statistical significance of the PM 10 /NO 2 combination regarding ECRD., Conclusions: High levels of PM 10 are related to ECRD and have a greater impact than NO 2 , with tobacco use and comorbidities being the main precipitants of ECRD., (Copyright © 2022 Sociedad Española de Médicos de Atención Primaria (SEMERGEN). Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Total suspended particulate (TSP) and PM 10 filters collected from two ambient air monitoring stations in Port Pirie were analysed to determine the impact of a lead (Pb) smelter redevelopment on air quality parameters including total elemental concentration, Pb isotopic ratio, Pb bioaccessibility and Pb speciation. Filters from 2009 to 2020 were analysed with a focus on samples from 2017 (immediately prior to smelter redevelopment) and 2020 (post-smelter redevelopment). Lead concentration in 2009-2020 TSP was variable ranging up to 6.94 μg m -3 (mean = 0.57 μg m -3 ), however, no significant decrease in Pb concentration was observed at either Port Pirie West (p = 0.56, n = 34) or Oliver Street (p = 0.32, n = 28) monitoring stations when 2017 and 2020 TSP values were compared. Similarly, no significant difference (p = 0.42) in PM 10 Pb concentration was observed in 2017 (mean = 0.80 μg m -3 ) and 2020 (0.60 μg m -3 ) Oliver Street filters. Although no change in percentage Pb bioaccessibility was observed when 2017 and 2020 Port Pirie West TSP samples were compared (mean of 88.7% versus 88.0%), Pb bioaccessibility was lower (p < 0.005) in both 2020 TSP (mean of 83.9% versus 62.9%) and PM 10 (mean of 70.8% versus 58.3%) Oliver Street filters compared to 2017. While scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy identified a number of Pb phases within filters (galena, anglesite, cerussite, conglomerates), differences in Pb speciation between 2017 and 2020 filters could not be identified although it was presumed that this influenced Pb bioaccessibility outcomes at Oliver Street. Data from this study suggests that recent smelter redevelopments have not significantly decreased the concentrations of airborne Pb in Port Pirie although re-entrainment of soil-Pb from historical impact may also be a contributing Pb source., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Little is known about the main sources of ambient particulate matter (PM) in the 22 Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) countries. We designed this study to systematically review all published and unpublished source apportionment (SA), identification and characterization studies as well as emission inventories in the EMR. Of 440 articles identified, 82 (11 emission inventory ones) met our inclusion criteria for final analyses. Of 22 EMR countries, Iran with 30 articles had the highest number of studies on source specific PM followed by Pakistan (n = 15 articles) and Saudi Arabia (n = 8 papers). By contrast, there were no studies in Afghanistan, Bahrain, Djibouti, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Approximately 72% of studies (51) were published within a span of 2015-2021.48 studies identified the sources of PM 2.5 and its constituents. Positive matrix factorization (PMF), principal component analysis (PCA) and chemical mass balance (CMB) were the most common approaches to identify the source contributions of ambient PM. Both secondary aerosols and dust, with 12-51% and 8-80% (33% and 30% for all EMR countries, on average) had the greatest contributions in ambient PM 2.5 . The remaining sources for ambient PM 2.5 , including mixed sources (traffic, industry and residential (TIR)), traffic, industries, biomass burning, and sea salt were in the range of approximately 4-69%, 4-49%, 1-53%, 7-25% and 3-29%, respectively. For PM 10 , the most dominant source was dust with 7-95% (49% for all EMR countries, on average). The limited number of SA studies in the EMR countries (one study per approximately 9.6 million people) in comparison to Europe and North America (1 study per 4.3 and 2.1 million people respectively) can be augmented by future studies that will provide a better understanding of emission sources in the urban environment., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

PM 10 and PM 2.5 were measured at a suburban coastal Mediterranean site. Daily mass concentrations were generally lower than the WHO air quality limits but showed significant diurnal and seasonal variations, with intensive African dust events and residential heating emissions during wintertime causing the higher % increase of ambient concentrations (32% and 59% respectively). However, analysis of the elemental content revealed intrinsic characteristics. Statistically significant seasonal variability was found for S with higher concentrations during warm seasons directly associated with the formation of secondary sulfates. Increased S was the driving reason for the significant depletion of both Cl and Br. On the other hand, elevated K during wintertime was attributed to biomass burning. Analysis of the mineral content of airborne particles showed that typical soil-derived particles were significantly increased during dust events (Mg, Al, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Mn, Fe) although the corresponding mass concentrations preserved relative low levels (<30 μg m -3 ). It was also found that dust events contributed to P, S, V, Zn, Sr and Pb with elemental ratios including Si (Si/Al, Si/Fe, Si/Ca) and Ca/Al serving as good markers for African dust. Heavy metals were found to have both direct and indirect influence on PM 2.5 and PM 10 . PM 2.5 were primarily enriched with metals produced from motor vehicles (Cu, Zn, Pb) and ships (V, Ni), whilst, PM 10 enriched indirectly with Cr, Zn, Br and Pb due to road dust. At the end, source appointment has shown that the dominant contributing factor was mineral dust for both metrics (>30%) but significant contributions arose from secondary sulfates and traffic, (aged) sea salt, biomass burning (only for PM 2.5 ) and road dust (only for PM 10 ). Overall, this work provides a novel insight on the characteristics and chemical profile of atmospheric particles in a suburban environment largely affected by local, regional and long-range sources., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Particulate matter (PM) may play a role in differential distribution and transmission rates of SARS-CoV-2. For public health surveillance, identification of factors affecting the transmission dynamics concerning the endemic (persistent sporadic) and epidemic (rapidly clustered) component of infection can help to implement intervention strategies to reduce the disease burden. The aim of this study is to assess the effect of long-term residential exposure to outdoor PM ≤ 10 μm (PM 10 ) concentrations on SARS-CoV-2 incidence and on its spreading dynamics in Marche region (Central Italy) during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (February to May 2020), using the endemic-epidemic spatio-temporal regression model for individual-level data. Environmental and climatic factors were estimated at 10 km 2 grid cells. 10-years average exposure to PM 10 was associated with an increased risk of new endemic (Rate Ratio for 10 μg/m 3 increase 1.14, 95%CI 1.04-1.24) and epidemic (Rate Ratio 1.15, 95%CI 1.08-1.22) infection. Male gender, older age, living in Nursing Homes and Long-Term Care Facilities residence and socio-economic deprivation index increased Rate Ratio (RR) in epidemic component. Lockdown increased the risk of becoming positive to SARS-CoV-2 as concerning endemic component while it reduced virus spreading in epidemic one. Increased temperature was associated with a reduction of endemic and epidemic infection. Results showed an increment of RR for exposure to increased levels of PM 10 both in endemic and epidemic components. Targeted interventions are necessary to improve air quality in most polluted areas, where deprived populations are more likely to live, to minimize the burden of endemic and epidemic COVID-19 disease and to reduce unequal distribution of health risk., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted several countries, with also some differences at local levels. When lockdown restrictions were imposed, the concentrations of some air pollutants were reduced, as reported in some other cities in the world. This was often considered a positive by-product of the pandemic. However, often literature reporting the connection of air quality (AQ) and lockdown, suffers of limited and incomplete data analysis, not considering, for example, some confounding factors. This work presents a methodology, and the results of its application, to assess the impact of pandemic restrictions on AQ (in particular nitrogen oxides, NO 2 and particulate matter, PM 10 ) in spring 2020 in Brescia, located in one of the most affected areas in terms of virus diffusion and in one of the most polluted areas in Europe (Po Valley, Italy). In particular, the proposed methodology integrates data and AQ modelling simulations to distinguish between the changes in the PM 10 and NO 2 pollutants concentration that occurred due to the restriction measures and due to other factors, like spatial-temporal characteristics (for example the seasonality), meteorological factors, and governmental actions that were introduced in the past to improve the air quality. Results show that NO 2 is strongly dependent to traffic emission. On the contrary, although the expected decrease in PM 10 concentrations, the results highlight that the reduction of transport emission would not help to avoid severe air pollution, due to the other pollution sources that contribute to its origin. The results presented for the first time in this work are of particular interest because they may be used as a basis to investigate in more details the sources that can impact on the air quality in Brescia, with the aim to propose effective measures able to reduce it., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Honeybees and their products are useful biomonitors of metal distribution in urban centres. This study investigates particulate sources that foraging honeybees encounter in Metro Vancouver. Metal concentrations and lead (Pb) isotope compositions were measured in topsoil (top 2 cm, n = 14) colocated with existing research hives and in particulate matter ≤10 μm (PM 10 , n = 27) collected throughout Metro Vancouver (British Columbia, Canada) during honeybee foraging hours over the course of one year (2018-2019). Topsoil served as a proxy for resuspended/coarse PM and, together with PM 10 , covered the size range of particulates collected by foraging bees both actively (pollen) and passively (dusts). Particulate matter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 , n = 7) was collected on Whistler Mountain during two transpacific events (in spring 2014) to estimate the possible effect of transpacific particulate input on the Pb isotope composition of Western Canada aerosols. Metal concentrations and Pb isotopes in topsoil and PM from this study and bees and hive products from previous studies (collected in 2014-2019) reveal similar spatial trends: there were elevated amounts of some metals associated with anthropogenic activity (e.g., Pb, Zn, Sb) and less radiogenic Pb isotope compositions in most samples collected nearer to the city centre in comparison to samples collected in more suburban or rural areas. Bees and hive products have a smoothing effect on the spatiotemporal variability of the data; metal concentrations and Pb isotope compositions vary less in hive products than in PM, presumably because bees interact with multiple environmental domains while foraging. Wildfire smoke and transpacific input are phenomena that cause measurable shifts in Pb isotope compositions of PM, but not in hive matrices. The findings highlight important considerations to make (i.e., the smoothing effect) when linking public health data and decisions with environmental data from hive products in urban centres., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)