Cell death pathways of particulate matter toxicity.

The effects of air pollution on health have been generating attention for years. A large number of pulmonologists have recently expressed concerns about this in an open letter to Dutch Members of Parliament. Air pollution arises mainly in all kinds of combustion processes; in addition, atmospheric chemical reactions play a role in the formation of ozone and particulate matter. Health effects are both acute (increase in daily mortality and morbidity after days with increased concentrations of air pollution) as well as chronic (shortened life span and increased incidence of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in areas with elevated concentrations of air pollution). These effects already occur at concentrations that are clearly lower than those currently observed in the Netherlands.

Air pollution and health

Examining the spatially varying effects of factors on PM2.5 concentrations in Chinese cities using geographically weighted regression modeling.

Meteorological parameters play a significant role in affecting ambient air quality of an urban environment. As Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, is one of the air pollution hotspot among the megacities in the world, however the potential meteorological influences on criteria air pollutants for this megacity are remained less studied. The objectives of this research were to examine the relationships between meteorological parameters such as daily mean temperature (o C), relative humidity (%) and rainfall (mm) and, the concentration of criteria air pollutants (SO2, CO, NOx, O3, PM2.5 and PM10) from January, 2013 to December, 2017. This study also focused on the trend analysis of the air pollutants concentration over the period. Spearman correlation was applied to illustrate the relationships between air pollutants concentration and temperature, relative humidity and rainfall.  Multiple linear and non-linear regressions were compared to explore potential role of meteorological parameters on air pollutants' concentrations. Trend analysis resulted that concentration of SO2 is increasing in the air of Dhaka while others are decreasing. Most of the pollutants resulted negative correlation with atmospheric temperature and relative humidity, however, they showed variable response to seasonal variation of meteorological parameters. Regression analysis resulted that both the multiple non-linear and linear model performed similar for predicting concentrations of particulate matters but for gaseous pollutants both model performances were poor. This research is expected to contribute in improving the forecast accuracy of air pollution under variable meteorological parameters considering seasonal fluctuations.

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The relationships between meteorological parameters and air pollutants in an urban environment

This review aims to summarize epidemiological literature published between May 15, 2018, and May 14, 2019, that examines the relationship between exposure to synthetic pesticides and health of agricultural workers. Current research suggests that exposure to synthetic pesticides may be associated with adverse health outcomes. Agricultural workers represent a potentially vulnerable population, due to a combination of unique social and cultural risk factors as well as exposure to hazards inherent in agricultural work. Pesticide exposure among agricultural workers has been linked to certain cancers, DNA damage, oxidative stress, neurological disorders, and respiratory, metabolic, and thyroid effects. This review describes literature suggesting that agricultural workers exposed to synthetic pesticides are at an increased risk of certain cancers and neurological disorders. Recent research on respiratory effects is sparse, and more research is warranted regarding DNA damage, oxidative stress, metabolic outcomes, and thyroid effects.

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Synthetic Pesticides and Health in Vulnerable Populations: Agricultural Workers.

Air quality is used worldwide to confirm the current status of air pollution level and associated health risks to the public. Several air pollutants reach very high concentrations in many regions across India. In this study, air pollutants were measured in an urban city of Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, Southern India, during 2013 to 2014 based on season and location, and the influence of meteorological factors. Air pollutants (PM10, PM2.5, SO2, NO2, CO, and O3) across eight locations including industrial, residential, traffic, and commercial areas were assessed. The results showed that PM10, PM2.5, and CO were the most serious pollutants and their average concentrations ranged from 65.5 to 98.6 μg/m3, 27.6 to 56.9 μg/m3, and 1.58 to 8.21 mg/m3, respectively, among various locations. Significantly higher concentration of air pollutants was recorded in industrial areas followed by traffic and commercial areas. Comparatively higher mean concentration of O3 (2.22 ± 0.75 μg/m3) and CO (7.73 ± 1.86 mg/m3) was recorded during the summer season, whereas the concentration of PM10 (80.3 ± 24.4 μg/m3), PM2.5 (45.1 ± 17.7 μg/m3), SO2 (7.86 ± 1.55 μg/m3), and NO2 (13 ± 1.81 μg/m3) was higher in southwest monsoon. Ozone (O3) and CO positively correlated with temperature and negatively correlated with relative humidity. The level of PM10, PM2.5, and CO concentrations exceeded the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) guidelines. The present study’s results emphasize the need of effective air pollution control in Coimbatore. Precautionary measures to be taken to avoid exposure of air pollutants to the public and minimize pollutants. This study further suggests an investigation on the adverse impact on human health and environment using appropriate risk analysis techniques.

Spatio-seasonal variation in ambient air pollutants and influence of meteorological factors in Coimbatore, Southern India

To assess the effects of exposure to pesticides in tea garden women workers, the present study evaluated the activities of erythrocyte acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and plasma butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) as biomarkers of pesticide exposure and DNA damage by comet assay as a biomarker of genotoxicity in peripheral blood lymphocytes. We examined 143 women subjects including 77 women workers exposed to pesticide in tea garden (exposed) and 66 women subject with no history of occupational exposure to pesticides (non-exposed). The two groups had similar mean ages, BMI and personal habits. The results revealed that exposed group had lower activity of AChE (2.86 ± 0.75 vs. 3.93 ± 0.87 U/ml) BChE (2.02 ± 0.74 vs. 2.60 ± 0.74 U/ml, p

Assessment of genotoxicity and cholinesterase activity among women workers occupationally exposed to pesticides in tea garden.

Characterization and genotoxicity evaluation of particulate matter collected from industrial atmosphere in Tamil Nadu state, India.

The main objective of this study is to focus on the removal of colour and chemical oxygen demand (COD) from the secondary treated effluent (SE) and reverse osmosis (RO) concentrate, using Fenton oxidation as an advanced oxidation process. In order to identify the feasibility and economics, the experiments were conducted in these two streams of the textilebased effluent treatment plant. In this study, COD and colour removal efficiencies were observed as 75% and 94% in the SE and 85% and 99% in the RO concentrate respectively. After comparing the operating cost between these two streams, treating of SE with Fenton oxidation was found to be an economical, sustainable option for removing the colour and COD from the SE. This option will improve the performance of membrane filtration systems in effluent treatment plants that are based on zero liquid discharge.

A. Manju

Papers

Spatio-seasonal variation in ambient air pollutants and influence of meteorological factors in Coimbatore, Southern India

Assessment of genotoxicity and cholinesterase activity among women workers occupationally exposed to pesticides in tea garden.

Characterization and genotoxicity evaluation of particulate matter collected from industrial atmosphere in Tamil Nadu state, India.

Removal of Colour and Chemical Oxygen Demand from Textile Effluent by Fenton Oxidation Method