Showing papers in "Environmental Research in 2012"

TL;DR: While there is a large evidence base which is indicative of associations between CO, NO(2), PM and pregnancy outcome, variation in effects by exposure period and sources of heterogeneity between studies should be further explored.

TL;DR: This analysis suggests that while atmospheric deposition is the main source of inorganic Hg to open ocean systems, most of the CH₃Hg accumulating in ocean fish is derived from in situ production within the upper waters (<1000 m), and that the deeper waters of the oceans are responding slowly to changes in atmospheric Hg inputs.

TL;DR: It is suggested that continued human exposure to even relatively low concentrations of PFOA in drinking water results in elevated body burdens that may increase the risk of health effects, and the human dose-response curve for several effects appears to be steepest at the lower exposure levels, including the general population range, with no apparent threshold for some endpoints.

TL;DR: It is suggested that green space in urban environments was associated with long-term reduction in mortality although this finding should be interpreted cautiously as this association may be influenced by residual confounding of sociodemographic and lifestyle factors.

TL;DR: Most of the studies on arsenic biotransformation, speciation, and trophic transfer have focused on marine environments; little is known about these processes in freshwater systems.

TL;DR: Living or attending schools near high traffic density roads exposes children to higher levels of motor vehicle air pollutants, and increases the incidence and prevalence of childhood asthma and wheeze.

TL;DR: This paper examined cold and heat waves in 99 US cities for 14 years (1987-2000) and investigated how the risk of death depended on the temperature threshold used to define a wave, and a wave's timing, duration and intensity.

TL;DR: In this paper, a review of the literature regarding the relationship between ambient temperature and children's health and to propose future research directions was conducted, which indicated that very young children, especially children under one year of age, are particularly vulnerable to heatrelated deaths.

TL;DR: The presence of mercury was significantly associated with low antimicrobial resistance rates of Escherichia coli against β-lactams, aminoglycosides and other antibiotics, and effects of subinhibitory concentrations of mercury on bacterial resistance against penicillins, cephalosporins, am inoglycoside and doxycycline were demonstrated in a laboratory trial.

TL;DR: This largest epidemiologic study of air pollution in China to date suggests that short-term exposure to SO(2) is associated with increased mortality risk; however, these associations may be attributable to SO (2) serving as a surrogate of other substances.

TL;DR: Positive relationships between urinary concentrations of monoethyl phthalate and the sum of low molecular-weight phthalates and body size measures in overweight children are identified.

TL;DR: Indoor exposures to heat in Detroit exceed the comfort range among elderly occupants, and can be predicted using outdoor temperatures, characteristics of the housing stock and surroundings to improve heat exposure assessment for epidemiological investigations.

TL;DR: It appears that the long-range transport of mercury from Asian emissions is an important source of atmospheric Hg to the Arctic and that mercury methylation resulting in monomethylmercury production in Arctic marine waters is the principal source of mercury incorporated into food webs.

TL;DR: The results provide some support that prolonged exposure to traffic-related air pollution as well as to noise adversely affects cognitive functioning.

TL;DR: Blood organophosphate pesticide levels of study participants were similar in mothers and newborns and slightly higher than those reported in other populations, however, compared to their mothers, newborns have much lower quantities of the detoxifying PON1 enzyme suggesting that infants may be especially vulnerable to organoph phosphate pesticide exposures.

TL;DR: Evidence to date suggests that UFPs have a measureable impact on physiological measures known to be altered in cases of acute cardiovascular morbidity, and expanded use of personal exposure measures is recommended for prospective panel studies to minimize exposure misclassification.

TL;DR: The findings point to the potential for pre-harvest contamination of tomatoes from contaminated irrigation water or from soil or water splash from irrigation ditches onto low-lying portions of tomato plants.

TL;DR: There were no significant associations among maternal PFOS and PFOA levels and food allergy, eczema, wheezing, or otitis media in the 18 month-old infants (adjusted for confounders).

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that very low level of lead exposure has a significant negative impact on cognitive function in adolescent children and being an essential micro-nutrient, manganese may not cause cognitive effects at these low exposure levels.

TL;DR: It is suggested that pre- and postnatal low chronic exposure to chlordecone is associated with negative effects on cognitive and motor development during infancy.

TL;DR: Estimating location-specific and spatially-aggregated exposure concentrations of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to 2.5 μm for the eastern U.S. in 2002 using the Community Multi-scale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system and a traditional approach using ambient monitors showed mixed results.

TL;DR: This paper renders AOD a robust predictor of PM( 2.5) mass concentration by introducing an AOD daily calibration approach through the use of mixed effects model and develops models that combine AOD and ground monitoring data to predict PM(2. 5) concentrations during non-retrieval days.

TL;DR: Of the studied pollutants, PM(2.5) and absorbance were most strongly associated with increased levels of inflammatory markers; most notably with C-reactive protein and IL-12 within a few days of exposure.

TL;DR: Asthmatic children sensitized and exposed to low levels of common household allergens Penicillium, Der p 1, Fel d 1 and Can f 1 are at significant risk for increased morbidity.

TL;DR: Overall, the use of cerium as a fuel additive may be a potentially useful way to limit the health effects of vehicle exhaust, however, further testing is required to ensure that such an approach is not associated with a chronic inflammatory response which may eventually cause long-term health effects.

TL;DR: It is indicated that in persons with prolonged excessive cadmium exposure, toxic health effects may progress even after exposure reduction, as well as through the related disorders causing nephropathy.

TL;DR: Positive and statistically significant correlations between adipose tissue and serum concentrations only in p,p'-DDE and HCB are found, which underlines the need for human biomonitoring to assess exposure to environmental pollutants in South America.

TL;DR: The weight of evidence links pesticide exposure to ALS; however, additional prospective studies with a target exposure group are necessary to better elucidate the relationship.

TL;DR: In elderly, pulse pressure was positively associated with acute increases in outdoor and indoor air pollution, among persons taking antihypertensive medication, which might form a mechanistic pathway linking air pollution as a trigger of cardiovascular events.

TL;DR: A conceptual model is presented which suggests that increases in loading of reactive N to marine ecosystems might alter Hg dynamics, decreasing bioavailabilty and trophic transfer, and is most applicable to coastal waters, but may also be relevant to the pelagic ocean.