1,3-Butadiene: a ubiquitous environmental mutagen and its associations with diseases

Abstract1,3-Butadiene (BD) is a petrochemical manufactured in high volumes. It is a human carcinogen and can induce lymphohematopoietic cancers, particularly leukemia, in occupationally-exposed workers. BD is an air pollutant with the major environmental sources being automobile exhaust and tobacco smoke. It is one of the major constituents and is considered the most carcinogenic compound in cigarette smoke. The BD concentrations in urban areas usually vary between 0.01 and 3.3 μg/m3 but can be significantly higher in some microenvironments. For BD exposure of the general population, microenvironments, particularly indoor microenvironments, are the primary determinant and environmental tobacco smoke is the main contributor. BD has high cancer risk and has been ranked the second or the third in the environmental pollutants monitored in most urban areas, with the cancer risks exceeding 10-5. Mutagenicity/carcinogenicity of BD is mediated by its genotoxic metabolites but the specific metabolite(s) responsible for the effects in humans have not been determined. BD can be bioactivated to yield three mutagenic epoxide metabolites by cytochrome P450 enzymes, or potentially be biotransformed into a mutagenic chlorohydrin by myeloperoxidase, a peroxidase almost specifically present in neutrophils and monocytes. Several urinary BD biomarkers have been developed, among which N-acetyl-S-(4-hydroxy-2-buten-1-yl)-L-cysteine is the most sensitive and is suitable for biomonitoring BD exposure in the general population. Exposure to BD has been associated with leukemia, cardiovascular disease, and possibly reproductive effects, and may be associated with several cancers, autism, and asthma in children. Collectively, BD is a ubiquitous pollutant that has been associated with a range of adverse health effects and diseases with children being a subpopulation with potentially greater susceptibility. Its adverse effects on human health may have been underestimated and more studies are needed.

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Urinary 1-Hydroxypyrene and t, t-Muconic ACID as Biomarkers of Exposure to Environmental Pollutants in Two Areas in Italy (Epic-Florence and Ragusa)

Tumori Journal ◽

10.1177/030089160308900612 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 89 (6) ◽

pp. 679-686 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Calogero Saieva ◽

Rosario Tumino ◽

Giovanna Masala ◽

Graziella Frasca ◽

Simonetta Salvini ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tobacco Smoke ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Environmental Pollutants ◽

Urban Pollution ◽

Urinary Metabolites ◽

Urine Samples ◽

Industrial Emissions ◽

Muconic Acid ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Biomarkers Of Exposure

Aims and background Several chemical compounds included in the group of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and benzene are well-known human carcinogens present in the atmosphere of polluted urban areas. Major sources include vehicle traffic and industrial emissions, but also cigarette smoke. Genotoxic damage derived from exposure to PAHs can be measured in healthy adults by specific assays as PAH-DNA adducts. In the frame of EPIC-Italy, we recently carried out a cross-sectional study in different areas of the country (Palli et al., Int J Cancer, 87: 444-451, 2000) and showed that mean DNA adduct levels varied considerably among different centers, being highest in Florence (a large metropolitan area in Tuscany) and lowest in Ragusa (a small town in Sicily). Methods A subgroup of EPIC volunteers, representative of these two local cohorts, agreed to collect 24-h urine samples, and we measured the excretion of two potential biomarkers of exposure to environmental pollutants: t,t-muconic acid (MA), a metabolite of benzene, and 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP), a metabolite of pyrene. Overall, 69 24-h urine samples were available for analyses. Results The absolute amounts of 1-OHP and MA excreted in the 24-h urine samples were 169.6 ng and 33.8 μg, respectively. Urinary excretion of both metabolites did not vary according to age or area of residence. Strongly significant differences emerged when current smokers were compared to non-smokers for 1-OHP (P = 0.0001) and MA (P = 0.01), thus confirming that smokers are directly exposed to PAHs and benzene from tobacco smoke, with a dose-dependent effect particularly evident for MA. Multivariate analyses showed positive associations of 1-OHP excretion with male sex, low education and being overweight but not with residence in two areas with contrasting levels of urban pollution; MA excretion tended to be higher in Florence. Conclusions These two urinary metabolites are strongly related to tobacco smoke and do not appear to represent reliable biomarkers of exposure to environmental pollutants in the general population.

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Cancer in agricultural populations

Russian Journal of Occupational Health and Industrial Ecology ◽

10.31089/1026-9428-2019-59-9-837 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 837-837

Author(s):

K. . Togawa

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

General Population ◽

Cohort Studies ◽

Health Effects ◽

Cancer Incidence ◽

Lower Prevalence ◽

International Consortium ◽

Adverse Health Effects ◽

Specific Cancer ◽

Cancer Types

Agricultural workers can be exposed to a wide variety of agents (e.g. pesticides), some of which may have adverse health effects, such as cancer. To study the health effects of agricultural exposures, an international consortium of agricultural cohort studies, AGRICOH, was established. The present analysis compared cancer incidence between the AGRICOH cohorts and the general population and found lower overall cancer incidence in the AGRICOH cohorts, with some variation across cohorts for specific cancer types. The observed lower cancer incidence may be due to healthy worker bias or lower prevalence of risk factors in the agricultural populations. Further analysis is underway.

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Vicious Cycle of Economic Growth, Pm2.5 and COVID-19 Case of G7 Countries

10.31124/advance.12937019.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Rıdvan Karacan

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Air Pollution ◽

Particulate Matter ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Fine Particulate Matter ◽

Panel Cointegration ◽

Air Pollutant ◽

Population Exposure ◽

Causality Analysis ◽

G7 Countries

Today, production is carried out depending on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels pollute the air as they contain high levels of carbon. Many studies have been carried out on the economic costs of air pollution. However, in the present study, unlike the former ones, economic growth's relationship with the COVID-19 virus in addition to air pollution was examined. The COVID-19 virus, which was initially reported in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and affected the whole world, has caused many cases and deaths. Researchers have been going on studying how the virus is transmitted. Some of these studies suggest that the number of virus-related cases increases in regions with a high level of air pollution. Based on this fact, it is thought that air pollution will increase the number of COVID-19 cases in G7 Countries where industrial production is widespread. Therefore, the negative aspects of economic growth, which currently depends on fossil fuels, is tried to be revealed. The research was carried out for the period between 2000-2019. Panel cointegration test and panel causality analysis were used for the empirical analysis. Particulate matter known as PM2.5[1] was used as an indicator of air pollution. Consequently, a positive long-term relationship has been identified between PM2.5 and economic growth. This relationship also affects the number of COVID-19 cases. [1] "Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is an air pollutant that poses the greatest risk to health globally, affecting more people than any other pollutant (WHO, 2018). Chronic exposure to PM2.5 considerably increases the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in particular (WHO, 2018). For these reasons, population exposure to (outdoor or ambient) PM2.5 has been identified as an OECD Green Growth headline indicator" (OECD.Stat).

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An Urban Air Pollution Early Warning System Based on PM2.5 Prediction Applied in Ploiesti City

Revista de Chimie ◽

10.37358/rc.17.4.5566 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 68 (4) ◽

pp. 858-863

Author(s):

Mihaela Oprea ◽

Marius Olteanu ◽

Radu Teodor Ianache

Keyword(s):

Air Pollution ◽

Early Warning ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Early Warning System ◽

Urban Air Pollution ◽

Warning System ◽

Air Pollutant ◽

Pollution Level ◽

Urban Air ◽

Prediction Approach

Fine particulate matter with a diameter less than 2.5 �m (i.e. PM2.5) is an air pollutant of special concern for urban areas due to its potential significant negative effects on human health, especially on children and elderly people. In order to reduce these effects, new tools based on PM2.5 monitoring infrastructures tailored to specific urban regions are needed by the local and regional environmental management systems for the provision of an expert support to decision makers in air quality planning for cities and also, to inform in real time the vulnerable population when PM2.5 related air pollution episodes occur. The paper focuses on urban air pollution early warning based on PM2.5 prediction. It describes the methodology used, the prediction approach, and the experimental system developed under the ROKIDAIR project for the analysis of PM2.5 air pollution level, health impact assessment and early warning of sensitive people in the Ploiesti city. The PM2.5 concentration evolution prediction is correlated with PM2.5 air pollution and health effects analysis, and the final result is processed by the ROKIDAIR Early Warning System (EWS) and sent as a message to the affected population via email or SMS. ROKIDAIR EWS is included in the ROKIDAIR decision support system.

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Environmental exposures impact the nervous system in a life stage-specific manner

Neuroforum ◽

10.1515/nf-2021-0021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Julia Tigges ◽

Tamara Schikowski ◽

Ellen Fritsche

Keyword(s):

Nervous System ◽

Life Stage ◽

Environmental Pollutants ◽

Toxicity Assessment ◽

Test Methods ◽

Adverse Outcomes ◽

Assessment Process ◽

Health Concern ◽

Adverse Health Effects

Abstract Exposure to environmental pollutants like chemicals or air pollution is major health concern for the human population. Especially the nervous system is a sensitive target for environmental toxins with exposures leading to life stage-dependent neurotoxicity. Developmental and adult neurotoxicity are characterized by specific adverse outcomes ranging from neurodevelopmental disorders to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. The risk assessment process for human health protection is currently undergoing a paradigm change toward new approach methods that allow mechanism-based toxicity assessment. As a flagship project, an in vitro battery of test methods for developmental neurotoxicity evaluation is currently supported by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). A plethora of stem cell-based methods including brain spheres and organoids are currently further developed to achieve time- and cost-saving tools for linking MoA-based hazards to adverse health effects observed in humans.

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Evaluation of dust and trace metal estimates from the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model version 5.0

Geoscientific Model Development ◽

10.5194/gmd-6-883-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 883-899 ◽

Cited By ~ 116

Author(s):

K. W. Appel ◽

G. A. Pouliot ◽

H. Simon ◽

G. Sarwar ◽

H. O. T. Pye ◽

...

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Air Quality ◽

Trace Metals ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Temporal Distribution ◽

Air Pollutant ◽

Eastern United States ◽

Air Quality Model ◽

Quality Model ◽

Model Version

Abstract. The Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model is a state-of-the-science air quality model that simulates the emission, transformation, transport, and fate of the many different air pollutant species that comprise particulate matter (PM), including dust (or soil). The CMAQ model version 5.0 (CMAQv5.0) has several enhancements over the previous version of the model for estimating the emission and transport of dust, including the ability to track the specific elemental constituents of dust and have the model-derived concentrations of those elements participate in chemistry. The latest version of the model also includes a parameterization to estimate emissions of dust due to wind action. The CMAQv5.0 modeling system was used to simulate the entire year 2006 for the continental United States, and the model estimates were evaluated against daily surface-based measurements from several air quality networks. The CMAQ modeling system overall did well replicating the observed soil concentrations in the western United States (mean bias generally around ±0.5 μg m−3); however, the model consistently overestimated the observed soil concentrations in the eastern United States (mean bias generally between 0.5–1.5 μg m−3), regardless of season. The performance of the individual trace metals was highly dependent on the network, species, and season, with relatively small biases for Fe, Al, Si, and Ti throughout the year at the Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE) sites, while Ca, K, and Mn were overestimated and Mg underestimated. For the urban Chemical Speciation Network (CSN) sites, Fe, Mg, and Mn, while overestimated, had comparatively better performance throughout the year than the other trace metals, which were consistently overestimated, including very large overestimations of Al (380%), Ti (370%) and Si (470%) in the fall. An underestimation of nighttime mixing in the urban areas appears to contribute to the overestimation of trace metals. Removing the anthropogenic fugitive dust (AFD) emissions and the effects of wind-blown dust (WBD) lowered the model soil concentrations. However, even with both AFD emissions and WBD effects removed, soil concentrations were still often overestimated, suggesting that there are other sources of errors in the modeling system that contribute to the overestimation of soil components. Efforts are underway to improve both the nighttime mixing in urban areas and the spatial and temporal distribution of dust-related emission sources in the emissions inventory.

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Avoided Mortality Associated with Improved Air Quality from an Increase in Renewable Energy in the Spanish Transport Sector: Use of Biofuels and the Adoption of the Electric Car

Atmosphere ◽

10.3390/atmos12121603 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (12) ◽

pp. 1603

Author(s):

Ana R. Gamarra ◽

Yolanda Lechón ◽

Marta G. Vivanco ◽

Mark Richard Theobald ◽

Carmen Lago ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Air Quality ◽

Health Impact ◽

Air Pollutant ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Population Exposure ◽

Baseline Scenario ◽

Premature Deaths ◽

Electric Car ◽

The Impact

This paper assesses the health impact, in terms of the reduction of premature deaths associated with changes in air pollutant exposure, resulting from double-aim strategies for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollutants from the transport sector for the year 2030 in Spain. The impact on air quality of selected measures for reducing emissions from the transport sector (increased penetration of biofuel and electric car use) was assessed by air quality modeling. The estimation of population exposure to NO2, particulate matter (PM) and O3 allows for estimation of associated mortality and external costs in comparison with the baseline scenario with no measures. The results show that the penetration of the electric vehicle provided the largest benefits, even when the emissions due to the additional electricity demand were considered.

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Concentrations of PCDD/Fs in Human Blood: A Review of Data from the Current Decade

10.20944/preprints201908.0199.v1 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Montse Marquès ◽

Jose L Domingo

Keyword(s):

Environmental Pollutants ◽

Human Biomonitoring ◽

Biological Tissues ◽

Great Distance ◽

Motor Vehicles ◽

Chlorine Bleaching ◽

Current Review ◽

Occupationally Exposed ◽

General Populations ◽

Great Persistence

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-furans (PCDD/Fs) are environmental pollutants with a great persistence, capacity of bioaccumulation, and well known important toxic effects in humans and animals. Incinerators of hazardous, municipal and medical waste, chlorine bleaching of paper pulp, cement plants, and the traffic of motor vehicles are the most frequent emission sources of these compounds. The diet, followed at a great distance by inhalation, is generally the main way of human exposure to PCDD/Fs. Human biomonitoring is of a great importance to prevent potential adverse effects derived from exposure to chemicals such as PCDD/Fs. In relation to this, blood is among the most used biological monitors. In the current review, we have summarized the recent information (2000-2009) published in the scientific literature (databases: Scopus and PubMed) on the concentrations of PCDD/Fs in blood samples of non-occupationally exposed populations, as well as in some groups of occupationally exposed individuals. We have revised a number of studies conducted in various African American, Asian and European countries, and Australia. Unfortunately, the information is quite limited. No data are available for most countries over the world. Based on the results here reviewed –where available- the current health risks for the general populations do not seem to be of concern. Moreover, taking into account the important reductions observed in the levels of PCDD/Fs in foodstuffs, new decreases in the concentrations of PCDD/Fs in blood -and other biological tissues- are very probable in the immediate years.

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