scholarly journals COVID-19-Related Changes in NO2 and O3 Concentrations and Associated Health Effects in Malta

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Fenech ◽  
Noel J. Aquilina ◽  
Ryan Vella
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Learning Algorithm ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Complex Composition ◽  
Adverse Health Effects ◽  
Maltese Islands ◽  
Short Term Exposure ◽  
Traffic Site ◽  
Business As Usual

The start of 2020 has been characterized by emission reductions in various countries across the globe following the implementation of different lock-down measures to control the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). Consequently, these reductions influenced the air quality globally. In this study, we focus on daily nitrogen dioxide (NO2) as well as ozone (O3) concentrations measured across the Maltese Islands between January and mid-October 2020. Changes in air quality are generally difficult to detect due to the complex composition and interactions occurring within the atmosphere. To quantify changes in NO2 and O3 concentrations during the COVID-19 period, we use a random forest machine learning algorithm to determine a business as usual counterfactual scenario. Results highlight a decrease in monthly mean NO2 concentrations by up to 54% in the traffic site of Msida (~21 μg m−3). In contrast, the monthly mean O3 concentrations during the COVID-19 months are up to 61% higher compared to a business as usual scenario in Msida (~28 μg m−3). In this study, we also estimate the differences in attributable fraction (AF) associated with short-term exposure to NO2 and O3 concentrations. In Msida, the AF is up to 0.9% lower and 0.8% higher for measured NO2 and O3 concentrations, respectively. Our results highlight the favorable effects of decreasing traffic-related emissions on NO2 concentrations however, we also note increases in other pollutants for example O3 concentrations which especially in the short-term can lead to various adverse health effects.

scholarly journals Premature Adult Mortality and Years of Life Lost Attributed to Long-Term Exposure to Ambient Particulate Matter Pollution and Potential for Mitigating Adverse Health Effects in Tuzla and Lukavac, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 1107
Author(s):  
Vlatka Matkovic ◽  
Maida Mulić ◽  
Selma Azabagić ◽  
Marija Jevtić
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Life Expectancy ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Bosnia And Herzegovina ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
World Health ◽  
Years Of Life Lost ◽  
Adverse Health Effects ◽  
Adverse Health

Ambient air pollution is one of eight global risk factors for deaths and accounts for 38.44 all causes death rates attributable to ambient PM pollution, while in Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is 58.37. We have estimated health endpoints and possible gains if two policy scenarios were implemented and air pollution reduction achieved. Real-world health and recorded PM pollution data for 2018 were used for assessing the health impacts and possible gains. Calculations were performed with WHO AirQ+ software against two scenarios with cut-off levels at country-legal values and WHO air quality recommendations. Ambient PM2.5 pollution is responsible for 16.20% and 22.77% of all-cause mortality among adults in Tuzla and Lukavac, respectively. Our data show that life expectancy could increase by 2.1 and 2.4 years for those cities. In the pollution hotspots, in reality, there is a wide gap in what is observed and the implementation of the legally binding air quality limit values and, thus, adverse health effects. Considerable health gains and life expectancy are possible if legal or health scenarios in polluted cities were achieved. This estimate might be useful in providing additional health burden evidence as a key component for a clean air policy and action plans.

Short-Term Adverse Health Effects in a Community Exposed to a Large Polyvinylchloride Plastics Fire

2001 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 264-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ross Upshur ◽  
Marilyn L. James ◽  
Elizabeth Richardson ◽  
Ginny Brunton ◽  
William Hunter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Effects ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Adverse Health Effects ◽  
Adverse Health

Air pollution and pulmonary health: Effects of short-term indoor air quality intervention with portable air purifier

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming Kei Chung ◽  
Xiaoxing Cui* ◽  
Lin Fang ◽  
Jianbang Xiang ◽  
Feng Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Indoor Air Quality ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Air Purifier

scholarly journals Toxic Metal Species and ‘Endogenous’ Metalloproteins at the Blood–Organ Interface: Analytical and Bioinorganic Aspects

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (11) ◽  
pp. 3408
Author(s):  
Tristen G. Bridle ◽  
Premkumari Kumarathasan ◽  
Jürgen Gailer
Keyword(s):  
Blood Plasma ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Human Exposure ◽  
Environmental Pollutants ◽  
Metal Species ◽  
Inorganic Pollutants ◽  
Adverse Health Effects ◽  
Adverse Health ◽  
Short Term Exposure ◽  
Exposure Biomarkers

Globally, human exposure to environmental pollutants causes an estimated 9 million deaths per year and it could also be implicated in the etiology of diseases that do not appear to have a genetic origin. Accordingly, there is a need to gain information about the biomolecular mechanisms that causally link exposure to inorganic environmental pollutants with distinct adverse health effects. Although the analysis of blood plasma and red blood cell (RBC) cytosol can provide important biochemical information about these mechanisms, the inherent complexity of these biological matrices can make this a difficult task. In this perspective, we will examine the use of metalloentities that are present in plasma and RBC cytosol as potential exposure biomarkers to assess human exposure to inorganic pollutants. Our primary objective is to explore the principal bioinorganic processes that contribute to increased or decreased metalloprotein concentrations in plasma and/or RBC cytosol. Furthermore, we will also identify metabolites which can form in the bloodstream and contain essential as well as toxic metals for use as exposure biomarkers. While the latter metal species represent useful biomarkers for short-term exposure, endogenous plasma metalloproteins represent indicators to assess the long-term exposure of an individual to inorganic pollutants. Based on these considerations, the quantification of metalloentities in blood plasma and/or RBC cytosol is identified as a feasible research avenue to better understand the adverse health effects that are associated with chronic exposure of various human populations to inorganic pollutants. Exposure to these pollutants will likely increase as a consequence of technological advances, including the fast-growing applications of metal-based engineering nanomaterials.

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