Human Monocyte-Derived Macrophages Demonstrate Distinct Responses to Ambient Particulate Matter in a Polarization State- and Particle Seasonality-Specific Manner.

Macrophages are professional phagocytic immune cells that, following activation, polarize on a spectrum between the proinflammatory M1 and the proresolution M2 states. Macrophages have further been demonstrated to retain plasticity, allowing for the reprogramming of their polarization states following exposure to new stimuli. Particulate matter (PM) has been repeatedly shown to modify macrophage function and polarization while also inducing worsening respiratory infection morbidity and mortality.

United States house dust Pb concentrations are influenced by soil, paint, and house age: insights from a national survey.

Background: Lead (Pb) in house dust contributes significantly to blood lead levels (BLLs) in children which may result in dire health consequences. Assessment of house dust Pb in the United States, relationships with Pb in soil and paint, and residential factors influencing Pb concentrations are essential to probing drivers of house dust Pb exposure.

Objective: Pb concentrations in vacuum-collected house dust are characterized across 346 homes participating in the American Health Homes Survey II (AHHS II), a US survey (2018-2019) evaluating residential Pb hazards.

Particulate Pb emission factors from wildland fires in the United States.

Wildland fires, which includes both wild and prescribed fires, and agricultural fires in sum are one of the largest sources of fine particulate matter (PM) emissions to the atmosphere in the United States (US). Although wildland fire PM emissions are primarily composed of carbonaceous material, many other elements including trace metals are emitted at very low levels. Lead (Pb) is a US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) criteria pollutant that is ubiquitous in the environment at very low concentrations including in biomass that can burn and emit Pb into the atmosphere.

A national survey of lead and other metal(loids) in residential drinking water in the United States.

Background: Exposure to lead (Pb), arsenic (As) and copper (Cu) may cause significant health issues including harmful neurological effects, cancer or organ damage. Determination of human exposure-relevant concentrations of these metal(loids) in drinking water, therefore, is critical.

Objective: We sought to characterize exposure-relevant Pb, As, and Cu concentrations in drinking water collected from homes participating in the American Healthy Homes Survey II, a national survey that monitors the prevalence of Pb and related hazards in United States homes.

An evaluation of M interference correction approaches associated with As and Se in ICP-MS using a multi-day dataset along with ICP-MS/MS/HR-ICP-MS based analysis and hierarchical modeling as a means of assessing bias in fortified drinking waters and single component matrices.

Three mass oriented rare earth element (REE) M correction approaches (fixed factor, a dual internal standard, and an in-sample) are evaluated for use in an ICP-MS environmental method update. The multi-variant-based evaluation includes analyzing the same 19 REE-fortified matrices on eight different days over a two-month period using two instrument tunes. These REE-fortified matrices were also analyzed using HR-ICP-MS and ICP-MS/MS to estimate the reference value for use in the principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical modeling evaluation.

Analytical considerations associated with implementing M correction factors to address false positives on As and Se within U.S. EPA method 200.8.

Rare earth elements (REE) can produce M ions in ICP-MS and Nd, Sm, and Gd can produce false positives on As and Se. Alternative instrumental tuning conditions, that utilize lower He flows within the collision cell, reduce these false positives by a factor of 2 (to 0.8 ppb As and 19 ppb Se in solutions containing 50 ppb Nd and Gd) with comparable OCl reduction (<100 ppt false V in 0.

Ambient Particulate Matter and Acrolein Co-Exposure Increases Myocardial Dyssynchrony in Mice via TRPA1.

Air pollution is a complex mixture of particulate matter and gases linked to adverse clinical outcomes. As such, studying responses to individual pollutants does not account for the potential biological responses resulting from the interaction of various constituents within an ambient air shed. We previously reported that exposure to high levels of the gaseous pollutant acrolein perturbs myocardial synchrony.

Douglas-Fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) Transcriptome Profile Changes Induced by Diesel Emissions Generated with CeO Nanoparticle Fuel Borne Catalyst.

It is important to understand molecular effects on plants exposed to compounds released from use of products containing engineered nanomaterials. Here, we present mRNA sequencing data on transcriptome impacts to Douglas-fir following 2 weeks of sublethal exposure to 30:1 diluted airborne emissions released from combustion of diesel fuel containing engineered CeO nanoparticle catalysts (DECe). Our hypothesis was that chamber exposure to DECe would induce distinct transcriptome changes in seedling needles compared with responses to conventional diesel exhaust (DE) or filtered DECe Gas Phase.

Signal Decomposition of Conductivity Sensor Measurements on the Allegheny River, Pennsylvania.

Surface water conductivity measurements were used to evaluate the combined contribution of anions in western Pennsylvania from brines discharged by sources such as oil and gas wastewater treatment, coal-fired power plants, and coal mining activities. Conductivity sensor data were collected in the Allegheny River during a US Environmental Protection Agency and US Fish and Wildlife study that included seven sites covering 256 river km during the fall of 2012. Intermittent discharges, such as oil and gas wastewater, and continuous sources contributing to the conductivity were quantified using constrained and adaptive decomposition of time-series (CADETS) frequency analysis.

Chemical composition and source apportionment of size fractionated particulate matter in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.

The Cleveland airshed comprises a complex mixture of industrial source emissions that contribute to periods of non-attainment for fine particulate matter (PM) and are associated with increased adverse health outcomes in the exposed population. Specific PM sources responsible for health effects however are not fully understood. Size-fractionated PM (coarse, fine, and ultrafine) samples were collected using a ChemVol sampler at an urban site (G.

The impact of commercially treated oil and gas produced water discharges on bromide concentrations and modeled brominated trihalomethane disinfection byproducts at two downstream municipal drinking water plants in the upper Allegheny River, Pennsylvania, USA.

In 2010, a dramatic increase in the levels of total trihalomethane (THM) and the relative proportion of brominated species was observed in finished water at several Pennsylvania water utilities (PDW) using the Allegheny River as their raw water supply. An increase in bromide (Br(-)) concentrations in the Allegheny River was implicated to be the cause of the elevated water disinfection byproducts. This study focused on quantifying the contribution of Br(-) from a commercial wastewater treatment facility (CWTF) that solely treats wastes from oil and gas producers and discharges into the upper reaches of the Allegheny River, and impacts on two downstream PDWs.

Application of ICP-OES for evaluating energy extraction and production wastewater discharge impacts on surface waters in Western Pennsylvania.

Oil and gas extraction and coal-fired electrical power generating stations produce wastewaters that are treated and discharged to rivers in Western Pennsylvania with public drinking water system (PDWS) intakes. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was used to quantify inorganic species in wastewater and river samples using a method based on EPA Method 200.7 rev4.

Cardiac effects of seasonal ambient particulate matter and ozone co-exposure in rats.

Background: The potential for seasonal differences in the physicochemical characteristics of ambient particulate matter (PM) to modify interactive effects with gaseous pollutants has not been thoroughly examined. The purpose of this study was to compare cardiac responses in conscious hypertensive rats co-exposed to concentrated ambient particulates (CAPs) and ozone (O3) in Durham, NC during the summer and winter, and to analyze responses based on particle mass and chemistry.

Methods: Rats were exposed once for 4 hrs by whole-body inhalation to fine CAPs alone (target concentration: 150 μg/m3), O3 (0.

Near-road modeling and measurement of cerium-containing particles generated by nanoparticle diesel fuel additive use.

Cerium oxide nanoparticles (nCe) are used as a fuel-borne catalyst in diesel engines to reduce particulate emissions, yet the environmental and human health impacts of the exhaust particles are not well understood. To bridge the gap between emission measurements and ambient impacts, size-resolved measurements of particle composition and mass concentration have been performed in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom, where buses have used an nCe additive since 2005. These observations show that the noncrustal cerium fraction thought to be associated with the use of nCe has a mass concentration ∼ 0.

Cardiopulmonary toxicity of peat wildfire particulate matter and the predictive utility of precision cut lung slices.

Background: Emissions from a large peat fire in North Carolina in 2008 were associated with increased hospital admissions for asthma and the rate of heart failure in the exposed population. Peat fires often produce larger amounts of smoke and last longer than forest fires, however few studies have reported on their toxicity. Moreover, reliable alternatives to traditional animal toxicity testing are needed to reduce the number of animals required for hazard identification and risk assessments.

Systemic translocation of (70)zinc: kinetics following intratracheal instillation in rats.

Mechanisms of particulate matter (PM)-induced cardiotoxicity are not fully understood. Direct translocation of PM-associated metals, including zinc, may mediate this effect. We hypothesized that following a single intratracheal instillation (IT), zinc directly translocates outside of the lungs, reaching the heart.

A simple and cost effective method for the quantification of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine from urine using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

A rapid and high-throughput method for the determination of urinary levels of the oxidative stress biomarker, 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG), has been developed and validated using liquid chromatography combined with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The assay features a cheap and readily available non-isotopic internal standard, a single-step filtration sample preparation, and a total analysis time of 6 min including column re-equilibration. The method was validated based on linearity, accuracy (100-106%), precision (CV < 7%), sample preparation stability (< or =5%, 72 h).

A simple and selective method for the measurement of leucine and isoleucine from plasma using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.

An analytical method was developed for the rapid and accurate quantification of leucine (LEU) and isoleucine (ILE) from plasma using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS). The two isomeric amino acids were selectively detected using fragment ions unique to each compound. As a result, the need for chromatographic separation was avoided allowing for faster analysis (3 min).

High performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS) assay for chiral separation of lactic acid enantiomers in urine using a teicoplanin based stationary phase.

A novel method for the separation and simultaneous determination of urinary D- and L-lactic acid enantiomers by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS) is presented. The chiral separation was optimized on a Chirobiotic teicoplanin aglyocone (TAG) column. Most interestingly, the addition of water in small volume fraction to the polar organic mobile phase was found to significantly improve the chromatography.

Quantification of urinary zwitterionic organic acids using weak-anion exchange chromatography with tandem MS detection.

A rapid and accurate quantitative method was developed and validated for the analysis of four urinary organic acids with nitrogen containing functional groups, formiminoglutamic acid (FIGLU), pyroglutamic acid (PYRGLU), 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), and 2-methylhippuric acid (2-METHIP) by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). The chromatography was developed using a weak anion-exchange amino column that provided mixed-mode retention of the analytes. The elution gradient relied on changes in mobile phase pH over a concave gradient, without the use of counter-ions or concentrated salt buffers.