Ultrafine Particles Issued from Gasoline-Fuels and Biofuel Surrogates Combustion: A Comparative Study of the Physicochemical and Toxicological Effects.

Gasoline emissions contain high levels of pollutants, including particulate matter (PM), which are associated with several health outcomes. Moreover, due to the depletion of fossil fuels, biofuels represent an attractive alternative, particularly second-generation biofuels (B2G) derived from lignocellulosic biomass. Unfortunately, compared to the abundant literature on diesel and gasoline emissions, relatively few studies are devoted to alternative fuels and their health effects.

Development of a standardized in vitro approach to evaluate microphysical, chemical, and toxicological properties of combustion-derived fine and ultrafine particles.

Ultrafine particles represent a growing concern in the public health community but their precise role in many illnesses is still unknown. This lack of knowledge is related to the experimental difficulty in linking their biological effects to their multiple properties, which are important determinants of toxicity. Our aim is to propose an interdisciplinary approach to study fine (FP) and ultrafine (UFP) particles, generated in a controlled manner using a miniCAST (Combustion Aerosol Standard) soot generator used with two different operating conditions (CAST1 and CAST3).

Phytoremediation of PCB: contaminated Algerian soils using native agronomics plants.

Pot cultivation experiments were conducted to assess the phytoremediation potential of two local agronomic plants, namely Avena sativa and Vicia sativa. Several soils with long-standing contamination and different levels of Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination were used for this study. The soil samples came from different regions of Algeria and had different physico-chemical parameters.

Particulate inorganic salts and trace element emissions of a domestic boiler fed with five commercial brands of wood pellets.

Pellet stoves arouse a real interest from consumers because they are perceived as a renewable and carbon neutral energy. However, wood combustion can contribute significantly to air pollution, in particular through the emission of particulate matter (PM). In this article, five brands of wood pellets were burnt under optimal combustion conditions and trace element and inorganic salt emission factors (EFs) in PM were determined.

A new study of the bacterial lipidome: HPTLC-MALDI-TOF imaging enlightening the presence of phosphatidylcholine in airborne Pseudomonas fluorescens MFAF76a.

Lipids are major functional components of bacterial cells that play fundamental roles in bacterial metabolism and the barrier function between cells and the environment. In an effort to investigate the bacterial lipidome, we adopted a protocol using MALDI-TOF MS imaging coupled to HPTLC to screen a large number of phospholipid classes in a short span of time. With this method, phospholipids of airborne Pseudomonas fluorescens MFAF76a were visualized and identified in sample extracts (measurement accuracy below 0.

Occurrence of 1,1'-dimethyl-4,4'-bipyridinium (Paraquat) in irrigated soil of the Lake Chad Basin, Niger.

Increased use of agrochemical products to improve yields for irrigated crops in sub-Saharan Africa has been accompanied by a significant increase in the risk of environmental contamination. Detailed examples of the fate of pesticides after initial spreading on crop fields are scarce in tropical regions, where safe practices and related health risks are poorly understood by smallholder farmers. In the semi-arid environment of the Lake Chad Basin, SE Niger, both intrinsic properties of pesticides and extrinsic factors such as soil and climate helped to characterize processes leading to an accumulation of pesticides in soils.