Indoor dust is an important matrix that exposes humans to a broad spectrum of chemicals. The information on the occurrence of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), their metabolites, and re-emerging contaminants in indoor dust is rather limited. As the indoor environment is exposed to various chemicals from personal care products, furniture, building materials, machineries and cooking/cleaning products, there is a high chance of the presence of hazardous contaminants in indoor dust. In the present study, dust samples were collected from four different micro indoor environments (photocopying centres, residential houses, classrooms, and ATM cabins) located in an urban environment located in India's southwestern part. The collected samples were subjected to ATR - FTIR and LC-Q-ToF-MS analyses. The ATR - FTIR analysis indicated the presence of aldehydes, anhydrides, carboxylic acids, esters, sulphonic acids, and asbestos - a re-emerging contaminant. A total of 19 compounds were identified from the LC-Q-ToF-MS analysis. These compounds belonged to various classes such as plasticisers, plasticiser metabolites, photoinitiators, personal care products, pharmaceutical intermediates, surfactants, and pesticides. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report regarding the presence of CECs in indoor environments in Kerala and also the suspected occurrence of pesticides (metaldehyde and ethofumesate) in classroom dust in India. Another important highlight of this work is the demonstration of ATR-FTIR as a complementary technique for LC-Q-ToF-MS in the analysis of indoor pollution while dealing with totally unknown pollutants. These results further highlight the occurrence of probable chemically modified metabolites in the tropical climatic conditions in a microenvironment.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147066 | DOI Listing |
Int J Circumpolar Health
December 2025
Department of Chemistry, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Rates of respiratory tract infections for children living in remote First Nations communities in the Sioux Lookout Zone in Northwestern Ontario are elevated and associated with poor indoor environmental quality including high exposures to endotoxin and serious dampness and mould damage. The studies also revealed a high prevalence of cigarette smoking and most houses have wood stoves, of variable quality. Depending on structure, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are carcinogens, immunotoxins and/or inflammatory mediators that are byproducts of the incomplete combustion of organic materials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTrop Med Infect Dis
December 2024
Med Biotech Laboratories, Kampala P.O. Box 9364, Uganda.
Indoor residual spraying (IRS) and the use of insecticide-treated bednets for malaria vector control have contributed substantially to a reduction in malaria disease burden. However, these control tools have important shortcomings including being donor-dependent, expensive, and often failing because of insufficient uptake. We assessed the safety and efficacy of a user-friendly, locally tailored malaria vector control approach dubbed "Hut Decoration for Malaria Control" (HD4MC) based on the incorporation of a WHO-approved insecticide, Actellic 300 CS, into a customary hut decoration practice in rural Uganda where millions of the most vulnerable and malaria-prone populations live in mud-walled huts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSe Pu
February 2025
Key Laboratory of Beijing on Regional Air Pollution Control, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100214, China.
A comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC-TOF-MS) method was developed to analyze 25 traditional phthalate esters (PAEs) and 19 novel alternatives in indoor dust samples. PAEs are ubiquitous in indoor environments because they are widely used as plasticizers in a variety of consumer products, and potential health concerns have prompted the need for effective monitoring methods. In this study, dust samples were collected from various indoor settings in a university campus, including classrooms, cafeterias, laboratories, and dormitories, and were subsequently ultrasonically extracted with hexane-dichloromethane (1∶1, v/v) solution for 30 min.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Mite allergy is the most common inhalant allergen sensitivity. In addition to house dust mites, which are indoor allergens, well-known storage mites also exist.
Methods: This study examines the frequency of storage mite sensitivity in children with allergic diseases, the rate of cross-sensitization with other mite species, and the relationship between mite sensitivities and various factors such as the type of region where patients reside and meteorological data from their locations.
Sci Rep
January 2025
Sustainability Solutions Research Lab, Faculty of Engineering, University of Pannonia, Egyetem Str. 10, Veszprém H, 8200, Veszprém, Hungary.
This study endeavors to tackle the energy requirements of the building sector by employing passive design strategies. However, there exists a dearth of comprehension regarding the energy efficiency performance of foamed alkali-activated materials. To bridge this research gap, the study proposes a solution in the form of a thermally proficient wall material crafted from ceramic tile dust (CTD), class C fly ash (FA), and Ground Granulated Blast-Furnace Slag (GGBS), all of which are industrial by-products.
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