•BPA, BPS and BPF were determined in 76 sewage sludge from the USA.•Bisphenols were found at concentrations ranging from 12.8 to 4730ng/gdw in sludge.•Only 0.02% of the total BPA production volume ...was emitted through sludge disposal.•The estrogenic activity of BPA was lower than that of natural estrogens in sludge.
As health concerns over bisphenol A (BPA) in consumer products are mounting, this weak estrogen mimicking compound is gradually being replaced with structural analogs, whose environmental occurrence and estrogen risks are not well understood yet. We used high performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS) to determine the concentrations of eight bisphenol analogs in 76 sewage sludge samples collected by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2006/2007 from 74 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in 35 states. Bisphenols were detected at the following concentration ranges (ng/g dry weight) and detection frequencies: BPA (6.5–4700; 100%); bisphenol S (BPS; <1.79–1480; 84%); bisphenol F (BPF; <1.79–242; 68%); bisphenol AF (BPAF; <1.79–72.2; 46%); bisphenol P (BPP; <1.79–6.42; <5%), bisphenol B (BPB; <1.79–5.60; <5%), and bisphenol Z (BPZ; <1.79––66.7; <5%). Bisphenol AP (BPAP) was not detected in any of the samples (<1.79ng/gdw). Concentrations of BPA in sewage sludge were an order of magnitude higher than those reported in China but similar to those in Germany. The calculated 17β-estradiol equivalents (E2EQ) of bisphenols present in sludge samples were 7.74 (0.26–90.5)pg/gdw, which were three orders of magnitude lower than the estrogenic activity contributed by natural estrogens present in the sludge. The calculated mass loading of bisphenols through the disposal of sludge and wastewater was <0.02% of the total U.S. production. As the usage of BPA is expected to decline further, environmental emissions of BPS, BPF, and BPAF are likely to increase in the future. This study establishes baseline levels and estrogenic activity of diverse bisphenol analogs in sewage sludge.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
There is a growing body of evidence suggesting an association between air pollution exposure and tuberculosis (TB) incidence, but no meta-analysis has assembled all evidence so far. This review and ...meta-analysis aimed to derive a more reliable estimation on the association between air pollution and TB incidence. PubMed, Embase and Web of Science electronic databases were systemically searched for eligible literature. The PECO framework was used to form the eligibility criteria. Effect estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) published in the included studies were pooled quantitatively. Seventeen articles met the inclusion criteria. The pooled estimates showed that long-term exposure to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤10 μm (PM10) was associated with increased incidence of TB (per 10 μg/m3 increase in concentrations of PM10: risk ratios (RR) = 1.058, 95% CI: 1.021–1.095). Besides, long-term exposure to sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were significantly associated with TB incidence (per 1 ppb increase, SO2: RR = 1.016, 95% CI: 1.001–1.031; NO2: 1.010, 95% CI: 1.002–1.017). We did not find a significant association of PM2.5, ozone (O3) or carbon monoxide (CO) with TB risk, regardless of long-term or short-term exposure. However, in view of the 2016 ASA Statement and the biological plausibility of PM2.5 damaging host immunity, the association between PM2.5 and TB risk remains to be further established. This meta-analysis shows that long-term exposure to PM10, SO2 or NO2 is associated with increased odds of TB, and the specific biological mechanisms warrant further research.
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•This is the first meta-analysis to explore the association between major air pollutants and tuberculosis risk.•Long-term exposure to PM10, SO2 or NO2 is associated with increased odds of tuberculosis.•Short-term air pollution exposure will not increase the prevalence of tuberculosis.•Improving air quality can ease the burden of tuberculosis to some extent.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Enhancing electrocatalytic water splitting performance by modulating the intrinsic electronic structure is of great importance. Here, porous bimetallic oxide and chalcogenide nanosheets grown on ...carbon paper denoted as NiCo
2
X
4
/CP (X = O, S, and Se) are prepared to demonstrate how the anion components affect the electronic structures and thereby disclose the correlation between their intermediates interaction and catalytic activities. The experimental characterization and theoretical calculation demonstrate that Se and S substitution can promote the ratio of Co
3+
/Co
2+
and thereby modulate the electronic structure accompanied with the upshift of d band centers, which not only enhance the inner conductivity but also regulate the interaction between the catalyst surface and intermediates, especially for the adsorption of absorbed H and hydroperoxy intermediates towards respective hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). As a result, a full alkaline electrolyzer using NiCo
2
Se
4
/CP and NiCo
2
S
4
/CP as cathode and anode delivers a low voltage of 1.51 V at 10 mA·cm
−2
, which is comparable even superior to most transition metal-based electrolyzers.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
A series of seaweed-like heterogeneous Co
3
(PO
4
)
2
/Ni
3
(PO
4
)
2
/MOF-74-
x
electrocatalysts were synthesized
via
a hydrothermal method. The optimal composite exhibits excellent catalytic ...performance toward methanol/ethanol oxidation reactions (MOR/EOR) with peak current densities reaching 27.5 and 32.6 mA cm
−2
, respectively. This work heralds the advent of more efficient heterogeneous electrocatalysts for DAFCs and other energy conversion systems.
A series of seaweed-like MOF-based heterogeneous electrocatalysts were successfully synthesized, which exhibit excellent catalytic performances toward alcohol oxidation reactions in alkaline medium.
The introduction of halogen atoms into the skeleton to regulate the intrinsic properties or improve task-specific performance of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) has developed rapidly in recent years. ...Herein, a series of halogen-engineered MOFs were designed and prepared for electrochemical glucose sensing. Three isomorphic Ni-MOFs were constructed by using tetra-halogenated-phthalic acids as the organic ligand and incorporating 4,4′-bipyridine as an auxiliary ligand. Halogen atoms can enhance the stability of Ni-MOFs through their hydrophobicity and interlayer halogen bonds (X-X or X-π, X = F, Cl, Br). Combined experimental and theoretical results show that the hydrogen bond between halogen atoms and glucose improves the reaction thermodynamics, enabling the wide linear range of 0.01-5.0 mM, high sensitivity of 4709.9 μA mM
−1
cm
−2
and low detection limit of 0.043 μM. This work provides practical guidance for the rational design of halogenated MOFs and promotes their applications in electrochemical sensing.
A series of isomorphically halogen-engineered MOFs are synthesized for electrochemical glucose sensing. By tuning the electronegativity of the halogen atom on the MOF skeleton, the sensing performance are significantly improved.
Cyanobacterial blooms (CBs) in eutrophic lakes can cause various harmful issues to both humans and animals, disturb drinking water supply, and devastate lake ecosystems. Although great progresses ...have been made in many lakes from China and abroad on CBs prevention, mitigation and control, systematic research on the influencing factors of CBs in hypereutrophic plateau Lake Dianchi over a long time span is so far unavailable. This study comprehensively generalized both meteorological and water quality changes in Lake Dianchi during 1990–2015 on both yearly and monthly basis, separated Caohai from Waihai of Lake Dianchi regarding water quality variations, and investigated the individual and joint influencing meteorological and water quality factors on CBs using Spearman correlation, principal component analysis, and multivariate linear stepwise regression. Four specific lake regions, i.e. Caohai, northern Waihai, central Waihai, and southern Waihai, were respectively analyzed due to significant water quality heterogeneity. Results indicated that mild temperatures, low wind velocities, and hypereutrophic water conditions all favor CBs in Lake Dianchi, and the significant temperature rising trend may exacerbate severer CBs in the future. Despite configuration differences, the first principal components on CBs in the four sub-regions of Lake Dianchi were all consisted of meteorological factors, while water quality parameters especially total phosphorus concentrations contributed to the second principal component. Quantification of joint meteorological and water quality influencing factors on CBs needs further improvement, and largely relies on the accuracy of future weather forecasts, in order to set the goal of water quality improvement in each specific lake region for effective CBs management.
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•Meteorological and water quality changes in Lake Dianchi (1990–2015) were analyzed.•The lake was divided into four sub-regions based on water quality heterogeneity.•In all regions, meteorological factors were the first principal component on CBs.•Meanwhile, water quality especially nutrients were the second principal component.•Accurate weather forecast helps to set the water quality standards across the lake.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have emerged as one of the most fascinating libraries of porous materials. In spite of their myriad merits, practical application of most MOFs is restricted due to ...their high preparation cost because of the complicated organic ligands involved. To address this limitation, we propose to use simple and cheap organic precursors to synthesize MOFs with complicated ligands
"one-pot"
reactions of these precursors along with the formation of new MOFs. In this work, we have carefully screened several organic reactions, through which target ligands were generated
from easily available reactants during the MOF construction. With this "one-pot" approach, the fabrication of a series of novel MOFs by integrating the organic covalent bond and the coordinate bond has thus been realized through the judicious selection of organic reactions, which effectively simplifies the MOF synthesis process and thus reduces the cost.
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IJS, KILJ, NUK, UL, UM, UPUK
Background:Previous work has demonstrated that the volume-regulated chloride channel is activated during foam cell formation, and inhibition of chloride movement prevents intracellular lipid ...accumulation. However, the mechanism explaining how chloride movement promotes foam cell formation is not clear.Methods and Results:Foam cell formation was determined by Oil Red O staining. Western blotting and co-immunoprecipitation were used to examine protein expression and protein-protein interaction. Cl−iwas measured using 6-methoxy-N-ethylquinolinium iodide dye. The results showed that Cl−iwas decreased in monocytes/macrophages from patients with hypercholesterolemia and from apoE−/−mice fed with a high-fat diet. Lowering Cl−iupregulated scavenger receptor A (SR-A) expression, increased the binding and uptake of oxLDL, enhanced pro-inflammatory cytokine production and subsequently accelerated foam cell formation in macrophages from humans and mice. In addition, low Cl−solution stimulated the activation of JNK and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases. Inhibition of JNK and p38 blocked Cl−reduced medium-induced SR-A expression and lipid accumulation. In contrast, reduction of Cl−ipromoted the interaction of SR-A with caveolin-1, thus facilitating caveolin-1-dependent SR-A endocytosis. Moreover, disruption of caveolae attenuated SR-A internalization, JNK and p38 activation, and ultimately prevented SR-A expression and foam cell formation stimulated by low Cl−medium.Conclusions:This data provide strong evidence that reduction of Cl−iis a critical contributor to intracellular lipid accumulation, suggesting that modulation of Cl−iis a novel avenue to prevent foam cell formation and atherosclerosis. (Circ J 2016; 80: 1024–1033)
Transition metal sulfides are low-cost oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts that can potentially substitute noble metal catalysts. However, the adsorption process of their OER is impeded ...by their intrinsic poor catalytic activity. Constructing heterojunction and vacancy defects in transition metal sulfides is an efficient method to promote the process of oxygen evolution. Herein, a facile approach based on
in situ
sulfurization of metal-organic gels (MOGs) and a short-time plasma treatment was developed to fabricate vacancy-modified polymetallic sulfides heterojunction. The synergistic effect of the multi-component heterojunction and sulfur vacancy contributed greatly to improving the electron migration efficiency and OER ability of the electrocatalyst. As a result, the optimum oxygen evolution activity was achieved with appropriate surface vacancy concentrations by regulating the plasma radio frequency powers. The plasma-treated catalyst under 400 W showed the best OER performance (lower overpotential of 235 mV in 1 M KOH solution with the Tafel slope of 31 mV dec
−1
) and good durability over 11 h of chronopotentiometry testing. This work sheds new light on constructing multimetal-based heterojunction electrocatalysts with rich vacancy defects for oxygen evolution reactions.
Ar plasma technology tunes sulfur vacancies in polymetallic heterogeneous sulfide catalysts generated from MOG precursor to boost oxygen release.
•Fe(VI) can effectively reduce the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of wastewater.•Fe(VI)-treated wastewater alleviated the oxidative stress in mammalian cells.•Both oxidation and coagulation during ...Fe(VI) treatment contributed to toxicity reduction.•Fe(VI) resultant Fe(III) reduced more toxicity by coagulation than commercial Fe(III).
Ferrate(VI) (Fe(VI)) can oxidize individual pollutants, but the pollutant oxidation does not necessarily result in toxicity reduction. Besides, Fe(VI) resultant Fe(III) particles has previously been used to remove heavy metals, but its influence on organic matter and toxicity of wastewater is unknown. This study investigated influence of Fe(VI) on the cytotoxicity and DNA double-strand break (DSB) effects of secondary effluents from wastewater treatment plants to Chinese hamster ovary cells. Adding 5.0 mg/L Fe(VI) as Fe reduced the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of secondary effluents by 44%–71% and 40%–59%, respectively. The toxicity reduction could be explained by the alleviation of oxidative stress in cells when they were exposed to the Fe(VI)-treated organic matter. Oxidation and coagulation accounted for 60 and 40% of the reductions in cytotoxicity and genotoxicity, demonstrating that both oxidation and coagulation processes can play important roles in reducing toxicity. Molecular weight (MW)-distribution analysis showed that the oxidation process was favored for removing ultraviolet absorbance and fluorescence intensity of organic matter, while the coagulation process removed more dissolved organic carbon (DOC), especially the DOC of fractions with MW < 500 Da. Compared with ferric chloride, the Fe(VI) resultant Fe(III) showed better coagulation performance on organic matter, cytotoxicity and genotoxicity removal, because of the different particle sizes and crystalline structures. This study highlights the benefit of using Fe(VI) in advanced treatment as Fe(VI) reduced the overall toxicity of secondary effluents.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
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