Assessment of progression of pulmonary fibrosis based on metabonomics and analysis of intestinal microbiota.

The main purpose of this study was to explore the changes of biomarkers in different developmental stages of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis (PF) in rats via comprehensive pathophysiology, UPLC-QTOF/MS metabonomic technology, and 16S rRNA gene sequencing of intestinal microbiota. The rats were randomly divided into normal control and 1-, 2- and 4-week model group. The rat model of PF was established by one-time intratracheal instillation of bleomycin. The levels of inflammatory and fibrosis-related factors such as hydroxyproline (HYP), type III procollagen (COL-III), type IV collagen (COL-IV), hyaluronidase (HA), laminin (LN), interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, malondialdehyde (MDA) increased and superoxide dismutase (SOD) decreased as the PF cycle progressed. In the 1-, 2- and 4-week model group, 2, 19 and 18 potential metabolic biomarkers and 3, 16 and 12 potential microbial biomarkers were detected, respectively, which were significantly correlated. Glycerophospholipid metabolism pathway was observed to be an important pathway affecting PF at 1, 2 and 4 weeks; arginine and proline metabolism pathways significantly affected PF at 2 weeks. Linoleic acid metabolism pathway exhibited clear metabolic abnormalities at 2 and 4 weeks of PF, and alpha-linolenic acid metabolism pathway significantly affected PF at 4 weeks.

In this study, metabolomics technology and intestinal microbiota 16S rRNA gene sequencing were used to search for biomarkers with significant differences in each stage of pulmonary fibrosis. Finally, the variation characteristics of each stage of the disease were discussed. The hope is to provide new insights into the development of diagnostic biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets at all stages.

[Ozone Pollution Characteristics and Sensitivity During the Ozone Pollution Days in Summer 2021 of Xinxiang City].

This study was based on the observation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), conventional gaseous air pollutants, and meteorological parameters observed at the Xinxiang Municipal Party School site from June to August 2021. The ozone (O3) characteristics and sensitivity of O3 pollution days and the control strategy of its precursors were studied using an observation-based model (OBM). It was found that the meteorological conditions were characterized by high temperature, low humidity, and low pressure in O3-pollution days. The concentrations of O3 and its precursors all increased in the O3 pollution days. Oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs) and alkanes were the highest-concentration components of VOCs on O3 pollution days in Xinxiang, and OVOCs had the highest ozone formation potential (OFP) and hydroxyl (·OH) reactivity. According to the relative incremental reactivity (RIR) analysis, during the O3 pollution days in Xinxiang, O3sensitivity was in the VOCs-limited regime in June and in the transitional regime in July and August. Ozone production was more sensitive to alkenes and OVOCs. The RIR values of the precursors in June changed throughout the day, but O3 sensitivity remained the VOCs-limited regime. In July and August, O3 sensitivity was the VOCs-limited regime in the morning, transitional regime at noon, transitional and NOx-limited regime, respectively in the afternoon. By simulating different precursor-reduction scenarios, the results showed that the reduction of VOCs was always beneficial to the control of O3, whereas the reduction of NOx had little effect on the control of O3 and a risk of increasing O3.

[Characteristics of Industrial Volatile Organic Compounds(VOCs) Emission in China from 2011 to 2019].

In order to better understand the industrial volatile organic compounds(VOCs) emissions in China in recent years, an industrial VOCs emission inventory was developed from 2011 to 2019, based on the dynamic emission factors method and the comprehensive source classification system. The results showed that VOCs emissions increased first from 11122.7 kt in 2011 to 13397.9 kt in 2017, and then decreased to 13247.0 kt in 2019. The emission structure of the four source categories changed. The contribution from basic organic chemical industries, gasoline storage and transportation, manufacturing(i.e., coatings, inks, pigments, and similar products), and industrial protective coatings continued to increase. On the contrary, the contributions of oil and natural gas processing, automobile, and container manufacturing industries declined over the study period. Among the industrial emissions in China in 2019, industrial coating, printing, and basic organic chemical industries emitted large amounts of VOCs(accounting for 39.2% of the total emission), and because their contribution became increasingly prominent since 2011, these sectors will be the key emission sources in the future. With respect to the spatial distribution in 2019, East China and South China had the largest VOCs emissions. Shandong, Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang were the four provinces that contributed the most, accounting for 40.6% of the total VOCs emissions.

[Coating-derived VOCs Emission Characteristics and Environmental Impacts from the Furniture Industry in Guangdong Province].

To determine the differences in emissions among different types of coatings, such as solvent-based, water-based, solvent-based ultra-violet(UV), water-based UV, and powder coatings, representative furniture manufacturing companies were selected for analysis. The emission concentrations and compositional characteristics of volatile organic compounds(VOCs) in different types of coatings were compared and studied. The ozone formation potential(OFP) and secondary organic aerosol formation potential(SOAFP) of the different types of coatings were also analyzed. Solvent-based coatings has higher TVOC concentrations, OFPs, and SOAFPs than water-based, solvent-based UV, water-based UV, and powder coatings. The concentrations and composition of VOCs emitted from the different types of coatings were also different. The main VOC groups of the solvent-based and solvent-based UV coatings were aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygenated volatile organic compounds(OVOCs). Specifically, the proportions of aromatic hydrocarbons are 41.91%-60.67% and 42.51%-43.00%, respectively, and the proportions of OVOCs were 24.75%-41.29% and 41.34%-43.21%, respectively. OVOCs accounted for the highest proportion of VOCs in the water-based, water-based UV, and powder coatings, at 54.02%-62.10%, 55.23%-64.81%, and 42.98%-46.45%, respectively. The major VOC compound of the solvent-based coatings was styrene(14.68%), and the main component of the water-based coatings was methylal(14.61%). The main species of VOCs from the solvent-based UV and water-based UV coatings were butyl acetate(15.36% and 20.56%, respectively). The most abundant species from the powder coatings was ethyl 3-ethoxy propionate(20.19%). Aromatic hydrocarbons were the most important contributor to the OFP of the solvent-based and solvent-based UV coatings, accounting for 79.84% and 80.32%, respectively. Aromatic hydrocarbons(51.48% and 36.71%) and OVOCs(42.30% and 41.03%) were the major contributors to the OFP of the water-based and water-based UV coatings, respectively. Aromatic hydrocarbons(43.46%), OVOCs(28.06%), and olefins(25.24%) were the main factors affecting the OFP of the powder coatings. Aromatic hydrocarbons dominate the SOAFP of solvent-based, water-based, solvent-based UV, water-based UV, and powder coatings, accounting for more than 99%.

[Sources and Control Area Division of Ozone Pollution in Cities at Prefecture Level and Above in China].

Based on the ground-level ozone concentration monitoring data in 2018, the ozone concentrations in 338 cities at the prefecture level and above were analyzed, and the TCEQ method was utilized to calculate the amount of locally generated ozone and regionally transported ozone in each city to divide the national ozone pollution control area and develop appropriate ozone pollution control measures. Correlation analysis was conducted between the amount of locally generated ozone and the daily maximum 8 h average ozone in each city to determine the main source of ozone pollution by determination coefficient (R2). The results show that 121 cities (35.8%) in China exceeded the standard in O3 concentration in 2018. The local generation of O3 in 104 cities has a great impact on the local O3 pollution, and is its main cause. In the other 234 cities, the main source of O3 pollution is regionally transported O3. Cities are classified into four categories based on their ozone concentration levels and pollution sources:cities with a nonattainment ozone situation and mainly locally generated ozone (N-L), cities with a nonattainment ozone situation and mainly regionally transported ozone (N-T), cities with a standard ozone situation and mainly locally generated ozone (S-L), and cities with a standard ozone situation and mainly regionally transported ozone (S-T). Finally, according to the proportion of four city types in each province, the whole country is divided into three types of control areas:severe, moderate, and general. N-L cities in the severe control area account for the largest proportion (20.3%) of the three types of control areas and the pollution is the highest; the proportion of the four categories of cities in the moderate control area are all medium; the general control area mainly includes S-T cities (65.4%), and the pollution is the lowest.

[Characteristics of Surface Ozone and Impact Factors at Different Station Types During the Autumn in Guangzhou].

Surface ozone (O3) has become the primary air pollutant in Guangzhou. Due to the influences of topography, meteorological conditions, and differences in precursor emissions, there are also large differences in the characteristics, formation mechanisms, and influencing factors of ozone in different areas of the same city. Based on the ground measurement data for October 2015 at four air quality monitoring stations that represent different types of regions in Guangzhou [urban area:Guangzhou Monitoring Center (GMC); upwind suburbs:Huadu Normal School (HNS); downwind suburbs:Panyu Middle School (PMS); Mountain area:Maofengshan (MFS)] and the WRF simulated meteorological data, the changing characteristics, influencing factors, and sensitivity of O3 were studied at each station. The results showed that the diurnal variation of O3 and NOx exhibit unimodal and bimodal characteristics (except for NOx at the MFS station). The peak ozone concentration appeared on Saturday at the GMC, HNS, and MFS stations, and on Thursday at the PMS station. The ozone concentration at the MFS station was the highest (98.61 µg·m-3), whereas that at the GMC station was the lowest (44.83 µg·m-3). The NOx inflection point intervals for O3 at different sites were:GMC:55-90 µg·m-3; PMS:30-60 µg·m-3; MFS:10-20 µg·m-3. The temperature inflection point intervals affecting the rate of O3 formation at different sites were:GMC:28-30℃; HNS:26-28℃; PMS:24-26℃; however, this was not obvious at the MFS station. The relative humidity inflection point intervals were:GMC:55%-65% ; HNS and PMS:60%-70% ; MFS:80%-85%. The wind speed(WS) of the light wind type was proportional to the O3 concentration. The O3 concentration at the PMS site was the highest in the northwest wind direction, and the O3 concentration at the MFS site was the highest in the other wind directions. By analyzing the multivariate linear fitting of impact factors on the O3 concentration, the main controlling factors at each site were:GMC:WS and T; PMS and HNS:T and RH; MFS:RH and WS. The ozone sensitivity at each site was as follows:GMC and HNS had a VOCs-limited regime, MFS had a NOx-limited regime, and PMS had a transition regime.

[Characteristics of Volatile Organic Compounds in Wood Coatings and Automotive Coatings in China].

Presently, there are a few studies on the measurement of industrial organic solvents in China. To determine the content and species of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in industrial organic solvents and to provide the emission factors of organic solvents, the Chinese wood and automotive coatings, which accounted for the largest proportion of production in the world, were investigated. Coating samples were obtained by sampling from companies and buying from markets, and were measured in accordance with the domestic standard testing methods for coatings. The content and composition spectrum of VOCs in the coatings were determined, and the ozone formation potential (OFP) was then calculated. The results showed that for wood coatings, the average content of the VOCs in solvent-based, water-based, and ultra-violet (UV) coatings were 37.28%, 9.88%, and 18.02%, respectively. For automotive coatings, the average content of the VOCs in water-based original equipment manufacturer (OEM) coating, solvent-based OEM coating, water-based refinishing coating, and solvent-based refinishing coating were 15.06%, 59.90%, 11.79%, and 54.50%, respectively. The content of the VOCs in different types of coatings varied substantially. The main components and OFP contributors were alcohols and ethers for water-based coatings, benzene series and esters for solvent-based coatings, and esters, alcohols, and ethers for UV coatings. The average value of the coating samples could meet the current mandatory national standards, but 12% of the solvent-based wood coating samples and 42% of the solvent-based OEM coating samples did not meet the standards. In addition, except for the benzene series of the water-based wood coatings, the contents of harmful substances in other coating samples were up to the standards.

[Volatile Organic Compound Emission Characteristics of Furniture Manufacturing Enterprises and the Influence on the Atmospheric Environment].

The furniture manufacturing industry is a typical industry with high pollution, low added value, relatively outdated technology and low levels of pollution control. The process of furniture manufacturing uses a large number of paints and adhesives, which emit a great quantity of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The furniture manufacturing industry is a key industry for the control of VOCs in China. The VOCs emission characteristics and environmental impact of the furniture manufacturing industry has been studied in this work, which could be helpful for the Chinese government when formulating VOCs pollution control policy for this industry. In this study, a typical furniture manufacturing enterprise was chosen as the object. The emission concentration level and source profile of VOCs in a typical enterprise was obtained, and an assessment of the environmental impact of furniture manufacturing was developed. The results showed that the concentration of VOCs in the workshop ranged from 9.18 to 181.58 mg·m-3, the concentration of VOCs in the stack was 30.64-155.94 mg·m-3, and the treatment efficiency was 7.43%-67.14%. The main species of VOCs in the workshop were aromatic hydrocarbons, esters, and aldehydes and ketones; the main species of VOCs in the stack are esters and aromatic hydrocarbons, followed by alkanes, and the main VOCs in the industry are sec-butyl acetate, toluene, m-xylene, methylal and ethylbenzene. The average ozone generation potential (OFP) of workshop and stack VOCs was 258.01 and 289.14 mg·m-3, respectively, and the average secondary organic aerosol generation potential (SOAFP) of workshop and stack VOCs was 148.66 and 165.31 mg·m-3, respectively. The most important contribution to the OFP and SOAFP in each emission sector is aromatic hydrocarbons. The OFP and SOAFP in the edge-sealing workshop are large and the VOCs should be controlled. The main malodorous substances at the shop boundary are sec-butyl acetate, m-xylene, butyl acetate, p-xylene, ethylbenzene, 1-ethyl-3-methylbenzene, o-xylene, and toluene; the VOCs at the factory boundary produce almost no odor pollution. Targeted enhanced control of aromatic hydrocarbons and esters should be adopted to achieve effective emission reduction of VOCs in furniture manufacturing.

[Stench Sources and Impact Analysis in Automobile Making].

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are an important source of industrial stench. This study was aimed at sampling and analyzing the stench source and its impact on the sensitive spot residential areas, concentrating on certain automobile manufacturing enterprise. The odor concentration and VOCs species of each vent stack, plant boundary, and sensitive spot in the enterprise were determined for November 15 and 17, 2016 via qualitative and quantitative analysis using the triangle odor bag method and gas pre-concentration system-gas chromatography-mass spectra. The results show that the odor concentrations of all vent stacks in the original equipment manufacturing plant and the engine plant were below the criterion level, those of the plant boundaries in the engine plant were below the limits, and those of the plant boundaries and sensitive spots in the original equipment manufacturing plant exceeded the allowed standards. A total of 54 VOCs species were identified, including aromatics, halogenated compounds, alkanes, alkene, cycloalkanes, ketones, esters, ethers, alcohols, sulfur compounds, and oxygen ring compounds. Halogenated compounds were the most abundant VOCs species, followed by aromatics. As a result, aromatics and halogenated compounds are the representative odorants in automobile making. 1,3-Butadiene and ethyl toluene were selected to be the typical odorants of sensitive spots according to mass concentration, detector odor threshold, and threshold dilution multiples of characteristic VOCs species in sensitive spots. The results show that the majority of characteristic VOCs species were from paint composition through the qualitative analysis based on paint used in coating shops. 1,3-Butadiene, which contributed the most to odor pollution, excluding the impact of other emission sources on sensitive spots, originates from spraying and drying processes of coating shops in the original equipment manufacturer. It is recommended that the enterprise should adopt environmentally friendly paints with low VOCs components or RTO purification equipment with higher processing efficiency to reduce the impact of stench on the sensitive residential areas from automobile making.

[Emission Inventory of Anthropogenic VOCs in Jiangmen City].

Anthropogenic VOC emissions are classified into four sources:industrial, mobile, life, and agricultural. An anthropogenic VOC emission inventory in Jiangmen for 2014 was developed using both "top-down" and "bottom-up" emission factor methods, based on statistical survey data. The results showed that the total anthropogenic VOC emissions in Jiangmen were 75.09 kt. VOC emissions from the industrial, mobile, life, and agricultural sources were 41.37, 19.16, 11.07, and 3.50 kt, respectively, which contributed 55.09%, 25.51%, 14.74%, and 4.65% of the total anthropogenic VOC emissions. Motorcycle manufacturing, container manufacturing, coating, printing ink, manufacturing of paint and similar products, printing and packaging printing, plastics and rubber products, artificial leather manufacturing, leather tanning, burning of fossil fuels, manufacturing of basic chemical raw materials, electronics manufacturing, adhesives manufacturing, and furniture manufacturing are key industries in Jiangmen, each of which emit more than 1000 t of VOCs annually. The main emission sources in Pengjiang, Jianghai, and Heshan are industrial, which account for more than 50% of emissions in each of these districts, whereas the main emission sources in Enping and Taishan are agricultural. Districts and county-level cities will be able to achieve better emission reduction by using the local VOC inventory in the formulation of VOC emission reduction policies.

[Scenario Analyses of the Volatile Organic Compound Emission Allowance and Allocation in the 13th Five-Year Period].

China implemented the emission allowance and allocation strategy in 2016 to achieve effective control of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). An inventory of VOCs emissions for 2015 and future emissions for 2020 were developed and predicted, respectively, using emission factors and regression analysis. The results showed that anthropogenic VOCs emission in 2015 was 31117.0 kt. VOCs emission in 2020 under the business-as-usual scenario is predicted to be 41737.2 kt, an increase of 34.13% from that in 2015. Based on the Outline of the 13th Five-Year Plan, a total amount control target and pollution reduction task of about 28005.3 kt and 13731.9 kt, respectively, were proposed. Additionally, three control scenarios, i.e., implementing VOCs emission reduction strategies in all the key areas, in all the key industries, and in the key industries of the key areas, were established for the 13th Five-Year Plan using a scenario analysis method. The results showed that some differences exist between the potential mitigation of VOCs emissions and the emission reduction target for the three control scenarios, it is difficult to realize the emission allowance target. It is necessary to devote greater efforts to control VOCs. Moreover, reducing emissions of VOCs by implementing large-scale control projects is recommended. Further, regulation of VOC emissions in key areas and industries should be emphasized.

[Reactivity-based Anthropogenic VOCs Emission Inventory in China].

A reactivity-based anthropogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emission inventory in China in 2010 was developed on the basis of ozone formation potential (OFP), using the latest VOCs emission inventory, source profiles and maximum incremental reactivity (MIR) values. The results showed that the total anthropogenic OFP was 84187.61 kt in China in 2010, of which 6882.53 kt was from alkanes, 41496.92 kt from alkenes/alkynes, 32945.32 kt from aromatic hydrocarbons, 161.45 kt from halocarbons, and 2701.40 kt from oxygenated organics. The top 10 species in terms of OFP consisted of propene, ethene, m/p-xylene, toluene, 1-butene, o-xylene, 1,2,4-trimethyl benzene, 1,3-butadiene, m-ethyl toluene and ethyl benzene, contributing 63.95% to the total OFP but only 31.84% to the mass-based emission. Industrial sources accounted for the largest (49.29%) of the total OFP, followed by transportation sources (28.31%) and agricultural sources (22.40%). The key industrial sources with high reactivity were architectural decoration industry, oil refinery industry, storage and transport, machinery equipment industry, transport equipment industry and printing. Passenger cars, motorcycles and heavy duty vehicles were the major OFP sources of transportation. The two biomass burning sources were both the key OFP sources of agriculture. Shandong, Jiangsu, Guangdong, Zhejiang and Henan were the top five provinces with contributions of 39.65% of the total OFP in China. The reactivity-based emission inventory in this study would be of great significance for the formulation of reactivity-based ozone (O3) control strategies in China.

IQdb: an intelligence quotient score-associated gene resource for human intelligence.

Intelligence quotient (IQ) is the most widely used phenotype to characterize human cognitive abilities. Recent advances in studies on human intelligence have identified many new susceptibility genes. However, the genetic mechanisms involved in IQ score and the relationship between IQ score and the risk of mental disorders have won little attention. To address the genetic complexity of IQ score, we have developed IQdb (http://IQdb.cbi.pku.edu.cn), a publicly available database for exploring IQ-associated human genes. In total, we collected 158 experimental verified genes from literature as a core dataset in IQdb. In addition, 46 genomic regions related to IQ score have been curated from literature. Based on the core dataset and 46 confirmed linked genomic regions, more than 6932 potential IQ-related genes are expanded using data of protein-protein interactions. A systematic gene ranking approach was applied to all the collected and expanded genes to represent the relative importance of all the 7090 genes in IQdb. Our further systematic pathway analysis reveals that IQ-associated genes are significantly enriched in multiple signal events, especially related to cognitive systems. Of the 158 genes in the core dataset, 81 are involved in various psychotic and mental disorders. This comprehensive gene resource illustrates the importance of IQdb to our understanding on human intelligence, and highlights the utility of IQdb for elucidating the functions of IQ-associated genes and the cross-talk mechanisms among cognition-related pathways in some mental disorders for community. Database URL: http://IQdb.cbi.pku.edu.cn.