Insight into the effect mechanism of sedimentary record of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon: Isotopic evidence for lake organic matter deposition and regional development model.

Deciphering the temporal patterns of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in sediment cores, and the effect mechanism of sedimentary organic matter (OM) and regional development model on PAHs are crucial for pollution control and environmental management. Herein, sediment core was collected from Chenhu international wetland in Wuhan, central China. Meanwhile, historical trend and source of PAHs and sedimentary OM were presented, respectively. Result demonstrated that the most significant growth of PAHs (increased by 158.8%) was attributed to the significant enhancement of traffic emission (5.57 times), coal combustion (4.59 times), and biomass burning (8.09 times). Similarly, the percentage of phytoplankton (stage Ⅲ: 37.9%; stage Ⅳ: 31.2%) and terrestrial C3 plants (stage Ⅲ: 24.6%; stage Ⅳ: 29.2%) to sedimentary OM hold the dominant position after the stage Ⅱ. The obvious shifts of historical trend and sources in PAHs were highly related to economic development models (r = 0.72, p < 0.001) and sedimentary OM (r = 0.82, p < 0.001). It demonstrated that eutrophication of lake accelerated the burial of PAHs. Redundancy analysis results suggested that TOC was dominating driver of sedimentary PAHs (16.56%) and phytoplankton occupied 9.58%. To further confirm the significant role of economic development models, three different historical trends of PAHs in different regions of China were presented. The result of this study provides the new insight into the geochemistry mechanism of lake sedimentary OM and PAHs. Meanwhile, the relationship of regional development model and sedimentary PAHs was highlighted in this study. Significantly, the main environmental implications of this study are as follows: (1) lake eutrophication of phytoplankton OM accelerated the burial of PAHs in lake sediment; (2) economic development models and energy structure significantly influence the sedimentary PAHs. This study highlights the coupling relationship between OM burial and PAHs sedimentation, and the importance of accelerating the transformation of economic energy structure.

Prognostic value of pretreatment FDG PET-CT for short-term efficacy of radioactive iodine-125 seed implantation in patients with NSCLC.

PURPOSE: To analyze the short-term clinical response of radioactive iodine-125 seed implantation (I125-SI) in patients of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and explore possible correlations of various metabolic parameters of pretreatment FDG PET-CT with the short-term efficacy of this treatment modality. METHODS AND MATERIALS: The present study is a retrospective analysis of treatment records of 46 NSCLC patients who were treated with I125-SI for lung tumors in Tianjin First Central Hospital from January 2016 to December 2018. The correlation among parameters D90, gender, pathological pattern, age, maximum tumor diameter, Metabolic Tumor Volume (MTV), SUVmax, SUVpeak, SUVmean, Total Lesion Glycolysis (TLG), High metabolic tumor cell ratio (HMR) and Carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA)with short-term efficacy of I125-SI was analyzed by two independent-sample t-test, Mann-Whitney U test or Chi-squared test and binary logistic regression. RESULTS: After uneventful completion of treatment, patients were followed up at regular intervals. At the first month followup, none of cases showed complete response (CR), while 4 cases showed partial response (PR). After 3 months, there were 2 cases of CR, and 25 cases of PR; after 6 months, there were 5 cases of CR, and 27 cases of PR. D90 (p= 0.028, OR:1.075, 95% CI:1.008-1.147), MTV (p= 0.026, OR: 0.918, 95% CI: 0.851-0.990), HMR (p= 0.020, OR: 0.003, 95% CI: 0-0.407) were independent predictors for the short-term efficacy. The predictive accuracy of MTV was medium (AUC = 0.781; cutoff value = 44.58). However, the predictive accuracies of D90 and HMR were low, with the values of AUC being 0.650 for both the parameters, and their cutoff values being 127.8 Gy and 0.27 respectively. CONCLUSIONS: I125-SI is an effective therapy with few complications in NSCLC patients. Small MTV, high D90 and low HRM were found to be linked with better local control at 6 months postimplantation.

Intranasal Delivery of Gene-Edited Microglial Exosomes Improves Neurological Outcomes after Intracerebral Hemorrhage by Regulating Neuroinflammation.

Neural inflammatory response is a crucial pathological change in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) which accelerates the formation of perihematomal edema and aggravates neural cell death. Although surgical and drug treatments for ICH have advanced rapidly in recent years, therapeutic strategies that target and control neuroinflammation are still limited. Exosomes are important carriers for information transfer among cells. They have also been regarded as a promising therapeutic tool in translational medicine, with low immunogenicity, high penetration through the blood-brain barrier, and ease of modification. In our previous research, we have found that exogenous administration of miRNA-124-overexpressed microglial exosomes (Exo-124) are effective in improving post-injury cognitive impairment. From this, we evaluated the potential therapeutic effects of miRNA-124-enriched microglial exosomes on the ICH mice in the present study. We found that the gene-edited exosomes could attenuate neuro-deficits and brain edema, improve blood-brain barrier integrity, and reduce neural cell death. Moreover, the protective effect of Exo-124 was abolished in mice depleted of Gr-1+ myeloid cells. It suggested that the exosomes exerted their functions by limiting the infiltration of leukocyte into the brain, thus controlling neuroinflammation following the onset of ICH. In conclusion, our findings provided a promising therapeutic strategy for improving neuroinflammation in ICH. It also opens a new avenue for intranasal delivery of exosome therapy using miRNA-edited microglial exosomes.

Dl-3-n-butylphthalide improves intestinal microcirculation disorders in septic rats by regulating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway and autophagy.

PURPOSE: Sepsis has complex pathophysiological mechanisms that bring new challenges in the treatment of sepsis at a time when the intestinal microcirculation in sepsis is receiving increasing attention. Dl-3-n-butylphthalide (NBP), which is a drug that can improve multiorgan ischemic diseases, is also worth examining to improve the intestinal microcirculation in sepsis. METHODS: In this study, male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into the sham group (n = 6), CLP group (n = 6), NBP group (n = 6) and NBP + LY294002 group (n = 6). The rat model of severe sepsis was established by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). Abdominal wall incisions and sutures were performed in the first group, and CLP was performed in the latter three groups. Normal saline/NBP/NBP + LY294002 solution was injected intraperitoneally 2 h or 1 h before modeling. Hemodynamic data (blood pressure and heart rate) were recorded at 0, 2, 4 and 6 h. Sidestream dark field (SDF) imaging and the Medsoft System were used to observe the intestinal microcirculation of rats and obtain data at 0, 2, 4, and 6 h. Six hours after the model was established, the serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6 were measured to evaluate the level of systemic inflammation. Pathological damage to the small intestine was evaluated by electron microscopy and histological analysis. The expression levels of P-PI3K, PI3K, P-AKT, AKT, LC3 and p62 in the small intestine were analyzed by Western blotting. The expressions of P-PI3K, P-AKT, LC3 and P62 in small intestine were detected by immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: NBP improved intestinal microcirculation disturbances in septic rats, alleviated the systemic inflammatory response, reduced the destruction of the small intestinal mucosa and the disruption of microvascular endothelial cells, and alleviated autophagy in vascular endothelial cells. NBP increased the ratio of P-PI3K/total PI3K, P-AKT/total AKT, and P62/ß-actin and decreased the ratio of LC3 II/LC3 I. CONCLUSION: NBP ameliorated intestinal microcirculation disturbances and the destruction of small intestinal vascular endothelial cells in septic rats by activating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and regulating autophagy.

New insight into the geochemical mechanism and behavior of heavy metals in soil and dust fall of a typical copper smelter.

The desorption mechanism of heavy metals (HMs) in soil around the mining region are complex and affected by multiple pollution sources, including sewage discharge and atmospheric deposition. Meanwhile, pollution sources would change soil physical and chemical properties (mineralogy and organic matter), thus affecting the bioavailability of HMs. This study aimed to investigate the pollution source of HMs (Cd, Co, Cu, Cr, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in soil near mining, and further evaluate influence mechanism of dust fall on HMs pollution in soil by desorption dynamics processes and pH-dependence leaching test. Result presented that dust fall is the primary pollution source to HMs accumulation in soil. Additionally, the result of mineralogical analysis in dust fall revealed that quartz, kaolinite, calcite, chalcopyrite, and magnetite are the major mineralogical phases by XRD and SEM-EDS. Meanwhile, the abundance of kaolinite and calcite in dust fall is higher than in soil, which is the primary reason of higher acid-base buffer capacity of dust fall. Correspondingly, the weakened or disappeared of hydroxyl after the adding acid extraction (0-0.4 mmol· g-1) demonstrated that hydroxyl is the main participants of HMs absorption in soil and dust fall. These combined findings suggested that atmospheric deposition not only increases the pollution loading of HMs in soil, but also changes the mineral phase composition of soil, which would increase the adsorption capacity and bioavailability of HMs in soil. This is very remarkable that heavy metals in soil influenced by dust fall pollution could be released preferentially when soil pH is changed. The present results of this study would provide efficient and scientific targeted strategies for pollution control of HMs in soil near mining areas.

Routine Use of a Pocket-Sized Handheld Echoscopic Device Plus a Biomarker by Emergency Medicine Residents with an Early Screening Algorithm for Suspected Type A Acute Aortic Syndrome.

(1) Background: The early screening strategy for type A acute aortic syndrome (A-AAS) patients has always been challenging. (2) Methods: From September 2020-31 March 2022, 179 consecutive patients with suspected A-AAS were retrospectively reviewed. We assessed the diagnostic value of the use of handheld echocardiographic devices (PHHEs) by emergency medicine (EM) residents either alone or in combination with serum acidic calponin in this patient group. (3) Results: The direct sign of PHHE had a specificity (SP) of 97.7%. The sign of ascending aortic dilatation showed SE = 77.6%, SP = 68.5%, PPV = 48.1% and NPV = 89%. SE, SP, PPV and NPV of a positive PHHE direct sign were 55.6%, 100%, 100% and 71.4% in 19 hypotension/shock patients with suspected A-AAS, respectively. The area under curve (AUC) of acidic calponin combined with an ascending aorta diameter >40 mm was 0.927, with an SE and SP of 83.7% and 89.2%, respectively. These two combined indicators significantly improved the diagnostic efficiency of A-AAS compared with either of them alone (p = 0.017; standard error 0.016, Z value 2.39; p = 0.001, standard error 0.028, Z value 3.29). (4) Conclusion: EM resident-performed PHHE was highly indicative of A-AAS in patients presenting with shock or hypotension. An ascending aorta diameter > 40 mm combined with acidic calponin demonstrated acceptable diagnostic accuracy as a rapid first-line triage tool to identify patients with suspected A-AAS.

Occurrence, distribution and risk assessment of microplastics and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in East lake, Hubei, China.

The pollution of microplastics (MPs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the environment is a global problem, which has attracted extensive attention of many researchers. In present study, MPs and PAHs are investigated to study the impact of human activities and their possible relationship in China's second largest urban lake, East Lake. The abundance of MPs are 3329.19 ± 2059.26 particles/m3 and 2207.56 ± 1194.04 particles/kg in water and sediment, respectively. MPs are predominantly characterized by fibers, polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE), colorlessness in water and sediment. The abundance of MPs in water with frequent human activities is higher, which is reversed in sediments, indicating that disturbance is not conducive to the enrichment of MPs in sediments. The concentration of 16 PAHs are 36.95 ± 13.76 ng/L and 897.08 ± 232.34 ng/g in water and sediment, respectively. PAHs in water are mainly 2-3-ring, while there are 4-ring PAHs in sediments. The good corresponding relationship between MPs and PAHs indicates that human activities have an important impact on the distribution of pollutants compared to the interaction of pollutants. In addition, the significant positive correlation between lakeshore length and water MPs abundance indicates that surface runoff may be an important source of water MPs. The pollution load index shows that MPs in sediment has reached moderate to severe pollution level, while the water is slightly polluted level. The potential ecological risk assessment results show that more than half of the sediment sites are at dangerous to very dangerous ecological risk level.

Influence of temperature and precipitation on the fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: simulation experiments on peat cores from a typical alpine peatland in Central China.

The corresponding relationships between temperature, precipitation, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentration in a typical ombrotrophic peatland in Dajiuhu, Shennongjia, were quantitatively characterized by field sampling tests validated with simulation experiments. The PAH concentrations of peat cores in Dajiuhu peatland ranged from 262 to 977 ng·g-1, with a mean value of 536 ± 284 ng·g-1. PAHs were mainly composed of 2-3 ring PAHs, accounting for 31.7% ± 2.00% and 31.7% ± 5.00%, respectively. The concentration of PAHs in peat cores showed a significant decrease with increasing temperature, while the low molecular weight PAHs (LMW-PAHs) were more sensitive to temperature changes compared to the high molecular weight PAHs (HMW-PAHs). Besides, with the increase of quantity and velocity of leaching liquid, PAHs in peat were first transferred in the form of attached large-size particles and then gradually entered the aqueous phase. According to the IPCC projections of global warming, Dajiuhu peatland will release 956 ± 26.3 kg·°C-1 PAHs into gas phase during 2030-2052, and a conservative projection based on local temperature trends showed that 459 ± 12.6 kg·°C-1 PAHs will be released into gas phase by 2047 in Dajiuhu peatland. The projected release fluxes of PAHs in Dajiuhu peatland with precipitation volume and precipitation velocity are 381 ± 201 kg·100 mm-1 and 1052 ± 167 kg·min·mL-1, respectively, which are primarily from peat into particulate and aqueous phase.

Bioavailability and regional transport of PM2.5 during heavy haze episode in typical coal city site of Fenwei Plain, China.

Despite the decrease in anthropogenic emissions, haze episodes were still frequent in the Fenwei Plain, which was identified as one of the three key areas for air pollution control. Herein, PM2.5 samples were collected to investigate the influence of festival effect during the Chinese Spring Festival from February 2rd to 13th, 2019, in Linfen on the Fenwei Plain. The characteristics of element pollution, enrichment factor, source apportionment, regional transport of PM2.5, and health risk assessment were discussed. Meanwhile, the simulated lung fluid method (SLF) was carried out to accurately assess the inhalation risks of heavy metals (HMs). Results indicated that the average concentration of PM2.5 was 195.6 µg·m-3 during the studying period. Road fugitive dust (15.6%), firework burning source (25.6%), industrial emission (30.5%), and coal combustion (28.3%) were identified by positive matrix factorization (PMF) modeling. Using the HYSPLIT trajectory model, air masses from the central Shaanxi, southern Hebei, and northern Henan were the dominant transport paths during the Spring Festival, which contributed 21.9 and 41.2% of total trajectories, respectively. The findings that high PSCF and CWT levels were found in central Shaanxi, southern Hebei, and northern Henan were confirmed. The SLF mean bioaccessibility (%) of the solubility of particulate metals was in order of Mn > Ni > Sb > Ba > Zn > Pb > Cr. However, the carcinogenic risk value of Cr was the highest, exceeding the maximum acceptable risk. The present study provided important information for further analyzing the air pollution cause of Fenwei Plain.

The characteristics of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heavy metals in water and sediment of dajiuhu subalpine wetland, shennongjia, central China, 2018-2020: Insights for sources, sediment-water exchange, and ecological risk.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heavy metals (HMs) are persistent environmental issues. Secondary emissions are produced as a result of climate change and human activity. To observe spatio-temporal variations of PAHs and HMs and to discuss the sources as well as the source or sink of PAHs for sediment and peat, twelve surface sediment and surface water sites were chosen along the direction of the flow to down hole in the Dajiuhu area, simultaneously, surface peat and water samples were collected in peatland. Samples were continuously taken for three years (Sep. 2018, Sep. 2019, and Sep. 2020, respectively). The results showed that PAHs and HMs are common in sediment and peat. PAHs concentration is generally higher in peat and water, while HMs concentration is relatively higher in water and relatively low in sediment and peat, and the ecological risk of sediment was low. HMs in sediment are mainly affected by rock weathering, while PAHs are mainly affected by atmospheric deposition, biomass and coal combustion and vehicle emission. HMs and PAHs can be used as an indicator of rock weathering and human activity in Dajiuhu area, respectively. A water-sediment fugacity analysis revealed that peat is a sink for PAHs, confirming that it has a high capacity for adsorbing organic contaminants, and that sediments are secondary sources of PAHs that can release them into water. Attention should be paid to the increased fugacity fraction (ff) value in peatland, indicating that peat might be converted from a sink to a source of PAHs.

Research advances in the study of sleep disorders, circadian rhythm disturbances and Alzheimer's disease.

Although there are still no satisfactory answers to the question of why we need to sleep, a better understanding of its function will help to improve societal attitudes toward sleep. Sleep disorders are very common in neurodegenerative diseases and are a key factor in the quality of life of patients and their families. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an insidious and irreversible neurodegenerative disease. Along with progressive cognitive impairment, sleep disorders and disturbances in circadian rhythms play a key role in the progression of AD. Sleep and circadian rhythm disturbances are more common in patients with AD than in the general population and can appear early in the course of the disease. Therefore, this review discusses the bidirectional relationships among circadian rhythm disturbances, sleep disorders, and AD. In addition, pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment options for patients with AD and sleep disorders are outlined.

Prognostic role of elevated VEGF in sepsis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: The incidence and mortality of sepsis are increasing year by year, and there is still a lack of specific biomarkers to predict its prognosis. Prognostic value of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in predicting the severity and mortality of sepsis has been gradually discovered. Methods: Literature was searched through Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI) and Cochrane Library databases in March 2022. Observational studies, evaluating the impact of VEGF in sepsis outcomes (mortality and severity) are included in this meta-analysis. Risk of bias was assessed with the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). Sensitivity and publication bias analyses were also assessed. Meta-regression analysis were performed to identify the potential sources of heterogeneity. Result: A total of 1,574 articles were retrieved from the systematic literature search. We included 20 studies for qualitative and quantitative analysis. Deceased and critically ill patients had higher baseline VEGF levels than survivors and non-severe patients. The pooled sensitivity and specificity for VEGF predicts sepsis mortality were 0.79and 0.76, respectively. the area under the SROC curve was 0.83. Conclusion: High VEGF are associated with poor clinical outcomes for patients diagnosed with sepsis. This study was recorded on PROSPERO, under the registration ID: CRD42022323079.

Impact of short-term control measures on air quality: A case study during the 7th Military World Games in central China.

The 7th Military World Games held in Wuhan (WH) in Oct 2019 provided an opportunity to clarify the impact of short-term control measures on air quality. Fine particulate matters (PM2.5) were collected in WH, Huangshi (HS), and Huanggang (HG) during the control (Oct 13-28, 2019) and non-control periods (Oct 29- Nov 5, 2019). The results showed that air quality was good during the control period, with the concentrations of PM2.5 and gaseous pollutants being below the Grade Ⅱ of China Ambient Air Quality Standard. Concentrations of PM2.5 and its major chemical components in the control period were significantly lower than those in the non-control period, with reductions ranging from 17% (trace elements) to 46% (elemental carbon). However, higher contributions of secondary components such as SO42-, NO3-, NH4+ and secondary organic carbon (SOC) to PM2.5 were observed during the control period, suggesting the important role of secondary transformation. Potential source contribution function (PSCF) of PM2.5 showed that the main source regions were potentially located in surrounding cities Hubei Province, but regional transport can't be ignored. Six sources were identified by positive matrix factorization (PMF) for both control and non-control period. The contributions of combustion emissions and vehicle emissions were amplified in the control period, while the contribution of construction dust increased significantly when the control measures ended. Emission reductions contributed more to PM2.5 concentration decrease in WH (55%) than that in HS (51%) and HG (49%), which was consistent with the stricter control measures implemented in WH. These results indicated that short-term controls were effective at lowering PM2.5 concentration. However, the elevated contributions of secondary aerosols and the influence of regional transport on the study areas also need to be paid attention for air quality improvement in the future.

Mesenchymal stromal cell treatment attenuates repetitive mild traumatic brain injury-induced persistent cognitive deficits via suppressing ferroptosis.

The incidence of repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI), one of the main risk factors for predicting neurodegenerative disorders, is increasing; however, its underlying mechanism remains unclear. As suggested by several studies, ferroptosis is possibly related to TBI pathophysiology, but its effect on rmTBI is rarely studied. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), the most studied experimental cells in stem cell therapy, exert many beneficial effects on diseases of the central nervous system, yet evidence regarding the role of MSCs in ferroptosis and post-rmTBI neurodegeneration is unavailable. Our study showed that rmTBI resulted in time-dependent alterations in ferroptosis-related biomarker levels, such as abnormal iron metabolism, glutathione peroxidase (GPx) inactivation, decrease in GPx4 levels, and increase in lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, MSC treatment markedly decreased the aforementioned rmTBI-mediated alterations, neuronal damage, pathological protein deposition, and improved cognitive function compared with vehicle control. Similarly, liproxstatin-1, a ferroptosis inhibitor, showed similar effects. Collectively, based on the above observations, MSCs ameliorate cognitive impairment following rmTBI, partially via suppressing ferroptosis, which could be a therapeutic target for rmTBI.

Huge quantities of microplastics are "hidden" in the sediment of China's largest urban lake-Tangxun Lake.

Microplastics (MPs) pollution in Tangxun Lake, the largest urban lake in China, was investigated. The average MPs pollution in sediment (1.81 ± 1.75 × 104 items kg-1) is at a high level, while the MPs in lakeshore water (917.77 ± 742.17 items m-3) is in the middle to low level compared with existing studies, which is related to the government's protection. Fragments and fibers are the most common shapes in sediment and water, respectively. MPs size <1 mm dominates in the sediment, while the MPs in water has a larger size. The distribution of MPs in the inner lake shows that pellets tend to "hidden" in sediments. Suspected MPs are randomly selected for polymer detection by Micro-Raman microscopy. Polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are the most common polymer types in water, sediment and atmospheric deposition MPs samples. The input of wastewater, fishery and surrounding human activities are the main sources of MPs in sediment. Atmospheric deposition has a great impact on the distribution of MPs, while the contribution of surface runoff to lake MPs is not remarkable. In addition, MPs in sediments have exceeded the environmental carrying capacity. More attention should be focused on the sediment, where huge amounts of MPs are "hidden".

Variation of pollution sources and health effects on air pollution before and during COVID-19 pandemic in Linfen, Fenwei Plain.

Stringent pollution control measures are generally applied to improve air quality, especially in the Spring Festival in China. Meanwhile, human activities are reduced significantly due to nationwide lockdown measures to curtail the COVID-19 spreading in 2020. Herein, to better understand the influence of control measures and meteorology on air pollution, this study compared the variation of pollution source and their health risk during the 2019 and 2020 Spring Festival in Linfen, China. Results revealed that the average concentration of PM2.5 in 2020 decreased by 39.0% when compared to the 2019 Spring Festival. Organic carbon (OC) and SO42- were the primary contributor to PM2.5 with the value of 19.5% (21.1%) and 23.5% (25.5%) in 2019 (2020) Spring Festival, respectively. Based on the positive matrix factorization (PMF) model, six pollution sources of PM2.5 were indicated. Vehicle emissions (VE) had the maximum reduction in pollution source concentration (28.39 µg· m-3), followed by dust fall (DF) (11.47 µg· m-3), firework burning (FB) (10.39 µg· m-3), coal combustion (CC) (8.54 µg· m-3), and secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA) (3.95 µg· m-3). However, the apportionment concentration of biomass burning (BB) increased by 78.7%, indicating a significant increase in biomass combustion under control measures. PAHs-lifetime lung cancer risk (ILCR) of VE, CC, FB, BB, and DF, decreased by 44.6%, 43.2%, 34.1%, 21.3%, and 2.0%, respectively. Additionally, the average contribution of meteorological conditions on PM2.5 in 2020 increased by 20.21% compared to 2019 Spring Festival, demonstrating that meteorological conditions played a crucial role in located air pollution. This study revealed that the existing control measures in Linfen were efficient to reduce air pollution and health risk, whereas more BB emissions were worthy of further attention. Furthermore, the result was conducive to developing more effective control measures and putting more attention into unfavorable meteorological conditions in Linfen.

The mechanistic investigation of geochemical fractionation, bioavailability and release kinetic of heavy metals in contaminated soil of a typical copper-smelter.

Identifying the bioavailability and release-desorption mechanism of heavy metals (HMs) in soil is critical to understand the release risk of HMs. Simultaneously, the mechanistic investigation of affecting the bioavailability of HMs in soil is necessary, such as the grain-size distribution and soil mineralogy. Herein, the bioavailability of HMs (Cu, Cd, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in different area soils near a typical copper-smelter was evaluated by the sequential extraction technique (BCR), diffusive gradients in thin-films (DGT), and DGT-induced fluxes in sediments (DIFS) model. Results showed that the HMs proportion of the residual fraction in all soils was the highest. The average bioavailability concentration (CDGT) of Cu and Cd in industrial soil was the highest, with 45.12 µg· L-1 and 9.06 µg· L-1. The result of DIFS model revealed that the decreased order of the mean value of desorption rate constant (K-1) was Cd > Zn > Ni > Cu > Pb, 5.91 × 10-5, 4.96 × 10-5, 2.89 × 10-5, 9.64 × 10-6, and 8.69 × 10-6, respectively. According to the spatial distribution of release potential (R-value), the release potential of labile-Cu in agricultural soil was the highest, which was mainly attributed to fertilizer application in farmland. Simultaneously, the reduced hydroxyl was also related to the agricultural activities, resulting in the weakened adsorption capacity of HMs by soil. Redundancy analysis (RDA) results showed that the bioavailability of Cd, Ni, and Zn was mainly driven by soil pH, while the bioavailability of Cu and Pb was primarily driven by dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Meanwhile, carbonate minerals had a positive correlation with the bioavailability of Cd, Ni, and Zn, which could promote the release of HMs in mining soil as chemical weathering progresses. In conclusion, this study provides a structured method which can be used as a standard approach for similar scenarios to determine the geochemical fractionation, bioavailability, and release kinetics of heavy metals in soils.

Status and prospects of atmospheric microplastics: A review of methods, occurrence, composition, source and health risks.

The global pollution of microplastics (MPs) has attracted widespread attention, and the atmosphere was an indispensable media for the global transmission of MPs. With the growing awareness of MPs, atmospheric microplastics (AMPs) have been proposed as a new topic in recent years. Compared with the extensive studies on MPs in Marine and terrestrial environments, the studies of AMPs remain limited. In this study, sampling and analysis methods, occurrence, source analysis and health risk of AMPs were summarized and discussed. According to the different sampling methods, AMPs can be divided into suspension microplastics (SAMPs) and deposition microplastics (DAMPs). Previous studies have shown that SAMPs and DAMPs differ in composition and abundance, with SAMPs generally having a higher fraction of fragments. The mechanism of the migration of AMPs between different media was not clear yet. We further collated global data on the composition characteristics of MPs in soil and fresh water, which showed that the fragment MPs in soil and fresh water was higher than that in the atmosphere. Polymers in soil and fresh water were mainly PP and PE, while AMPs in the atmosphere were mainly PET. The shape composition of the MPs in both atmospheric and freshwater systems suggests that there may be the same dominant factor. The transport of AMPs and source apportionment were the important issues of current research, but both of them were at the initial stage. Therefore, AMPs needs to be further studied, especially for the source and fate, which would be conducive to understand the global distribution of AMPs. Furthermore, a standardized manual on sampling and processing of AMPs was also necessary to facilitate the comparative analysis of data between different studies and the construction of global models.

Modafinil Reduces Neuronal Pyroptosis and Cognitive Decline After Sleep Deprivation.

Sleep deprivation (SD) induces systemic inflammation that promotes neuronal pyroptosis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an antioxidant modafinil on neuronal pyroptosis and cognitive decline following SD. Using a mouse model of SD, we found that modafinil improved learning and memory, reduced proinflammatory factor (IL-1ß, TNF-α, and IL-6) production, and increased the expression of anti-inflammatory factors (IL-10). Modafinil treatment attenuated inflammasome activity and reduced neuronal pyroptosis involving the NLRP3/NLRP1/NLRC4-caspase-1-IL-1ß pathway. In addition, modafinil induced an upregulation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and synaptic activity. These results suggest that modafinil reduces neuronal pyroptosis and cognitive decline following SD. These effects should be further investigated in future studies to benefit patients with sleep disorders.

Inhibition of Exosome Release Alleviates Cognitive Impairment After Repetitive Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

BACKGROUND: Repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI) is closely associated with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Neuroinflammation and neuropathological protein accumulation are key links to CTE progression. Exosomes play important roles in neuroinflammation and neuropathological protein accumulation and spread. Here, we explored the role of brain-derived exosomes (BDEs) in mice with rmTBI and how the inhibition of BDE release contributes to neuroprotection. METHODS: GW4869 was used to inhibit exosome release, and behavioural tests, PET/CT and western blotting were conducted to explore the impact of this inhibition from different perspectives. We further evaluated cytokine expression by Luminex and microglial activation by immunofluorescence in mice with rmTBI after exosome release inhibition. RESULTS: Inhibition of BDE release reversed cognitive impairment in mice with rmTBI, enhanced glucose uptake and decreased neuropathological protein expression. Inhibition of BDE release also changed cytokine production trends and enhanced microglial proliferation. CONCLUSION: In this study, we found that BDEs are key factor in cognitive impairment in mice with rmTBI and that microglia are the main target of BDEs. Thus, inhibition of exosome release may be a new strategy for improving CTE prognoses.