Interaction of MS prevalence, radon gas concentration, and patient nutrition: a case-control study.

In general, ecological findings indicate a positive correlation between MS and the intake of certain foods. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between radon (Rn) gas concentration and nutrition of patients in food groups with MS. Demographic information, diet, and building characteristics were collected by a questionnaire. Indoors Rn gas was measured using CR-39 detectors. Three models were used in the study of food intake. The interaction analysis between MS prevalence, diet, residential building characteristics, and Rn gas content was performed using SPSS 2020. The total Rn was significantly associated with cooling devices (P = 0.021). Buildings > 20 years had higher Rn concentrations than buildings < 20 years (P = 0.038). Also, no significant relationship was found between Rn-total and MS concentrations, but the total Rn concentration was higher in people homes with MS. Case group used more processed meat than the control (P < 0.001). The case group consumed more butter than the control, which was significant in Model III (P < 0.04). Tomato consumption in the case group was significantly higher than the control (P < 0.03). According to the results there was no interaction between Rn gas concentration in any of the food groups in each cases. However, future studies with larger sample sizes will be needed prospectively.

Ambient air pollution and cardiovascular disease rate an ANN modeling: Yazd-Central of Iran.

This study was aimed to investigate the air pollutants impact on heart patient's hospital admission rates in Yazd for the first time. Modeling was done by time series, multivariate linear regression, and artificial neural network (ANN). During 5 years, the mean concentrations of PM10, SO2, O3, NO2, and CO were 98.48 µg m-3, 8.57 ppm, 19.66 ppm, 18.14 ppm, and 4.07 ppm, respectively. The total number of cardiovascular disease (CD) patients was 12,491, of which 57% and 43% were related to men and women, respectively. The maximum correlation of air pollutants was observed between CO and PM10 (R = 0.62). The presence of SO2 and NO2 can be dependent on meteorological parameters (R = 0.48). Despite there was a positive correlation between age and CD (p = 0.001), the highest correlation was detected between SO2 and CD (R = 0.4). The annual variation trend of SO2, NO2, and CO concentrations was more similar to the variations trend in meteorological parameters. Moreover, the temperature had also been an effective factor in the O3 variation rate at lag = 0. On the other hand, SO2 has been the most effective contaminant in CD patient admissions in hospitals (R = 0.45). In the monthly database classification, SO2 and NO2 were the most prominent factors in the CD (R = 0.5). The multivariate linear regression model also showed that CO and SO2 were significant contaminants in the number of hospital admissions (R = 0.46, p = 0.001) that both pollutants were a function of air temperature (p = 0.002). In the ANN nonlinear model, the 14, 12, 10, and 13 neurons in the hidden layer were formed the best structure for PM, NO2, O3, and SO2, respectively. Thus, the Rall rate for these structures was 0.78-0.83. In these structures, according to the autocorrelation of error in lag = 0, the series are stationary, which makes it possible to predict using this model. According to the results, the artificial neural network had a good ability to predict the relationship between the effect of air pollutants on the CD in a 5 years' time series.

Risk assessment and disease burden of legionella presence in cooling towers of Iran's central hospitals.

Regular monitoring and measurement of Legionella in tower water and preventive measures against contamination are particularly important in hospitals. This study aimed at risk assessment and disease burden because of legionella presence in cooling towers of Iran's central hospitals. Then its correlation with temperature, pH, turbidity, residual chlorine, and EC was investigated by the Pearson test. The health risk and burden of diseases caused by Legionella exposure were determined using QMRA and DALY models. Statistical analysis and modeling were performed in MATLAB2018. Of the total samples, 30-43% was infected with Legionella. The mean concentrations in hospital A and B were 5-102.5 ± 10 and 5-89.7 ± 0.7 CFU/L, respectively. Among environmental factors, turbidity and pH were the most effective factors in increasing and decreasing Legionella concentration, respectively. According to the QMRA model, the risks of Legionella infections and annual mortality in both hospitals were 0.2-0.3, 0-0.19, 2-2.9 × 10-5, and 0-0.7 × 10-5, respectively, which was higher than the acceptable risk range for Legionella (10-4-10-7). However, the trend of its change was negatively correlated with time (RB = - 0.77). According to the results, the concentration of Legionella and the exposure risk in both hospitals were higher than the permissible range, which is necessary to decrease to 0.1 current concentrations.

Simultaneous reduction and adsorption of arsenite anions by green synthesis of iron nanoparticles using pomegranate peel extract.

PURPOSE: Arsenic is a toxic metalloid that is present in the environment as arsenate and arsenite anions. Exposure to arsenic anions caused skin problems, degenerative diseases, kidney, liver, and lung cancer. The synthesized iron nanoparticles (NPs) were examined as a green low-cost adsorbent for the removal of arsenite anions from aqueous solution via batch adsorption procedure. METHODS: Iron NPs were prepared in a single step by the reaction of Fe+3 0.01 M solution with a fresh aqueous solution of 2% w/v pomegranate peel extract (PPE) as both reducing and capping agents. The physicochemical properties of peel were investigated by some experiments and functional groups were determined by the FT-IR spectrum. The electrochemical behavior of PPE was studied using cyclic voltammetry on a glassy carbon electrode as produced a cathodic peak at range 120-400 mV. The progress of nZVI production was monitored by a decrease of 372 nm wavelength UV-Vis spectra of PPE. The 27 adsorption experiments were carried out as a function of solution pH, initial arsenite concentration, mass adsorbent, and contact time according to DOE. RESULTS: The rapid rate of adsorption was observed at 20-60 min, indicating that the principal mechanism dominating the sorption process was reduction and chemical adsorption. The arsenite removal efficiency was found to be dependent on the solution pH, adsorbent dose, and initial concentration, respectively. CONCLUSION: The experimental data show the ability of the synthesized iron NPs to remove arsenate from solution in both synthetic and polluted natural water. The thermodynamic study suggested the spontaneous and endothermic nature of adsorption of arsenite by green synthesized iron NPs. The iron NPs synthesized with PPE increased the removal of arsenite with an increase in the active surface, indicating some chemical interactions between the adsorbent and oxoanions.

The toxicity of SiO2 NPs on cell proliferation and cellular uptake of human lung fibroblastic cell line during the variation of calcination temperature and its modeling by artificial neural network.

Less attention had been paid to cell toxicity of the various synthesis methods of nanoparticles, this study investigated the effect of the calcination temperature(CT) on the crystallization of SiO2 nanoparticles(NPs), cell proliferation(CP), and cellular uptake(CU) in MRC-5. In this study, parameters were adjusted as CT(70-1000 °C), calcination time(2, 12, and 24 h), and catalyst feed rate(0.01, 0.05, and 0.1 mL.min1). CP was determined by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide(MTT) test after a 24-h exposure. The CU was achieved using ICP-MS. Results were analyzed using MATLAB2018. Results revealed that the size of synthesized particles was lower than 50 nm and, the XRD peak varied from 21 to 30° during the increase in CT. FTIR spectra confirmed the existence of Si-O and Si-Cl bonds. The maximum level of crystallization was at 1000 °C. CP decreased with the rise in the concentration of NPs(p < 0.05), as well as an increase in feed rate. A positive relationship between increased crystallization and decreased CP(R = 0.78) was seen, while such a trend was not observed in calcination time. The suggested structure in this study was 4:10:1 with Rall = 0.97, Rtest = 0.97, RMSE = 0.25, and MSE = 0.003. Furthermore, the CU rate increased with the rise in CT and calcination time. The maximum and minimum CU levels were related to NPs calcinated in 1000 °C-24 h and 350 °C-2 h, respectively. As a consequence, the most toxicity of SiO2 NPs was related to the crystalline NP. Therefore, the increase in CT and the calcination time were significant factors affecting on crystallization of SiO2 NPs, CP of lung cell, as well as CU of SiO2. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40201-021-00663-4.

Effect of land use changes on non-carcinogenic health risks due to nitrate exposure to drinking groundwater.

This study aimed to determine the effect of land-use changes on the non-carcinogenic health risk of nitrate ion exposure of underground drinking water resources in Shiraz (Iran). To this end, 175 chemical samples for the nitrate analysis were regularly taken from 35 drinking water wells of Shiraz from 2013 to 2017, and their results were zoned using GIS. Hazard quotient (HQ) induced by nitrate ion exposure was determined in four age groups: infants, children, adolescents, and adults. Area changes of four types of land-use, including residential, agricultural and green space, industrial, and bare land within a radius of 400 m of drinking water wells, were determined using the GIS and Google Earth software. Then, all data was imported to Matlab 2018 for statistical analysis. The results showed that mean nitrate concentration increased by 2.5 mg L-1 from 2013 to 2017. According to the zoning map, 5 and 11.4% of the area in 2013 and 2017, respectively, exceeded the drinking water standard set by nitrate (i.e., 50 mg/L). Air temperature and precipitation variations also influenced nitrate concentrations and HQ changes (Rtemperature = 0.67). Children's age group was the most vulnerable, and during the study period, this vulnerability was an increasing trend, so that the HQ from 0.93 in 2013 to 0.97 in 2017 has increased. The rate of land-use changes in agricultural, industrial, bare, and urban was -1.8%, 1.3%, -4.6%, and 2.1%, respectively, and the highest correlation was observed between HQ and Diff.l residential land use (Rinfant = 0.55). According to the results, the most influential factor in HQ was air temperature (R = 0.66), and urban land-use change (R > 0.44). To sum up, this study's results showed that land-use changes, especially urban and residential development, significantly affect groundwater nitrate concentration and its degree of HQ. Moreover, increasing temperature and decreasing annual precipitation can also increase the severity of this risk.

Is there a relationship between homes' radon gas of MS and non-MS individuals, and the patients' paraclinical magnetic resonance imaging and visually evoked potentials in Yazd-Iran?

Long-term inhalation of radon gas can cause harm to humans and lead to many diseases. One of these diseases is multiple sclerosis (MS), the most common chronic disease of the central nervous system, which alters the brain structure and impedes the rapid transmission of nerve signals throughout the neuron system. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship of the radon gas concentration in residential homes of MS and non-MS individuals with their results of paraclinical MRI and VEP in Yazd City, Iran. The radon gas concentration was measured in residential homes of 44 people with MS and 100 healthy people. To this end, the questionnaire of radon gas monitoring in residential buildings was administered, and the radon gas concentration was measured by CR-39 detectors. The mean radon concentrations in the homes of MS and non-MS people were 69.51 and 70.83, respectively. A significant positive relationship was found between radon concentration and building's age (P = 0.038). Furthermore, radon concentration had a significant inverse relationship with the building's ventilation (P = 0.053) and cooling systems (P = 0.021). No significant relationship was observed between total radon concentration and MS incidence (P = 0.88). Moreover, no significant correlation was found between radon concentration and location of the plaque in MRI test results of the patients. However, it showed an inverse non-significant correlation with the plaque's number (r = - 0.12, P = 0.42). Further studies in this area are recommended.

Effect of land use on cultivable bioaerosols in the indoor air of hospital in southeast Iran and its determination of the affected radius around of hospital.

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of land use on hospital bioaerosols and determine the effective radius. The concentration of fungi and bacteria in indoor and outdoor air was determined by the 0800NIOSH. Then land uses were determined by Google earth within a range of 0.5-5 km around three hospitals. Data were analyzed by using Spearman correlation, and a t test was used to determine differences between groups. Data were recorded in Excel and entered into Matlab2018 for analysis. The results of the study showed that the concentration of fungi and bacteria was higher in the indoor and outdoor hospital B (bacteria = 343-43, fungi = 106-291 CFU/m3) (P = 0.04). Maximum land use was also found in hospitals A and B related to urban and bare, while in hospital C, they were urban and bare. Mathematical modeling has shown that the trend of land-use variation over different radii consisted of the Gaussian model (in hospital B) and Fourier series (in hospitals A and C). Besides, there was a positive correlation between the bare and fungal and bacterial concentrations. Finally, the most effective bare radius of application on the indoor and outdoor fungi was 4 and 5 km, respectively (R2 = 0.99). The effective radius for reducing fungi and bacteria by creating green space was 0.5 and 3 km from the hospital center (R2fungi = - 0.99, R2bacteria = - 0.8). Based on these results, land use is an effective factor in airborne fungi and bacteria in hospitals. Therefore, their control and management of land use during 5 km is necessary to reduce pollution.

The role of environmental factors to transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19).

The current outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in more than 250 countries has become a serious threat to the health of people around the world. Human-to-human transmission of the Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) occurs most often when people are in the incubation stage of the disease or are carriers and have no symptoms. Therefore, in this study, was discussed the role of environmental factors and conditions such as temperature, humidity, wind speed as well as food, water and sewage, air, insects, inanimate surfaces, and hands in COVID-19 transmission. The results of studies on the stability of the SARS-CoV-2 on different levels showed that the resistance of this virus on smooth surfaces was higher than others. Temperature increase and sunlight can facilitate the destruction of SARS-COV-2 and the stability of it on surfaces. When the minimum ambient air temperature increases by 1 °C, the cumulative number of cases decreases by 0.86%. According to the latest evidence, the presence of coronavirus in the sewer has been confirmed, but there is no evidence that it is transmitted through sewage or contaminated drinking water. Also, SARS-COV-2 transmission through food, food packages, and food handlers has not been identified as a risk factor for the disease. According to the latest studies, the possibility of transmitting SARS-COV-2 bioaerosol through the air has been reported in the internal environment of ophthalmology. The results additionally show that infectious bio-aerosols can move up to 6 feet. There have been no reports of SARS-COV-2 transmission by blood-feeding arthropods such as mosquitoes.

The impact of agricultural and green waste treatments on compost quality of dewatered sludge.

Composting is one of the environmentally desirable methods for the management of sewage sludge. In this process, the organic matters were decomposed by microorganisms. However, different treatments can improve their qualities. This study aimed to investigate the effect of two agricultural waste wheat straw (WS) and green waste eucalyptus tree leaves (ETL) treatments on the quality of the compost produced from dewatered sewage sludge. So that, the variation trend of heavy metals, temperature, moisture, PH, and C/N ratio was considered during the composting process. The results showed that the variation of some parameters in WS and ETL such as temperature (24.68 ± 0.26 and 23.41 ± 1.35), moisture (4.5 ± 2.64 and 7.66 ± 2.51), pH (5.66 ± 0.35 and 5.97 ± 0.41), and C/N ratio (250 ± 4.08 and 60 ± 3.21) was suitable in both windrows, respectively. Likewise, trend of mineralization was suitable in both masses, because TVS (43 to 78 mg/g DW for WS and 45 to 69 mg/g DW for ETL) and TDS (21 to 55 mg/g DW for WS and 2.6 to 38 mg/g DW for ETL) decreased and increased, respectively, in the composting process. While fecal coliform (2.72 MPN/g DW) and EC (2.4mmho/cm) at WS was more than Iran's agricultural standard. As a consequence, although the quality of both masses was suitable and similar, there are some limitations for using treated compost by WS in agricultural lands due to higher levels of EC, fecal coliforms, and manganese. Therefore, quality of dewatered sludge treated compared with ETL is higher than WS. Furthermore, improvement process and application of some pretreatments are necessary for decreasing the heavy metals.

Removing Disperse red 60 and Reactive blue 19 dyes removal by using Alcea rosea root mucilage as a natural coagulant.

In terms of health, dyes have carcinogenic, mutagenic and toxic properties and can have adverse effects on health and the environment. Therefore, sewage containing to dyes must be purified before being discharged into the environment. The current study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Alcea rosea root extract in Disperse red 60 and Reactive blue 19 dyes removal from synthetic sewage. In this study, the effect of different indices including pH (5-11), Alcea rosea concentration (50-300 mg/L) and initial dye concentration (10-80 mg/L) was investigated. During the tests, the coagulant was stirred with rapid mixing at a speed of 250 rpm for 2 min. In the following, the speed (30-60 rpm) and the time (10-25 min) were used for slow mixing and after mixing the effect of settling time (10-60 min) and temperature (20-70) on removal efficiency of Disperse and Reactive dyes was investigated. The results showed that the maximum of removal efficiency of Disperse and Reactive dyes in optimum conditions including (pH = 11, coagulant concentration = 200 and 250 mg/L, dye concentration 40 and 20 mg/L, speed 60 rpm, during 15 min with settling time 60 min and temperature 60 °C obtained 86% and 68%, respectively. According to the result, the Alcea rosea coagulant has the best ability in removing dyes from aqueous solutions and sewage, especially Disperse dyes. Disperse dye is much eliminated in the coagulation process due to its lower solubility, higher suspending materials and less required solved chemical oxygen demand to the total chemical oxygen demand (SCOD/TCOD).

Toxicity evaluation and management of co-composting pistachio wastes combined with cattle manure and municipal sewage sludge.

To manage the pistachio de-hulling waste (PW), investigated the co-composting process using a mixture of PW and cattle manure (CM) (5.5:10 dry weight) as well as PW and municipal dewatering sewage sludge (DSS) (1:10 dry weight) at the laboratory scale for 60 days. Compost toxicity was evaluated using the seed germination index (GI). The maximum temperatures in co-composting processes of PW+CM (51.9 °C) and PW+DSS (49.9 °C) were reported on the seventh day. The increase of temperature was higher in PW+CM and remained in the thermophilic phase for five days. In both reactors, the pH rates decreased, increased, and finally remained neutral. The C/N ratio decreased in both reactors, but the reduction rate was faster in the PW+DSS reactor. Sodium (Na%) and potassium (K%) contents were increased, while the concentrations of Cu, Zn, Fe, and Mn were decreased during the processes. The numbers of parasite eggs in the final composts of the reactors containing PW+CM and PW+DSS were zero and 8 Number/4gDW, respectively. The amounts of Salmonella were zero in the final products of reactors containing PW+CM and PW+DSS. The results of GI showed that the final compost of PW+CM process was not toxic for the plants, whereas the PW+DDS final compost was toxic. In conclusion, the co-compost product of the PW+CM reactor had higher quality than the PW+DSS reactor. So, it is suitable for PW management.