Enhanced Volatile Organic Compounds emissions and organic aerosol mass increase the oligomer content of atmospheric aerosols.

Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) accounts for a dominant fraction of the submicron atmospheric particle mass, but knowledge of the formation, composition and climate effects of SOA is incomplete and limits our understanding of overall aerosol effects in the atmosphere. Organic oligomers were discovered as dominant components in SOA over a decade ago in laboratory experiments and have since been proposed to play a dominant role in many aerosol processes. However, it remains unclear whether oligomers are relevant under ambient atmospheric conditions because they are often not clearly observed in field samples. Here we resolve this long-standing discrepancy by showing that elevated SOA mass is one of the key drivers of oligomer formation in the ambient atmosphere and laboratory experiments. We show for the first time that a specific organic compound class in aerosols, oligomers, is strongly correlated with cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) activities of SOA particles. These findings might have important implications for future climate scenarios where increased temperatures cause higher biogenic volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions, which in turn lead to higher SOA mass formation and significant changes in SOA composition. Such processes would need to be considered in climate models for a realistic representation of future aerosol-climate-biosphere feedbacks.

Consequences of age on ischemic wound healing in rats: altered antioxidant activity and delayed wound closure.

Advertisements targeted at the elderly population suggest that antioxidant therapy will reduce free radicals and promote wound healing, yet few scientific studies substantiate these claims. To better understand the potential utility of supplemental antioxidant therapy for wound healing, we tested the hypothesis that age and tissue ischemia alter the balance of endogenous antioxidant enzymes. Using a bipedicled skin flap model, ischemic and non-ischemic wounds were created on young and aged rats. Wound closure and the balance of the critical antioxidants superoxide dismutase and glutathione in the wound bed were determined. Ischemia delayed wound closure significantly more in aged rats. Lower superoxide dismutase 2 and glutathione in non-ischemic wounds of aged rats indicate a basal deficit due to age alone. Ischemic wounds from aged rats had lower superoxide dismutase 2 protein and activity initially, coupled with decreased ratios of reduced/oxidized glutathione and lower glutathione peroxidase activity. De novo glutathione synthesis, to restore redox balance in aged ischemic wounds, was initiated as evidenced by increased glutamate cysteine ligase. Results demonstrate deficiencies in two antioxidant pathways in aged rats that become exaggerated in ischemic tissue, culminating in profoundly impaired wound healing and prolonged inflammation.