Sources of fine particulate matter in personal exposures and residential indoor, residential outdoor and workplace microenvironments in the Helsinki phase of the EXPOLIS study.
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OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the source contributions to the mass concentrations of fine particles (PM2.5) in personal exposures and in residential indoor, residential outdoor, and workplace indoor microenvironments of the nonsmoking adult population unexposed to environmental tobacco smoke in Helsinki, Finland. METHODS: The elemental composition of 48-hour personal exposure and residential indoor, residential outdoor, and workplace indoor PM2.5 was analyzed by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry for 76 participants not exposed to environmental tobacco smoke and 102 participating residences with no smoking in Helsinki as a part of the EXPOLIS study. Subsequently, a principal component analysis was used to identify the emission sources of PM2.5-bound elements and black smoke in each microenvironment, and this information was used to identify the corresponding sources in personal exposures. Finally, source reconstruction was done to determine the relative contributions of each source type to the total PM2.5 mass concentrations. RESULTS: Inorganic secondary particles, primary combustion, and soil were the dominant source types for the PM2.5 mass concentration in all the microenvironments and personal exposures. The ratio of the residential indoor-to-outdoor PM2.5 concentration was close to unity, but the corresponding elemental ratios and source contributions varied. Resuspension of soil dust tracked indoors was a much larger contributor to residential and workplace indoor PM2.5 than soil dust to residential outdoor PM2.5. Source contributions to personal PM2.5 exposures were best approximated by data from residential and workplace indoor microenvironments. CONCLUSIONS: Population exposure assessment of PM2.5, based on outdoor fixed-site monitoring, overestimates exposures to outdoor sources like traffic and long-range transport and does not account for the contribution of significant indoor sources. (+info)
Effect of titanium ion and resistance encoding plasmid of Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 10145.
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Titanium and its alloys are technically superior and cost-effective materials, with a wide variety of aerospace, industrial, marine, and commercial applications. In this study, the effects of titanium ions on bacterial growth were evaluated. Six strains of bacteria known to be resistant to both metal ions and antibiotics were used in this study. Two strains, Escherichia coli ATCC 15489, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 10145, proved to be resistant to titanium ions. Plasmid-cured P. aeruginosa resulted in the loss of one or more resistance markers, indicating plasmid-encoded resistance. The plasmid profile of P. aeruginosa revealed the presence of a 23-kb plasmid. The plasmid was isolated and transformed into DH5alpha. Interestingly, the untransformed DH5alpha did not grow in 300 mg/l titanium ions, but the transformed DH5alpha grew quite well under such conditions. The survival rate of the transformed DH5alpha also increased more than 3-fold compared to that of untransformed DH5alpha. (+info)
Evaluation of trace metal levels in tissues of two commercial fish species in Kapar and Mersing coastal waters, Peninsular Malaysia.
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Concentration of metal elements in the blood and urine in the patients with cementless total knee arthroplasty.
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Titanium (Ti), cobalt (Co) and chromium (Cr) element concentrations in the whole blood and urine specimen in 40 patients with cementless total knee arthroplasty were determined by the electrothermal atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Their ages ranged from 55 to 78 years (mean, 65 years). Twenty of them had loosening of prosthesis and underwent revision surgery, including 4 subjects with Ti-6Al-4V alloy prosthesis and 16 subjects with Co-Cr-Mo alloy prosthesis. The other 20 patients had well-functioning stable prosthesis, including 5 subjects with Ti-6Al-4V alloy prosthesis and 15 subjects with Co-Cr-Mo alloy prosthesis. The mean duration of prostheses implantation in patients with loosened or well-functioning prostheses were 6.5 and 4.0 years, respectively. The control group consisted of 20 age-matched normal subjects who did not undergo any metal implant surgery. Analysis of variance showed that the metal element concentrations in the whole blood, either Co, Cr or Ti, was statistically higher in the patients with loosened prosthesis than the other two groups. However, the metal element concentrations in the urine did not show any difference. The linear regression analysis showed a moderate positive relationship between the metal element concentrations, either Co or Cr elements, in whole blood and urine only in the patients with loosened prostheses. In conclusion, elevated concentration of metal elements may indicate a loosening of prosthesis while the clinical significance of the metal element concentration in the urine needs further investigation. (+info)