Global S&T Development Trend Analysis Platform of Resources and Environment
Tackling Air Pollution with Electron Paramagnetic Resonance | |
admin | |
2018-10-15 | |
发布年 | 2018 |
语种 | 英语 |
国家 | 美国 |
领域 | 资源环境 |
正文(英文) | ![]() Building an understanding of EPFRs’ nature and role in human health for policy makers is also important, to create new standards for air pollution. Outdoor air pollution is a major environmental hazard affecting human health across the globe. The link between inhalation of ambient particulate matter (PM) and various adverse health effects is documented extensively by epidemiological and toxicological studies. Large fractions of ambient air PM originate from combustion and thermal sources, where at low temperatures at the end of the process, interaction of products of incomplete combustion with transition metals form environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs). These are identified as crucial PM components triggering hydroxyl radical (•OH) generation via EPFR redox cycle 1, 2. The oxidative potential of PM is therefore an important health-relevant metric. These long-lived radicals are either carbon-centered polyaromatic soot radicals or oxygen-centered semiquinone or phenoxyl in type, the latter promoting the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Their half-life varies from several days to several months and, on the internal surface of fine particles, can persist indefinitely. Semiquinones are also known to undergo redox cycling and produce biologically damaging superoxide and •OH radicals3. Free Radical Detection with EPR Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy is a technique that detects species with unpaired electrons, such as free radicals and many transition metal ions. As EPR data can be collected in seconds, and the analysis of the data delivers not only the identity, but also quantitative information about the species being measured, it provides a useful tool for environmental analysis. EPR is the only method capable of the direct measurement of radicals. All other methods are indirect and based on the chemical reactivity of the radicals, and are therefore subject to kinetic limitations. Even more complex is the measurement of very short-lived radicals. For example, it is impossible to measure a hydroxyl radical directly – spin-traps are required which react with the radical and convert it to a different, more stable radical, which can then be measured. In recent years, the quantitation of radicals in the analyzed samples has become more accurate and user-friendly. Where older instruments require standards for radical concentration of very stable radicals, newer EPR spectrometers, such as the Bruker EMX series, include built in reference standards. These instruments can quantify radicals automatically, without requiring a primary calibration curve using a known concentration of radicals. Measuring Pollutants in the Lung The team at LSU has found that, upon inhalation, these EFPRs become active, as the redox cycle begins and generate •OH radicals in the lungs4-7. Free radicals present on combustion-generated PM are also known to cause DNA damage8. Strong oxidating agents such as these can cause a lot of damage to tissues. There is already a proven link between exposure to particulates containing radicals and asthma incidents3. This is aligned with the fact that high particulate pollution is causing higher hospital admission rates. One group at LSU has also associated EPFRs with cardiovascular problems, and found that animals which had an induced heart attached had significantly suppressed recovery if exposed to radicals on particulates. The mechanism of the redox cycle, which gives rise to •OH radicals, starts a cascade of different signaling pathways in the body, which can result in disease. To better understand the observed PM effects on human health, more studies are necessary on EPFRs role. The key steps are the identification and characterization of the EPFRs present on the ambient particulates, and collaboration between chemists, epidemiologists and biomedical researchers to establish speciation-exposure-health implication relationships and likely outcomes of exposure to ambient particulates that contain radicals. Influencing Policy with Research Building an understanding of EPFRs' nature and role in human health for policy makers is also important, to create new standards for air pollution. Currently, particulate pollution measurement is based on mass concentration in µg/m3, as regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency. The group at LSU has found that, if radicals are one of the main reasons for the toxicity of ambient particles for humans, then radical concentration on a particle should be measured and regulated, rather than pure mass. It was found that special distribution of EPFRs does not correlate with the overall PM concentration in ambient air2. This implies, that one particle can be more toxic than another, thus PM mass reference alone does not provide sufficient information and protection to population. The Future of Air Pollution Research References
Professor Slawo Lomnicki, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Environmental Sciences, Louisiana State University (LSU) and his research is centered around air pollution and in particular, emissions from combustion sources. He also investigates the potential impact of these emissions on human health, and researches general environmental pollution in soil and groundwater, and how to remediate this. Prof. Lomnicki joined LSU as a post doctorate and research associate in chemistry in 2001, where he worked with the famous combustion chemist Dr. Barry Dellinger, before joining the Department of Environmental Sciences in 2014. For more information, please visit Department of Environmental Sciences at Louisiana State University and LSU Superfund Research Center. For more information on Bruker's EMXnano EPR spectrometer, please visit https://www.bruker.com/products/mr/epr/emxnano/overview.html. Address: Department of Environmental Sciences, Louisiana State University, 1251 Energy Coast & Environment Bldg., Baton Rouge, LA 70803 Phone: 225-578-8147 Email: slomni1@lsu.edu |
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来源平台 | Environmental Protection |
文献类型 | 新闻 |
条目标识符 | http://119.78.100.173/C666/handle/2XK7JSWQ/113587 |
专题 | 资源环境科学 |
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714 | admin. Tackling Air Pollution with Electron Paramagnetic Resonance. 2018. |
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