Themed collection Environmental exposure and impacts

Characterizing the degradation behavior of chemicals in the environment is a key component of chemical hazard and risk assessment.

This perspective article reports the possible relationships between climate change and the SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic and vice versa.

We propose a framework based on exposure models for semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) to describe the emission and transport of, and exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in indoor environments.

Trichloroethylene (TCE) is an industrial solvent and a common environmental contaminant. Reactive metabolites of TCE disrupt placental cell functions important for pregnancy health.

We present a perspective on how models based on the equilibrium criteria of fugacity and chemical activity can contribute to evaluation of persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity criteria.

The Galician rías (NW Iberia, Spain) are responsible for most of the national shellfish production. This is the first review of red tides in that area including an historical overview, social challenges and proposals for improving their monitoring.

There is limited data on perfluorinated PFAS, with PFOS and PFOA dominating the research field. Laboratory studies with these two compounds demonstrate potential biodegradation and bioadsorption, but also show negative impacts on the performance of AS and AGS after long-term exposure.

CPs are extensively existed in human samples with increased M/S ratio. Dietary intake is the main source. The reported upper bound of EDIs may be close or exceed TDIs, thus further risk assessments are required.

PFAS are widely used in lithium-ion batteries, which may be problematic for the rapidly growing battery recycling industry.

Pollutant particulate matter and ultrafine particles have been related to the rise of neurodegenerative diseases and other brain disorders. It is necessary to understand their potential health impacts in order to develop strategies to reduce risks.

Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) from different agricultural inputs enter the farmland soils and tend to get transferred to humans through meat from grazing animals and plant produce, causing serious health concern.

Global climate change-driven shifts in physical and ecological processes may alter POPs concentrations in Arctic food webs.

Our critical review compares ARG profiles in the atmosphere across different locations and discusses characterization methods, atmospheric transport, and future research questions.

Massive use of disposable masks and mismanagement could raise emerging environmental and bio-safety concerns.

Globally, waterborne gastroenteritis attributable to rotaviruses is on the increase due to the rapid increase in population growth, poor socioeconomic conditions, and drastic changes in climatic conditions.

Pathways of human exposure to MPs and associated risks.

We review how chemical properties govern human exposure to environmental chemicals through different routes from different sources.

The review examines literature relevant to environmental fate, transformation, and toxicity, and human exposure and health risks of neonicotinoid insecticides.

Herein, recent studies were evaluated to obtain regulation results in relation to puberty status and phthalate exposure in children.

Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) is a common contaminant in both occupational and community settings.

Trichloroethylene (TCE) is a volatile organic solvent, released into the environment from industrial sites. It contaminates ground water and soil and poses a vapor intrusion hazard for residential and commercial buildings.

Mixtures of Pb²⁺ and two mechanistically distinct mitochondrial toxicants, ruthenium red and carbonyl cyanide-p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone (FCCP), resulted in greater than additive Pb²⁺-induced cytotoxicity in HepG2 (human liver) cells.

Preparation of a novel, simple and cost-effective chemosensor (ANO) to detect lethal phosgene exposed from household bleach.

Indoor dampness causes mold growth. The likelihood of such molds being clinically relevant Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. is higher in coastal homes with history of indoor flooding. Fungal surveillance in flood prone homes is therefore critical.

Emerging per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) were investigated in human milk from Stockholm (Sweden), and the cities of Shanghai, Jiaxing, and Shaoxing (China).

Short term exposure to very low concentrations of CuO NPs can have an impact on freshwater ecological processes.

MOF-74(Co) NPs lower root length, fresh weight and dry weight of pea seedlings. MOF-74(Co) NPs decreased net photosynthetic rate and increased intercellular CO₂ content. Released Co ions induced oxidative stress and damaged photosynthesis system II.

An environmental toxicological assessment of fourteen furanic compounds serving as valuable building blocks produced from biomass was performed.

Diabetes is a global public health problem, and the impact of air pollutants on type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has attracted people's attention.

Tire wear particles and nickel have detrimental effects on plant health by causing blockage and altering nutrient hemotasis, ultimately reducing plant yield.

Adverse outcome pathways framework of pesticides.

III–V/silicon tandem solar cells offer a promising avenue for high-efficiency, high-stability photovoltaics with low environmental risk.

In this study, nine PPCPs were widely detected in surface and groundwater. Ciprofloxacin and methylparaben were the most dominant antibiotic and paraben compounds, respectively, with ciprofloxacin posing a high health risk to all population groups.

With the evolving dynamics of the COVID-19 outbreak, this study investigates variations in bioaerosols at various sampling points in the outdoor environment of a campus before, during, and after COVID-19, along with a corresponding risk assessment.

This work presents a case study in applying a systematic review framework (SYRINA) to the identification of chemicals as endocrine disruptors.

Polystyrene microplastics affects the growth kinetics and cell viability of Bacillus tropicus ACS1, a probiotic isolated from tilapia gut. It induced oxidative stress and influenced the EPS production of the bacteria under in vitro conditions.

Using the combination of total analysis and pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to identify fluoropolymers in a broad range of consumer products.

The source of pollution was different from the source of pollution risk, shedding light on the importance of risk-based pollution source control.

We have developed conventional and machine learning-based mixture QSAR models from the toxicity data of the binary mixtures of fluoroquinolones in E. coli.

Diclofenac and polystyrene nanoplastics are toxic to algal cells at higher doses. When combined, they have a surprising hormesis effect on toxicity and show significant synergistic effects in higher-dose combinations.

A computational tool is introduced for simulating long-term internal exposure to chemicals and their metabolites.

Dietary exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is poorly understood.

Model calculations for molecular formulae are feasible, if there is a means of assembling collections of plausible isomers. Such calculations can aid in prioritizing chemical features from non-target analysis.

Adding mass spectra from complex mixtures of chemicals relevant for exposomics to open spectral libraries such as MassBank and chemical databases like PubChem empowers identification efforts for non-target high resolution mass spectrometry workflows.

Various contaminants in indoor air, dust, and pet hair samples. The distribution of pollutants between media was explained by their sources and partitioning processes. In vitro data helped estimate the risks to human health from indoor exposome.

Mixtures extracted from beluga traditional food preparations activated oxidative stress response and the aryl hydrocarbon receptor but did not show any hormone-like effects.

The analysis of mixtures of environmental contaminants from marine mammal organs revealed distinct distribution patterns for single compounds. The combination of chemical analysis and bioassays can comprehensively characterize the mixture exposome.

The use of glycols is seen in various industries and occupations.

This computational work presents a novel similarity-based q-RASAR approach for the development of a global model that can quantitatively and efficiently identify the skin sensitization potential of hazardous chemicals.

This study confirms that the synergistic effects of binary ZnO NPs and TBBPA lead to combined toxicity, while the regulation of HA alleviates oxidative stress and the toxicological response.

Pathways for finding key components of toxicity and interaction intensity of cosmetic contaminants.

This study investigates metal/metalloid concentrations and emission sources in fenceline communities of a heavy industry area using advanced online and offline mass spectrometry techniques.

Disposable surgical face masks extensively used during the COVID-19 outbreak would release microplastics into the aquatic environment and that in combination with TiO₂ nanoparticles may harm the aquatic biota.

Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is associated with thyroid hormones (THs) among American adolescents and adults. There are age, sex and smoking status differences, and the iodine status has an influence on PAH–TH associations.

The safety of cyclophosphamide (CP) in the early developmental stages is not studied yet; it is important to study the responses at these stages because it might have relevance to CP-administered humans.

This study explored the occurrence and distribution of 19 common anthelmintic drugs (ADs) in river water and sediment of the Jinjiang River in Sichuan, China, during summer and winter seasons.

Galaxolidone (HHCB-lac) is a major transformation product of the commonly used synthetic musk galaxolide (HHCB) and is ubiquitous in the environment along with the parent compound.

While our awareness of the toxicity of rare earth elements to aquatic organisms increases, our understanding of their direct interaction and accumulation remains limited.

Liposome measurements and coarse-grained simulations are used to assess the cholesterol dependence of membrane-water partitioning for small molecules and the implications for bioaccumulation.

A comprehensive method comparison for the evaluation of airborne methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) with emphasis on how MDI is spatially distributed within sampling devices.

A rapid micro chamber method is used to measure emission model parameters of plasticizers, compared to a traditional chamber method and then applied in an exposure assessment with the DustEx webtool.

Bacteria Brasilonema bromeliae and Aeromonas enteropelogenes and the metabolite pipecolic acid were protectively associated with both allergic and non-allergic rhinitis symptoms. Pipecolic acid was highly co-occurrent with B. bromeliae.

The dietary intake of PAHs with traditional food, estimated with a mechanistic food chain bioaccumulation model, is compared with the exposure arising from ingesting market food and smoking cigarettes.

This work shows that the dustiness index could be a reliable criterion for nanomaterial risk assessment in occupational exposure context and environment safety.

The long-term investigation of soil heavy metal pollution in one industrial area shows that the soil Cu, Pb and Cd pollution is quite serious, and the heavy metal increase is mainly caused by various industrial and mining activities.

Pharmaceutical factories produce a large amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which may pose a potential health threat to the environment, workers, and nearby residents.

Mine tailings are sources of metal(loid)-rich particulate matter (PM), particularly in dry climates. Inhaled or ingested PM bioavailability and toxicity depends on the solid phase speciation and the rate of PM dissolution.

Human presence can affect indoor air quality because of secondary organic compounds formed upon reactions between gaseous oxidant species, e.g., ozone (O₃), hydroxyl radicals (OH), and chemical compounds from skin, exhaled breath, hair and clothes.

The determination of the total amount of CECs in raw manure as a whole seems an advisable option compared to the analysis of the phases separately. The determination of the amounts of CECs contained in the liquid phase could be underestimated.

This study is designed to assess the migration of phthalates in footwear from the PVC sole to the insole and emission through the surface causing potential exposure risk to the user and the environment.