Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in South China maternal and fetal blood and breast milk

Twenty-one-paired human fetal and maternal serum and 27 breast milk samples at South China were analyzed for concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Seven PBDE congeners (BDE-28, -47, -99, -100, -153, -154, and -183) were quantified using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). This is the first report to present the residue levels of PBDEs in human samples of China. The concentrations of total PBDEs ranged from 1.5 to 17 ng/g in the samples and were within the range reported in European samples for a similar population, but lower than human tissue levels in North America. BDE-47 and -153 were the dominant PBDE congeners in all samples and accounted for 60% of the total PBDEs. Further research is needed to determine the exposure route of PBDEs and their health effects.     

Distribution of polybrominated diphenyl ethers and decabromodiphenylethane in surface sediments from Fuhe River and Baiyangdian Lake, North China

Nineteen surface sediment samples collected from Baiyangdian Lake and its inflowing river (Fuhe River) in North China were analyzed for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE). The concentrations of PBDEs and DBDPE in sediments ranged from 5.5 to 300.7 ng/g dry weight (dw) and 1.1 to 68.2 ng/g dw, respectively. Their levels in sediments in Fuhe River were significantly higher than those in Baiyandian Lake. Compared to data from other regions, the PBDE levels in surface sediments from Baiyangdian Lake and Fuhe River were in the medium to lower range. Among the PBDE congeners, BDE209 was predominant, with contributions to the total PBDEs ranging from 79.4% to 97.3% in sediment samples. For the lowly brominated congeners (tri- to hepta-BDE), BDE47 and BDE99 were the most abundant, which contributed 52.1% and 44.1% to the sum of tri- to hepta-BDEs in the sediments from Baiyangdian Lake and Fuhe River, respectively. The compositional patterns of PBDEs in Baiyangdian Lake sediments indicated that technical deca-BDE mixture was the major pollutant sources with a minor contribution of penta-BDE mixture. The present study suggested that the importance of Fuhe River as a possibly potential sources of PBDEs contamination in Baiyangdian Lake.     

Unusual thermal properties of graphene origami crease:A molecular dynamics study

Graphene is a two-dimensional material that can be folded into diverse and yet interesting nanostructures like macro-scale paper origami. Folding of graphene not only makes different morphological configurations but also modifies their mechanical and thermal properties. Inspired by paper origami, herein we studied systemically the effects of creases, where sp2 to sp3 bond transformation occurs, on the thermal properties of graphene origami using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Our MD simulation results show that tensile strain reduces (not increases) the interfacial thermal resistance owing to the presence of the crease. This unusual phenomenon is explained by the micro-heat flux migration and stress distribution. Our findings on the graphene origami enable the design of the next-generation thermal management devices and flexible electronics with tuneable properties.     

磷酸三苯酯经miRNA介导的人肝细胞脂类代谢干扰作用

磷酸三苯酯(triphenyl phosphate,TPhP)是近年来广泛应用于电子产品的磷系阻燃剂,其脂类代谢干扰作用受到广泛关注,而microRNAs(miRNAs)在 TPhP脂类代谢干扰过程中的调控作用仍鲜有报道.本研究通过探讨TPhP暴露条件下人肝细胞的细胞活性、TPhP清除速率与miRNAs表达调控特征,并与已获得转录组数据联合分析,明确TPhP经miRNA介导的脂类代谢干扰作用.在不同浓度TPhP暴露处理48 h后,人肝细胞的细胞活性随着暴露浓度呈先上升后下降的趋势,半数致死效应剂量为46.7 μmol·L-1.在5 μg·mL-1的TPhP暴露3 h和48 h后,TPhP的清除率分别为73.9％和85.1％.人肝细胞多个miRNAs表达差异显著,差异表达miRNAs所调控的靶基因主要参与代谢、脂肪酸合成、类固醇合成及癌症相关通路.通过转录组关联分析,差异表达miR-34c-5p、miR-301a-5p和miR-7等多个miRNAs对脂类代谢相关通路的关键基因具有调控作用,并构成miRNA-mRNA调控网络.综上所述,人肝细胞对TPhP具有较高的清除效率,TPhP暴露诱导miRNA差异表达所介导的脂类代谢干扰作用是TPhP对人肝细胞的主要毒性作用,miR-7和miR-4484等miRNAs能作为TPhP胁迫下脂类代谢干扰作用的潜在生物指示物.     

Predicting the effect of promotion measures on waste separation behavior: a case study in Da Nang City,Vietnam

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - Recycling is one of the priority solutions for reducing the amount of waste entering landfills. To achieve high rates of recycling, citizens are...     

PM2.5-bound phthalates and phthalate substitutes in a megacity of southern China: spatioseasonal variations,source apportionment,and risk assessment

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Plasticizers are ubiquitous pollutants in the environment, whereas few efforts have been made to elucidate their emission sources in the atmosphere....     

Consumers’ willingness to pay an environmental fee for e-waste recycling in Vietnam: integrating the theory of planned behaviour and the norm activation model

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - E-waste is becoming a concern due to its toxic content and serious pollution effect. Many studies have focused on the detrimental impacts of...