Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 90 in total

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  1. Impact of Climate Change on Air Quality and Public Health in Urban Areas
    Hassan NA, Hashim Z, Hashim JH
    Asia Pac J Public Health, 2016 Mar;28(2 Suppl):38S-48S.
    PMID: 26141092 DOI: 10.1177/1010539515592951
    This review discusses how climate undergo changes and the effect of climate change on air quality as well as public health. It also covers the inter relationship between climate and air quality. The air quality discussed here are in relation to the 5 criteria pollutants; ozone (O3), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and particulate matter (PM). Urban air pollution is the main concern due to higher anthropogenic activities in urban areas. The implications on health are also discussed. Mitigating measures are presented with the final conclusion.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  2. Origins of suspended particulate matter based on sterol distribution in low salinity water mass observed in the offshore East China Sea
    Kim M, Jung JH, Jin Y, Han GM, Lee T, Hong SH, et al.
    Mar Pollut Bull, 2016 Jul 15;108(1-2):281-8.
    PMID: 27167134 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.04.049
    The molecular composition and distribution of sterols were investigated in the East China Sea to identify the origins of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in offshore waters influenced by Changjiang River Diluted Water (CRDW). Total sterol concentrations ranged from 3200 to 31,900pgL(-1) and 663 to 5690pgL(-1) in the particulate and dissolved phases, respectively. Marine sterols dominated representing 71% and 66% in the particulate and dissolved phases, respectively. Typical sewage markers, such as coprostanol, were usually absent at ~250km offshore. However, sterols from allochthonous terrestrial plants were still detected at these sites. A negative relationship was observed between salinity and concentrations of terrestrial sterols in SPM, suggesting that significant amounts of terrestrial particulate matter traveled long distance offshore in the East China Sea, and the Changjiang River Diluted Water (CRDW) was an effective carrier of land-derived particulate organic matter to the offshore East China Sea.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  3. Trends in atmospheric particulate matter in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and the vicinity
    Rana MM, Sulaiman N, Sivertsen B, Khan MF, Nasreen S
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2016 Sep;23(17):17393-403.
    PMID: 27230142 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-6950-4
    Dhaka and its neighboring areas suffer from severe air pollution, especially during dry season (November-April). We investigated temporal and directional variations in particulate matter (PM) concentrations in Dhaka, Gazipur, and Narayanganj from October 2012 to March 2015 to understand different aspects of PM concentrations and possible sources of high pollution in this region. Ninety-six-hour backward trajectories for the whole dry season were also computed to investigate incursion of long-range pollution into this area. We found yearly PM10 concentrations in this area about three times and yearly PM2.5 concentrations about six times greater than the national standards of Bangladesh. Dhaka and its vicinity experienced several air pollution episodes in dry season when PM2.5 concentrations were 8-13 times greater than the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline value. Higher pollution and great contribution of PM2.5 most of the time were associated with the north-westerly wind. Winter (November to January) was found as the most polluted season in this area, when average PM10 concentrations in Dhaka, Gazipur, and Narayanganj were 257.1, 240.3, and 327.4 μg m(-3), respectively. Pollution levels during wet season (May-October) were, although found legitimate as per the national standards of Bangladesh, exceeded WHO guideline value in 50 % of the days of that season. Trans-boundary source identifications using concentration-weighted trajectory method revealed that the sources in the eastern Indian region bordering Bangladesh, in the north-eastern Indian region bordering Nepal and in Nepal and its neighboring areas had high probability of contributing to the PM pollutions at Gazipur station.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  4. The effects of air pollution on human mortality: does gender difference matter in African countries?
    Aliyu AJ, Ismail NW
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2016 Nov;23(21):21288-21298.
    PMID: 27497851
    The relationship between environmental factors and human health has long been a concern among academic researchers. We use two indicators of environmental pollution, namely particulate matter (PM10) and carbon dioxide (CO2) to examine the effects of poor air quality on human mortality. This study explores an issue that has largely been ignored, particularly in the African literature, where the effect of air pollution on human mortality could be influenced by gender specification. We analyse a panel data from 35 African countries and our result suggests that the elevated levels of PM10 and CO2 have a significant effect on the increasing mortality rates in infants, under-five children and adults. Although the effect of poor air quality on adults is found to differ between genders, such difference is not statistically significant. We conclude that the air pollution effects, on average, are similar between genders in the African countries.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  5. Influence of polymethyl acrylate additive on the formation of particulate matter and NOX emission of a biodiesel-diesel-fueled engine
    Monirul IM, Masjuki HH, Kalam MA, Zulkifli NWM, Shancita I
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2017 Aug;24(22):18479-18493.
    PMID: 28646309 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-017-9333-6
    The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of the polymethyl acrylate (PMA) additive on the formation of particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxide (NOX) emission from a diesel coconut and/or Calophyllum inophyllum biodiesel-fueled engine. The physicochemical properties of 20% of coconut and/or C. inophyllum biodiesel-diesel blend (B20), 0.03 wt% of PMA with B20 (B20P), and diesel fuel were measured and compared to ASTM D6751, D7467, and EN 14214 standard. The test results showed that the addition of PMA additive with B20 significantly improves the cold-flow properties such as pour point (PP), cloud point (CP), and cold filter plugging point (CFPP). The addition of PMA additives reduced the engine's brake-specific energy consumption of all tested fuels. Engine emission results showed that the additive-added fuel reduce PM concentration than B20 and diesel, whereas the PM size and NOX emission both increased than B20 fuel and baseline diesel fuel. Also, the effect of adding PMA into B20 reduced Carbon (C), Aluminum (Al), Potassium (K), and volatile materials in the soot, whereas it increased Oxygen (O), Fluorine (F), Zinc (Zn), Barium (Ba), Chlorine (Cl), Sodium (Na), and fixed carbon. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) results for B20P showed the lower agglomeration than B20 and diesel fuel. Therefore, B20P fuel can be used as an alternative to diesel fuel in diesel engines to lower the harmful emissions without compromising the fuel quality.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  6. Short communication: Diagnosis of lung cancer increases during the annual southeast Asian haze periods
    Hassan A, Latif MT, Soo CI, Faisal AH, Roslina AM, Andrea YLB, et al.
    Lung Cancer, 2017 11;113:1-3.
    PMID: 29110834 DOI: 10.1016/j.lungcan.2017.08.025
    There have been few but timely studies examining the role of air pollution in lung cancer and survival. The Southeast Asia haze is a geopolitical problem that has occurred annually since 1997 in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. To date, there has been no study examining the impact of the annual haze in the presentation of lung cancer. Data on all lung cancers and respiratory admissions to Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) from 1st January 2010 to 31th October 2015 were retrospectively collected and categorized as presentation during the haze and non-haze periods defined by the Department of Environment Malaysia. We report a lung cancer incidence rate per week of 4.5 cases during the haze compared to 1.8 cases during the non-haze period (p<0.01). The median survival for subjects presenting during the haze was 5.2 months compared to 8.1 months for the non-haze period (p<0.05). The majority of subjects diagnosed during the haze period initially presented with acute symptoms. Although this study could not suggest a cause and effect relationship of the annual haze with the incidence of lung cancer, this is the first study reporting a local air pollution-related modifiable determinant contributing to the increase in presentation of lung cancer in Southeast Asia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  7. Fulltext DNA methylation and exposure to ambient air pollution in two prospective cohorts
    Plusquin M, Guida F, Polidoro S, Vermeulen R, Raaschou-Nielsen O, Campanella G, et al.
    Environ Int, 2017 11;108:127-136.
    PMID: 28843141 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.08.006
    Long-term exposure to air pollution has been associated with several adverse health effects including cardiovascular, respiratory diseases and cancers. However, underlying molecular alterations remain to be further investigated. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of long-term exposure to air pollutants on (a) average DNA methylation at functional regions and, (b) individual differentially methylated CpG sites. An assumption is that omic measurements, including the methylome, are more sensitive to low doses than hard health outcomes. This study included blood-derived DNA methylation (Illumina-HM450 methylation) for 454 Italian and 159 Dutch participants from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). Long-term air pollution exposure levels, including NO2, NOx, PM2.5, PMcoarse, PM10, PM2.5 absorbance (soot) were estimated using models developed within the ESCAPE project, and back-extrapolated to the time of sampling when possible. We meta-analysed the associations between the air pollutants and global DNA methylation, methylation in functional regions and epigenome-wide methylation. CpG sites found differentially methylated with air pollution were further investigated for functional interpretation in an independent population (EnviroGenoMarkers project), where (N=613) participants had both methylation and gene expression data available. Exposure to NO2 was associated with a significant global somatic hypomethylation (p-value=0.014). Hypomethylation of CpG island's shores and shelves and gene bodies was significantly associated with higher exposures to NO2 and NOx. Meta-analysing the epigenome-wide findings of the 2 cohorts did not show genome-wide significant associations at single CpG site level. However, several significant CpG were found if the analyses were separated by countries. By regressing gene expression levels against methylation levels of the exposure-related CpG sites, we identified several significant CpG-transcript pairs and highlighted 5 enriched pathways for NO2 and 9 for NOx mainly related to the immune system and its regulation. Our findings support results on global hypomethylation associated with air pollution, and suggest that the shores and shelves of CpG islands and gene bodies are mostly affected by higher exposure to NO2 and NOx. Functional differences in the immune system were suggested by transcriptome analyses.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  8. Source apportionment and health risk assessment among specific age groups during haze and non-haze episodes in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    Sulong NA, Latif MT, Khan MF, Amil N, Ashfold MJ, Wahab MIA, et al.
    Sci Total Environ, 2017 Dec 01;601-602:556-570.
    PMID: 28575833 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.153
    This study aims to determine PM2.5concentrations and their composition during haze and non-haze episodes in Kuala Lumpur. In order to investigate the origin of the measured air masses, the Numerical Atmospheric-dispersion Modelling Environment (NAME) and Global Fire Assimilation System (GFAS) were applied. Source apportionment of PM2.5was determined using Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF). The carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health risks were estimated using the United State Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) method. PM2.5samples were collected from the centre of the city using a high-volume air sampler (HVS). The results showed that the mean PM2.5concentrations collected during pre-haze, haze and post-haze periods were 24.5±12.0μgm-3, 72.3±38.0μgm-3and 14.3±3.58μgm-3, respectively. The highest concentration of PM2.5during haze episode was five times higher than World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines. Inorganic compositions of PM2.5, including trace elements and water soluble ions were determined using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and ion chromatography (IC), respectively. The major trace elements identified were K, Al, Ca, Mg and Fe which accounted for approximately 93%, 91% and 92% of the overall metals' portions recorded during pre-haze, haze and post-haze periods, respectively. For water-soluble ions, secondary inorganic aerosols (SO42-, NO3-and NH4+) contributed around 12%, 43% and 16% of the overall PM2.5mass during pre-haze, haze and post-haze periods, respectively. During haze periods, the predominant source identified using PMF was secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA) and biomass burning where the NAME simulations indicate the importance of fires in Sumatra, Indonesia. The main source during pre-haze and post-haze were mix SIA and road dust as well as mineral dust, respectively. The highest non-carcinogenic health risk during haze episode was estimated among the infant group (HI=1.06) while the highest carcinogenic health risk was estimated among the adult group (2.27×10-5).
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  9. Regression and multivariate models for predicting particulate matter concentration level
    Nazif A, Mohammed NI, Malakahmad A, Abualqumboz MS
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2018 Jan;25(1):283-289.
    PMID: 29032528 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-017-0407-2
    The devastating health effects of particulate matter (PM10) exposure by susceptible populace has made it necessary to evaluate PM10 pollution. Meteorological parameters and seasonal variation increases PM10 concentration levels, especially in areas that have multiple anthropogenic activities. Hence, stepwise regression (SR), multiple linear regression (MLR) and principal component regression (PCR) analyses were used to analyse daily average PM10 concentration levels. The analyses were carried out using daily average PM10 concentration, temperature, humidity, wind speed and wind direction data from 2006 to 2010. The data was from an industrial air quality monitoring station in Malaysia. The SR analysis established that meteorological parameters had less influence on PM10 concentration levels having coefficient of determination (R 2) result from 23 to 29% based on seasoned and unseasoned analysis. While, the result of the prediction analysis showed that PCR models had a better R 2 result than MLR methods. The results for the analyses based on both seasoned and unseasoned data established that MLR models had R 2 result from 0.50 to 0.60. While, PCR models had R 2 result from 0.66 to 0.89. In addition, the validation analysis using 2016 data also recognised that the PCR model outperformed the MLR model, with the PCR model for the seasoned analysis having the best result. These analyses will aid in achieving sustainable air quality management strategies.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  10. Multiple linear regression and regression with time series error models in forecasting PM10 concentrations in Peninsular Malaysia
    Ng KY, Awang N
    Environ Monit Assess, 2018 Jan 06;190(2):63.
    PMID: 29306973 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-017-6419-z
    Frequent haze occurrences in Malaysia have made the management of PM10 (particulate matter with aerodynamic less than 10 μm) pollution a critical task. This requires knowledge on factors associating with PM10 variation and good forecast of PM10 concentrations. Hence, this paper demonstrates the prediction of 1-day-ahead daily average PM10 concentrations based on predictor variables including meteorological parameters and gaseous pollutants. Three different models were built. They were multiple linear regression (MLR) model with lagged predictor variables (MLR1), MLR model with lagged predictor variables and PM10 concentrations (MLR2) and regression with time series error (RTSE) model. The findings revealed that humidity, temperature, wind speed, wind direction, carbon monoxide and ozone were the main factors explaining the PM10 variation in Peninsular Malaysia. Comparison among the three models showed that MLR2 model was on a same level with RTSE model in terms of forecasting accuracy, while MLR1 model was the worst.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  11. Health impact assessment from building life cycles and trace metals in coarse particulate matter in urban office environments
    Othman M, Latif MT, Mohamed AF
    Ecotoxicol Environ Saf, 2018 Feb;148:293-302.
    PMID: 29080527 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2017.10.034
    This study intends to determine the health impacts from two office life cycles (St.1 and St.2) using life cycle assessment (LCA) and health risk assessment of indoor metals in coarse particulates (particulate matter with diameters of less than 10µm). The first building (St.1) is located in the city centre and the second building (St.2) is located within a new development 7km away from the city centre. All life cycle stages are considered and was analysed using SimaPro software. The trace metal concentrations were determined by inductively couple plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Particle deposition in the human lung was estimated using the multiple-path particle dosimetry model (MPPD). The results showed that the total human health impact for St.1 (0.027 DALY m-2) was higher than St.2 (0.005 DALY m-2) for a 50-year lifespan, with the highest contribution from the operational phase. The potential health risk to indoor workers was quantified as a hazard quotient (HQ) for non-carcinogenic elements, where the total values for ingestion contact were 4.38E-08 (St.1) and 2.59E-08 (St.2) while for dermal contact the values were 5.12E-09 (St.1) and 2.58E-09 (St.2). For the carcinogenic risk, the values for dermal and ingestion routes for both St.1 and St.2 were lower than the acceptable limit which indicated no carcinogenic risk. Particle deposition for coarse particles in indoor workers was concentrated in the head, followed by the pulmonary region and tracheobronchial tract deposition. The results from this study showed that human health can be significantly affected by all the processes in office building life cycle, thus the minimisation of energy consumption and pollutant exposures are crucially required.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  12. Review of total suspended particles (TSP) and PM2.5 concentration variations in Asia during the years of 1998-2015
    Fang GC, Zhuang YJ, Cho MH, Huang CY, Xiao YF, Tsai KH
    Environ Geochem Health, 2018 Jun;40(3):1127-1144.
    PMID: 28584978 DOI: 10.1007/s10653-017-9992-8
    In Asian countries such as China, Malaysia, Pakistan, India, Taiwan, Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, ambient air total suspended particulates and PM2.5 concentration data were collected and discussed during the years of 1998-2015 in this study. The aim of the present study was to (1) investigate and collect ambient air total suspended particulates (TSP) and PM2.5 concentrations for Asian countries during the past two decades. (2) Discuss, analyze and compare those particulates (TSP and PM2.5) annual concentration distribution trends among those Asian countries during the past two decades. (3) Test the mean concentration differences in TSP and PM2.5 among the Asian countries during the past decades. The results indicated that the mean TSP concentration order was shown as China > Malaysia > Pakistan > India > Taiwan > Korea > Japan. In addition, the mean PM2.5 concentration order was shown as Vietnam > India > China > Hong Kong > Mongolia > Korea > Taiwan > Japan and the average percentages of PM2.5 concentrations for Taiwan, China, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Mongolia and Other (India and Vietnam) were 8, 21, 6, 8, 14, 13 and 30%, respectively, during the past two decades. Moreover, t test results revealed that there were significant mean TSP and PM2.5 concentration differences for either China or India to any of the countries such as Taiwan, Korea and Japan in Asia during the past two decades for this study. Noteworthy, China and India are both occupied more than 60% of the TSP and PM2.5 particulates concentrations out of all the Asia countries. As for Taiwan, the average PM2.5 concentration displayed increasing trend in the years of 1998-1999. However, it showed decreasing trend in the years of 2000-2010. As for Korea, the average PM2.5 concentrations showed decreasing trend during the years of 2001-2013. Finally, the average PM2.5 concentrations for Mongolia displayed increasing trend in the years of 2004-2013.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  13. Diesel engine emission analysis using fuel from diverse emulsification methods
    Sugeng DA, Yahya WJ, Ithnin AM, Abdul Rashid MA, Mohd Syahril Amri NS, Abd Kadir H, et al.
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2018 Sep;25(27):27214-27224.
    PMID: 30030755 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-2760-1
    The focus of this work is to investigate the emission characteristics of a stationary diesel engine while utilizing an emulsion fuel from a novel preparation process. The emulsion preparation was performed in real time without using any surfactant. Instead of mechanically breaking the water down into droplets, the water is delivered thermally, by changing its phase from gas to liquid. Steam is used in this proposed process, where it will be converted into suspended water droplets once it meets colder diesel. The product is called steam-generated water-in-diesel emulsion fuel (S/D). The method is expected to reduce the moving components of a previous surfactant-less system; therefore, reducing costs and increasing the system reliability. The emission characteristics of S/D were compared with EURO 2 diesel (D2), and a conventional emulsion denoted as E10. E10 was prepared using 10% water (volumetric) and SPAN80 as a surfactant. The emission characterizations were carried out based on the exhaust gas of a single cylinder naturally aspirated CI engine fueled with D2, S/D, and E10. Compared to D2, both emulsions significantly reduced the emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) (E10 max ↓58.0%, S/D max ↓40.0%) and particulate matter (PM) (E10 max ↓20.0%, S/D max ↓57.0%).
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  14. Wavelet-based time series model to improve the forecast accuracy of PM10 concentrations in Peninsular Malaysia
    Yong NK, Awang N
    Environ Monit Assess, 2019 Jan 11;191(2):64.
    PMID: 30635772 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-019-7209-6
    This study presents the use of a wavelet-based time series model to forecast the daily average particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of less than 10 μm (PM10) in Peninsular Malaysia. The highlight of this study is the use of a discrete wavelet transform (DWT) in order to improve the forecast accuracy. The DWT was applied to convert the highly variable PM10 series into more stable approximations and details sub-series, and the ARIMA-GARCH time series models were developed for each sub-series. Two different forecast periods, one was during normal days, while the other was during haze episodes, were designed to justify the usefulness of DWT. The models' performance was evaluated by four indices, namely root mean square error, mean absolute percentage error, probability of detection and false alarm rate. The results showed that the model incorporated with DWT yielded more accurate forecasts than the conventional method without DWT for both the forecast periods, and the improvement was more prominent for the period during the haze episodes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  15. Fulltext Indoor Particulate Matters, Microbial Count Assessments, and Wheezing Symptoms among Toddlers in Urban Day Care Centers in the District of Seremban, Malaysia
    Khamal R, Isa ZM, Sutan R, Noraini NMR, Ghazi HF
    Ann Glob Health, 2019 01 22;85(1).
    PMID: 30741516 DOI: 10.5334/aogh.2425
    INTRODUCTION: Indoor air quality in day care centers (DCCs) is an emerging research topic nowadays. Indoor air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM) and microbes have been linked to respiratory health effects in children, particularly asthma-related symptoms such as night coughs and wheezing due to early exposure to indoor air contaminants.

    OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the association between wheezing symptoms among toddlers attending DCCs and indoor particulate matter, PM10, PM2.5, and microbial count level in urban DCCs in the District of Seremban, Malaysia.

    METHODS: Data collection was carried out at 10 DCCs located in the urban area of Seremban. Modified validated questionnaires were distributed to parents to obtain their children's health symptoms. The parameters measured were indoor PM2.5, PM10, carbon monoxide, total bacteria count, total fungus count, temperature, air velocity, and relative humidity using the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health analytical method.

    RESULTS: All 10 DCCs investigated had at least one indoor air quality parameter exceeding the acceptable level of standard guidelines. The prevalence of toddlers having wheezing symptoms was 18.9%. There was a significant different in mean concentration of PM2.5 and total bacteria count between those with and those without wheezing symptoms (P = 0.02, P = 0.006).

    CONCLUSIONS: Urban DCCs are exposed to many air pollutants that may enter their buildings from various adjacent sources. The particle concentrations and presence of microbes in DCCs might increase the risk of exposed children for respiratory diseases, particularly asthma, in their later life.

    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  16. Airborne particles in the city center of Kuala Lumpur: Origin, potential driving factors, and deposition flux in human respiratory airways
    Khan MF, Hamid AH, Bari MA, Tajudin ABA, Latif MT, Nadzir MSM, et al.
    Sci Total Environ, 2019 Feb 10;650(Pt 1):1195-1206.
    PMID: 30308807 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.09.072
    Equatorial warming conditions in urban areas can influence the particle number concentrations (PNCs), but studies assessing such factors are limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of size-resolved PNCs, their potential deposition rate in the human respiratory system, and probable local and transboundary inputs of PNCs in Kuala Lumpur. Particle size distributions of a 0.34 to 9.02 μm optical-equivalent size range were monitored at a frequency of 60 s between December 2016 and January 2017 using an optical-based compact scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS). Diurnal and correlation analysis showed that traffic emissions and meteorological confounding factors were potential driving factors for changes in the PNCs (Dp ≤1 μm) at the modeling site. Trajectory modeling showed that a PNC <100/cm3 was influenced mainly by Indo-China region air masses. On the other hand, a PNC >100/cm3 was influenced by air masses originating from the Indian Ocean and Indochina regions. Receptor models extracted five potential sources of PNCs: industrial emissions, transportation, aged traffic emissions, miscellaneous sources, and a source of secondary origin coupled with meteorological factors. A respiratory deposition model for male and female receptors predicted that the deposition flux of PM1 (particle mass ≤1 μm) into the alveolar (AL) region was higher (0.30 and 0.25 μg/h, respectively) than the upper airway (UA) (0.29 and 0.24 μg/h, respectively) and tracheobronchial (TB) regions (0.02 μg/h for each). However, the PM2.5 deposition flux was higher in the UA (2.02 and 1.68 μg/h, respectively) than in the TB (0.18 and 0.15 μg/h, respectively) and the AL regions (1.09 and 0.91 μg/h, respectively); a similar pattern was also observed for PM10.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
  17. Risk of concentrations of major air pollutants on the prevalence of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases in urbanized area of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    Tajudin MABA, Khan MF, Mahiyuddin WRW, Hod R, Latif MT, Hamid AH, et al.
    Ecotoxicol Environ Saf, 2019 Apr 30;171:290-300.
    PMID: 30612017 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2018.12.057
    Rapid urbanisation in Malaysian cities poses risks to the health of residents. This study aims to estimate the relative risk (RR) of major air pollutants on cardiovascular and respiratory hospitalisations in Kuala Lumpur. Daily hospitalisations due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases from 2010 to 2014 were obtained from the Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (HCTM). The trace gases, PM10 and weather variables were obtained from the Department of Environment (DOE) Malaysia in consistent with the hospitalisation data. The RR was estimated using a Generalised Additive Model (GAM) based on Poisson regression. A "lag" concept was used where the analysis was segregated into risks of immediate exposure (lag 0) until exposure after 5 days (lag 5). The results showed that the gases could pose significant risks towards cardiovascular and respiratory hospitalisations. However, the RR value of PM10 was not significant in this study. Immediate effects on cardiovascular hospitalisations were observed for NO2 and O3 but no immediate effect was found on respiratory hospitalisations. Delayed effects on cardiovascular and respiratory hospitalisations were found with SO2 and NO2. The highest RR value was observed at lag 4 for respiratory admissions with SO2 (RR = 1.123, 95% CI = 1.045-1.207), followed by NO2 at lag 5 for cardiovascular admissions (RR = 1.025, 95% CI = 1.005-1.046). For the multi-pollutant model, NO2 at lag 5 showed the highest risks towards cardiovascular hospitalisations after controlling for O3 8 h mean lag 1 (RR = 1.026, 95% CI = 1.006-1.047), while SO2 at lag 4 showed highest risks towards respiratory hospitalisations after controlling for NO2 lag 3 (RR = 1.132, 95% CI = 1.053-1.216). This study indicated that exposure to trace gases in Kuala Lumpur could lead to both immediate and delayed effects on cardiovascular and respiratory hospitalisations.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  18. Access to clean technologies, energy, finance, and food: environmental sustainability agenda and its implications on Sub-Saharan African countries
    Hishan SS, Sasmoko, Khan A, Ahmad J, Hassan ZB, Zaman K, et al.
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2019 Jun;26(16):16503-16518.
    PMID: 30980369 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-019-05056-7
    The Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is far lag behind the sustainable targets that set out in the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is highly needed to embark the priorities by their member countries to devise sustainable policies for accessing clean technologies, energy demand, finance, and food production to mitigate high-mass carbon emissions and conserve environmental agenda in the national policy agenda. The study evaluated United Nation's SDGs for environmental conservation and emission reduction in the panel of 35 selected SSA countries, during a period of 1995-2016. The study further analyzed the variable's relationship in inter-temporal forecasting framework for the next 10 years' time period, i.e., 2017-2026. The parameter estimates for the two models, i.e., CO2 model and PM2.5 models are analyzed by Generalized Method of Moment (GMM) estimator that handle possible endogeneity issue from the given models. The results rejected the inverted U-shaped Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) for CO2 emissions, while it supported for PM2.5 emissions with a turning point of US$5540 GDP per capita in constant 2010 US$. The results supported the "pollution haven hypothesis" for CO2 emissions, while this hypothesis is not verified for PM2.5 emissions. The major detrimental factors are technologies, FDI inflows, and food deficit that largely increase carbon emissions in a panel of SSA countries. The IPAT hypothesis is not verified in both the emissions; however, population density will largely influenced CO2 emissions in the next 10 years' time period. The PM2.5 emissions will largely be influenced by high per capita income, followed by trade openness, and technologies, over a time horizon. Thus, the United Nation's sustainable development agenda is highly influenced by socio-economic and environmental factors that need sound action plans by their member countries to coordinate and collaborate with each other and work for Africa's green growth agenda.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  19. Anionic Surfactants and Traffic Related Emission from an Urban Area of Perak, Malaysia
    Razak HA, Wahid NBA, Latif MT
    Arch Environ Contam Toxicol, 2019 Nov;77(4):587-593.
    PMID: 31359072 DOI: 10.1007/s00244-019-00656-3
    Anionic surfactants are one of the pollutants derived from particulate matter (PM) and adversely affect the health of living organisms. In this study, the compositions of surfactants extracted from PM and vehicle soot collected in an urban area were investigated. A high-volume air sampler was used to collect PM sample at urban area based on coarse (> 1.5 µm) and fine (
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis
  20. Spatiotemporal analysis of ground and satellite-based aerosol for air quality assessment in the Southeast Asia region
    Nguyen TTN, Pham HV, Lasko K, Bui MT, Laffly D, Jourdan A, et al.
    Environ Pollut, 2019 Dec;255(Pt 1):113106.
    PMID: 31541826 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113106
    Satellite observations for regional air quality assessment rely on comprehensive spatial coverage, and daily monitoring with reliable, cloud-free data quality. We investigated spatiotemporal variation and data quality of two global satellite Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) products derived from MODIS and VIIRS imagery. AOD is considered an essential atmospheric parameter strongly related to ground Particulate Matter (PM) in Southeast Asia (SEA). We analyze seasonal variation, urban/rural area influence, and biomass burning effects on atmospheric pollution. Validation indicated a strong relationship between AERONET ground AOD and both MODIS AOD (R2 = 0.81) and VIIRS AOD (R2 = 0.68). The monthly variation of satellite AOD and AERONET AOD reflects two seasonal trends of air quality separately for mainland countries including Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Taiwan, Hong Kong, and for maritime countries consisting of Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, and Timor Leste. The mainland SEA has a pattern of monthly AOD variation in which AODs peak in March/April, decreasing during wet season from May-September, and increasing to the second peak in October. However, in maritime SEA, AOD concentration peaks in October. The three countries with the highest annual satellite AODs are Singapore, Hong Kong, and Vietnam. High urban population proportions in Singapore (40.7%) and Hong Kong (21.6%) were associated with high AOD concentrations as expected. AOD values in SEA urban areas were a factor of 1.4 higher than in rural areas, with respective averages of 0.477 and 0.336. The AOD values varied proportionately to the frequency of biomass burning in which both active fires and AOD peak in March/April and September/October. Peak AOD in September/October in some countries could be related to pollutant transport of Indonesia forest fires. This study analyzed satellite aerosol product quality in relation to AERONET in SEA countries and highlighted framework of air quality assessment over a large, complicated region.
    Matched MeSH terms: Particulate Matter/analysis*
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