Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are present in both gaseous and particulate phases. These compounds are considered to be atmospheric contaminants and are human carcinogens. Many studies have monitored atmospheric particulate and gaseous phases of PAH in Asia over the past 5 years. This work compares and discusses different sample collection, pretreatment and analytical methods. The main PAH sources are traffic exhausts (AcPy, FL, Flu, PA, Pyr, CHR, BeP) and industrial emissions (BaP, BaA, PER, BeP, COR, CYC). PAH concentrations are highest in areas of traffic, followed by the urban sites, and lowest in rural sites. Meteorological conditions, such as temperature, wind speed and humidity, strongly affect PAH concentrations at all sampling sites. This work elucidates the characteristics, sources and distribution, and the healthy impacts of atmospheric PAH species in Asia.
Owing to its potential market value, the blue swimmer crab Portunus pelagicus is of great economic importance. The temperature of water significantly affects the physiological function and production efficiency of these crabs. The aim of the present study was therefore to examine the critical thermal minimum (CTMin), critical thermal maximum (CTMax), acclimation response ratio (ARR), escaping temperature (Tesc), and locomotor behavior of P. pelagicus instars at 20 °C, 24 °C, 28 °C, 32 °C, and 36 °C. The CTMax ranged from 39.05 °C to 44.38 °C, while the CTMin ranged from 13.05 °C to 19.30 °C, and both increased directly with temperature. The ARR ranged from 0.25 to 0.51. The movement of crabs (walking before molting) correlated positively with the acclimation temperature. These results indicate that the parameters evaluated varied with temperature. Furthermore, the high CTMax indicates the potential of this species to adapt to a wide range of temperatures. In addition, the implications of these findings for portunid crabs behavior and distribution in their natural habitat are also discussed.
Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) is a popular stand-alone bariatric surgery, despite a paucity of long-term data. Hence, this study is to report the long-term outcome of LSG as primary bariatric procedure and the result of revisional surgery.
Marine biota, especially commercially important species, serves as a basis for human nutrition. However, millions of tons of plastic litter are produced and enter the marine environment every year, with potential adverse impacts on marine organisms. In the present study, we investigated the occurrence and characteristics of microplastic (MP) pollution in the digestive tracts of 13 species of wild nektons from 20 stations sampled in the South China Sea (SCS) and the Indian Ocean (IO), and assessed the human health risks of MPs. The detection rate of MPs ranged from 0.00% to 50.00% from the SCS, which was dramatically lower than that from the IO (10.00-80.00%). The average abundance of MP was 0.18 ± 0.06 items g wet weight-1 (ww-1) in the SCS, which was significantly lower than that in the IO with a concentration of 0.70 ± 0.16 items g ww-1. Most MPs were fibers in type, black in color, and polyester (PES) in polymer composition in both the SCS and IO. Interestingly, distinct profiles of MP pollution were found between the benthic and pelagic nektons: 1) The predominant MP composition was PES in the benthic nektons, whereas polyamide (PA) accounted for a larger part of the total MP count in the pelagic nektons within the SCS; 2) The abundance of MP in the benthic nektons (0.52 ± 0.24 items individual-1) was higher than that in the pelagic nektons (0.30 ± 0.11 items individual-1). Accordingly, the mean hazard score of MPs detected in the benthic nektons (220.66 ± 210.75) was higher than that in the pelagic nektons (49.53 ± 22.87); 3) The mean size of the MP in the pelagic nektons (0.84 ± 0.17 mm) was larger than that in the benthic nektons (0.49 ± 0.09 mm). Our findings highlight the need to further investigate the ecological impacts of MPs on wild nekton, especially commercially important species, and its potential implications for human health.