Biomass burning is widely reported as a driver of wintertime PM2.5 pollution across the Western Balkans, but its residential and open-burning components have rarely been resolved using multi-city source apportionment. We applied EPA Positive Matrix Factorisation (PMF) 5.0 to 1,195 daily filter samples collected at six urban background sites in North Macedonia during two campaigns (October 2020-October 2021 and March 2023-March 2024). PMF consistently resolved residential wood combustion (RWC) and open/waste biomass burning (OBB) as distinct factors at all sites. RWC profiles were consistent across all 15 city pairs (Pearson distance 0.027-0.236). Campaign-period mean PM2.5 ranged from 29.1 to 62.2 μg/m[3], corresponding to 1.2-2.5 times the currently applicable annual limit value of 25 μg/m[3]. Combined biomass burning contributed 21-35% of campaign-period PM2.5, while heating-season RWC concentrations were up to 33 times higher than non-heating values. An undocumented winter OBB signal in Strumica (12.0 μg/m[3]) was most consistent with greenhouse boiler combustion and supported by stronger heating-season associations with SO2 (r = 0.587 versus 0.185; p < 0.001). In the three cities with continuous and filter-based monitoring, biomass burning exceeded 50% of PM2.5 on 83% of evaluable episode days in Skopje (Cliff's δ = 0.905) and 71% in Strumica (δ = 0.752). Episode-day wind speeds were up to 52% lower than non-episode means. Bimodal heating-season diurnal patterns, evening peaks reaching 93 μg/m[3], and conditional probability function (CPF) analysis provided convergent evidence that RWC and OBB dominate acute pollution episodes. The findings support accelerated EU Ecodesign transposition and stronger regulation of open and waste biomass burning, including greenhouse heating in agricultural areas.

Fire-sourced fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a chemically distinct component of ambient air pollution, but its association with site-specific cancer risk remains poorly understood. Here we examine associations between fire-sourced PM2.5 and multiple site-specific cancers across China using lagged, accumulated and extreme exposure metrics, and compare them with those for all-source PM2.5. Fire-sourced PM2.5 is positively associated with several cancers, although the pattern varies by exposure metric and cancer site. Lagged and accumulated exposures show the broadest associations, particularly for thyroid, kidney, breast, lung, leukemia and lymphoma cancers, whereas extreme exposure shows a narrower pattern, with the strongest association for laryngeal cancer. Compared with all-source PM2.5, fire-sourced PM2.5 shows stronger and more consistent associations with thyroid, kidney, laryngeal, lymphoma and oral cancers, suggesting that total PM2.5 mass may obscure source-specific cancer risks. Associations are stronger for thyroid and lung cancers in females and for kidney cancer in males, and are generally more pronounced in northern regions and in areas with lower gross domestic product (GDP) or lower tertiary-industry share. These findings identify fire-sourced PM2.5 as a distinct cancer-related exposure and support source-specific and health promotion-oriented air-pollution control strategies, particularly in socioeconomically disadvantaged regions.

Forecasting transboundary particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 10 μm (PM10) requires distinguishing the information carried by upwind observations from the timing information supplied by air-mass trajectories. This study developed an upwind-transition-receptor framework with temporally separated model development and evaluation for 1-4-day PM10 forecasts at three northern Taiwan receptors. Nested models successively introduced local conditions, regional-background measurements, nine continental particulate records, and a transport-timing composite derived from historical trajectories. Nested comparisons attributed most of the added predictive skill to distributed upwind observations, while trajectory timing provided a complementary, receptor-dependent refinement. Across all candidates, the upwind-inclusive CatBoost model achieved the lowest aggregate root mean square error (RMSE; 11.04 μg m[-3]), 13.0% below persistence. Multi-height trajectory analysis showed increasing pathway divergence with lookback, identifying lower-tropospheric trajectories as timing evidence whose vertical representativeness decreases over longer lookbacks. Upper-tail discrimination remained informative, with precision reflecting the scarcity of high-PM10 events. The framework clarifies how upwind observations, transport information, and receptor response contribute to forecast performance.

Postpartum depression is a major maternal and child health concern, but evidence regarding prenatal exposure to ultrafine particles (UFPs) remains limited. This prospective two-center pregnancy cohort in Shanghai included 2,647 pregnant women. Residential prenatal exposures to UFPs and PM2.5 were estimated for the first, second, and third trimesters and the full pregnancy. Depressive symptoms were assessed at 6-10 weeks postpartum using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, with a score ≥10 defined as positive screening for postpartum depression. Associations were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression, two-pollutant models, joint-trimester logistic regression, exploratory stacked logistic generalized estimating equations, restricted cubic splines, and interaction analyses. The prevalence of positive screening for postpartum depression was 20.4%. After adjustment for potential confounders, an IQR increase in first-trimester UFPs exposure was associated with higher odds of screen-positive postpartum depression (OR = 1.252, 95% CI: 1.065-1.471), as was an IQR increase in full-pregnancy UFPs exposure (OR = 1.104, 95% CI: 1.047-1.164). These associations persisted after adjustment for PM2.5, whereas PM2.5 showed no stable independent association. Sensitive-window analysis supported the first trimester as the main window of association, and infant-sex interaction analysis suggested a stronger association among pregnancies with male infants. These findings suggest that prenatal UFPs exposure, particularly during early pregnancy, may be associated with higher odds of positive screening for postpartum depression, highlighting the potential relevance of ultrafine particle number concentration in perinatal environmental health research.

Wastewater is a widespread stressor, but its impact on the genetic structure of soil invertebrates remains poorly understood. We studied the distribution of genetic lineages of the parthenogenetic springtail Parisotoma notabilis sensu lato in tundra and taiga zones of the European North of Russia, focusing on wastewater-affected (technogenic) sites. Using COI and 28S rDNA markers, we analysed 90 specimens from 18 sites representing three habitat types (zonal, floodplain, technogenic) per zone and identified four lineages: L1, L2, L4 and L-East. Distribution was highly habitat-specific and primarily driven by both soil temperature and disturbance. In the tundra, L-East dominated natural sites but was absent from technogenic sites, where L2 predominated. In the taiga, technogenic sites were dominated by synanthropic L1, whereas L2 prevailed in natural forests and floodplains. Wastewater appears to act as a selective filter, reducing genetic diversity and being associated with zone-dependent lineage replacement: L2 replaces L-East in the tundra, while L1 dominates in the taiga. This temperature-associated pattern highlights the need for region-specific bioindication frameworks.

Organisms that occupy environments contaminated by radionuclides such as the area surrounding the former nuclear power plant at Chornobyl, Ukraine, face putative detrimental effects. How radioactive pollution affects organisms, especially in their early life, is not well studied in the wild. Our study focused on two interconnected factors that might be impacted by environmental radionuclide contamination: 1) diet, as biodiversity may be altered in response to contamination, and its concomitant effect on 2) the early-life gut microbiota. We quantified fitness components, diet, and gut microbiota (using amplicon sequencing) from nestlings of two passerine bird species (Great tit Parus major and Pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca) by sampling animals in nest-boxes located in contaminated and uncontaminated areas within the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. Out of studied components of breeding and fitness (nest occupancy, hatching time, brood size, body-condition) only hatching time was significantly negatively associated with environmental radiation. Diversity of dietary insects and diversity of the gut microbiota showed no connection to environmental contamination but, in both bird species, the composition of diet and gut microbiota was associated with exposure to radionuclides. Networks formed by gut microbial taxa were also reorganized in contaminated areas in P. major nestlings. These novel results, while covering only one breeding season, give valuable insight into how contaminated environment affects avian physiology and ecology.

Maternal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has shown inconsistent associations with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP). This prospective cohort study examined the associations between early pregnancy serum PFAS concentrations and HDP risk, evaluating potential effect modification by fetal sex among 2,984 pregnant women in Henan Province, China (2018-2021). Sixteen PFAS were measured in early pregnancy serum samples, with nine retained for analysis based on detection rates ≥70%. Multivariable logistic regression models estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) adjusting for confounders. Of the participants, 112 (3.8%) developed gestational hypertension and 137 (4.6%) developed preeclampsia. Doubling of serum PFDoA concentration was nominally associated with increased odds of both gestational hypertension (OR = 1.31; 95% CI: 1.08, 1.60) and preeclampsia (OR = 1.21; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.45). Conversely, doubling of 6:2Cl-PFESA was nominally associated with lower odds of preeclampsia (OR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.77, 0.97). Quantile g-computation indicated that although the overall PFAS mixture was not significantly associated with HDP risk, PFDoA consistently contributed substantial positive weights to the mixture effects for both outcomes. In exploratory analyses, fetal sex appeared to modify the association between PFDoA and gestational hypertension (P-interaction = 0.035), with elevated odds observed among female fetuses (OR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.27, 2.35) compared to male fetuses (OR = 1.07; 95% CI: 0.82, 1.39). These findings suggest congener-specific effects and sex-modulated susceptibility, indicating that early pregnancy PFDoA exposure may be associated with elevated HDP risk, warranting further investigation to validate these associations.

Riverine antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are commonly interpreted in relation to pollutant concentrations, but these associations may also depend on hydrometeorological context and the resolution at which ARG responses are analyzed. We integrated ARG and pollutant datasets from the Pearl and Xiangjiang rivers with campaign-window precipitation, air temperature and streamflow data to compare pollutant-state, hydrometeorological and combined explanations of total and class-specific ARG variation. At the total-ARG level, pollutant-state gradients captured most of the coherent explainable variation, whereas hydrometeorological variables alone contributed relatively little. At the resistance-class level, supported model assignments were concentrated mainly in pollutant-state and combined models, with little support for hydrometeorology-only models. No interaction between pollutant-state variables and hydrometeorological conditions was retained for total ARG abundance after FDR correction in either basin. In contrast, multiple FDR-retained interactions were identified among resistance classes, with streamflow-related modifiers occurring more frequently than meteorological modifiers in the primary analysis. However, none of these class-level interactions met all evaluated robustness criteria, and their number and identity were sensitive to response specification. These findings should therefore be interpreted as exploratory signals rather than evidence of causal effect modification. These patterns indicate that hydrometeorological context was associated with variation in pollutant-ARG relationships at finer response resolution. Taken together, the contrasting patterns between aggregate and class-specific responses suggest that aggregation may provide less information about heterogeneous context dependence, although the underlying mechanisms remain unresolved. Overall, pollutant-state gradients characterized the aggregate ARG signal, whereas hydrometeorological context was more apparent in class-specific associations.

Polystyrene nanoplastics (NPs) may affect macrophage function, but the relationships between inflammatory responses and mitochondrial alterations remain unclear. We combined exploratory analysis of public zebrafish intestinal single-cell RNA-sequencing data with transcriptomic, metabolomic, and experimental studies in RAW264.7 cells and primary mouse macrophages. In RAW264.7 cells, NPs increased reactive oxygen species (ROS), nitric oxide (NO), and the secretion of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), and interleukin-6 (IL-6). ROS and cytokine responses occurred at concentrations below those causing significant cytotoxicity in this cell line. A complex I-associated activity assay detected changes at lower NP concentrations than assays of cellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and the NAD[+]/NADH ratio. MitoSOX and JC-1 measurements further indicated changes in mitochondrial oxidant-sensitive fluorescence and membrane-potential-associated signals. Primary mouse macrophages showed concentration- and time-dependent responses, including increased TNF-α secretion. NPs exposure was also associated with reduced CPEB4 and INO80B protein abundance. CPEB4 knockdown increased ROS and reduced ATP at a later time point, whereas cellular thermal shift assay showed altered CPEB4 thermal behavior after NPs exposure. These findings identify inflammatory and mitochondrial responses associated with NPs exposure and implicate CPEB4 as a candidate contributor. However, they do not establish direct binding of intact NPs to CPEB4 or a causal role for CPEB4 or INO80B.

Fire emissions are environmental contaminants with hazardous effects on the environment and human health. Human exposure to fire emissions occurs mainly via inhalation and dermal contact, while buccal exposure concentrations remain largely underexplored. This work characterizes, for the first time, exposure to metal(loid)s and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) at the oral cavity during firefighting work, accounting for five occupational and personal-life variables. Paired spot saliva samples were collected by 58 firefighters [organized in 4 groups: non-smoker non-exposed (NSNE), non-smoker exposed (NSE), smoker non-exposed (SNE), and smoker exposed (SE)] pre- and post-firefighting work. About 65-67% of firefighters showed increased metal(loid) and PAH levels after firefighting, with greater increments observed in smokers than in non-smokers. ∑metal(loid)s (18.7-28.6 μg/L) were up to 1.5x increase in SE than in NSNE, with Cu and Sr as the most abundant metals; similar findings were found for toxic/carcinogenic metal(loid)s (1.06-1.75 μg/L). ∑PAHs (1.19-1.40 μg/L) were slightly increased in NSE participants with seven detected compounds (naphthalene > phenanthrene > fluorene > anthracene > fluoranthene > pyrene) in all participants. Evidence suggests the potential bioaccumulation of metal(loid)s with the increase of BMI. Participants exposed to fires for more than 1h presented up to 1.8-2.1 higher salivary metal(loid)s compared to those exposed for less than 1h. NSNE firefighters with longer careers (> 10 years) presented 2.3x increased levels than those with less than 10 years. Salivary content represents a biomonitoring exploratory screening used in a toxicological screening based on conventional environmental risk assessment. Benzo(a)pyrene total toxicity equivalent concentrations and average daily potential dose were low with negligible non-carcinogenic (<1) risks and predominantly acceptable carcinogenic risks (10[-6] - 10[-4]). Overall, smoking and firefighting work increase salivary PAHs and meta(loid)s levels despite personal protective equipment use. These findings motivate targeted strategies to reduce exposure and promote long-term occupational and public health.

Wetland ecosystems are among the world's most productive and valuable environments, supporting key ecosystem functions, such as biodiversity conservation and water quality improvement, carbon sequestration, flood buffering, and climate resilience. However, the widespread occurrence of micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) has emerged as a growing threat to the ecological integrity and functioning of these ecosystems. Individual MNPs and the combined effects of these particles and coexisting microcontaminants represent a major threat to environmental and human health. Wetlands act as both sinks and secondary sources of MNPs due to their unique hydrological, biological, and sedimentary characteristics, facilitating the accumulation, transformation, and redistribution of plastic particles. Once trapped in wetland environments, MNPs experience physical, chemical, and biological transformation processes, interact with co-occurring contaminants and microbial communities, and may be transported across aquatic and terrestrial food webs, thereby threatening wildlife, livestock, and ultimately human health. These processes highlight the need to investigate MNP pollution within a One Health framework to develop mitigation strategies to protect ecosystems, wildlife, and human health.

Emerging contaminant attenuation in freshwater lakes may depend on metabolically available organic substrates and the organization of indigenous microbial communities, yet their relative contributions across hydrological seasons remain unclear. Using estrone as a representative steroid estrogen, we investigated its biodegradation potential (EBP) across contrasting wet and dry periods in Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) optical properties, biodegradable dissolved organic carbon (BDOC%), bacterioplankton community assembly, and co-occurrence network attributes were characterized to evaluate the associations of substrate conditions and community organization with estrone biodegradation. Wet-period conditions were characterized by stronger humified and terrestrial-associated DOM signatures and lower BDOC%, whereas dry-period conditions featured more autochthonous or microbially processed DOM with greater biodegradability. Higher BDOC% coincided with a more biodegradable DOM background and higher carbon-normalized EBP (C-EBP), which increased from 23.51 ± 5.35 ng mg[-1] C during the wet period to 34.05 ± 6.98 ng mg[-1] C during the dry period. However, the concurrent increase in biomass-normalized EBP (B-EBP) was not associated with BDOC%, but was linked to dry-period bacterioplankton community reorganization characterized by DOM-utilizing bacterial groups, stronger heterogeneous selection, and more connected, cohesive, and robust association networks. Piecewise structural equation modeling further identified positive associations of DOM biodegradability and network stability with C-EBP, whereas B-EBP was primarily associated with network stability. These findings indicated that seasonal variation in steroid estrogen biodegradation reflected distinct but interconnected associations of substrate availability and bacterioplankton organization, providing an integrative ecological framework for evaluating emerging contaminant degradation capacity in river-connected floodplain lakes.

One of the main challenges in understanding the fate and impacts of pesticides is to incorporate multiple environmental and human matrices and their interrelations. This study aimed to identify the most critical substances through detection frequency (DF) analysis of multiple environmental and biological matrices of Swiss study site containing orchards. A sampling campaign was conducted during the harvest season of 2021 that encompassed conventional and organic farming systems (FS), and 3 population groups (farmers, neighbors, and consumers). We analyzed 208 pesticide residues (active substances and metabolites) in a total of 62 environmental samples (soil, plant, indoor dust, water, and sediment) and 235 human samples (urine, feces, plasma, and wristbands). DDE p,p' was the substance with the highest DF in environmental samples (61%), followed by dicamba (55%), hexachlorobenzene (52%), difenoconazole (44%), and dieldrin (42%). For humans, 8 of the 20 most frequently detected substances are highly hazardous and 9 are probably hazardous to human health. Among the 6 substances detected in human blood, 2 are hazardous (piperonyl butoxide and hexachlorobenzene) and 2 are probably hazardous (fluopyram and DDE p,p'). Samples from organic FS are less contaminated than samples from conventional systems. Conventional farmers showed the highest DFs for several pesticide residues. 25% of compounds including banned substances detected in both compartments illustrates how legacy contaminants continue to dominate in the mixtures and circulate between environmental reservoirs and humans. Integrating pesticide insights from diverse matrices is crucial to advancing our understanding of pesticide exposure and designing more effective risk reduction strategies.

Environmental distribution, transformation pathways, and scenario-specific non-dietary intake of N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N'-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (6PPD) and 6PPD-quinone (6PPD-Q) are reviewed. Both compounds occur in water, air, dust, and soil, with distributions governed by traffic emissions, hydrological connectivity, particle properties, and environmental conditions. Runoff-affected waters are major hotspots for 6PPD and 6PPD-Q contamination and potential ecological risk. 6PPD transformation modifies compound-specific mobility, persistence, and hazard but does not consistently increase toxicity across species and endpoints. Unlike previous reviews focused primarily on environmental occurrence, transformation, and toxicity, this review provides a comparative screening-level assessment of non-dietary exposure to 6PPD and 6PPD-Q across representative microenvironments, considering inhalation, dermal contact, and incidental dust ingestion. Results showed that estimated intakes were primarily governed by source proximity and contaminant loading. Where all three pathways were evaluated, incidental dust ingestion and dermal contact generally contributed more than inhalation. Across different exposure scenarios, the highest upper-bound ΣEDI for adults was estimated at 3.751 ng/(kg bw·day) for 6PPD in parking-related environments, whereas the corresponding maximum for 6PPD-Q was 1.995 ng/(kg bw·day) at production sites, indicating compound-specific priority exposure scenarios. These screening-level estimates represent potential external exposure rather than absorbed dose or direct health risk. Nevertheless, the elevated exposure potential in source-proximal microenvironments warrants further investigation of possible health implications. Future assessments should integrate dietary and non-dietary pathways with biomonitoring, toxicokinetic modeling, mixture analysis, and probabilistic approaches.

MICRO: and nano-plastics (MNPs) are emerging environmental pollutants, yet the influence of surface functionalization on their hepatotoxicity remains poorly understood. In this study, zebrafish liver (ZFL) cells were exposed plain and surface-functionalized polystyrene microplastics (1 μm) and nanoplastics (50 nm) to assess their effects on cell viability, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipidomic responses, and gene expression. As a complementary analysis, UV-treated particles were evaluated on cell viability and ROS production. While most treatments did not impair cellular viability or trigger extensive transcriptional responses, UV photodegradation produced only transient changes in ROS levels, with minor increases relative to controls. MP-NH2 caused a marked accumulation of cholesterol esters, accompanied by reduced microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (mtp) transcript abundance, suggesting perturbation of sterol metabolism. In contrast, plain nanoplastics selectively increased ether-linked phosphatidylcholines, suggesting altered membrane organization. Overall, these findings indicate that size-related particle attributes and surface chemistry, particularly aminated MPs and plain NPs, are associated with distinct lipidomic responses in ZFL cells, and highlight lipidomics as a sensitive approach for detecting early biochemical perturbations following MNP exposure.