Personal PM_(2.5)-bound PAH exposure and lung function in healthy office workers:A pilot study in Beijing and Baoding,China

The effect of short-term exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)on the respiratory system among healthy residents is unclear.Beijing and Baoding are typical polluted cities in China,and there is little research on PAH exposure and its health effects at the individual level.Fourteen healthy female office workers were recruited in urban Beijing and Baoding,China,in 2019.The personal exposure to fine particulate matter(PM_(2.5))-bound PAHs and lung function were seasonally monitored.The relationships between PAH exposure and lung function were determined by a generalized mixed linear model.Subjects were exposed to high levels of PAH,in which the benzo[a]pyrene(BaP)level(1.26 ng/m^(3))was over than Chinese national indoor standard(1 ng/m^(3)).All PAHs concentration was higher in winter than that in summer and autumn.Only benz[a]anthracene(BaA)and chrysene(Chr)exposure showed weak relations with decreased lung function,i.e.,a 0.58% and 0.73% decrease in peak expiratory flow at lag 2 day,respectively(p<0.05).PAHs may not be suitable exposure indicators for short-term change in lung function.Our findings highlight the importance of reducing PAH pollution for public respiratory health protection in heavy-polluted cities of China.This pilot study also provides experience on personal PAH assessment such as estimation of the number of repeated measurements required,which is helpful to determine the relationship between PAH exposure and health effect.

Variations in traffic-related polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in PM2.5 in Kanazawa, Japan, after the implementation of a new vehicle emission regulation

A three-year sampling campaign was conducted at a roadside air pollution monitoring station in the urban area of Kanazawa, Japan. Due to a new emission regulation, PAHs levels decreased over the sampling campaign, exhibiting values of 706 ± 413 pg/m^(3) in 2017, 559 ±384 pg/m^(3) in 2018, and 473 ± 234 pg/m^(3) in 2019. In each year, similar seasonal variations in PAHs levels were observed, with higher levels observed in winter and lower levels in summer. Among the PAHs isomer ratios, we observed that the ratio of benzo[b]fluoranthene(BbF) and benzo[k]fluoranthene(BkF), [Bb F]/([BbF] + [BkF]), and the ratio of indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene(IDP) and benzo[ghi]perylene(BgPe), [IDP]/([BgPe] + [IDP]), showed stability over the sampling campaign and were less affected by the new emission regulation, seasonal variations, and regional characteristics. When using the combined ratio ranges of 0.66-0.80([Bb F]/[BbF] + [BkF]) and 0.26-0.49([IDP]/[Bg Pe] + [IDP]), traffic emissions were clearly distinguished from other PAHs emission sources. Principal component analysis(PCA) and positive matrix factorization(PMF) were also performed to further analyse the characteristics of traffic-related PAHs. Overall, this study affirmed the effectiveness of the new emission regulation in the reduction of PAHs emissions and provided a combined range for identifying PAHs traffic emission sources.