Tempospatial Distribution, Gas: Solid Partition, and Long- Range Transportation of Atmospheric Mercury at an Industrial City and Offshore Islands

This chapter measured atmospheric mercury from two cases of small-scale regions to large-scale regions, and further investigated the tempospatial variation of atmospheric mercury, gas-particulate partition, the transportation routes of mercury, and the comparison of mercury concentration in urban areas and stationary sources. In a heavily polluted industrial city, Kaohsiung, field measurement results showed that total gaseous mercury (TGM) and Hgp concentrations were in the range of 2.38–9.41 and 0.02–0.59 ng/m3 with the highest concentrations of 9.41 and 0.59 ng/m3, respectively. Moreover, the partition of atmospheric mercury was apportioned as 92.71–99.17% TGM and 0.83–7.29% Hgp. The hot spots of atmospheric mercury were allocated at two regions in Kaohsiung City, including a steel industrial complex in the south and a petrochemical industrial complex in the north. In a coastal site of the Penghu Islands, the field measurement results showed that the average TGM concentration during the monitoring periods was 3.17 ± 1.17 ng/m3 with the range of 1.17–8.63 ng/m3, as the highest concentration being observed in spring, while the average TGM concentrations in the daytime were typically higher than that at nighttime. Therefore, prevailing wind direction and air mass transportation routes potentially played critical roles on the variation of TGM concentration at the Penghu Islands

Quantum Simulation of Dissipative Energy Transfer via Noisy Quantum Computer

In recent years, due to its formidable potential in computational theory, quantum computing has become a very popular research topic. However, the implementation of practical quantum algorithms, which hold the potential to solve real-world problems, is often hindered by the significant error rates associated with quantum gates and the limited availability of qubits. In this study, we propose a practical approach to simulate the dynamics of an open quantum system on a noisy computer, which encompasses general and valuable characteristics. Notably, our method leverages gate noises on the IBM-Q real device, enabling us to perform calculations using only two qubits. The results generated by our method performed on IBM-Q Jakarta aligned with the those calculated by hierarchical equations of motion (HEOM), which is a classical numerically-exact method, while our simulation method runs with a much better computing complexity. In the last, to deal with the increasing depth of quantum circuits when doing Trotter expansion, we introduced the transfer tensor method(TTM) to extend our short-term dynamics simulation. Based on quantum simulator, we show the extending ability of TTM, which allows us to get a longer simulation using a relatively short quantum circuits

Long-Range Transport of Asian Dust and Air Pollutants to Taiwan

Dust storms and long-range transport of pollutants are major environ-mental concerns of Taiwan during the winter monsoon season when north-easterly winds prevail following passages of cold fronts. To quantify the impact on air quality, we develop an objective method to classify and study the long-range transport processes by examining the frontal passages in two representative years. We have found that there is about one frontal passage per week in winter and spring, consistent with the climatological average. The long-range transport events are classified into three types ac-cording to their degrees of impact on levels of dusts and air pollutants in Taiwan, namely dust storms (DS), long-range transport with pollutants (FP), and long-range transport of background air masses (BG). DS cases occurred 4.7 % of the time over 14 months and had a large average PM10 concentra-tion of 127.6 µg m 3 − at Wan-Li station. FP cases occurred 1.9 % of the time and the mean concentration of PM10 during the FP periods was about 85 µg m 3 −. BG cases happened 18.6 % of the time and the mean concentra-tion of PM10 was 32.8 µg m 3−. Dust storms and air pollutants tend to be transported in different air parcels as evidenced by a lack of correlation between dust aerosols and air pollutants. The frequency of local pollution (LP) cases was 71.7 % in winter and spring. The average PM10 concentra-tion of LP cases at the Wan-Li station was 47.4 µg m 3 −. However, about one to two-thirds of the PM10 during LP cases can be attributed to the long

Assessing suitability of Co@Au core/shell nanoparticle geometry for improved theranostics in colon carcinoma

The interactions between cells and nanomaterials at the nanoscale play a pivotal role in controlling cellular behavior and ample evidence links cell intercommunication to nanomaterial size. However, little is known about the effect of nanomaterial geometry on cell behavior. To elucidate this and to extend the application in cancer theranostics, we have engineered core–shell cobalt–gold nanoparticles with spherical (Co@Au NPs) and elliptical morphology (Co@Au NEs). Our results show that owing to superparamagnetism, Co@Au NPs can generate hyperthermia upon magnetic field stimulation. In contrast, due to the geometric difference, Co@Au NEs can be optically excited to generate hyperthermia upon photostimulation and elevate the medium temperature to 45 °C. Both nanomaterial geometries can be employed as prospective contrast agents; however, at identical concentration, Co@Au NPs exhibited 4-fold higher cytotoxicity to L929 fibroblasts as compared to Co@Au NEs, confirming the effect of nanomaterial geometry on cell fate. Furthermore, photostimulation-generated hyperthermia prompted detachment of anti-cancer drug, Methotrexate (MTX), from Co@Au NEs-MTX complex and which triggered 90% decrease in SW620 colon carcinoma cell viability, confirming their application in cancer theranostics. The geometry-based perturbation of cell fate can have a profound impact on our understanding of interactions at nano-bio interface which can be exploited for engineering materials with optimized geometries for superior theranostic applications

HLA Associations and Clinical Implications in T-Cell Mediated Drug Hypersensitivity Reactions: An Updated Review

T-cell mediated drug hypersensitivity reactions may range from mild rash to severe fatal reactions. Among them, drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) or drug-induced hypersensitivity syndrome (DIHS), Stevens-Johnson syndrome/ toxic epidermal necrolysis (SJS/TEN), are some of the most life-threatening severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs). Recent advances in pharmacogenetic studies show strong genetic associations between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles and susceptibility to drug hypersensitivity. This review summarizes the literature on recent progresses in pharmacogenetic studies and clinical application of pharmacogenetic screening based on associations between SCARs and specific HLA alleles to avoid serious conditions associated with drug hypersensitivity

Nitrogen isotope composition of ammonium in PM 2.5 in the Xiamen, China: impact of non-agricultural ammonia

Abstract(#br)Since NH 3 is a significant precursor to ammonium in PM 2.5 and contributes significantly to atmospheric nitrogen deposition but largely remains unregulated in China, the insight into the source of NH 3 emissions by the isotopic investigation is important in controlling NH 3 emissions. In this study, atmospheric concentrations of NH 3 and water-soluble ion composition in PM 2.5 as well as nitrogen isotope ratios in NH 4 + (δ 15 N-NH 4 + ) in Xiamen, China, were measured. Results showed that average NH 3 concentration for the five sites in Xiamen was 7.9 μg m −3 with distinct higher values in the warm season and lower values in the cold season, and PM 2.5 concentration for the two sites (urban and suburban) was 59.2 μg m −3 with lowest values in summer. In the PM 2.5 , NH 4 +..

Nitrogen isotope composition of ammonium in PM2.5 in the Xiamen, China: impact of non-agricultural ammonia.

Since NH3 is a significant precursor to ammonium in PM2.5 and contributes significantly to atmospheric nitrogen deposition but largely remains unregulated in China, the insight into the source of NH3 emissions by the isotopic investigation is important in controlling NH3 emissions. In this study, atmospheric concentrations of NH3 and water-soluble ion composition in PM2.5 as well as nitrogen isotope ratios in NH4+ (δ15N-NH4+) in Xiamen, China, were measured. Results showed that average NH3 concentration for the five sites in Xiamen was 7.9 μg m-3 with distinct higher values in the warm season and lower values in the cold season, and PM2.5 concentration for the two sites (urban and suburban) was 59.2 μg m-3 with lowest values in summer. In the PM2.5, NH4+ concentrations were much lower than NH3 and showed a stronger positive correlation with NO3- than that with SO42- suggesting the formation of NH4NO3 and equilibrium between NH3 and NH4+. Although the concentrations of NH3 at the urban site were significantly higher than those at the suburban site, no significant spatial difference in NH4+ and δ15N-NH4+ was obtained. The distinct heavier δ15N-NH4+ values in summer than in other seasons correlated well with the equilibrium isotopic effects between NH3 and NH4+ which depend on temperature. The initial δ15N-NH3 values were in the range of waste treatment (- 25.42‰) and fossil fuel combustion (- 2.5‰) after accounting for the isotope fractionation. The stable isotope mixing model showed that fossil fuel-related NH3 emissions (fossil fuel combustion and NH3 slip) contributed more than 70% to aerosol NH4+. This finding suggested that the reduction of NH3 emissions from urban transportation and coal combustion should be a priority in the abatement of PM2.5 pollution in Xiamen

A Proposal of New Reference System for the Standard Axial, Sagittal, Coronal Planes of Brain Based on the Serially-Sectioned Images

Sectional anatomy of human brain is useful to examine the diseased brain as well as normal brain. However, intracerebral reference points for the axial, sagittal, and coronal planes of brain have not been standardized in anatomical sections or radiological images. We made 2,343 serially-sectioned images of a cadaver head with 0.1 mm intervals, 0.1 mm pixel size, and 48 bit color and obtained axial, sagittal, and coronal images based on the proposed reference system. This reference system consists of one principal reference point and two ancillary reference points. The two ancillary reference points are the anterior commissure and the posterior commissure. And the principal reference point is the midpoint of two ancillary reference points. It resides in the center of whole brain. From the principal reference point, Cartesian coordinate of x, y, z could be made to be the standard axial, sagittal, and coronal planes