Development of a methodology for the quantification of particle number and gaseous concentrations in a bidirectional bus tunnel and the derivation of emission factors

Particle number, NOx and CO concentrations were measured simultaneously at the air entry portal and at the mid-point of a 511m bi-directional road tunnel, used entirely by urban public transport buses. The aim of this study was to provide information on concentrations of these pollutants inside a unique bus tunnel, and to develop a viable methodology for determining emission factors for on-road vehicles. Measurements were made continuously over a period of five days that included a complete weekend. Traffic flow rate and air flow rate were also monitored. The mean particle number concentration at mid-tunnel was 4.1 x 104 cm-3, which was over four times higher than the urban background concentration. The mean concentrations of NOx and CO at mid-tunnel were 464 ppb and 802 ppb, respectively. All these values were between 2 and 4 times higher than at the air entry portal. Median concentrations during selected time segments coinciding with the morning and evening rush hours, mid-day during weekdays and full day during the weekends were determined and the corresponding bus emission factors of each of the three parameters was calculated. Mean emission factors found for particle number, NOx and CO were 7.1 x 1014 particles km-1, 8.1 g km-1 and 15.9 g km-1, respectively. These values compared well with previous studies, showing that the methodology adopted was sound and viable

Benzyl isothiocyanate inhibits oncogenic actions of leptin in human breast cancer cells by suppressing activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3

Molecular effects of obesity, a well-established risk factor for breast cancer progression, are mediated by adipocytokine leptin. Given the important role of leptin in breast cancer growth and metastasis, novel strategies to antagonize biological effects of this adipocytokine are much desired. We showed previously that benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC), a constituent of edible cruciferous vegetables (e.g. garden cress), confers significant protection against mammary carcinogenesis in a transgenic mouse model. The present study provides first evidence for the efficacy of BITC against oncogenic effects of leptin. The BITC treatment circumvented leptin-induced clonogenicity and anchorage-independent growth of MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. Leptin-stimulated migration and invasion of these cells was also inhibited in the presence of BITC. Analysis of the underlying molecular mechanisms revealed that BITC treatment suppressed leptin-induced Stat3 phosphorylation and cyclin D1 transactivation. The BITC-mediated inhibition of MDA-MB-231 xenograft growth correlated with a modest yet significant decrease in levels of Tyr705 phosphorylated Stat3. The BITC treatment efficiently inhibited Stat3 and SRC1 recruitment to cyclin D1 promoter in a chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis. Furthermore, overexpression of constitutively active Stat3 imparted significant protection against BITC-mediated inhibition of cyclin D1 transactivation, whereas RNA interference of Stat3 resulted in a significant increase in BITC-mediated inhibition of cyclin D1 transactivation in the presence of leptin. These results indicate that Stat3 plays an important role in BITC-mediated inhibition of leptin-induced cyclin D1 transactivation. In conclusion, BITC could potentially be a rational therapeutic strategy for breast carcinoma in obese patients with high leptin levels