Air pollutants and daily number of admissions to psychiatric emergency services: evidence for detrimental mental health effects of ozone

Abstract Aims Aim of the current study is to investigate the associations between daily levels of air pollutants (particulate matter, ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide) and daily admissions for mental disorders to the emergency department of two general hospitals in Umbria region (Italy). Methods We collected data about daily admissions to psychiatric emergency services of two general hospitals, air pollutants' levels and meteorological data for the time period 1 January 2015 until 31 December 2016. We assessed the impact of an increase in air pollutants on the number of daily admissions using a time-series econometric framework. Results A total of 1860 emergency department admissions for mental disorders were identified. We observed a statistically significant impact of ozone levels on daily admissions. The estimated coefficient of O3 is statistically significant at the 1% level. All other pollutants were not significantly associated with the number of daily admissions. Conclusions Short-term exposure to ozone may be associated with increased psychiatric emergency services admissions. Findings add to previous literature on existing evidence for air pollution to have an impact on mental health. Ozone may be considered a potential environmental risk factor for impaired mental health

Lead Accumulation in Native and Naturalized Woody Species Grown on a Pb-contaminated Site

Phytoremediation has been proposed as an economic alternative for remediation of metal contaminated soils. It can be applied over extended surfaces and hilly areas, and targets the “bioavailable” soil fraction of heavy metals, which is the most relevant fraction from an environmental risk assessment perspective. The most important drawback is the long remediation period required (from years to decades). In these condition, the goal is to create a vegetative cap using native and naturalized woody plants in order to 1) prevent wind and water erosion of soil, 2) stabilize metal contaminants in the rooting zone, and 3) encourage epigeous uptake of metal contaminant. The use of shrub and trees species induce a gradual removal of the contaminant at diverse soil deep, making available biomasses for the production of renewable energy. This study was designed to analyze the ability of native and naturalized plant species found in a Pb contaminated area in La Spezia, located in the North of Italy, as candidate species to manage and mitigate environmental contaminant health risks. The polluted site, a little hill close to a factory that produces PbO since 1922, presents soil Pb concentration ranging from 170,5 to 4500,5 mg•kg-1. Plants able to survive in the presence of out-range levels of lead respect to the threshold limit (DM 152/2006) were identified, including trees (pine and Ailanthus sp.) and shrubs (Arbutus unedo L., Erica arborea L., Myrtus communis L., Ilex aquifolium L., Laurus nobilis L. and Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Khun). The content of lead in plant tissues was determined by ICP in ashed samples obtained from roots, stems + branches and leaves. A clear species peculiarity in the accumulation of Pb metal in the vegetative organs was revealed and to investigate Pb uptake capacity of selected woody species, a nine months long pot experiment was performed. Tree of Heaven, Bay Laurel and Common Myrtle plants were grown in soils with 312,4 mg Pb Kg-1 (Pb-) and 4344,5 mg Pb Kg-1 (Pb+), collected from two different sites within the contaminated area, without addition of organic fertilizer or treatments with EDTA. The Pb plant accumulation (550, 787, 1300 mg Kg-1s.s.) increased in Laurus nobilis, Ailanthus sp. and Myrtus communis, respectively, cultivated into 4500 mg Kg-1 Pb soil. Ailanthus plants accumulated larger Pb metal quantities compared to two shrub species, as a large part of lead was translocated from roots to epigeous parts (47). All the species included in this study might be considered as Pb tolerant plants and may be cultivated in soils presenting a medium or high lead contamination. Their different ability to accumulate lead in epigeous and ipogeous organs suggests the potential use for phytoextraction and/or phytostabilization. They were also discussed for the biomass production capacity, the possibilities for an economical exploitation and the phytostabilization efficiency in order to reduce the mobilization of Pb

Bioremedation and phytoremedation: Synergism in lead extraction from contamined soils

Phytoextraction actuated by hyperaccumulating or non-hyperaccumulating species could be improved by using a plant-microbe system (Zhuang et al. 2007, Lebeau et al., 2008) thus contributing to novel promising methods for the cleaning-up of metal contaminated soils. Rhizobacteria of the genus Azospirillum have been extensively used for crop phytostimulation thanks to the positive interaction between bacteria and plants at root level (Dobbeleare et al., 2001; Basaglia et al., 2003; Russo et al., 2005; Russo et al., 2008). The implementation of lead phytoextraction in contaminated industrial soils by applying the A. brasilense Sp245 to plants of indigenous species belonging to Mediterranean forestry was the aim of this work. The possible phytoextraction ability was evaluated in Myrtus communis L. and Laurus nobilis L., previously selected between other plant species founded able to grow in the contaminated areas, on the basis of the Pb content (Emission Spectrophotometer Atomic Plasma, ICP-AES), the growing speed and the vegetative habitus. Greenhouse trials were performed for 2 and 9 months, and plants were grown in pot in the presence of two level of Pb (312 and 4345 ppm). Metal accumulation in plants was higher at 9 months than at 2 months and, considering a coppice life cycle with a cut every 3-4 years, the total amount of Pb accumulated could be interesting for a field application. The presence of Sp245 positively affected the total amount of Pb removed by plants either as total biomass produced and as higher specific Pb concentration. Moreover the bioconcentration factor (Pb in plant tissues/Pb in soil) and translocation factor (Pb in leaves and shoots/Pb in roots) were significantly affected by the presence of A. brasilense Sp245, attesting the synergetic effect of plants and microorganism in a rhizoremediation system

Importance of Microrganism and Plant Biodiversity in Phytoextraction Applied to Metal Contamined Soil

La ricerca si prefigge lo scopo di valutare l’efficacia di Azospirillum brasilense Sp245 in associazione con essenze arbustive autoctone della macchia Mediterranea per la bonifica di suoli contaminati da piombo situati in Liguria, nell’area ad ovest dello stabilimento della azienda PENOX Italia s.r.l. Tra le specie identificate in grado di accumulare piombo, Myrtus communis e Laurus nobilis, inoculate con A. brasilense Sp245 in esperimenti condotti ex situ, in ambiente controllato, dimostrano di ridurre significativamente la concentrazione di piombo nel suolo rispetto alle piante di controllo non trattate

Lead phytoremediation: a field application in a Site of National Interest

The present work aims to evaluate the applicability of phytoremediation for remediation of lead polluted soil in a Site of National Interest (SIN) that lies in the province of La Spezia, Italy. The research, funded by Italy Penox Company Ltd. provides technical land reclamation as the application of in situ phytoremediation. The project is currently under evaluation by the Ministry for the Environment, Land and Sea to allow a large scale application. In order to identify areas, where contamination exceeds the limits set by law (DM 152/2006) for industrial sites, soil samplings and analyses were carried out. To reduce the impact on the landscape and to limit the agronomic expensive operations relating to future management, native species, including Arbutus unedo L., Hedera elix L., Pinus pinaster Ait., Laurus nobilis L., Smilax aspera L., Ilex aquifolium L., Myrtus communis L., Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn, Erica arborea L., spread in contaminated areas, were identified by floral and vegetational analyses and their lead content was determined. Trials in container were performed to assess the extraction capacities of plants of Laurus nobilis L. and Myrtus communis L. Positive results were obtained from tests carried out at the end of the plant cultivation. They are evergreen, produce relatively large biomass per production unit and can effectively accumulate Pb compounds from the soil, although with a different behaviour. The results look promising in an increasing proportion of phytoremediation technologies, in order to perform remediation concrete, effective, sustainable and replicable so many of the currently contaminated sites

The aggressor at the mirror: Psychiatric correlates of deliberate self-harm in male prison inmates

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