54 research outputs found
Atmospheric chemistry of bioaerosols: heterogeneous and multiphase reactions with atmospheric oxidants and other trace gases.
Advances in analytical techniques and instrumentation have now established methods for detecting, quantifying, and identifying the chemical and microbial constituents of particulate matter in the atmosphere. For example, recent cryo-TEM studies of sea spray have identified whole bacteria and viruses ejected from ocean seawater into air. A focal point of this perspective is directed towards the reactivity of aerosol particles of biological origin with oxidants (OH, NO3, and O3) present in the atmosphere. Complementary information on the reactivity of aerosol particles is obtained from field investigations and laboratory studies. Laboratory studies of different types of biologically-derived particles offer important information related to their impacts on the local and global environment. These studies can also unravel a range of different chemistries and reactivity afforded by the complexity and diversity of the chemical make-up of these particles. Laboratory experiments as the ones reviewed herein can elucidate the chemistry of biological aerosols
Particle Concentration Characterization for Jet Engine Emissions under Cruise Conditions
Airborne particle measurements during NASA project SUCCESS have shown that particle concentration profiles serve as good indicators of aircraft exhaust plume encounters. During exhaust plume penetrations there is a strong anticorrelation between the ratio of nonvolatile/total particulates and Nitrogen Oxide (NO) concentrations. an increase in fuel sulfur content was found to increase the total particle emission index, while the nonvolatile emission index remained unchanged. the EI\u27s increased by a factor of 2.6 as the fuel sulfur increased from 70 - 700 ppm. the large particle size distribution (200-400 nm) was seen as a good long term indicator of an aircraft exhaust plume. Airborne particle measurements during NASA project SUCCESS have shown that particle concentration profiles serve as good indicators of aircraft exhaust plume encounters. During exhaust plume penetrations there is a strong anticorrelation between the ratio of nonvolatile/total particulates and Nitrogen Oxide (NO) concentrations. an increase in fuel sulfur content was found to increase the total particle emission index, while the nonvolatile emission index remained unchanged. the EI\u27s increased by a factor of 2.6 as the fuel sulfur increased from 70-700 ppm. the large particle size distribution (200-400 nm) was seen as a good long term indicator of an aircraft exhaust plume
Quantified effect of seawater biogeochemistry on the temperature dependence of sea spray aerosol fluxes
Future change in sea surface temperature may influence climate via various air-sea feedbacks and pathways. In this study, we investigate the influence of surface seawater biogeochemical composition on the temperature dependence of sea spray number emission fluxes. Dependence of sea spray fluxes was investigated in different water masses (i.e. subantarctic, subtropical and frontal bloom) with contrasting biogeochemical properties across a temperature range from ambient (13–18 °C) to 2 °C, using seawater circulating in a plunging jet sea spray generator. We observed sea spray total concentration to increase significantly at temperatures below 8 °C, with an average 4-fold increase at 2 °C relative to initial concentration at ambient temperatures. This temperature dependence was more pronounced for smaller size sea spray particles (i.e. nucleation and Aitken modes). Moreover, temperature dependence varied with water mass type and so biogeochemical properties. While the sea spray flux at moderate temperatures (8–11 °C) was highest in frontal bloom waters, the effect of low temperature on the sea spray flux was highest with subtropical seawaters. The temperature dependence of sea spray flux was also inversely proportional to the seawater cell abundance of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus, which facilitated parameterization of temperature dependence of sea spray emission fluxes as a function of Synechococcus for future implementation in modelling exercises.</p
A two-component parameterization of marine ice-nucleating particles based on seawater biology and sea spray aerosol measurements in the Mediterranean Sea
Ice-nucleating particles (INPs) have a large impact on the climate-relevant properties of clouds over the oceans. Studies have shown that sea spray aerosols (SSAs), produced upon bursting of bubbles at the ocean surface, can be an important source of marine INPs, particularly during periods of enhanced biological productivity. Recent mesocosm experiments using natural seawater spiked with nutrients have revealed that marine INPs are derived from two separate classes of organic matter in SSAs. Despite this finding, existing parameterizations for marine INP abundance are based solely on single variables such as SSA organic carbon (OC) or SSA surface area, which may mask specific trends in the separate classes of INP. The goal of this paper is to improve the understanding of the connection between ocean biology and marine INP abundance by reporting results from a field study and proposing a new parameterization of marine INPs that accounts for the two associated classes of organic matter. The PEACETIME cruise took place from 10 May to 10 June 2017 in the Mediterranean Sea. Throughout the cruise, INP concentrations in the surface microlayer (INPSML) and in SSAs (INPSSA) produced using a plunging aquarium apparatus were continuously monitored while surface seawater (SSW) and SML biological properties were measured in parallel. The organic content of artificially generated SSAs was also evaluated. INPSML concentrations were found to be lower than those reported in the literature, presumably due to the oligotrophic nature of the Mediterranean Sea. A dust wet deposition event that occurred during the cruise increased the INP concentrations measured in the SML by an order of magnitude, in line with increases in iron in the SML and bacterial abundances. Increases in INPSSA were not observed until after a delay of 3 days compared to increases in the SML and are likely a result of a strong influence of bulk SSW INPs for the temperatures investigated (T=â18ââC for SSAs, T=â15ââC for SSW). Results confirmed that INPSSA are divided into two classes depending on their associated organic matter. Here we find that warm (Tâ„â22ââC) INPSSA concentrations are correlated with water-soluble organic matter (WSOC) in the SSAs, but also with SSW parameters (particulate organic carbon, POCSSW and INPSSW,â16C) while cold INPSSA (T<â22ââC) are correlated with SSA water-insoluble organic carbon (WIOC) and SML dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations. A relationship was also found between cold INPSSA and SSW nano- and microphytoplankton cell abundances, indicating that these species might be a source of water-insoluble organic matter with surfactant properties and specific IN activities. Guided by these results, we formulated and tested multiple parameterizations for the abundance of INPs in marine SSAs, including a single-component model based on POCSSW and a two-component model based on SSA WIOC and OC. We also altered a previous model based on OCSSA content to account for oligotrophy of the Mediterranean Sea. We then compared this formulation with the previous models. This new parameterization should improve attempts to incorporate marine INP emissions into numerical models
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Ice nucleation by particles containing long-chain fatty acids of relevance to freezing by sea spray aerosols.
Heterogeneous ice nucleation in the atmosphere regulates cloud properties, such as phase (ice versus liquid) and lifetime. Aerosol particles of marine origin are relevant ice nucleating particle sources when marine aerosol layers are lifted over mountainous terrain and in higher latitude ocean boundary layers, distant from terrestrial aerosol sources. Among many particle compositions associated with ice nucleation by sea spray aerosols are highly saturated fatty acids. Previous studies have not demonstrated their ability to freeze dilute water droplets. This study investigates ice nucleation by monolayers at the surface of supercooled droplets and as crystalline particles at temperatures exceeding the threshold for homogeneous freezing. Results show the poor efficiency of long chain fatty acid (C16, C18) monolayers in templating freezing of pure water droplets and seawater subphase to temperatures of at least -30 °C, consistent with theory. This contrasts with freezing of fatty alcohols (C22 used here) at nearly 20 °C warmer. Evaporation of ΌL-sized droplets to promote structural compression of a C19 acid monolayer did not favor warmer ice formation of drops. Heterogeneous ice nucleation occurred for nL-sized droplets condensed on 5 to 100 Όm crystalline particles of fatty acid (C12 to C20) at a range of temperatures below -28 °C. These experiments suggest that fatty acids nucleate ice at warmer than -36 °C only when the crystalline phase is present. Rough estimates of ice active site densities are consistent with those of marine aerosols, but require knowledge of the proportion of surface area comprised of fatty acids for application
Drug Repurposing: The Anthelmintics Niclosamide and Nitazoxanide Are Potent TMEM16A Antagonists That Fully Bronchodilate Airways
There is an unmet need in severe asthma where approximately 40% of patients exhibit poor ÎČ-agonist responsiveness, suffer daily symptoms and show frequent exacerbations. Antagonists of the Ca2+-activated Clâ channel, TMEM16A, offers a new mechanism to bronchodilate airways and block the multiple contractiles operating in severe disease. To identify TMEM16A antagonists we screened a library of âŒ580,000 compounds. The anthelmintics niclosamide, nitazoxanide, and related compounds were identified as potent TMEM16A antagonists that blocked airway smooth muscle depolarization and contraction. To evaluate whether TMEM16A antagonists resist use- and inflammatory-desensitization pathways limiting ÎČ-agonist action, we tested their efficacy under harsh conditions using maximally contracted airways or airways pretreated with a cytokine cocktail. Stunningly, TMEM16A antagonists fully bronchodilated airways, while the ÎČ-agonist isoproterenol showed only partial effects. Thus, antagonists of TMEM16A and repositioning of niclosamide and nitazoxanide represent an important additional treatment for patients with severe asthma and COPD that is poorly controlled with existing therapies. It is of note that drug repurposing has also attracted wide interest in niclosamide and nitazoxanide as a new treatment for cancer and infectious disease. For the first time we identify TMEM16A as a molecular target for these drugs and thus provide fresh insights into their mechanism for the treatment of these disorders in addition to respiratory disease
Worldwide variations in artificial skyglow
Open access journalDespite constituting a widespread and significant environmental change, understanding of artificial nighttime skyglow is extremely limited. Until now, published monitoring studies have been local or regional in scope, and typically of short duration. In this first major international compilation of monitoring data we answer several key questions about skyglow properties. Skyglow is observed to vary over four orders of magnitude, a range hundreds of times larger than was the case before artificial light. Nearly all of the study sites were polluted by artificial light. A non-linear relationship is observed between the sky brightness on clear and overcast nights, with a change in behavior near the rural to urban landuse transition. Overcast skies ranged from a third darker to almost 18 times brighter than clear. Clear sky radiances estimated by the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness were found to be overestimated by ~25%; our dataset will play an important role in the calibration and ground truthing of future skyglow models. Most of the brightly lit sites darkened as the night progressed, typically by ~5% per hour. The great variation in skyglow radiance observed from site-to-site and with changing meteorological conditions underlines the need for a long-term international monitoring program.MILIEU (FU Berlin)Federal Ministry of Education and Research, GermanyEU COST Action ES1204 (Loss of the Night Network)European Research Council (ERC) under the EU's Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007-2013)panish Network for Light Pollution StudiesNational Aeronautics and Space Administration (Goddard Space Flight Center)Ohio State UniversityUniversity of IowaThe Adam Mickiewicz Universit
Worldwide variations in artificial skyglow
Despite constituting a widespread and significant environmental change,
understanding of artificial nighttime skyglow is extremely limited. Until now,
published monitoring studies have been local or regional in scope, and
typically of short duration. In this first major international compilation of
monitoring data we answer several key questions about skyglow properties.
Skyglow is observed to vary over four orders of magnitude, a range hundreds of
times larger than was the case before artificial light. Nearly all of the
study sites were polluted by artificial light. A non-linear relationship is
observed between the sky brightness on clear and overcast nights, with a
change in behavior near the rural to urban landuse transition. Overcast skies
ranged from a third darker to almost 18 times brighter than clear. Clear sky
radiances estimated by the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness were
found to be overestimated by ~25%; our dataset will play an important role in
the calibration and ground truthing of future skyglow models. Most of the
brightly lit sites darkened as the night progressed, typically by ~5% per
hour. The great variation in skyglow radiance observed from site-to-site and
with changing meteorological conditions underlines the need for a long-term
international monitoring program
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