Systematic review using GRADE of the impact of exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs), cleaning agents, mould/damp, pesticides on the risk of (i) new-onset asthma (incidence) and (ii) adverse asthma-related outcomes (impact). MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science were searched for indoor pollutant exposure studies reporting on new-onset asthma and critical and important asthma-related outcomes. Ninety four studies were included: 11 for VOCs (7 for incidenceand 4 for impact), 25 for cleaning agents (7 for incidenceand 8 for impact), 48 for damp/mould (26 for incidence and 22 for impact) and 10 for pesticides (8 for incidence and 2 for impact). Exposure to damp/mould increases the risk of new-onset wheeze (moderate certainty evidence). Exposure to cleaning agents may be associated with a higher risk of new-onset asthma and with asthma severity (low level of certainty). Exposure to pesticides and VOCs may increase the risk of new-onset asthma (very low certainty evidence). The impact on asthma-related outcomes of all major indoor pollutants is uncertain. As the level of certainty is low or very low for most of the available evidence on the impact of indoor pollutants on asthma-related outcomes more rigorous research in the field is warranted.

Vineyard exposure to wildfire smoke can taint grapes and wine. To understand the impact of this taint, it is imperative that the analytical methods used are accurate and precise. This study compared the variance across nine commercial and research laboratories following quantitative analysis of the same set of smoke-tainted wines. In parallel, correlations between the interlaboratory consensus values for smoke-taint markers and sensory analyses of the same smoke-tainted wines were evaluated. For free guaiacol, the mean accuracy was 94 ± 11% in model wine, while the free cresols and 4-methylguaiacol showed a negative bias and/or decreased precision relative to guaiacol. Similar trends were observed in smoke-tainted wines, with the cresols and glycosidically bound markers demonstrating high variance. Collectively, the interlaboratory results show that data from a single laboratory can be used quantitatively to understand smoke-taint. Results from different laboratories, however, should not be directly compared due to the high variance between study participants. Correlations between consensus compositional data and sensory evaluations suggest the risk of perceivable smoke-taint can be predicted from free cresol concentrations, overcoming limitations associated with the occurrence of some volatile phenols, guaiacol in particular, as natural constituents of some grape cultivars and of the oak used for barrel maturation.

This study aimed to provide a comprehensive characterisation of the indoor air quality during the sleeping period of 10 couples at Lisbon dwellings, using a multi-pollutant approach, and to understand how the compliance with legislation and guidelines was to assure a good indoor air quality. The assessment of indoor air quality was conducted in the cold season using real time monitors during the sleeping period for comfort parameters (temperature and relative humidity) and air pollutants (carbon dioxide - CO2, carbon monoxide - CO, formaldehyde - CH2O, total volatile organic compounds - VOCs, and particulate matter - PM2.5 and PM10), together with active sampling of bioaerosols (fungi and bacteria) before and after the sleeping period. Lower compliance (less than 50% of the cases) with the Portuguese legislation was found for temperature, CO2 (3440 ± 1610 mg m-3), VOCs (1.79 ± 0.99 mg m-3) and both bioaerosol types. In 70% of the cases, PM2.5 (15.3 ± 9.1 μg m-3) exceeded the WHO guideline of 10 μg m-3. All bedrooms presented air change rates above the recommended minimum value of 0.7 h-1, highlighting that a good indoor air quality during sleep is not guaranteed.

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is one of the most appreciated Italian foods on account of its high nutrient content and taste. Due to its high cost, these characteristics make this product subject to counterfeiting in different forms. In this study, an approach based on an array of gas sensors has been employed to assess if it was possible to distinguish different samples based on their aroma. Samples were characterized in terms of rind percentage, seasoning, and rind working process. From the responses of the sensors, five features were extracted and the capability of these parameters to recognize target classes was tested with statistical analysis. Hence, the performance of the sensors\' array was quantified using artificial neural networks. To simplify the problem, a hierarchical approach has been used: three steps of classification were performed, and in each step one parameter of the grated cheese was identified (firstly, seasoning; secondly, rind working process; finally, rind percentage). The accuracies ranged from 88.24% to 100%.

Background Herbal medicines have been used in the treatment of liver diseases for a long time. In recent years, the use of herbal medicines for protection from other strong antibiotics as well as drugs that can damage the liver during their metabolism in liver and for treatment of liver diseases has increased all over the world. It is important to mention that a number of organic solvents are used at different stages of extraction/formulation development for these traditional preparations in industries/pharmacies. In addition, some of these solvents possess established carcinogenic properties and may enter the formulation as residual solvents. Hence as per ICH guidelines it is mandatory to keep the level of these solvents up to permissible limits. There has been a lot of hue and cry that ayurvedic formulations available in the market are not properly standardized for their quality due to lack of stringent regulations and standards from regulatory authorities. Therefore the aim of present work was to assess the compliance of ICH guidelines for level of organic volatile impurities in common marketed ayurvedic hepatic formulations. Methods In this study, 25 ayurvedic herbal formulations available as OTC product have been assessed for presence of residual solvents using gas chromatography with flame ionization detector. Results This study on 25 fast moving hepatic formulations in the market reflects that no residual solvents were detected in any of the formulations however if present were within prescribed permissible limits of ICH guidelines. The data was also subjected to statistical analysis (F-test and t-test at 95% confidence level). Conclusions Results indicate the safety of these hepatic formulations with respect to residual solvents. In addition presents a simple, linear, specific, accurate, precise and rugged gas chromatographic method for estimation of residual solvents.

Recently, we have published a book containing evidence-based public health guidelines and a practical manual for the prevention of sick house syndrome. The manual is available through the homepage of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (http://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/06-Seisakujouhou-11130500-Shokuhinanzenbu/0000155147.pdf). It is an almost completely revised version of the 2009 version. The coauthors are 13 specialists in environmental epidemiology, exposure sciences, architecture, and risk communication. Since the 1970s, health problems caused by indoor chemicals, biological pollution, poor temperature control, humidity, and others in office buildings have been recognized as sick building syndrome (SBS) in Western countries, but in Japan it was not until the 1990s that people living in new or renovated homes started to describe a variety of nonspecific subjective symptoms such as eye, nose, and throat irritation, headache, and general fatigue. These symptoms resembled SBS and were designated \"sick house syndrome (SHS).\" To determine the strategy for prevention of SHS, we conducted a nationwide epidemiological study in six cities from 2003-2013 by randomly sampling 5,709 newly built houses. As a result 1,479 residents in 425 households agreed to environmental monitoring for indoor aldehydes and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). After adjustment for possible risk factors, some VOCs and formaldehyde were dose-dependently shown to be significant risk factors. We also studied the dampness of the houses, fungi, allergies, and others. This book is fully based on the scientific evidence collected through these studies and other newly obtained information, especially from the aspect of architectural engineering. In addition to SHS, we included chapters on recent information about \"multi-chemical sensitivity.\"

This proceedings report presents the outcomes from an international Expert Meeting to establish a consensus on the recommended technical and operational requirements for air quality within modern assisted reproduction technology (ART) laboratories. Topics considered included design and construction of the facility, as well as its heating, ventilation and air conditioning system; control of particulates, micro-organisms (bacteria, fungi and viruses) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) within critical areas; safe cleaning practices; operational practices to optimize air quality while minimizing physicochemical risks to gametes and embryos (temperature control versus air flow); and appropriate infection-control practices that minimize exposure to VOC. More than 50 consensus points were established under the general headings of assessing site suitability, basic design criteria for new construction, and laboratory commissioning and ongoing VOC management. These consensus points should be considered as aspirational benchmarks for existing ART laboratories, and as guidelines for the construction of new ART laboratories.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) pose serious threats to human health. Increasing attention has been paid to POPs to protect the environment and prevent disease. Humans are exposed to POPs through diet (the major route), inhaling air and dust and skin contact. POPs are very lipophilic and hydrophobic, meaning that they accumulate in fatty tissues in animals and can biomagnify. Humans can therefore be exposed to relatively high POP concentrations in food of animal origin. Cooking animal products can decrease the POP contents, and different cooking methods achieve different reduction rates. Here, a consensus decision-making model with interval preference relations is used to prioritize cooking methods for specific animal products in terms of reducing POP concentrations. Two consistency mathematical expressions (I-consistency and I I -consistency) are defined, then the ideal interval preference relations are determined for the cooking methods with respect to different social choice principles. The objective is to minimize disparities between individual judgments and the ideal consensus judgment. Consistency is used as a constraint to determine the rationality of the consistency definitions. A numerical example indicated that baking is the best cooking method for decreasing POP concentrations in grass carp. The I-consistency results were more acceptable than the I I -consistency results.

This study reports ambient concentrations of 63 air toxics that were measured in Canada by the National Air Pollution Surveillance (NAPS) program over the period 2009-2013. Measured concentrations are compared with ambient air quality guidelines from Canadian jurisdictions, and compounds that exceeded guidelines are identified and discussed. Although this study does not assess risk or cumulative effects, air toxics that approached guidelines are also identified so that their potential contribution to ambient air toxics pollution can be considered. Eleven air toxics exceeded at least one guideline, and an additional 16 approached guidelines during the study period. Four compounds were measured using methods whose detection limits exceeded a guideline value, three of which could not be compared with guidelines, since they were not detected in any samples. The assessment of several metal(loid) concentrations is tentative, since they were measured only in fine particulate matter (PM) but compared with guidelines based on coarse or total PM. Improvements to sampling and analysis techniques for the latter compounds as well as for those whose methods are subject to known uncertainties would improve confidence in reported concentrations and their relation to applicable guidelines. Analysis of sampling strategies for all compounds found to exceed or approach guidelines would contribute to ensuring that their spatiotemporal coverage is adequate. Examination of the air toxics not measured by NAPS but having guidelines in Canadian jurisdictions or being included in other programs such as the U.S. National-Scale Air Toxics Assessment (NATA) would contribute to ensuring that the full suite of pollutants relevant to ambient air quality in Canada is subject to adequate study. The results of this study can be applied to evaluating the effectiveness of toxic substances management in Canada.
CONCLUSIONS: Recent measurements of 63 air toxics in Canada by the National Air Pollution Surveillance (NAPS) program showed that 11 compounds exceeded daily or annual ambient air quality guidelines and that an additional 16 compounds approached such guidelines within an order of magnitude. The results of this study can be applied to evaluating the effectiveness of toxic substances management in Canada and to identifying compounds that merit further investigation.

Indoor air pollution has been recognized as an important risk factor for human health, especially in areas where people tend to spend most of their time indoors. Many semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) have primarily indoor sources and are present in orders of magnitude higher concentrations indoors than outdoors. Despite this, awareness of SVOCs in indoor air and assessment of the link between indoor concentrations and human health have lagged behind those of outdoor air. This is partially related to challenges associated with indoor sampling of SVOCs. Passive air samplers (PASs), which are widely accepted in established outdoor air monitoring networks, have been used to fill the knowledge gaps on indoor SVOCs distribution. However, their applicability for indoor environments and the assessment of human health risks lack sufficient experimental data. To address this issue, we performed an indoor calibration study of polyurethane foam (PUF) PAS deployed in a double-dome chamber, covering both legacy and new SVOC classes. PUF-PAS and a continuous low-volume active air sampler (AAS) were co-deployed for a calibration period of twelve weeks. Based on the results from this evaluation, PUF-PAS in a double-bowl chamber is recommended for indoor sampling and health risk assessment of gas phase SVOCs, including novel brominated flame retardants (nBFR) providing sufficient exposure time is applied. Data for particle associated SVOCs suffered from significant uncertainties caused by low level of detection and low precision in this study. A more open chamber design for indoor studies may allow for higher sampling rates (RS) and better performance for the particle associated SVOCs.