Demonstration of a Low-Cost Multi-Pollutant Network to Quantify Intra-Urban Spatial Variations in Air Pollutant Source Impacts and to Evaluate Environmental Justice

Air quality monitoring has traditionally been conducted using sparsely distributed, expensive reference monitors. To understand variations in PM_2.5 on a finely resolved spatiotemporal scale a dense network of over 40 low-cost monitors was deployed throughout and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Monitor locations covered a wide range of site types with varying traffic and restaurant density, varying influences from local sources, and varying socioeconomic (environmental justice, EJ) characteristics. Variability between and within site groupings was observed. Concentrations were higher near the source-influenced sites than the Urban or Suburban Residential sites. Gaseous pollutants (NO₂ and SO₂) were used to differentiate between traffic (higher NO₂ concentrations) and industrial (higher SO₂ concentrations) sources of PM_2.5. Statistical analysis proved these differences to be significant (coefficient of divergence > 0.2). The highest mean PM_2.5 concentrations were measured downwind (east) of the two industrial facilities while background level PM_2.5 concentrations were measured at similar distances upwind (west) of the point sources. Socioeconomic factors, including the fraction of non-white population and fraction of population living under the poverty line, were not correlated with increases in PM_2.5 or NO₂ concentration. The analysis conducted here highlights differences in PM_2.5 concentration within site groupings that have similar land use thus demonstrating the utility of a dense sensor network. Our network captures temporospatial pollutant patterns that sparse regulatory networks cannot.

Deliberating performance targets workshop: Potential paths for emerging PM2.5 and O3 air sensor progress

The United States Environmental Protection Agency held an international two-day workshop in June 2018 to deliberate possible performance targets for non-regulatory fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and ozone (O₃) air sensors. The need for a workshop arose from the lack of any market-wide manufacturer requirement for Ozone documented sensor performance evaluations, the lack of any independent third party or government-based sensor performance certification program, and uncertainty among all users as to the general usability of air sensor data. A multi-sector subject matter expert panel was assembled to facilitate an open discussion on these issues with multiple stakeholders. This summary provides an overview of the workshop purpose, key findings from the deliberations, and considerations for future actions specific to sensors. Important findings concerning PM_2.5 and O₃ sensors included the lack of consistent performance indicators and statistical metrics as well as highly variable data quality requirements depending on the intended use. While the workshop did not attempt to yield consensus on any topic, a key message was that a number of possible future actions would be beneficial to all stakeholders regarding sensor technologies. These included documentation of best practices, sharing quality assurance results along with sensor data, and the development of a common performance target lexicon, performance targets, and test protocols.

Quantifying high-resolution spatial variations and local source impacts of urban ultrafine particle concentrations

To quantify the fine-scale spatial variations and local source impacts of urban ultrafine particle (UFP) concentrations, we conducted 3-6 weeks of continuous measurements of particle number (a proxy for UFP) and other air pollutant (CO, NO₂, and PM_2.5) concentrations at 32 sites in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the winters of 2017 and 2018. Sites were selected to span a range of urban land use attributes, including urban background, near local and arterial roads, traffic intersections, urban street canyon, near-highway, near large industrial source, and restaurant density. The spatial variations in urban particle number concentrations varied by about a factor of three. Particle number concentrations are 2-3 times more spatially heterogeneous than PM_2.5 mass. The observed order of spatial heterogeneity is UFP > NO₂ > CO > PM_2.5. On average, particle number concentrations near local roads with a cluster of restaurants and near arterial roads are roughly two times higher than the urban background. Particle number concentrations in the urban street canyon, downwind of a major highway, and near large industrial sources are 2-4 times higher than background concentrations. While traffic is known as an important contributor to particle number concentrations, restaurants and industrial emissions also contribute significantly to spatial variations in Pittsburgh. Particle size distribution measurements using a mobile laboratory show that the local spatial variations in particle number concentrations are dictated by concentrations of particles smaller than 50 nm. A large fraction of urban residents (e.g., ~50%) in Pittsburgh live near local sources and are therefore exposed to 50%-300% higher particle number concentrations than urban background location. These locally emitted particles may have greater health effects than background particles.

Novel patch shape design to repair π/4 quasi-isotropic E-glass/epoxy laminate under uniaxial tensile loading condition

The entitled technical subject in its comprehensive and broadly viewed study is presented by stating that the prevailing glass fiber–reinforced plastic composites play a vital role in replacing the metallic structures in automotive, aerospace, and marine applications and their more usage necessitates the better understanding of such structure’s damage and effective repair practices of the same. In the course of repairing the composite structures, optimum usage of patch material helps to maintain the original strength, eliminate “over design,” and reduce contribution to the substantial performance change of original structure. Optimum usage of repair material brings down the significant percentage of mass and repair cost. In order to apply the concept of optimum patch shapes over actual structures, it is important to design such effective shapes which are equivalent to the conventionally proven repair designs in strength perspective. This technical paper describes one of such ways to design the optimum patch shape using finite element analysis (FEA) tool and in comparison with one of the conventional repair practices, like circular patching, used circular, rectangular, square, elliptical and trapezoidal patch shapes, each of which has its own merits and demerits when compared to the other. But, none of them was arrived at in the perspective to use the minimum material to repair the damage. The object of this work is carried out in order to arrive at the optimum patch shape (minimum material in its in-plane direction) in repairing the damaged structure and it has been demonstrated using π/4 quasi-isotropic E-glass/epoxy specimen with hole using FEA. Moreover, the effectiveness of optimum patch shape design in “strength” and “load transfer efficiency” perspectives is experimentally proven and highlighted by the scope of repair material saving (36%) in repair practice by the usage of this optimized approach, as well.

Aerosol Optical Properties and Climate Implications of Emissions from Traditional and Improved Cookstoves

Cookstove emissions are a major global source of black carbon but their impact on climate is uncertain because of limited understanding of their optical properties. We measured optical properties of fresh aerosol emissions from 32 different stove/fuel combinations, ranging from simple open fires to high-performing forced-draft stoves. Stoves were tested in the laboratory using the firepower sweep protocol, which measures emissions across the entire range of functional firepower. There is large variability in measured optical properties across the entire range of firepower. This variability is strongly correlated with black carbon-to-particulate matter mass ratio (BC/PM). In comparison, stove type, fuel, and operational metrics were poor predictors of optical properties. We developed parametrizations of the mass absorption cross-section, the absorption angstrom exponent, and the single scattering albedo of fresh emissions as a function of BC/PM. These parametrizations, derived from laboratory data, also reproduce previously reported field measurements of optical properties of real-world cooking emissions. We combined our new parametrizations of intensive optical properties with published emissions data to estimate the direct radiative effect of emissions for different stove technologies. Our data suggest that so-called "improved" stove reduce CO₂ equivalent emission (i.e., climate benefits) by 20-30% compared to traditional stoves.

Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Production Sites in the United States: Data Synthesis and National Estimate

We used site-level methane (CH₄) emissions data from over 1000 natural gas (NG) production sites in eight basins, including 92 new site-level CH₄ measurements in the Uinta, northeastern Marcellus, and Denver-Julesburg basins, to investigate CH₄ emissions characteristics and develop a new national CH₄ emission estimate for the NG production sector. The distribution of site-level emissions is highly skewed, with the top 5% of sites accounting for 50% of cumulative emissions. High emitting sites are predominantly also high producing (>10 Mcfd). However, low NG production sites emit a larger fraction of their CH₄ production. When combined with activity data, we predict that this creates substantial variability in the basin-level CH₄ emissions which, as a fraction of basin-level CH₄ production, range from 0.90% for the Appalachian and Greater Green River to >4.5% in the San Juan and San Joaquin. This suggests that much of the basin-level differences in production-normalized CH₄ emissions reported by aircraft studies can be explained by differences in site size and distribution of site-level production rates. We estimate that NG production sites emit total CH₄ emissions of 830 Mg/h (95% CI: 530-1200), 63% of which come from the sites producing <100 Mcfd that account for only 10% of total NG production. Our total CH₄ emissions estimate is 2.3 times higher than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's estimate and likely attributable to the disproportionate influence of high emitting sites.

The Firepower Sweep Test: A novel approach to cookstove laboratory testing

Emissions from solid-fuel cookstoves have been linked to indoor and outdoor air pollution, climate forcing, and human disease. Although task-based laboratory protocols, such as the Water Boiling Test (WBT), overestimate the ability of improved stoves to lower emissions, WBT emissions data are commonly used to benchmark cookstove performance, estimate indoor and outdoor air pollution concentrations, estimate impacts of stove intervention projects, and select stoves for large-scale control trials. Multiple-firepower testing has been proposed as an alternative to the WBT and is the basis for a new standardized protocol (ISO 19867-1:2018); however, data are needed to assess the value of this approach. In this work, we (a) developed a Firepower Sweep Test [FST], (b) compared emissions from the FST, WBT, and in-home cooking, and (c) quantified the relationship between firepower and emissions using correlation analysis and linear model selection. Twenty-three stove-fuel combinations were evaluated. The FST reproduced the range of PM_2.5 and CO emissions observed in the field, including high emissions events not typically observed under the WBT. Firepower was modestly correlated with emissions, although the relationship varied between stove-fuel combinations. Our results justify incorporating multiple-firepower testing into laboratory-based protocols but demonstrate that firepower alone cannot explain the observed variability in cookstove emissions.

Influence of milling on the nutritional composition of bran from different rice varieties

The nutritional composition of bran from four rice varieties namely, Jyothi/IR64, Basmati and Agonibora representing high amylose, intermediate amylose and waxy, respectively were evaluated with friction and abrasive mills at different degrees of milling (DOM). Fat and protein content of the bran inversely correlated to amylose content of rice variety. The fat and fibre contents reduced with increased DOM due to increasing starch influx from the endosperm. Abrasive milling produced bran with higher protein content and total dietary fibre, resulting in superior quality bran, while friction milling led to higher fat. Agonibora bran was found to be superior in terms of nutritional quality. Industrial milling resulted in higher protein content in bran, and Jyothi variety had a better amino acid profile.

Comorbidities and related factors in rheumatoid arthritis patients of south India- Karnataka Rheumatoid Arthritis Comorbidity (KRAC) study

The aim was to study the prevalence of comorbidities in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in everyday clinical practice and their association with disease-specific and demographic factors. The multi-center study recruited 3,247 (at 14 centers, and 265) were excluded due to incomplete data. The number of subjects considered for the analysis was 2982. The mean (±standard deviation) age was 48.98±12.64 years and the male-to-female ratio was 1:5. The data was collected based on a pre-structured pro forma by trained clinical research associates through interview and verification of charts and reports available in the patient records. The following comorbidities were studied: cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolemia, thyroid disease, psychiatric diseases like depression, and pulmonary disease. Hypertension (20.7%), diabetes mellitus (14.4%) and thyroid disease (18.3%) were the most prevalent comorbidities. Hypercholesterolemia (5.3%), pulmonary diseases (2.1%), cardiovascular diseases (0.2%) and depression (0.03%) were prevalent in ≤5% of the study population. The overall presence of comorbidity increased with age and reduced with the duration of illness prior (DOIP). The age, gender, and DOIP differed significantly between groups with and without hypercholesterolemia. Females had a statistically increased prevalence of thyroid disease. The prevalence of comorbidities in RA patients from south India is around 40% and the incidence of comorbidity increased with age. As per the literature evidence, the prevalence in the current study subjects was higher when compared to prevalence of similar diseases occurring in the general south Indian population.

Comparison of Post-Liver Transplantation Outcomes in Portopulmonary Hypertension and Pulmonary Venous Hypertension: A Single-Center Experience

BACKGROUND

In potential liver transplant candidates, pulmonary vascular diseases, including portopulmonary hypertension (PoPH) and pulmonary venous hypertension (PVH), can be associated with high morbidity and mortality. Although there are clear guidelines regarding management and transplant listing criteria for patients with PoPH, the listing criteria for PVH are not well defined.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to describe and compare the perioperative and postoperative morbidity and mortality associated with PoPH and PVH in patients undergoing liver transplantation.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective observational study of all patients referred for liver transplantation to our center between 2005 and 2015 who underwent a right heart catheterization (RHC) for screening for pulmonary hypertension as suggested by initial echocardiography. Based on the RHC data, the patients were grouped into no pulmonary hypertension (No PH), PoPH, and PVH categories. In patients who underwent liver transplantation, we recorded vital status intraoperatively and at 30 days and 1-year post-transplant, and we recorded the incidence of postoperative cardiopulmonary and renal complications.

RESULTS

Of the 134 patients who underwent RHC as part of the initial transplant evaluation, 50 patients were successfully transplanted. There was 1 intraoperative death in the PoPH group. No significant difference in mortality was noted between the No PH, PoPH, and PVH groups intraoperatively and 30 days after liver transplantation. At 1 year, the survival rates were 100%, 69.2%, and 94.1% in the No PH, PoPH, and PVH groups, respectively. With respect to cardiopulmonary and renal complications, no statistically significant difference was noted among the groups, though there was a trend toward increased post-transplant reversible pulmonary complications in the PVH group.

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest that the post-transplant outcomes of patients with PoPH and PVH are similar. In light of the growing recognition of diastolic dysfunction and cirrhotic cardiomyopathy in decompensated cirrhotic patients at the time of transplant, the issue of pulmonary hypertension related to PVH will gain increasing importance as we assess these patients for transplantation. Therefore, future studies are needed to define evidence based guidelines to determine candidacy for liver transplantation in the context of PVH.

Abstract P1-07-15: Detection of molecular alterations in breast cancer through next generation sequencing of both tumor tissue and circulating tumor DNA: The UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center experience

Background: Next generation sequencing (NGS) analysis of actionable molecular alterations has the potential to guide cancer treatment, especially for patients with advanced cancer who have progressed on standard treatment. In this study, we analyzed tumor biopsies and peripheral blood from 62 patients with advanced breast cancer by two different NGS clinical-grade assays for molecular alterations in tumor tissue or in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA). We used these results to determine if these specimens have potentially “actionable” alterations that could guide cancer therapy.

Methods: From 2014 to 2016, 62 patients with advanced breast cancer had plasma sent for ctDNA analysis (Guardant360 assay; 54 to 70 genes) Thirty-eight of these patients (61%) also had tumor biopsies evaluated by NGS (FoundationOne®; 182 to 315 genes). Alterations were defined as mutations, insertions, deletions, truncations, or rearrangements or amplifications/copy number variations. Patients that harbored multiple alterations in the same gene were not counted as having separate alterations; however, if a gene amplification and an alteration were found in the same gene these were counted as separate events. Variants of unknown significance (VUS) and synonymous mutations were excluded from both assays. Data were collected and analyzed according to a UCSD Institutional Review Board approved protocol.

Results: The median age of our patients at the time of ctDNA analysis was 55 years (range, 44 to 84 years); the median age at the time of tissue biopsy for NGS was 52 years (range, 39 to 82 years). One patient was male. The most common receptor status was estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) non-amplified or negative (neg)(N=44; 71%), followed by triple negative breast cancer (ERnegPRnegHer2neg) (N=10, 16%), triple positive (N=6, 1%) and finally ERnegPRnegHER2positive (N=2, 0.03%). One patient of 38 (2%) had no tumor alteration detected and 19 of 62 had no ctDNA alterations (31%). In 38 breast cancer patients with tumor NGS results, alterations were detected in 79 unique genes, with the most frequent being TP53 (37% of patients), PIK3CA (24%) and GATA3 (24%) genes. In the 62 patients with ctDNA analysis, 31 unique genes had at least one alteration, with the most frequent being TP53 (36% of patients) and PIK3CA (23%) and EGFR amplification (11%) (GATA3 was not analyzed in the ctDNA assay). Both assays had a high rate of detection for potentially actionable mutations: 41 out of 62 patients (66%) by ctDNA and 34 out of 38 (89%) by tumor NGS. No two patients harbored identical genomic profiles by either tumor NGS or plasma ctDNA analysis except for 1 patient who had no alterations detected by either assay.

Conclusions: Plasma and tissue NGS analysis appear to be complementary assays that yield a high percentage of potentially actionable alterations in patients with advanced breast cancer. Studies of the clinical impact of NGS-guided therapy in breast cancer are warranted.

Citation Format: Shatsky RA, Parker BA, Schwab R, Helsten T, Boles SG, Subramanian R, Piccioni D, Kurzrock R. Detection of molecular alterations in breast cancer through next generation sequencing of both tumor tissue and circulating tumor DNA: The UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center experience [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P1-07-15.