Exposure to fine and ultrafine particles from secondhand smoke in public places before and after the smoking ban, Italy 2005

Background

A smoking ban in all indoor public places was enforced in Italy on 10 January 2005.

Methods

We compared indoor air quality before and after the smoking ban by monitoring the indoor concentrations of fine (<2.5 μm diameter, PM_2.5) and ultrafine particulate matter (<0.1 μm diameter, UFP). PM_2.5 and ultrafine particles were measured in 40 public places (14 bars, six fast food restaurants, eight restaurants, six game rooms, six pubs) in Rome, before and after the introduction of the law banning smoking (after 3 and 12 months). Measurements were taken using real time particle monitors (DustTRAK Mod. 8520 TSI; Ultra‐fine Particles Counter‐TRAK Model 8525 TSI). The PM_2.5 data were scaled using a correction equation derived from a comparison with the reference method (gravimetric measurement). The study was completed by measuring urinary cotinine, and pre‐law and post‐law enforcement among non‐smoking employees at these establishments

Results

In the post‐law period, PM_2.5 decreased significantly from a mean concentration of 119.3 μg/m³ to 38.2 μg/m³ after 3 months (p<0.005), and then to 43.3 μg/m³ a year later (p<0.01). The UFP concentrations also decreased significantly from 76 956 particles/cm³ to 38 079 particles/cm³ (p<0.0001) and then to 51 692 particles/cm³ (p<0.01). Similarly, the concentration of urinary cotinine among non‐smoking workers decreased from 17.8 ng/ml to 5.5 ng/ml (p<0.0001) and then to 3.7 ng/ml (p<0.0001).

Conclusion

The application of the smoking ban led to a considerable reduction in the exposure to indoor fine and ultrafine particles in hospitality venues, confirmed by a contemporaneous reduction of urinary cotinine.     

Results of a 3D seismic survey at the Travale (Italy) test site

In the last 15 years geothermal exploration in Tuscany, Italy, has addressed deep reservoirs (depth ≥ 3000 m), hosted within complex geological systems, such as metamorphic formations and/or intrusive bodies. Reservoir productivity is linked to fractured and permeable zones that are rather confined and not uniformly distributed. In this context, the seismic methods represent one of the most reliable geophysical techniques for locating potential drilling targets. A 3D seismic survey has been acquired at the Travale test site, and its results have been used to develop a geological and structural model of the site, and to identify and characterize fractured zones inside the deep geothermal reservoir. A correlation between a high-amplitude reflector (H marker) and fractured contact-metamorphic rocks has been highlighted. More than 70% of the total geothermal fluid production at the Travale area comes from this seismic marker.     

Rheological properties and baking quality of commercial durum wheat meals used to make flat crispy bread

Four commercial semolinas and four low-grade semolinas (LGS) samples were used in this study to make flat crispy bread (Carasau). The meals, doughs, and bread were compared with respect to a set of physical, chemical, and textural characteristics, and the bread evaluated by a trained sensory panel. LGSs had a higher extraction rate (higher ash content), finer granularity, and a higher damaged starch content than semolinas. The study revealed the key role of dry gluten content in determining hydration capacity of the dough, whereas damaged starch affected water absorption only in semolina samples. Gluten index and the ratio of gluten tenacity to extensibility (alveograph P/L) were significantly correlated with the weight of the dough discs following sheeting and molding. The panelists gave the highest quality score to the bread with the highest values of crackling and hardness. Textural and sensory attributes were both correlated with one another, and with gluten strength and tenacity, but not with the gluten content of the meal, which only affected final moisture content of the bread. Meal samples with a more tenacious and elastic gluten were more suited to produce flat crispy breads. The yellowness of durum wheat bread could not be predicted by measuring the color of the meal with a reflectance method.     

Primary structure of water buffalo alpha-lactalbumin variants A and B

A novel electrophoretic alpha-lactalbumin (alpha-la) variant was detected in the Italian water buffalo breed. The isoelectric point of the variant, labelled A, was lower than the most frequent variant B. It presented an allelic frequency of 0.5% compared with the 97.1% of the BB allele. From Liquid Chromatography-Electrospray Ionization/Mass spectrometry, the molecular mass of the two alpha-la A and B variants were measured as 14,235.1+/-0.8 and 14,236.1+/-0.9 Da, respectively. The two proteins were sequenced and differentiated from one another by a single amino acid substitution, Asn45(B)-->Asp45(A). As this amino acid substitution altered the N-glycosylation sequence consensus Asn45-X-Ser46 it may be deduced that the protein glycosylation level of the alpha-la A would decrease.     

A signature protein-based method to distinguish Mediterranean water buffalo and foreign breed milk

A novel genetic variant at the α_s1-casein locus of water buffalo (WB), 8-residue shorter than its wild-type has been found and sequenced. The internal deletion of the peptide E³⁵KVNELsT⁴² was confirmed by the isolation of the junction peptide. The 8-residue deletion mutant has a molecular weight that is 919 Da less than that of the wild-type. The novel isoform with a unique f35-42 deletion could be the result of the skipping of exon 6, generating an exon 6-deleted variant of α_s1-casein. The wild-type and its shortened α_s1-casein forms were found to co-exist in many individual milk samples. In contrast, the 8-residue, internally deleted α_s1-casein variant did not occur in water buffaloes of the Mediterranean breed reared in Italy. Wild-type α_s1-casein has 6 to 8 phosphate groups (P) while the internally deleted form 6 and 7P per molecule.     

Spatial Charge Separation as the Origin of Anomalous Stark Effect in Fluorous 2D Hybrid Perovskites

2D hybrid perovskites (2DP) are versatile materials, whose electronic and optical properties can be tuned through the nature of the organic cations (even when those are seemingly electronically inert). Here, it is demonstrated that fluorination of the organic ligands yields glassy 2DP materials featuring long‐lived correlated electron–hole pairs. Such states have a marked charge‐transfer character, as revealed by the persistent Stark effect in the form of a second derivative in electroabsorption. Modeling shows that electrostatic effects associated with fluorination, combined with the steric hindrance due to the bulky side groups, drive the formation of spatially dislocated charge pairs with reduced recombination rates. This work enriches and broadens the current knowledge of the photophysics of 2DP, which will hopefully guide synthesis efforts toward novel materials with improved functionalities.