Ultrafine particles and human health

Photo by Sarah Stephen

We recently highlighted a crucial study that showed the threat posed by ultrafine particles (UFPs) on pregnant women living near airports. You can access it here in the Medium.
 https://medium.com/@ruthstephen/the-dangers-of-aircraft-emissions-exposure-during-pregnancy-6ee57e9a1331

Ultrafine particles are the smallest of atmospheric particles ( ≤0.1 µm in diameter). UFPs show unique physical and aerodynamic properties that are distinct from larger particles within the PM2.5 size range. Although UFPs account little in terms of particle mass, they constitute the majority of particles and surface area.

In fact, UFPs on an equal mass basis may have higher impact on health than PM2.5 and PM10 as unlike the larger particles that are removed by the body’s usual surveillance and clearance mechanisms, UFPs have the remarkable ability to escape inbuilt checkpoints.

This is because their small size facilitates easy entry of the UFPs into the thin membranes of the lung during inhalation and could enter the circulation and can be carried by the blood to distant parts of the body, including the placenta. They have even been shown to be transported to the brain via the olfactory nerve.

Another unique trait of the UFPs is their ability to trap and transport other harmful chemicals in the atmosphere, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons that are by products of automobile emissions, which could then lead to inflammation and associated detrimental health effects.

They too serve, who plough our lands

“For the sweat they put into farming, farmers get very little rewards.”

Amidst the pandemic, there is one group of unsung essential workers - the farmers. They put food on our tables and keep us moving. Living in rural England, I regularly witness how much they contribute to our existence. Whilst, the country has almost come to a standstill, I observe life going on as normal in the fields.

During my daily walk as part of my exercise, I see  farm machinery ploughing the fields, yet others sowing, and am hopeful of also seeing the mighty combine harvesters  bringing

in the crop in the future- a sign that everything will be all right. I see hedgerows that form beautiful chequered patterns on the fields, and verges on the sides of the fields faithfully managed, so that wildlife can thrive. In my walks, I often see pheasants, quails, hares, and rabbits. The scene could be almost from a Constable painting, only with modern implements, set to the tune of Gerald Finzi’s ‘Eclogue’.

Life can be often tough for the farmers. In the last two decades, diseases like BSE, foot and mouth disease, and bovine TB have wreaked great havoc on UK farmers. Farmers are also frequently victims to adverse weather situations like floods and dry summers. To top it all, is the lack of profit in farming. For the sweat they put into farming, farmers get very little rewards. An independent study showed that farmers make more from subsidies than from profit.Whilst, they may appear to be a steely bunch, several studies show that farmers worldwide are at severe risk for mental health disorders.

Farmers not only provide the food we eat, they also manage wildlife habitats. Farmlands constitute the majority of our countryside. They are stewards of what makes our country ‘green and pleasant’. We really need to support them during and post-pandemic.

References:

1. https://fullfact.org/economy/farming-subsidies-uk/

2. Research trends in farmers' mental health: A scoping review of mental health outcomes and interventions among farming populations worldwide. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0225661

COVID -19 outbreak highlights human-wildlife conflict

Whilst most of the world is engaged in containing and preventing COVID-19, the coronavirus, infection, a key question remains unanswered- identifying the original source of the infection. Early investigations pointed to a fish market in Wuhan province in China, which also traded in live wildlife. The hypothesis is that the infection arose from animal X in the market that was traded in the market, a carrier of the virus (1). The virus had jumped species and then infected humans. Scientists are scrambling to identify the animal. Recently published research show that coronavirus in pangolin, the scaly anteater, is 99% identical to that found in the humans (2, 3). Pangolins are prized in Chinese medicine to the extent that they are in the brink of extinction (4,5). Amongst other wildlife traded in the infamous market traded also were live pangolins and pangolin parts. However, researchers are unable to prove conclusively that pangolins are the source of the infection. So the quest continues.

COVID-19 outbreak is an example of what happens when the finely tuned relationship between humans and wildlife is jeopardized. We have repeatedly highlighted human wildlife conflict in the pages of Ecoratorio(6,7) . Many animals, particularly wildlife are reservoirs of viruses and have co-existed in this manner for ages. However, when humans upset the fragile balance by encroaching the habitats of the wildlife which make either party enter the abode of the other, or when wildlife/wildlife parts are traded, these zoonotic viruses can infect humans. Regardless of whether pangolins are the source of the COVID 19 infection, the outbreak yet again points to the persistent sore that has remained untreated-wildlife trade. Indisputably, there are environmental and ethical reasons why wildlife must be respected. A blanket ban on trading wildlife should be enforced, not only on the trade of wildlife animals for consumption but also on their use in traditional medicine. Similarly, encroachment into wildlife habitats and deforestation should be prevented. Otherwise, calamitous consequences like the current COVID 19 would be commonplace.

References

1.https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses

2. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00364-2

3. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00548-w

4.https://www.nature.com/articles/141072b0

5 https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2019/06/pangolins-poached-for-scales-used-in-chinese-medicine/

6. http://ecoratorio.blogspot.com/2011/07/fine-line.html

7. http://ecoratorio.blogspot.com/search?q=virus